Negative Space Chevron Nails

Hey everyone! How was your weekend? 

I've been wanting to try some negative space nail art, so to make it easy I used some single chevron nail vinyls. Mine are pretty old, but here's a link to similar vinyls.

I started with my clear base coat, and once that dried I firmly pressed the vinyls onto the lower half of my nails. I used two Olive & June colors from their summer collection for this look. I have a blog post with swatches of the whole collection, and I do think a lot of the colors go nicely together for a design like this.

On the bottom half, I used two coats of Fierce & Loving, described as a fresh lilac. On the top half I used three coats of Honest & True, a pale blue creme. I gave my nails a couple minutes to dry and then carefully peeled the vinyls off, leaving behind the negative space in between the two colors. After a couple more minutes I applied the Olive & June top coat.  I love how these came out! I'd really like to try this look with a curved vinyl as well. What colors would you pick?

Have a greet week!

xoxo,
   Brooke

Nailtopia Nails are Nourished Kit Review

Hey everyone! How was your weekend? We had a ton of laundry and clean up to do around the apartment, so that took up most of our Saturday. We needed Sunday just to relax. The weekend ended way too fast!

Today I'm sharing a review of the Nailtopia Nails are Nourished Kit. I was gifted these products from Nailtopia Beauty as a part of their Nailtopia Maven Group. The kit retails for $10, and you can purchase it from Ulta.

I had only recently heard of Nailtopia Beauty, but I was really excited to partner with them after learning more about their products. Nailtopia's sustainable formulations are made with bio-sourced, plant based fruit & vegetables. Their biotechnology is a greener process that considerably reduces environmental footprint. 

The Nails are Nourished Kit includes:

• Raspberry Nail Nourishment (0.17 oz) to restore & rejuvenate nails.
• Raspberry Cuticle Hydration (0.17 oz) to replenish and re-hydrate cuticles.

Raspberry provides alpha-linolenic and Vitamin E to help nails and cuticles become hydrated and promotes regeneration of cells. Plant-based AHA/PHA helps to absorb the vitamins and strengthens, hardens, and conditions nails and cuticles.

 

The claims:
Nails are nourished after 2 weeks
Nails are improved after 2 weeks
Cuticles are softened after 2 weeks
Cuticles improved quality after 2 weeks

How to use:
1. Apply 2 coats of the Raspberry Nail Nourishment to bare nails. Let dry.
2. Apply 1 coat of the Raspberry Cuticle Hydration to cuticles. Massage in to achieve a better absorption.

My final thoughts:

I have to mention the scent of these products. They both have a very natural and pleasant raspberry scent upon application, which was such a welcome change from the usual chemical scent of nail products. The scent doesn't linger, which I also appreciate.

I had the Raspberry Nail Nourishment on for a week and have noticed that my nails, which are very prone to peeling, have been peeling less. Last night I removed it and re-applied, so we'll see if the improvement continues during week two. I'll also note that this product gives a really nice, healthy shine to the nails.

As for the Raspberry Cuticle Hydration, I love that it's applied with a brush to make for a less messy experience. I didn't find it to be greasy, and it dried fairly quickly. My cuticles have been noticeably more hydrated, something I'm desperately needing with all of the hand washing.

Overall, I'm really happy to have these non-toxic products that I feel good about using. I will definitely be putting together an order soon from Ulta to try some of their polishes!

Have a great week!

xoxo,

   Brooke

Essie Pastel Smoosh Nails

Hey everyone! So sorry for the long absence, I'm still trying to figure out how to work painting my nails into my new routine. A lot of the time I have been painting them - I just don't have the opportunity to take photos and share! If you follow me on IG, @manicurediaryblog, I tend to post there if I don't have the time for a full blog post.

I felt like doing smoosh nails again, but with a pastel twist. I grabbed a few of my favorite Essie shades: Baguette Me Not, Go Ginza, Bikini So Teeny, Blossom Dandy, and Hay There. 

I used one coat of Baguette Me Not as a base for each nail. The rest is super easy to do if you have a nail stamping tool and some sort of surface you can place drops of polish on. I actually have a nail stamping mat that I love, but you could easily use a piece of wax paper, saran wrap, or foil. I put a couple of drops of each color in one spot and then press the stamper down a few times, then gently press the design over my nail. Repeat for each finger, clean up any excess on your nails, add a top coat, and you're done! Sometimes I even like to jazz up my smoosh nails with some glitter or nail foil. 

Hope you have a great week!

xoxo,   

   Brooke