Dream Within A Galaxy

Hi everyone! Today's blog post will be a short one as it's a simple look I created for a Glam Nails Challenge prompt (galaxy). I was going to try classic galaxy nails but didn't really have time so decided to use magnetic polish and stamping for a galaxy effect instead. I started with one layer of magnetic polish and then another which I magnetised with a bar magnet. Once dry I added images from the Bundle Monster Kelli Marissa stamping plate in metallic silver. I finished the look with a glossy top coat. I like it - simple yet effective I think! The magnetic effect has spread out a bit over time but I like both the original and current versions.

Colours used: Dream Within A Dream - Cirque Colors, Foil Effect in Silver - Barry M

Help From a Magnetic Seal

Hey space turtles. Tried something a bit different with this look. I've seen a lot of people on Instagram using magnets to create a stripy effect with magnetic nail polish and thought I'd give it a go. I chose my adoptive son Ray to help with this task (my parents adopted a lovely seal for me from the Cornish Seal Sanctuary for Christmas). I've included a picture of my Ray fridge magnet below - looking splendid!

I started with a layer of beige polish to add some opacity. Meanwhile I had some decals drying on my Uber Mat. I placed magnetic Ray under the mat and then painted nail polish over the top in three different shades (colours listed below the pictures). I then added a layer of clear polish over each decal. Once dry I applied the decals to my nails, trimmed them and tidied the edges with nail polish remover before applying a clear top coat.

As you can probably see from the pictures there is rather a lot of bubbling! It happened once I added the top coat but it was too late for me to do anything about it at that point. I found it quite hard to apply the decals flat as they were quite stiff and were not sticky side down. I probably should have applied a sticky top coat to help them adhere better. I think this was a fun look but I could definitely work on my technique!

Colours used: Paradox - Cirque Colors, Dream Within a Dream - Cirque Colors, Mood Ring - Cirque Colors

A dream within the forest

Good evening space turtles! The title of this blog post is a play on the name of the purple magnetic polish I've used for this look - Dream Within a Dream by Cirque Colors. I was inspired by mullemaus1281 on Instagram to create this look. It was pretty simple to do. I started with a layer of base coat and of purple magnetic polish, then added a further layer which I magnetised. The magnetic effect has spread out a bit as you can see below so I don't have as much of a crisp magnetic effect, but I like this effect in it's own right. I added images from Mo You London's Noel 06 stamping plate in white and then finished the look with a glossy top coat.

I like how these turned out. They may not be quite like the original but I like them in their own way. It was fun using a magnetic polish again too.

Colours used: Dream within a dream - Cirque Colors, Essential White - Uber Chic

How Polarizing

Hello space turtles! It's getting cold again here in the UK and I have some more frosty wintery nail art to share. This one is for the Arctic Animals Glam Nails Challenge prompt and I'm also trying out a new magnetic nail polish I got for Christmas - How Polarizing from KB Shimmer. I couldn't get as a strong a magnetic effect as I'd hoped for but its still a gorgeous polish and I can try again another time.

I started with two layers of the base polish (magnetising the top layer) before adding the images. I used Mo You London's Enchanted 05 stamping plate and silver magnetic polish to add images directly onto three of my nails. On the other two I used a dotting tool to remove the excess image from the stamper and just added the walrus and narwhal images directly onto my nails. I then added some stars from the same plate over the magnetic effect. Much as I'd have liked a stronger magnetic effect I do love these - they're very me!

Colours used: How Polarizing - KB Shimmer, Foil Effect in Silver - Barry M

Rainbow Nails for Porto

Hi Space Turtles! I'm back after a week away in the beautiful city of Porto in Portugal. These where my holiday nails (along with the Aperol Spritz ones I shared before). I took inspiration from me.time.manis on Instagram who created a gorgeous rainbow look with the Bubbly Collection from Cirque Colors. I decided to attempt a recreation as a fun holiday look and I love it! It's a great collection and the colours are so fun together.

I started by unscrewing the gaps on the ones I wanted to use on the nail I was working on, then applied a line of colour of each polish gently, trying to blend or overlap them slightly without the brushes getting contaminated with other colours. I then held a magnet over the top for 30 seconds. Once all nails were dry I repeated the process with a second coat. I probably didn't need to magnetise the first coat in the end but thought it might help.

I wish I'd managed to blend the colours a little better and perhaps managed to get a better magnetic effect but I did know that would be tricky with the multiple colours as they dry so fast. Despite this I do love these. They are such a fun and bright colour combination and perfect for holiday nails!

Colours used: Aperol Spritz, Sparkling Yuzu, Soda Shoppe, La Dolce Vita, Helter Seltzer, Fizzing Lifting Drink - All Cirque Colors

Ode to Aperol Spritz

Hi everyone! Today I'm sharing some nail art which is not for an Instagram challenge for once! I've had the idea of doing some Aperol Spritz nails since I got Cirque Colors Bubbly Collection. It's my favourite drink - it's so yummy, a great colour and reminds me of holidays (we first tried it in Venice). I have also had a bit of a thing for orange nail polish for a year or so, so I'm really loving this polish!

I started with two coats of cream on my middle and thumb nails and Aperol Spritz on the other two. I used a bar magnet to get the magnetic effect and did this on both layers. I love the way the layers of holo shine through when I move them in the light. I stamped the multiple cocktail image directly onto my nails in black and created decals for the two glasses and the wording. The cocktail and glass images are from Uber Chic's Bottoms Up plate and the wording is letters put together from Mo You London's Typography 04 plate. I added oranges from the UC plate using Aperol Spritz which worked surprisingly well as a fun background image colour.

I'm pleased with how these came out, They are fairly simple to look at but the process was a little different for me in terms of adding images together to make decals etc and I like the simple colour scheme. Love the orange polish too - both the style and the name! I suppose this look isn't really an ode to Aperol Spritz as I think that would be a song or poem... but it's certainly a tribute!

Colours used: Aperol Spritz - Cirque Colors, Cream Soda - Barry M, Black Stamping Polish - Dance Legend

Cirque Colors Bubbly Collection

Hello from a very sunny England! Preparing for possible record breaking temperatures over the next few days! These nail pictures are from a weekend away we had in the Cotswolds last weekend which was delightful! I sat out in the garden and tried out Cirque Colors new Bubbly Collection while we were there. It's a six piece collection of linear holo magnetic polish in some gorgeous shades which are on the sheer side with a holo streak running through once magnets are applied.

I'm not going to talk through each shade here (though I've listed them below the pictures) but just give a bit of an overview of my thoughts in general. I adore the colour palette here. The colours are somehow perfect summery even though they're not bright or pastel, I think they made my nails look like coloured glass beads! I started with one coat of polish on all nails then added a second coat and only applied the magnets to that coat. I didn't get that much of a magnetic effect on most of them which I think was down to user error. I wonder if the effect would have been better magnetising both layers given the sheer element to the polish.

On one of my thumbnails I tried a gradient effect which I really like, would definitely like to do more gradients with these polishes. The magnetic effect definitely came out better on my thumbnails though I don't think the pictures do it justice. I would definitely recommend these! I think Aperol Spritz is my favourite. I have a bit of a thing for orange nail polish at the moment and it's my favourite drink too! (Aperol Spritz that is, not orange nail polish :D)

Colours used: La Dolce Vita, Helter Seltzer, Soda Shoppe, Sparkling Yuzu, Aperol Spritz, Fizzy Lifting Drink - All Cirque Colors

Return of the Space Turtles!

Hey space turtles! Perhaps that's how I should address people now? Sometimes I call you nail people but perhaps you are space turtles? A few years ago I was inspired by Kim Joy on the Great British Bake Off to try some space turtle themed nails (after one of her many adorable bakes). While I loved the theme they didn't come out that well, so when Turtle came up as a Glam Nails Challenge prompt I decided to give it a go again but with different techniques.

I started off with two coats of Emily de Molly's magnetic polish Seventh Seal, which I ADORE! It's so beautiful, it looks even better in real life. Once dry I layered up turtle images from Mo You London's Atlantis 02 stamping plate and Uber Chic's Just Beachy stamping plate. I started with white so the turtles would stand out against the darker background. I finished up with some little stars and moons from Mo You London's Atlantis 04 stamping plate in silver. I finished the look with a glossy top coat.

So I love these! I keep looking at them, especially in bright lighting where the base colour really shifts. I like them so much better than my previous attempt and it has many of the components I love in a nail look (blue, ocean themed, cute, space themed etc). Maybe there will be a third set of space turtles :)
Colours used: Seventh Seal - Emily de Molly, White Stamping Polish - Rainbow Connection, Key Lime - Barry M, Watermelon - Barry M, Black Stamping Polish - Dance Legend

Frosty Tips

Hey nail people! More wintery nail art to share today for today's Glam Nails Challenge prompt which is frost. I started with a sheer pink base, then a few layers of sheer shimmery blue/purple (colours listed below pictures). Once dry I added a layer of Platinum Diamond magnetic topper and hover the magnet over each nail for 30 seconds. I repeated this with another layer to add a touch more sparkle. Following that I used Mo You London's Festive 02 and Noel 07 stamping plates and white stamping plates to add the snowflakes and frosty branches.

I saw this nail polish combination on ken.nails Instagram and loved it so much that I bought the shimmery blue/purple so I could recreate it! I don't think I added enough layers as hers looked better, but I do still love this - very frosty! I'm pleased with my choice of frosty images too. It is a shame I missed Wednesday's prompt of 'ugly sweater' but I'm just a little too busy at the moment. It's been a great month of themes!

Colours used: Butterfly - Fun Lacquer, Platinum Diamond - Fun Lacqufuner, White Stamping Polish - Rainbow Connection

Northern Polar Bear Lights!

Hi there! Another Glam Nails Challenge prompt today, this time it's polar bears. This cute little polar bear in a jumper image sprung to mind and I thought that would work well with a Northern Lights look. I was super excited to try out Cirque Colors Mood Ring for this look and I absolutely LOVE it! The shimmer and shift especially under bright lights is incredible! I didn't get quite as clean lines as I intended but I think it still works well.

I started with a layer of magnetic polish, followed by another which I used the magnet on to get the shifty effect. I then created a little polar bear decal on my Uber Mat, you can see how here. Whilst this dried I used star and moon images from Mo You London's Noel 06 stamping plate to create a night sky look. The polar bear is from their Noel 03 stamping plate. I finished the look with a glossy quick dry top coat.

So I love this one! I adore the base polish, and I think the simplicity of the look works well. It has depth from the magnetic polish and the little polar bear and stars make it a whole scene. I love Northern Lights things and cute things and wintery things - so this is a winner for me!

Colours used: Mood Ring - Cirque Colors, Foil Effects in Silver - Barry M, Black Stamping Polish - Dance Legend, Acai Smoothie - Barry M, Cream Soda - Barry M, Bronze Bae - Barry M

A dream within a dream for new year

Hi everyone and happy new years for tomorrow! I'm getting my new year nail art blog post out today as it will be my 100th blog post in 2021! The most I've done in a year before is 99 so I feel the need to beat that this year! There has definitely been a lot more nail art from me since the pandemic started! So this year my new years nail art was left a little to the last minute and I couldn't decide which of my lovely new nail polishes to use! Last year I did two looks I loved so had a lot to live up to this year. I decided to keep it simple and just to some stamping directly onto my nails.

I started with my favourite base coat (Nails Inc Nail Kale) and then a layer of magnetic polish I was excited to receive for Christmas (colours listed below pictures). Once dry I added another layer and had fun with my magnet trying out different patterns on each nail. The patterns have spread out a bit now as I left it a while before top coating but I actually quite like that, gives it a bit of a crushed velvet look. Next I used Mo You London's Festive 05 stamping plate (a real go to!) to add festive images, the clock face is my favourite. Once dry I added a quick dry topcoat, and marvelled at the magnetic flare! I'm really glad I chose silver to stamp with, I think these were easy to do and came out just as planned :)

Now to get ready for this evening! Wishing you a fabulous new year!

Colours used: Dream Within A Dream - Cirque Colors, Foil Effects in Silver - Barry M

Some well timed 1st frost nails!

Hi everyone! Got some wintery nail art to share today and I'm excited about moving closer to Christmas nail art! This look was for the Glam Nails Challenge prompt of First Frost, which was very fitting as it's just started getting frosty here in the UK and we even had some snow yesterday which is quite unusual for us in December, in the south anyway! I was totally crazy and went for a lake swim yesterday morning! I love wild swimming and I have done so in the autumn and been fine, but during frosty weather was perhaps a little too far for me!

For the first frost prompt I knew I wanted to try a beautiful look I'd seen on Pretty_Pawlished on Instagram. Mine isn't exactly the same as we had different snowflake images, but I'm really glad to finally get round to it! I started with a base of two layers of blue glitter (colours listed below pictures). I was impressed that I only needed two coats as the glitter was so densely packed. Once dry I added a glitter grabber layer, and then a layer of magnetic polish for that gorgeous colour shift! Finally, I used Mo You London's Festive 02 stamping plate to add some snowflakes towards the edges of my nails - followed by a glossy top coat.

In conclusion - I am very happy with these!! The nail polishes are simply gorgeous and combined (particularly under bright lights) they have the most stunning sparkle and colour shift! I actually bought the blue glitter because of seeing the original look on Instagram. I shall have to see with my work situation but I'd like to keep these on as long as I can!

Colours used: Lifestyle - Fun Lacquer, Fascinating - Fun Lacquer, White Stamping Polish - Rainbow Connection

Catstronauts!

Hey everyone! Back with another space themed Glam Nails Challenge prompt! The latest prompt was astronauts - I don't have a lot of astronaut images but thought these little cat ones would be perfect! 

I started with a base of Queen of Shade from Quixotic Polish. I wore this once before and wasn't that wowed by it and I can't think why - it's gorgeous! It's hard to do it justice in the pictures but it's a beautiful and unique polish, and the magnetic effect works so well. I used the Sci-Fi 10 plate from Mo You London for the cat images and the planets. For the stars on my ring and index fingernails I used the Kelli Marissa Bundle Monster plate.

This look was so easy to do and I absolutely love it! The base colour is so pretty and I love how it looks like the cats are playing with the planets. I particularly love the thumbnail though I struggled to get a non-blurry picture of it!

Colours used: Queen of Shade - Quixotic Polish, Foil Effects in Silver - Barry M