Beach Nails
Derek's brother and his girlfriend came to visit us over Memorial Day weekend, and we kicked off summer with a trip to the beach! This was actually the first time I've been to the beach in, I don't even know, over two years I think. Having grown up in Michigan, that just breaks my heart... Anyway, I had to honor the occasion by painting my nails accordingly!
I've seen this look a few times before, and I was super excited to give it a try. The tutorial that I followed most closely is by Janelle Estep on YouTube. I used Zoya Bar for the sand and Zoya Robyn for the water, and China Glaze White on White for the sea foam. I also threw in a thin coat of Zoya Sparkle Gloss on my right-hand water nails, but I didn't think to do that on my left hand.
Then at the beach, I just had to model my nails next to its matching scenery!
I'm especially proud of this last one:
We were at a small beach on Chesapeake Bay. Those rock formations in the background were all along the beach - apparently, they're there to keep the jellyfish out of the swimming waters during jellyfish season! Yikes! I miss the fresh waters of Michigan. :x
Maddie's Nails
Derek's brother's girlfriend (oh for Pete's sake, there HAS to be a faster way of saying that... can I just call her my sister in law?) loves my nail art. We've been saying for the past year that I'll do her nails when we get together, but it just never happens. This time, we had the benefit of a dining room table and my entire polish stash, so it finally happened!
She chose the bright green, Zoya Tilda, to match her bathing suit, and I used Zoya Nori to spice it up with the interlocking dots design. I absolutely love doing this design - it's so simple, but it looks so complicated and intricate when it's finished!
I like interweaving fingers with my friends when I do our nails.
I started polishing that night with my toe nails around 8 pm, and I finished with Maddie's nails around midnight! So much polishing! :)
Copycat Nails
The day I decided to swatch Zoya Oceane (a post which I have not published but will soon, I promise!), I knew that OPI My Gecko Does Tricks had to be paired with it in some nail art. So I got slightly less than creative and basically re-created Maddie's nails on my own. Do I get bonus points for owning the same colors in different textures?
I was pleasantly surprised when layering Gecko on top of Oceane on my left hand - one coat of Gecko is so sheer that I expected to need two coats, but the blue didn't show through the green at all with only one coat!
Layering Oceane on top of Gecko on my right hand left a pretty visible line, because of how thick Oceane is. I think in the future, I'll stick with the thinner color on top.
Macro, just because I love playing with my lens!
I meant to do a photo tutorial of this one, but I forgot. Maybe I'll just have to do this design again some time soon so I can show you how easy it is! (Don't worry, I'll pick a different color scheme if I do.)
That's it for nail art today! What do you think? Which is your favorite? Have any of you tried the alcohol-spray watermarble technique to get a design similar to the sea foam design before? Let me know in the comments!
Wow, Kate, your photos are BEAUTIFUL! I love, love, LOVE your hand in the sand AND your hand in the water! Absolutely stunning. The mani is beautiful and fun, too, but your photos! Wow. Your mother must be very proud of you! ;-)
ReplyDeleteAww, thank you! I have a pretty good idea that my mother IS proud of me ;) My hand in the water is definitely one of my favorite nail pics ever.
DeleteAlso, p.s., I had no idea how different nail art can look with different layerings, as you show with the Gecko & Oceane mani. Makes sense, but I do not have the patience or desire to test various layerings, so I especially appreciate it when nail artists like you do. If my first attempt at nail art doesn't look right, I remove the polish in a huff and slather on a single color. No, if I'm going to attempt nail art, I need detailed instructions and step-by-step photos and... "twenty-seven 8x10 colored glossy photographs with circles and arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one explainin' what each one was." Haha, sorry. Alice's Restaurant came to mind, and why not? Most of my attempts at nail art turn into a masacree. :D Anyway, if you don't mind my saying, your blog posts and photos are looking more professional than ever! Well done!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I've definitely been there with nail art frustration. As a rule of thumb, you generally want the thinner/lighter polish to go on top, but there are always exceptions. You could always test it out on a fake nail or a piece of paper to make sure that the layering will work out before you bother putting it on your nails!
Delete*blushes* Thank you so much! That is a wonderful compliment and I'm very glad to hear it. <3