June Nail Art Challenge, Day 25: Nude

How's everyone doing today? My day hasn't been too exciting. Got a good work out in with my husband this morning at the YMCA. Our local Y is really nice and has cheap daycare. It's a total win since it gives T a chance to play with other kids (I'm a stay-at-home mom) too.

The little guy's been a cranky butt though. He hasn't really wanted to nap at all. He did finally take one this afternoon and bedtime is soon!

Anyway onto today's mani. I've been really loving nude manis lately.

For this one, I used a base of Essie Brooch The Subject and China Glaze I'm Not Lion. Then I freehanded the design using Cosmo Wild Thing (a neon pink I won about 2 years ago from Cosmo magazine) and Milani Fresh Teal.

If the mani looks familiar, that's because I was inspired by an awesome blogger! 

@PolishCandies does some great stuff so  be sure to check her out.

My nude day didn't turn out quite how I wanted it. And I'm Not Lion didn't agree with me and it popped off in sheets the day after I did this mani (I did it at night and I noticed one nail already missing that morning!)

Purple Plaid

I've been meaning to post this since Monday, but time has really gotten away from me.

I joined a group a few weeks ago where the focus is on becoming a minimalist. The general idea is to simplify your life so that you can better enjoy it. That can mean getting rid of belongings so you can find what you need more easily or so you don't spend so much time cleaning. It can mean cutting back on social media or television or whatever so you have more quality time with your family. It can mean cutting out those toxic people in your life so your thoughts aren't cluttered and wasted on them. It's about living life. I've been mostly focused on getting rid of  items in our home as well as decluttering those time wasters. A lot of this for me has been cutting back TV to those shows that I really like (which is still a lot to be honest).

Another project of mine/hobby is meal planning. I love cooking, but it's hard to when you've got a cranky toddler at your feet (bless those of you who do it with multiples!). It's a bit easier though as T had gotten older so I'm trying to find simple healthy recipes for me to cook.

So onto today's mani!!! Lol

It's simple and classy, yet fun. My colors are OPI Parlez-vous OPI? and L'Oreal Tea and Crumpets (which has a crappy stiff brush but I love the color). I used black and white acrylic paint as well.

Zoya Jules skittles

Base: Zoya Jules, two coats

Freehanded chevron with Wet n Wild Black Creme and added square black studs

Tea and Crumpets and Neon Studs

I ordered some neon studs not too long ago. When I was deciding what base to put them on, I thought L'Oreal Tea and Crumpets would be a good neutral base to show off the studs. I used either two or three coats of Tea and Crumpets.

I really like it because it's a nude-y/tan color with a touch of grey that makes it a bit unique.

June Polish Days: To Boldly Go

The theme for this month's Polish Days is To Boldly Go. Anything sci-fi goes for this theme.

I'm fairly new to the cult of Doctor Who (just started the 11th Doctor), but I've been wanting to do Doctor Who nails since I got hooked.  Doctor Who nails work perfectly for the sci-fi theme!

On my nails I painted (from index to pinkie), the 9th Doctor's outfit (he's my favorite!), the (new) Doctor Who logo, a Dalek, and the T.A.R.D.I.S.

I started my painting the base I needed for each image. Here's what I used:

Index: Essie Brooch the Subject

Middle: Zoya Storm

Ring: Revlon Gold Coin

Pinkie: Revlon Royal

Then I added on the details using some small nail art brushes and several different polishes. Here are the rest of the polishes I used:

Index: Revlon Royal (blue), Wet N Wild Black Creme (black)

Middle: Barry M Silver Foil (silver)

Pinkie: Wet n Wild Black Creme, Wet n Wild French White Creme

I adore how this came out. The Dalek and the 9th Doctor's outfit are my favorite :)

Check out other mani from June's Polish Days through the links below

Butter London All Hail The Queen

I have a super simple yet pretty mani for you today.  I recently got Butter London All Hail the Queen from a little sale a friend had. It wasn't on my wishlist, but I love holos so I'm not sure why it wasn't!

All Hail the Queen is a super pretty nude (yes, nude!) holo. The holo here is not in-your-face like the Color Clubs are so it makes it perfect to wear to formal/business-related occasions.

It was on with 2 easy coats and dry time was good. I used a base coat which didn't make application difficult and a top coat which didn't dull the holo at all.

I decided to add a small gold metal star stud as an easy accent without covering up All Hail the Queen.  I put a drop of nail glue down, placed my stud on top, and used a dotting tool to push it down until the glue was mostly set.

It is lifted up a bit as you can see in the pictures below, but honestly not enough to bother me. I know it might bother some others though.

What's your favorite easy way to jazz up a mani?