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Nicole Challenge Nail Art

February 18, 2014
Nail Art, Nail care, Nailpolish, Nicole by OPI, Obsessed
1 Comment

Yesterday I announced that I was participating in a new Nicole by OPI challenge that runs until February 25th (please head to twitter to tweet or retweet to help me win!), and today I wanted to share some more details about the nail art. 🙂

The challenge was to come up with a manicure to complement any of Carrie Underwood’s amazing songs using only shades from her new Nicole by OPI collection.
I chose the song “Before he Cheats.” Colours used (all from the Carrie Underwood for Nicole by OPI collection): Love My Pups, Carnival Cotton Candy, Some Hearts and American as Apple Pie, as well as the new 3-in-1 as my base/top coat:

NOPI_Carrie_contest_btls

Here is the mani before I added the nail art, with the beautiful pale nude Love My Pups on my index and ring (2 coats), red beauty American as Apple Pie on my middle, and deep pink crelly Some Hearts on my pinky:

NOPI_Carrie_contest_aAren’t the colours beautiful?

And the final look once I added striping tape and the topping colours (middle and pinky fingers done freehand, and index is a sponge gradient of American as Apple Pie and Carnival Cotton Candy):

NOPI_Carrie_contest_b_BfrHeCheats

Once again, if you happen to like my mani and are on twitter, would you vote for me by heading over to Twitter and tweeting or retweeting the following photo of my nail art, including my hashtag #Aire4Nicole?

Nicole_the Obsessed-1Everyone can tweet once as well as retweet once per day (that’s two votes per person, per day)!

Thank you! ~xo

(If you liked this post, please take a moment to ‘like’ this post or comment.)

Nicole by OPI Saran Wrap Mani!

February 15, 2014
Nail Art, Nailpolish, Nicole by OPI
8 Comments

Happy weekend!

Today I tried a saran wrap mani for the first time! I have seen this mani around a lot lately, and it seemed relatively easy with not many tools needed… so here goes…

I had been craving the gorgeous American as Apple Pie from Carrie Underwood’s (stunning!) Nicole by OPI collection for the past few days, and finally decided to use it as the base for my saran wrap manicure attempt. American as Apple Pie is a beautiful true red creme with an incredible formula – truly a one coater with an intense glossy finish. I have worn this shade multiple times already, which speaks to how much I love it (given the number of polishes I have, haha)! Below are two coats of this gem:

NicolebyOPI_AmericanAsAplIs that not a perfect, shiny red? Love!

Here’s what you need for a saran wrap manicure:

  • base coat and a good top coat
  • base colour
  • second colour in a complimentary or contrasting shade
  • saran wrap from your kitchen – cut into squares, one for each nail is best although I sometimes reused a piece
  • clean up brush or Q-tip

NOPI_Saranwrap_polishes

I started with a base coat of Nicole by OPI’s new 3-in-1 base/strengthener/top coat, and added one coat of American as Apple Pie. I let that dry naturally.

Once the colour is dry, work one nail at a time.

I applied a generous coat of At Least I Pink So from Nicole by OPI’s 2014 collection, a bright bubblegum pink creme. While still wet, I blotted the crumpled saran wrap on the wet polish to lift the pink/second polish. (Blot it a couple of times to get the desired effect.)

This seems easy however I found it lifted a bit too much at times, but thankfully the fix is easy: simply apply another coat of the second polish and dab the saran wrap on your nail again. For me, I found it best to let the polish sit for a few seconds after I applied it before blotting. Once all nails were done, I used my cleanup brush to remove some of the excess polish I got on my skin and cuticles. Because the effect can be a bit bumpy, I used two coats of top coat: first, a generous coat of the 3-in-1 to top my finished mani, and then I added a coat of Nicole by OPI’s new Quick Dry top coat.

Here is the finished result with each of the two polish bottles (click for larger images):

NOPI_Saranwrap_mani1NOPI_Saranwrap_mani2

And a macro:

NOPI_Saranwrap_mani_macro

I love the marbled effect that’s achieved!

So what do you think of my first saran wrap manicure? 🙂 If you liked this post, please take a moment to ‘like’ this post or comment!

~xo

 

(Products were provided for consideration and review. All opinions are my own.)

Nail Polish Canada: Valentine’s Day Nail Art Challenge

February 10, 2014
Glitter Gal, Nail Art, Nailpolish, Nicole by OPI, Obsessed
3 Comments

Given recent events, I did not think I would be up for participating in a Nail Art Challenge…

However, as I was playing around with the beautiful Carrie Underwood for Nicole by OPI polishes (will soon be on the blog), inspiration struck! I really wanted to do a simple gradient, so I sponged on three beautiful colours for a Valentine’s Day-appropriate mani that was perfectly my style. I hope you like it enough to vote for it on Nail Polish Canada’s contest page.

I used Nicole by OPI’s new 3-in-1 Base and topped that with 2 coats of the beautiful Color Me Country, a beautiful coral pink in an amazing creme formula that leans slightly jelly:

NicolebyOPI_Carrie_ColorMeCountryLook at that! Exactly what a girl needs to brighten her day. I cannot wait to wear this shade as it warms up – it’s exactly the kind of shade I really adore.

I then sponged on a three-colour gradient: the stunning cherry red American as Apple Pie towards the tips (you may have seen it on my Instagram feed – it’s incredible) and the deep pink Some Hearts in the middle, with a touch of the base colour Color Me Country towards the cuticles.

NOPI_NPC_Valentines_polishes

I used Glitter Gal’s fantastic top coat Gloss Boss to finish it all up, et voila:

NOPI_NPC_Valentines_mani

And a sunny pic:

NOPI_NPC_Valentines_mani2

What do you think of the end result?

If you like my nail art, would you vote for me on the Nail Polish Canada challenge page?

~xo

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