Mint Magic by Pop Beauty

Mint nail laquer is always a great pick-me-up, especially now that winter is coming to a close.  Pop Beauty has the perfect colour,"Mint Magic." Pop Beauty's nail laquer glides on nicely and the colour really pops even after one coat!  What I love about this product is that it is Toluene, Formaldahyde, and DBP free.  I found this nail laquer at Ulta but you can find the complete collection on http://www.popbeauty.co.uk.  Don't forget to glam up your Pop mani with some nail stickers!  I used gold skulls and rhine stones, you can never go wrong with that!!

Black and White Pattern Nails

Do you need a change for fall?  Why not give yourself a black and white pattern manicure.  There are easy ways to create a professional look without spending a lot of money in the process.  Here are three different methods to create this pattern look. To achieve this manicure you'll need to use a dotting tool-for the dots, nail tattoos-for the butterflies, and nail wraps-for a metallic looking nail.

To start the pattern off paint the pointer finger white and the pinky finger black.  Once the nails dry put black polka-dots on the white nail and white polka-dots on the black nail.  Make sure you keep the dots looking the same on each finger.  The polka dot nails give a great pop to the manicure.  The opposing colors create contrast, while the same polka-dot pattern creates consistency.

To continue the black and white pattern use Dashing Diva butterfly nail tattoos.  I put the tattoos on my thumb and ring finger to create the pattern effect.  There are benefits to nail tattoos that you don't get with other methods.  First of all nail tattoos are easy to apply and easy to clean. Also, nail tattoos can be cut up to the shape you want and applied using a wet cloth.  The nail tattoos are also beneficial since there are many details in nail tattoos that are hard to achieve by hand.

Some of the finer details in the butterfly tattoos are silver sparkle accents.  To compliment the silver in the nail tattoo I decided to add a silver ebuy nail wrap over the last nail.  The nail wrap has a transparent polka dot pattern so you can see the white nail polish underneath. The nail wrap is easy to apply.  All you have to do is wait till your manicure is dry then peel off the nail wrap.  Apply the wrap like you would a sticker, with the sticky part down- line up the round end of the nail wrap with the bottom of the nail.  Then add pressure starting from the bottom of the nail bed and rubbing up to the free edge.  Once the nail wrap is smooth file off the excess part.

After the last nail is done, go back and apply a top coat to all nails except the nail wrap.  The nail wrap doesn't need a top coat. Once the nails are dry you can go out and enjoy your new fashion statement.  Make these nails pop by carrying a small black leather clutch.  After all, half the fun of a black and white pattern manicure is picking out accessories to match!

Dashing Diva's Butterfly Tattoos

ebuy's Nail Wraps

Dashing Diva Nail Tattoos

Dashing Diva Nail Tattoos are the best way to liven up a dull manicure.  I really like the Royal Flush nail tattoos, they lookk good with a varitety of outfits. You can use the tattoos all at once or just for an accent nail! For my manicure I used one tattoo design for the accent nail.

Dashing Diva Nail Tattoos are easy and fun to use.  There are twenty tattoo tabs in each packet.  The nail tattoos can be applied over nail lacquer, gel nail polish, gel or acrylic. So plan out a fun manicure that will make the nail tattoos pop.  I painted four nails black while painting my ring finger white.  Once my manicure dried I followed these steps to apply a nail tattoo over the white lacquer:

1. Pick a tattoo design and tear the tattoo on the perforated lines. 
2. Peel the clear plastic off the tattoo.  
3. Dampen the tattoo with a wet cloth.
4. Gently place the tattoo design down onto your nail and make sure the design is lined up how you want it.
5. Take the damp cloth and press it down over the tattoo for 10 seconds.
6. Slowly peel the tattoo away- if there's any tattoo design hanging off the nail, file it off.
7. Wait a couple minutes for the tattoo to set.
8. Depending on the type of the manicure, finish off the tattoo with a glossy top coat, a gel polish top coat, or a gel/acrylic overlay.

*To add some sparkle to the nail tattoos, I glued a red heart rhinestone over the tattoo heart using nail glue.  

Minnie's Shoes!

DIY Minnie Mouse Shoe

Nail Laquer used from left to right;
OPI Minnie Style: ArtClub Nail Art Duo Red: ArtClub Nail Art Duo White:
CND Vinylux Weekly Top Coat: CND Vinylux Bicycle Yellow

After giving yourself a yellow manicure using CND Vinylux in Bicycle Yellow  paint the Vinylux Weekly Top Coat over it and let the manicure dry.  Once your manicure dries follow these steps to paint Minnie Mouse's shoe:

1. Take a nail art brush dipped in black laquer and paint a black oval shape over the yellow manicure.
2. Trace the black oval with white using ArtClub's Duo pen.
3. Use the white ArtClub Duo pen to paint a strap in the center of the shoe.
4. Dip your nail art brush in yellow laquer and paint over the white strap--leave some white showing.
5. Dot the red laquer at the end of the shoe strap.  This will be the shoe button.
6. At the top of the nail, paint a red triangle using the Duo pen.
7. Paint another red triangle so now the two triangles are forming a bow.
8. Connect the two red triangles with a red dot.
9. Take a toothpick and pick out the white confetti from OPI's Minnie Style and place the white confetti over the red bow.

After the manicure dries for ten minutes you can finish it off with a sealer if you'd like.  You can also use CND Vinylux Weekly Top Coat  but it does give the manicure a matte look.

Nail Laquer of the Week: CND Vinylux in Bicycle Yellow

DIY Minnie Mouse

dotters I used