Black and White Challenge Day 4 - White Base with Color

It is time of another Black & White Challenge. For day 4, the challenge is to create a manicure with a white base and some color accent. Inspiration for this was in the form a bracelet given to me a while ago by a friend. I really like the symbols and flowers on it as well as how beautiful the blue looks against the white. I started out with Wet 'n Wild French White Creme and stamped the round symbols using Sinful Colors Midnight Blue and Bundle Monster plate BM-224. When stamped the blue is lighter than I would have liked, but not too bad. I then added the flowers using Midnight Blue, white acrylic paint, and a dotting tool...

I would love to know what you think of this manicure and where do you get your inspiration?

NOTE: This is a scheduled post. I appreciate all your comments and will respond as soon as I return from my trip! Thank you in advance for commenting :D

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Zoya Gems & Jewels Recap...

Maybe I shouldn't call this a recap since I'm about to show three new manicures, but I did use the same polishes, so hopefully you'll let is slide ;). These manicures were inspired by a mermaid manicure done by Marta of ChitChat Nails. I just fell in love with it and had to try it. Since the Zoya's Gems & Jewels polishes were all still sitting on my desk, I thought it would be fun to try them. I think they turned out pretty cute although I wish I would have sponged the glitter on rather than using a brush...

Zoya Holly & Rina
For the base I used two coats of Zoya Stephanie, a great sheer that I love to use for french manis. Then I stamped over it with Holly using Bundle Monster plate BM-208. The same plate that I used in my original Holly/Rina manicure. I panted the tips with Rina, which for some reason is the hardest of the glitters for me to work with. I couldn't get a nice thin layer of it. Next time, it will be sponged on for sure. You can see swatches of Holly & Rina here (in case you missed them a few days ago). It makes me think of a sports field. If I ever need grass for nail art, this would be a good place to start...

Zoya Izzy & Kissy
Next up is the pink version of the mani. Again, I started out with two coats of Zoya Stephanie. I stamped with Izzy using Bundle Monster plate BM-209, same as for the original Izzy/Kissy mani. See how they all tie together? Tips were painted on using Kissy, the most holographic of the three glitters. Everything was topped off with a thick top coat to tame the glitter. You can see swatches of both of these polishes on their own here. This one turned out so sweet...

Zoya Noel & Twila
And I saved the best for last because again the Noel/Twila combo turned out to be my favorite. You can see swatches of each of them here. For this mani, I started out with surprise, surprise two coats of Zoya Stephanie. Stamping was done using Noel and Red Angel plate RA-108. Tips were then added using Twila. Everything was topped of with a nice layer of top coat and voila... :)

I think the metallic/foil properties of the Holly, Izzy and Noel made them great for stamping. I'm really pleased with the result. I hope you like it!

As a note of warning, when using these bar glitters for tips or a full mani, make sure there are no bars sticking out on edge of the nails... they are sharp little things :D

Let me know what you think :)

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Zoya Holly & Rina

I couldn't wait to try the Zoya Gems & Jewels collection when they came in the mail. The glitters in particular are so unique in my collection that I had to test them out. This is Zoya Holly and Rina. Lot's of photos, so I'll get on with the show :)

Holly
A rich holiday green with green shimmer. It has a hit of a metallic aspect to it, very pretty. Application was great, two coats for full coverage. This is two coats with a top coat...

Swatch Details
	Brand: Zoya Collection: Gems & Jewels (Holliday 2011) Color Name/Number: Holly, ZP577 Number of coats: 2 Top Coat: Yes Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP), Camphor

Rina (over Holly)
A complex glitter consisting of as far as I can see small green glitter, green bar glitter, and holographic bar glitter that flashes blue. It was difficult to capture the holographic and blue flashes with the camera but they are certainly there. You can see one in the bottle that decided to be photogenic. It looked like pine needles on my nails. Very interesting. Click the photos to zoom in for a closer look. This is two coats plus a top coat of Rina over the above two coats of Holly...

Swatch Details
	Brand: Zoya Collection: Gems & Jewels (Holiday 2011) Color Name/Number: Rina, ZP576 (over 2 coats of Holly, ZP577) Number of coats: 2 Top Coat: Yes Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP), Camphor

I thought it would be fun to stamp this with a pattern so I used Wet 'n Wild Black Creme and Bundle Monster plate BM-208.

Let me know what you think! Have you tried bar glitter before?

More from this collection tomorrow...

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)