It All Ends: Harry Potter VS Voldemort

I'm a huge Harry Potter fan and I had to do an honorary manicure for the last theatrical release of the series. I am pressed for time, so am doing a condensed version of materials used in order to the the photos to you on this day! I marbled the house colors of Hogwarts and hand painted my version of Harry and Voldemort. In my opinion, Harry looks like he's been stung with a stinging jinx, but I've never claimed I could really draw very well.....

Right Hand:

Left Hand:

Left Thumb:

Right Thumb:

Griffindor colors: Zoya Paris and China Glaze Passion

Slytherin colors: Ulta Envy and China Glaze Platinum Silver

Hufflepuff colors: Zoya Pippa and China Glaze Liquid Leather

Ravenclaw colors: OPI Yoga-Ta Get This Blue and China Glaze Ingrid

Harry Potter: From Zoya: Skye, Paris, Dove, Tamsen, Kelly. From Ulta: Envy, Black Diamond. From China Glaze: Below Deck and White On White.

Voldemort: From Zoya: Dove, Kelly, Tamsen, Paris. From Ulta Black Diamond. From China Glaze Liquid Leather and White On White.

Beauty In Darkness

I painted this manicure purely experience and mood based. I don't get into too many personal details on this blog, but I will share a small piece of me in this post. I have been on a bit of an emotional roller coaster this weekend/week due to a death in my family. Today my aunt lost her battle with cancer. It was expected, but death is always sad no matter what you think you are prepared for. Yesterday I had just come from what was, as I know now, my last visit with her. My family was in a state of wait as we did not know when her last day would be. As I sat thinking about what to paint on my nails when I came home that evening, I was overcome with mixed emotions. Sadness over an upcoming loss and what it means for my family, her children, her husband but a desire for relief of her suffering and an overwhelming sense of beauty and gratitude for the life that she lead as my second mom. Death can be both: dark and beautiful. This was my reflection of that.

Unfortunately these pictures don't do this manicure justice. I really love it, it's very beautiful. However, these pictures were taken after a full day of wear (and a long swimming pool adventure) so you can see some wear.

I painted three coats of Zoya Kelly and then added nail decals from Sienna Diamond Nails sheets NA-04 and NA-10. I then used my new Bundle Monster plate BM-224 with Konad Special Nail Polish in White. One coat of Seche Vite was used for the top coat.

Beware Of Snakes

I purchased the latest Bundle Monster set and had to try them out. What has improved with this round of plates is the size of the design. Previously the designs on each plate were pretty narrow; now they have widened and I find them much more user friendly. Besides wider images, they now have a paper backing, which in my opinion makes them easier to hold and seem more sturdy in their composition. Back to the manicure, it turned out well! It's bright, shiny and looks like snake skin.

Attempt to show the sparkle:

I first painted three coats of Zoya Pippa. I then sponged a layer of each Orly It's Not Rocket Science, China Glaze Kiwi Cool-Ada and Pippa. I stamped with plate BM-215 using Konad Special Stamping Polish in Black. For added shimmer, I coated the entire manicure with China Glaze White Cap and a top coat of Fast Forward Top Coat.

Stars and Stripes

Time for another holiday manicure. It's Independence Day here in the U.S. and to be patriotic, I am going with a "stars and stripes" motif. It took a few attempts on color combos and what worked with marbling, but I very much like how it turned out. So if you are celebrating with me, enjoy the fireworks and have a safe and happy holiday!

Right Hand:

Left Hand:

Left Side:

I first painted three coats of China Glaze Cheers To You and and then stripe marbled (aka not swirling marble colors) with Go Crazy Red and Midnight Mission On top I used Bundle Monster plate BM21 with Konad Special Stamping Polish in White, then coated it all with Seche Vite.

Grayflower

I needed something simple and easy. This fit the bill perfectly and ended up being so pretty in its understatement. Plus I love that gray has become a popular manicure color!

I painted three coats of Zoya Harley and added design from Konad plate m75 with Special Konad Stamping Polish in White. I used one coat of Seche Vite for the top coat.

Sensory Overload

This manicure was the result of a vague idea of a sort of patchwork manicure. I just started to paint freely random patches of colors and this is what the result was. Of course, then I took it one step further and added the loose glitter and on top of that added a glitter top coat. Needless to say, it was a very bright manicure but I'm not sure I loved the results--but that's what happens when you experience sensory overload.

As I said, I randomly painted small sections on my nail with the following colors: Zoya Breezi, Mira, Pippa and China Glaze Heli-Yum. I then added LA Splash Cosmetics Nail Glitter in Dry Ice to each nail and then one coat of Ulta Pinata-Yada-Yada. One coat of Seche Vite was used for my top coat.

HInt Of Lime

I had an idea of doing a gray scale water marble with one pop of color. This was vision come to life. I loved this marbling and it was fun to look at!

Left Hand:

Right Hand:

I first painted two coats of China Glaze Cheers To You and then marbled China Glaze OMG, Celtic Sun, Zoya Kelly and Dove. One coat of Seche Vite gave the final seal and shine.