Graduation Nails

Hello Lovelies!
Today's post is how I did my nails for my sister's high school graduation.  Before I begin, I just want to say how proud I am of my sister.  She is one of the hardest working people I have ever met.  She is going to the same school as me in the fall, which is very exciting :) These are not my school colors (which would have been a good idea but I didn't think about that), but they went well with my dress.  Enjoy!

I started with a base of two coats of OPI Antibreak.  Then I used my Kiss art polishes in gold and black to add the stripes.  I am personally proud of myself for how straight I made those lines.  It's something so much more simple than you might think.  I hope y'all enjoy this cute look, and have a magnificent Monday!
~ Mary Elizabeth
Ps Here's some pictures of my sister's graduation!

Crosshatch Nude

Hello Lovelies!
I hope y'all are having a fantastic day so far! Today I am doing my first actual nail post in quite some time.  Sorry about that, but I've had a pretty busy life (as you may recall from my last update).  Today I wanted to share with you a crosshatch design I saw on pinterest.  It's super easy but cute at the same time.

I started with a base of OPI Steady as She Rose.  I used two coats, but I probably should have used three.  It came out a little thinner than I thought it would.  I like this polish because it is flattering on my skin tone and is very work appropriate.  For the crosshatch I used my Kiss nail art polish in black.  I'll leave a link to the actual tutorial here since it's a little difficult to explain.  One disappointment I had is that my Seche Vite top coat smudged my nail art.  If any of you know of a quick dry top coat that won't smudge designs let me know in the comments below!  I think this is a really cute and simple way to incorporate nail art into your nail routine.  Hope y'all enjoyed, and have a fabulous Friday!
~ Mary Elizabeth

Valentine's Day Ideas

Hello there!
It's that time of year again  and I have some nail designs to share that you might like to try!  These are just fun, Valentine's Day themed nails that are simple and time friendly.  Hope you give them a shot!

 This first design is based on something I found on pinterest.  I used two coats of Zoya Mickey as a base color.  Then I used Essie Penny Talk for the french tips.  In the pinterest post they used tape to get the french tips, but I just kinda freehanded it.  This takes very little time if you have a steady hand.

This next design is my favorite of the two.  I used OPI Steady as She Rose as the base.  Then I used one of my dotting tools to plave two dots next to each other on the nail.  Then I dragged the dots together to a point in order to make the hearts.  For this I used OPI It's All Greek to Me.  Warning: I would wait a bit for the hearts to dry before applying top coat.  I smudged one of the hearts on my thumb because I used top coat too soon.  I love how cute and simple this one is.

I hope you get a chance to try one or both of these out for Valentine's Day!  If you do, I would love to see a picture of your take in the comments.  Have a terrific Thursday!

~ Mary Elizabeth

Spring Trend Tribal

Good morning lovlies!
This week I got an exciting package in the mail: my first roll of striping tape! So I decided to break it in by creating this tribal design.  Hope y'all enjoy!

I started off with two coats of China Glaze Keep Calm, Paint on.  This is a really pretty, shimmery mint color.  The I placed two small pieces of striping tape on my nail, one just above the tip and the other diagonally from the top of the first.  I then painted a coat of China Glaze Mimosas Before Manis.  These two colors are so in this season! Next I used my black Kiss nail art polish to outline the tape lines, create the zigzag, draw stripes, and add polka dots.  I used my Francesca's gold nail art polish to make the gold line along the top and used my gold Kiss glitter to fill in the black stripes.  I had a lot of fun making this design!

I hope y'all enjoyed this look, and have a wonderful Wednesday!

~ Mary Elizabeth

Mod Mint

Hey Everyone!
I am super excited about today's post!  This is a design I found on pinterest, and I thought it would be fun.  It takes a while to do, but it was totally worth it!  Enjoy!

The base color I used is Julie G Gelato in Venice.  I love the formula of this polish! It is a little thick, but it goes on quite smoothly.  For the white on my middle finger and pinky, I used OPI Alpine Snow, which I desprately need a back up of.  I used a thin nail art brush to draw diagonal lines across those two nails.  I then used the normal polish brush to fill in the top two triangles.  I let that dry and then used my Kiss nail art polish in black to create the other diagonal lines.  This creates an argyle effect.  For the other three fingers I used the same base color and used OPI Berlin There, Done That on one third of  each nail.  I used my silver Kiss nail art polish to add the almost plaid look to the nails.  As you can see, the design isn't perfect, but it was really fun to do and looks super cute :)
I hope y'all enjoyed, and have a terrific Tuesday!
~ Mary Elizabeth
"Your word is a lamp unto my feet, a light on my path" Psalm 119:105

First Try: Feather Freehand

Hello lovelies!
Today's post is another installment of my ongoing first try series.  I saw a design similar to this on pinterest and thought I would give it a shot.  I tried this feather design on two different nail looks.  The polishes I used are all Kiss nail art polishes in black, white, and silver glitter.  This is how it turned out!

 The first time I tried the feather on was a french manicure I was already sporting.  I used OPI Barre My Soul as the base color.  For the french I used OPI Alpine Snow.  I topped it off with OPI Happy Anniversery.  This added a slight shimmer and kinda cleaned up the edges of the french and places that I didn't get as crisp of a line as I would like.  This feather was my first attempt, and it didn't turn out quite as clean as I had planned.  But hey, not bad for the first shot!

This second look is a little more simple.  I used Pretty Please Preppy Pink as my base color.  The picture shows this as a much paler pink than it really is.  I was able to get a much prettier feather this time.  I feel like this looks really classy and spring appropriate.  
I hope y'all enjoyed this post, and I hope that this inspires you to try new things out yourself!  Have a lovely day!
~ Mary Elizabeth Curl
 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. Romans 8:18

Just Having a Little Fun :)

Hey Everybody!
So today's post is a mani that I did a few weeks ago that I didn't get a chance to blog about.  I was planning on leaving my nails solid blue, but I got a little carried away :) Hope y'all enjoy!

I started off with a base of OPI What's with the Catittude?  It takes a good 2/3 coats to get the color solid, but it's a pretty sky blue.  For the design, I used the black nail art pen I got from Franchesca's.  I started the design with just the edgy half moon. Then I decided to have some fun with the ring finger, so I did a kind of argyle design with dots in the middle.  I like the way it turned out, and I definitely got a lot of compliments on the design.
I hope y'all enjoyed this post, and if you have any questions or requests for posts you would like to see leave a comment below.  Have a terrific Thursday!
~ Mary Elizabeth

First Try: Tribal

Happy Sunday Everyone!
So today's post is another installment in my ongoing First Try series.  Yesterday I was trying to decide what I should do with my nails, and I decided I would give tribal nails a shot.  I hope you enjoy what I came up with!

First of all, I apologize for my nub of a middle finger nail.  This is the nail I broke last week.  Anyway, I started with a base of OPI Suzi's Hungary AGAIN! from the new Euro-Centrale collection.  I will do a review of the polishes I got from that collection soon.  Anyway, in order to create the tribal, I used the black art polish I got from Franchesca's.  Good things: I like the effect that I got with the way the lines go in and out of each other.  Bad things: my lines are a little shaky, and I ended up making my hands a little too symmetrical.  Other than that I really like how this turned out!  I had a fun time deciding what to do for this.  I hope y'all enjoyed, and if you have any questions feel free to leave a comment below.  Have a blessed Sunday!
~ Mary Elizabeth
Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 
1 Peter 5:6-7

Christmas Nails

Hello There!
So today I decided to share with you the two nail designs I did for Christmas! I love just about any holiday that has theme colors because I can do things like this.  I hope this gets you back into the Christmas spirit :)

 This nail design is the more complicated of the two.  For the base color I used Essie Clutch Me if you Can Zoya Frida on the ring finger.  I like Clutch Me if you Can rather than a stark red because it looks better on my skin tone.  Reds usually tend to wash me out, so I tend to go for a darker, more burgundy shade.  For the tips I used OPI Goldeneye from the James Bond collection.  This one is a little thin and flaky, so it took two coats to get the tips solid.  For the stripes I used my Kiss nail art polish in gold.  I topped it off with Sally Hansen Insta-dri top coat.

For this look I started with a base of OPI Care to Danse.  I always use sheer polishes like this one for french manicures.  I used Sally Hansen Diamond Strength in Honeymoon Red for the tips.  This is the exception to my no red rule.  For the glitter fade I used OPI Getting Miss Piggy With It.  This made a great glitter fade, oddly enough.  I thought the red would look weird on my nails, but it actually looked fantastic.  So there's my holiday nail fun!  I hope you enjoyed it, and have a wonderful week!
~ Mary Elizabeth

Green and Gold Freehand

Hey guys!
Today's post is a look that I did a few weeks back that I thought I would share with y'all.  I wanted to try out a gold nail art pen that I got at Francesca's (the same as the black one I talked about in my last post).  I hope you like what I came up with!

First of all, let me apologize about my broken pointer finger nail.  It broke not long before I did this mani, but it's back to normal now.  Anyway, I started with a base of OPI Here Today, Argon Tomorrow.  This is a nice dark green creme.  It takes about three coats to get a solid color.  Then, as I mentioned before, I used a nail art pen in gold for the stripes and stuff.  It is pretty difficult to get a straight line because you have to squeeze the tube and draw the line at the same time.  With that said, I really like how it turned out.  I topped it off with CND Air Dry top coat.  I hope y'all enjoyed this, and I hope you will try this out yourself!  Have a marvelous Monday!
~ Mary Elizabeth

(Late) Halloween Nails!

Hey Y'all!
So I know I'm super duper late on this, but I thought I'd show y'all how I painted my nails for Halloween last week.  I had a really fun time on Halloween.  My friends and I went to dance that was hosted by a guy in the music department on my campus.  I'll add pictures at the end of this post of us in our costumes at the end of this post :) Anyway, on to the mani!

Let me start by saying sorry there's only one pic.  I was on a bit of a time crunch.  I started with a base of OPI In My Back Pocket (I think.  It's a mini polish and it doesn't have a name on it).  For the stripes I used a nail art pen that I got from Francesca's.  I'm not quite sure of the brand, but any nail art pen will do.  I used Sinful Colors Black on Black for the thicker striped areas.  Finally I topped it all off with CND Air Dry top coat.  I plan on doing a review of this soon.  I hope y'all enjoyed this post, and I hope you had a happy Halloween!
~ Mary Elizabeth
Ps here are some pics from my Halloween festivities!

These are the school of the arts professors all dressed up as Harry Potter characters!  How cool are they?!

Me and my friends!  From left to right character names: neon girl, dude in box, Kevin and Rod from Hot Rod, hipster Harry Potter, and Kim Possible (me).  Ya we're cool :)

Sunny Side Up!

Hey everybody!
So this is my last week in my hometown before I go off to college.  I have been having a lot of fun with my friends this week.  So in honor of my last week of summer, I decided to do some freehand nail art!

So I started with a base of OPI Alpine Snow.  This makes the yellow pop a little more.  Then I used one coat of OPI Need Sunglasses? Once that dried I used an OPI orange (I don't know the exact name of it because it is a mini) to paint a sun on my ring finger.  I carefully created a curved line around the corner of my nail and filled it in.  Then I used dotting tools to create the rays.  I finished it off with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.  I had a lot of fun with this design.  I don't do a ton of freehand designs, so this one was extra special :) I hope you all enjoyed this post, and have a terrific Thursday!
~ Mary Elizabeth