Turn on the Water(color)works!

Nothing to DisclosePress Sample

I love finding inspiration in clothing and fabric patterns. I love their repetitive nature, and they often lend themselves well to nail art. :) A while back, they had a sale at work, and I bought this dress with the most beautiful design on the hem of the dress. Not only was the dress only $5, but I had nail inspiration too?! Total twofer! To get the watercolor effect, I painted the shape I wanted, and then while it was still wet, I dabbed it with a q-tip that was soaked in acetone. I'm super excited that the design turned out pretty much exactly how it looked in my head! :)

What's your favorite go-to for nail inspiration? Tell me in the comments below! :)

The actual dress I bought is no longer in stock, but here is a picture of it. It's the StyleStalker Aura dress in Lilac: 

I used:

White: Zoya Purity

Black: American Apparel Hassid

Various shades of purples/blues: 

Zoya Pinta

Zoya Mira

Morgan Taylor Making Waves

Morgan Taylor P.S. I Love You

Dermelect Phenom

Nails Inc Green Park

Topcoat: KB Shimmer Clearly On Top Quick Dry Top Coat

 

Disclosure: Some products in this post were provided for review by the manufacturer. Most were purchased by me. See the legal page disclosure for more information

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Tadashi Shoji Nail Art Challenge

All of us nail nerds look forward to Fashion Week, we can't wait to see what the heck the nail artists teamed up with the designers come up with. Imagine my excitement when I was contacted by someone from fashion designer Tadashi Shoji's team to participate in a nail art challenge inspired by his Spring/Summer 2013 collection - A Modern Silk Road. Fashion aside, to be grouped with the other amazing and talented nail artists that are participating is nothing short of completely flattering. (and overwhelming, how the heck am I going to measure up to these nail art giants!?!)

I'll be honest, I had a hard time with this- I actually LOVE the collection, it was hard to figure out which piece to draw inspiration from. I finally decided on this dress, I'm completely in love with the pattern and colors of this fabric.

Image courtesy of Vogue.com

I drew inspiration from the color palette, pattern, and straight lines/stripes/necklines that I saw through much of the collection. I used my nail art brush to roughly brush the colors on the white base color of the nail to mimic the print of the fabric. I also took the bright green color from the print and used it to add a pop of color at the base of the nail. I'm actually really pleased with how they turned out!

Vote HERE! :) 

(I'd love it if you vote for me!! lol) 

Don't forget, you can vote once per day!! :)

 

I used:

White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On
Green: Sally Hansen Grass Slipper
Blue: Pure Ice French Kiss
Turquoise: Zoya Robyn

Basecoat: Cult Nails Get it On
Topcoat:  Seche Vite

So what do you think?  Did I do a good job interpreting the fashion? If you think so,

VOTE HERE!! :)

(You can vote EVERY DAY!!)

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Off the Wall

I've been saving this design for a while now, because I have to wait for TODAY to do it. Why today, you ask? Because it's Chris' birthday today, and this design is tailormade for him...he LOVES Vans. LOVES. I mean the guy is a 42-year-old skateboarder for god's sake, it's kind of a natural fit. He even has a size 66  Vans shoe (no, really) that he keeps at the house. This thing is massive, and it is a large-scale version of a normal Vans shoe. Chris even got me hooked on Vans; as someone who suffers from foot pain from most shoes (even sneakers), the surf shoes are some of the most comfortable I've ever worn, and I've actually even worn a few pairs out. :D

Today's design is part of my way to celebrate Chris' birthday - the iconic checkerboard pattern, the "OFF THE WALL" logo, and the pattern from the sole of the shoes (both the waffle pattern as well as the pattern across the ball of the foot where it changes).

Join me in wishing a Happy Birthday to my better half! His age is the answer to the meaning of life, the universe and everything! :-P

I used:

Mustard: Barielle Aura Angora
Medium Brown: China Glaze Mahogany Magic
Dark Brown: Barielle Unraveled Rust
Camel: American Apparel Trenchcoat
White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On
Black: American Apparel Hassid
Red: China Glaze Hey Sailor
Topcoat: Seche Vite topcoat
Basecoat: Seche Vite basecoat  <----I'm adding this because I get asked so much what basecoat I am using.

This BIG shoe!!

The inspiration for part of  this manicure:

Image courtesy of Sneakerpedia.com

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Striped With Sophistication

I loooove sales. Love them. I love the thrill, the hunt, the attack. Why is this relevant, you ask? Well, let me tell you! Recently, I received an email in my Inbox like I'm sure several of you did, informing me of a Surprise Sale at Kate Spade. I love Kate Spade. I love the bright colors, the patterns, the simplicity. How could I pass up just a little peek? I couldn't, of course. I mean, for all intents and purposes, I'm broke. (I need to tell myself this so I can manage to save money—something that's hard for me!) :) Anyway, I did sneak a little peek, and while my (Kate Spade) wallet can sigh a little sigh of relief because I didn't buy anything, I came away from the website with some inspiration for a few new nail art ideas! :) Some are color combinations, some are patterns, some just made something else click in my head that was completely unrelated. So you're thinking, 'Hey Melissa...get to the point.' Right? OK, OK! Sheesh! :-D

Today's nail art was actually a color combination that I was inspired by. I thought it looked classy and elegant, but it had that awesome pop of color that I love so damn much! Well anywhoo- here ya go:

I used:

Camel - American Apparel Trenchcoat

Black - American Apparel Hassid

Orange - CND Electric Orange

Topcoat - Seche Vite

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Dress to Impress

Hi, I'm Melissa, I'm 31 (in a week), and I'm a Glee-a-holic.

I'm not ashamed, I love Glee. :-P While watching the season finale the other day, I noticed a dress that Dianna Agron's character, Quinn, was wearing, and decided it'd be a fun nail design. I searched the internet, trying to find an image of the dress, and turned up nothing...until I found a website called Fashion of Glee. OMG, you mean I can fulfill my dreams of having Emma Pillsbury's wardrobe?! (which appears to be almost solely Kate Spade, and I'm totally ok with that)  Anyway, I digress. Because of this website, not only did I have my photo of the dress, I now know where to get it!!!  (I can't afford it, but that's a different story! lol)

I used American Apparel Cotton as a base, with....

Blue: China Glaze For Audrey
Purple: Zoya Kieko
Green: American Apparel MacArthur Park and American Apparel California Trooper mixed
Yellow: American Apparel Manila
Topcoat: 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat

Which Glee character's style is your favorite? 

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Ace of Spades

So if you're a big Kate Spade nerd like me, you got an email last Tuesday with the pattern of the month for April. If not–you missed out, kid!  One of the things I love the most about Kate Spade bags and accessories is the amazing use of color, and the super fun patterns! My favorite Kate Spade bag that I've ever purchased is the Maeda bag in Pacific Blue- it looks super retro, and it's pretty much the exact color of a Pan Am stewardess bag! I was on the fence about it, because it was a tad more than I wanted to spend, but I'm so glad I ended up buying it!!  Anyway, the pattern of the month for April is a fun and swishy robin's egg blue over white/ivory, and I think it's totally adorable. :)

I decided to do my interpretation of the newest Kate Spade pattern on my nails to usher in Spring (although Spring was officially skipped here in Chennai, and it was pretty much summer in February). This pattern was created by Australian artist Florence Broadhurst.

To get an idea of the pattern, here's a bag with it:  Florence Broadhurst Fingers Bon Shopper.

And now, here's the nails! :)

Hey look!  It's my favorite Maeda bag! :) (the handles, at least)

I used Lakme Color Crush 08 (white) as a base, with American Apparel The Valley for the design. I topped it all off with two coats of Seche Vite top coat. :)

Are you a fan of handbags? Who makes your favorite? Do you have an all-time favorite bag purchase like me?

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