March 2013

Nail fail

Posted on Thursday, March 14, 2013

So I promised myself I would post every manicure, cute or not. In my head I was thinking about doing galaxy nails which I've done before, but this time I thought about including the moon. Then I made the connection, halfmoon galaxy nails! Well, I don't really know what happened from the vision in my head to the finished product but it just didn't work.

I tried just covering up my "moon" with a color I used in my nebulas but it still just, just no.

We win some we lose some right?

xoxo
chanelle

Gradient Houndstooth

Posted on Tuesday, March 12, 2013

I think this has to be my favorite design ever! My original plan was to try one of those reciprocal gradients that have been trending lately, but I just didn't feel like dealing with tape and waiting for the first "layer" of gradient to dry. So, for this look I started with a gradient of Sinful Colors Sugar Rush, Orly Blue Color, and Essie Baubing for Baubles. When I finished that I just kind of stared at them waited to think of something to do so I grabbed my black and white polishes and this is what I came up with.

I really like the contrast of the white on the gradient.

I did paint all the houndstooth on by hand, which took a while, but once I got the hang of it, I became much more proficient. By the time I got to doing my left hand I was kind of tired and just did the same print only much larger to save time.

What do you guys think?

xoxo
chanelle

Instagram

Spring, where are you?

Posted on Saturday, March 9, 2013

So, if you can't tell already I'm dying for spring to come. I'm ready to put the coats away and bring out the sundresses and shorts! I kept it simple this time by only using 3 bottles of nail polish instead of the 7 I had last time. I started this one kind of late so I wanted to make sure it had time to dry before bed. I scoured through some snapshots of designs I wanted to try and found this really cute one from @majikbeenz. I loved the simplicity of it and thought I'd give it a try. I opted to use Julep's Hayden, with Maybelline's Green With Envy as I'm obsessed with mint polish!

Dotted flowers are so cute, yet for some reason I never think to incorporate them into a design.

I really like the gold center, I think it adds a bit of sophistication to a somewhat childish design.

So, what do you guys think? Cute for spring or are these little flowers childish?

xoxo
chanelle

First Blog Award!

Posted on Friday, March 8, 2013

So this is pretty exciting news. I know its not much, but it shows that someone sees some potential in me! :) Lost In Lacquer nominated me for the Liebster Award. It's intended to recognize up and coming blogs with less than 200 followers.

First, the 11 facts about myself:

1. I'm vegetarian, and have been for about 4 years now.
2. I'm part Japanese, but you can't tell from looking at me :P
3. I am pretty much obsessed with Jalapeño Kettle Chips, I eat them almost every chance I get!
4. Unlike most people I actually enjoy running
5. I have a degree in Biology and have no idea what I'm going to do with it.
6. My top two favorite shows of all time are Fringe and Dexter, I've seen every episode more than once.
7. My favorite color is green
8. I love jewelry but I'm too lazy to ever wear it
9. I really really really don't like bananas
10. I love doing all kinds of DIY projects, whether its clothes, jewelry, or home goods.
11. This one is kind of weird, but I have never learned how to ride a bike.

And here are the 11 questions from my nominator:

1. What are your other hobbies?
DIY/crafts, watching movies, and naps haha, lots of naps
2. What's your dream job?
I think it would be awesome to own my own clothing line, but I could never deal with the fashion industry the way it is
3. Have any pets?
Nope, my boyfriend has a bird...does that count?
4. What's your favorite aspect of blogging?
At this point I really like that I can catalog all my work, and keep track of what inspired me to do certain looks and the colors that I chose.
5. What's your worst favorite color?
I really don't like the color orange, the only reason I even have any orange polishes is for rainbow looks, haha!
6. What's your favorite season?
I'd have to go with fall or spring, since there are so many fashion options!
7. How many bottles of nail polish do you own?
As of last week I'm at 141 bottles, not including base and top coats which would probably put me around 150. Could be worse, right?
8. What's something about you that most people don't know?
Well, I said this earlier, but that I don't know how to ride a bike. Most people are shocked and threaten to teach me at somepoint. We lived in a small apartment complex when I was young and we had limited places to even learn and now I have a car so it just seems unnecessary at this point.
9. What's your favorite book?
This may seem odd, but I don't really have one.
10. If you could meet anyone in the world, who would it be?
Me, five years from now...is that an options?
11. If you could have your dream wedding (if you want one), where would it be?
Hmm, this is hard, I don't really have a preference on the type of venue, but I do enjoy really old and elegant architecture.

xoxo
chanelle

Pastel Cutout Skittles

Posted on Saturday, March 2, 2013

Once again I gathered up my Sinful Colors Sugar Rush Collection to bang out some nail art. My original plan for this look was to make it a vertical gradient with the cut outs/bare nail. Once tryig it out on one nail I realized it would take an eternity since the gradient would need 3 or 4 coats. Instead I just free handed clean line down the center to the next color.

Glitter makes everything better, right?

I used two pieces of striping tape in the center so expose the bare nail.

As you can see I'm still trying to figure out lighting and photography (tips are welcome!). Practice makes perfect!

I finally was able to try Seche Vite top coat, and I'm in love, it dries SO fast. It does smell kind of weird, or is that just me? I'd love t see your fun pastel looks as I'm sure everyone is ready for spring!

xoxo
chanelle

@chanelleol

Bloglovin!

I officially have a bloglovin account and widget on the blog so now you guys can follow me there since I'm sure a lot of y'all don't have blogger accounts. In addition to that you can find nail pictures on my instagram @chanelleol!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

xoxo
chanelle

My Ever Growing Collection!

Posted on Friday, March 1, 2013

Well guys, as of right now I have 141 bottles of nail polish, not including base coats and top coats. Considering I only had maybe 10 a year ago, that's a lot. As my collection grew and grew I found I needed a way to organize and know which colors are which. I decided to use swatch sticks that I bought on ebay for a few bucks. Now, some of mine are clear, and some are a cream color, usually that would bug me but I got the clear ones in a reddit swap and decided to use them anyway. At some point I want to redo all the labeling because the permanent marker fades.

So here is the whole collection, I put them on those little binder rings to separate them by color and to make it easier to add new ones!