Sunday 23 December 2012

It's christmasssssssssssss!!!

"snow is falling, all around you, children plaaaaying, having fun"

Hiya guys!!

Okay so this post in case you can't tell is Christmas related woop woop!! Now the idea of this post was to show you some Christmas nail art, however i did my nails at college last week and i kid you not the polish has not chipped a single bit!! And I'm the kinda girl who doesn't like to take perfectly good nail polish off for no reason whatsoever......
All is not lost tho!! i do have a few pictures from nail art in past years, just remember they are a few years old so aren't the best :-/ Also my nails were teeny tiny at this point - guess it's just good to show different designs for people with shorter nails!!

Right on with the pictures!!!
First is my rudolph one.....



First thing to say about this is i cannot begin to explain how easy this was to achieve!! i ended up doing all 10 nails in this design last year as it was just so simple but looked really good too.
You start of with the base coat - of course. I picked bright blue but you can pick any colour really, i wouldn't suggest black tho as the reindeer won't show very well. I think white would look pretty awesome tho.
Next i took my brown nail art pen and just drew a circle and "coloured" it in - easy peasy!!
The step after is take another brown which is lighter then the one you used for the circle (i used gold) and simply painted a 2 crosses on the top of the head for the antlers. If you have longer nails you can obviously make the antlers longer just do what you can.
And the final step is 2 blue dots in the circle for eyes and a red dot for the nose!!
And ta da!! done!! Something which does look REALLY good is if you have any little red gems, stick one of those in place of the nose. This can be done with nail glue or simply putting it on wet nail polish.

Number 2 is a penguin

Again short nail alert!! and very very simple!!
Start off with the base coat. I used white, obviously you can use different colours but i really do think white is the best for this particular design.
Next take a black nail art pen and do an oval shape in the middle for the penguins body and fill it in. Then do 2 little ovals either side for the arms.
After that take a gold nail art pen and do 2 thick lines at the bottom for the penguins feet (orange can be a suitable substitute) 
Ensuring the black oval in the middle is dry, do a smaller white oval in the middle and fill it in for the penguins tummy.
Finally do 2 white dots in the black oval for the eyes and a little gold one for the beak.


And the final one!! what's Christmas without a...... Christmas pudding!!!



This one may quite possibly be most simplest design ever!! but really effective too!!
Start off with a dark brown base coat - the darker the better!!
Make sure it is really really dry otherwise the colours will blend when doing the next step and that's not good!! Next take a white nail art pen - see the importance now?? pink icing on christmas cake is a no go!! Simply do a wavy line about a quarter of the way down the nail and fill the top part in.
Once that is dry take a green nail art pen and do two squiggly shapes for the leaves. If you have longer nails you can get more detail on for the leaves. And finish it off with a few red dots for the berries and there you go!!

I just want to take this opportunity to everyone who has looked at my blog, it means an awful lot!! i didn't think i'd reach 100 views and i smashed the 400 mark which is just amazing.
Hope you all have a wonderful christmas and  a very happy 2013.

Love
Rhiannydd

p.s. here's a few cheeky pictures of my nails i did at college!! still a bit festive with the glitter :D




see the difference in nail lengths!! told you they were teeny tiny last year haha!!

Friday 14 December 2012

apologies......again.....

Hiya guys,

Just wanted to do a little post to give my apologies for the lack of updates. In one of my previous posts i mentioned my granddad passed away, and things literally didn't stop until about 2 weeks ago. Also I've started a nail services course at college so naturally I'm practising manicures as much as possible and doing work so i can pass first time!! This also means i haven't been able to do anything on my nails as my college has a no nail polish rule. When I'm on top of everything I'll be able to try out more products a lot more and do some more nail art for you guys.

Also what with Christmas only being 11 days away like pretty much everyone in the world i'm uber busy and literally can't afford life so i don't even have any new products to do a blog on if i wanted too!! This post really does seem like an awful lot of excuses but I've noticed the continued interest in the blog from the page views increasing day by day. Massive thanks to EVERYONE who ever clicked on the link as it means such a lot to me.

You can guarantee there will be a new blog between now and Christmas as of course i will do some Christmas nail art, so do stay tuned!! i also have some nail polishes which aren't really new to me but are pretty new in the market so i will blog them at some point. If not before Christmas then certainly in the new year!!

Lots of love to everyone

Rhiannydd
xxx

Wednesday 14 November 2012

Barry M Chameleon!!

Hiya guys (again!!)

So i've seen lots of reviews on this nail polish some good and some not so good. It's something i've wanted to try out for a while so i took full advantage of having a few extra pounds in my purse and brought one. 
I couldn't decide which one to get but eventually settled on the pink one. 
These are the 3 colours available


First things first is to apply 2 coats of the polish. Simples!! here is a few swatches....






I personally think this colour alone is gorgeous!! It's a mid tone metallic pink and is quite a thick and creamy polish so very easy to apply.
When that is dry you add a clear top coat for the magic to take effect. I had read somewhere that only the barry m top coat works but as i didn't have that i used models own top coat.
I have to say it worked perfectly!! It's so quick and simple and you can create different designs so easily.
here's a few pictures.






As you can see the difference in colours isn't as drastic as maybe the silver or the blue but the purple it produces is a beautiful colour too. These pictures are with flash so the purple does look a bit lighter then it actually is. 
I have to say even tho i've only tried the one i'm very impressed with this effect polish. It's something people who are new to nail art would really appreciate i feel as it's just so simple!! Also you effectively get 2 colour nail varnishes for £3.99 which is a really good price as well.
Obviously the effect could depend on the thickness of the topcoat so just make sure you have a reasonably thick one. Oh and don't get carried away when you've done the design and put a top coat over the top as your design will disappear!!

Look out for some more reviews and nail art coming soon!!

Rhiannydd
xxx

something a bit different!!

Hiya guys!!

Firstly i think an apology is due. I haven't posted in a while as i've had a death in the family so have had funeral arrangements etc to be dealing with. I'm not going to go into it but i notice some of you beautiful people have still been clicking on my blog so thank you!!

On my last post i said i would do a blog on my halloween nails, some reviews and something a bit different. Well this is the something a bit different post!!

On Halloween i ventured down to blackpool for a 3 day break as i was finally going to meet my idol Karen Barber!!! For anyone unsure of who she is, she's a professional ice skater. I have to say she's amazing. I've admired her for so many years and it was such a dream come true meeting. I had a skating lesson with her and Dan Whiston and my socks were well and truly rocked!!
Yes i was a complete idiot as i was so nervous but it was the best 2 hours of my life.
This is me with Dan......i'll save my karen on for later!!

On the 1st November i have to say i was on a massive comedown!! it was horrible!! I spent the day doing as much sightseeing as you can in blackpool in the pouring rain, i went to the sea life centre and madame tussauds. Is it weird i was a bit starstruck with waxworks??.......

Just a few pictures!!

Then on the 2nd November i had a ticket to see Kyran Brackens ice party which karen and dan were performing in. I have one word to describe it. Amazing. All the skaters were fantastic and there was a beautiful tribute to stephen gately which i have to be honest reduced me to tears within the first minute!!
Karen and Dan skated to Me and Mrs Jones which was such a beautiful performance. And the best bit, was the "cast" (don't know if that's what you'd call them!!) Skated round the rink at the end and Karen gave me a hug!! i nearly died.

I don't really know what more to say as the whole 3 days were such a blur!! I'm going to get straight on and do a review of a nail polish now and post it so you'll get 2 posts in 1 day!! lucky people hehe.
I'll leave you with my favourite picture tho which of course is of me and Karen.
Thanks again guys for still clicking and looking

Rhiannydd
xxx



Monday 29 October 2012

nail art - food and drink part 4!!

Hi guys!!

So this is the final part of my food and drink logo nail art!! I hope you've enjoyed the others :) Just before i started writing this i received some post from a local beauty college to tell me i begin a nail services course next month!!! eeeeeekkkk!!! Finally I'm on the right path to reaching my dream job!!

Anyway on with the design. This post will feature my fanta design. I have to be honest, i absolutely LOVE this design. It's so cool and actually very simple to do but has a great effect. You'll see on the picture that i somehow managed to split the nail in between finishing the design and taking a picture so my apologies for that.

With this design the i only used one nail polish and the other colours are from nail art pens off ebay. This is simply because i didn't have the right colours in bottles to achieve a good look. Here is a picture




The colour is used for the base coat is Barry M  136 Tangerine. Now i have to say it does look like a bit of a weird colour in the bottle, but when you put it on, it's simply stunning. I think i may be actually obsessed with it. Obviously it's an orange colour but it has incredibly fine pieces of glitter in which gives it a beautiful shimmery effect. I'd definitely recommend this over a metallic orange (if that even exists?!?)

Next i did the writing. As with all my others i used my new look nail art pens and a small paintbrush only this time obviously in blue!! Definitely take your time with this as the a's are a little different to standard a's. I then outlined it in white. Only this time i used the nib of the pen as it was a lot thinner.

Writing done the next step was the background effect. For this i simply used a yellow nail art pen and an orange nail art pen and painted curving stripes above and below the writing - really simple actually!!

After  i took my white nail art pen and using the nib painted very short lines coming off the writing and painted 2 green leaves above it. 

And voilà fanta nail is done!! i honestly can explain how easy it was to do this!! the longest part was the writing and that took minutes. In total it probably took about 7 minutes to complete this design so something you can definitely consider doing for your friends as the more you do it I'm sure the quicker you'll become.

Just a little tip given the amount of layers just ensure each one is dry before moving onto the next step and it'll be perfect.

I have to say this post seems very short but it's such an easy design there's not really much more i can say about it......the next few posts will hopefully be reviews about some new nail polishes I've brought, of course my Halloween nail art - which I'm yet to do and something a little bit different in the middle of the week so look out for that!!

Thanks again for checking out my page and hope to see you soon

Rhiannydd
xxx

Saturday 27 October 2012

nail art - food and drink part 3!!

Hi guys!!

Welcome to part 3 of the food and drink logo nail art!! I hope you've enjoyed the other 2 posts I've done. In the past 2 days i went out a purchased some new nail polish and effects so look out for the review coming soon!!

The design for this post is Oreo's!! I have to admit I'm a massive fan of these biscuits, but since i became allergic to chocolate i can't eat them so what's the next best thing?? stick it on a nail of course!! As with the other 2 designs i followed a tutorial youtube video so i can't take any credit for the design, just the outcome.

Again as with the skittles and the pepsi design i achieved this look through using bottles of nail polish and various nail art pens i purchased off eBay. Here is a picture.


The first step i took was painting the base coat. For this i used Models own prussion blue. Can i just say i absolutely LOVE the effect this gave me!!! It is a matt finish nail polish and i have to admit I'm a little bit obsessed with it. it's gorgeous.

Then i took Models own beths blue and painted a diagonal line about 3/4 of the way down the nail and painted in the bottom part of it. This is part of the ice cream sundae collection and a real baby blue colour. Because of the fab consistency i only had to do one coat of this.

I then took my always reliable new look white nail art pen and did the lettering. When doing this it has to be done over both colours. This writing is pretty thick but i found it easier to stick with the thinnest brush and just build up on it.

i then took my blue nail art pen from my eBay collection i purchased and painted around the writing in a sort of "bubble" shape. If you go over the white accidentally you can always go back over it afterwards.

Then you have to go around the blue with the white. Instead of using a nail paintbrush i used the nib of the nail art pen. This was simply because it would achieve a much thinner line. Once that was dry i went around the white outline with the blue again. ONLY ON THE BOTTOM THO.

The next stage was the milk splashes at the bottom. I improvised this to be honest. All i used was the white nail art pen and painted out a splash effect. You can do it however you like, just make sure it goes all the way across the bottom. 

The final stage is the cookies. If you've eaten the cookies you'll know that they are very very dark brown. None of my browns were dark enough, so i took my darkest brown, put a drop on some kitchen roll and mixed a drop of black in with it. This creates a perfect colour. I then simply did 2 oval shapes at the top and one at the bottom. Once that is dry simply paint a white line through the middle for the icing.

And there you have it a gorgeous oreo design. Given how many steps you have to take you'd think this would be incredibly difficult. I can honestly say this is without a doubt the easiest. It doesn't take very long at all, only about 10 minutes which i think is well worth it!!

As always thank you for checking out my blog, look out for part 4 of the food and drink logo nail art category coming soon!!

Rhiannydd
xxx

Thursday 25 October 2012

nail art - food and drink part 2!!

Hiya guys!!

As i was just about to write this I've had a bit of a all hands on deck situation. I knocked over a bottle of nail polish remover on my table. Now if anyone has ever done this it usually spells calamity. I spilt a bit on my coffee table once without realising and the next thing i knew my dad was sanding down the table having to re-paint it. whoops!!!

As i said in my last post I'm doing a few posts dedicated to nail art I've done based on logo's on food and drink. This time i shall focus on my Pepsi one!! Again this is from a youtuber which i have subscribed to so all credit for the design goes to her.

I achieved through using some actual nail polish and then nail art pens i got off ebay and putting a drop onto kitchen roll just like the skittles one. Here is the picture


The first step i took was the base coat. For this i used rimmel london azure. i have to say this was the PERFECT brand and colour to use as it was metallic and gave it a can like look. I applied two coats just to give it the opaqueness as one coat wasn't enough.

Next i used a white nail art pen i got as part of a set from new look to do the writing. As with the skittles on i used the thinnest brush i had. I find it's a lot easier to use a thinner one and build it up in thickness rather then jumping straight in with a thick one.

i then outlined the writing with models own Prussion blue. i love the matt effect this nail polish gives, but i have to be honest it didn't work great as the outliner as the colour is just too similar to the base coat.

After came the circle. Following the instructions on the youtube video i did the whole circle in white. At first i couldn't understand why this was, but when it came to applying the red and blue it all makes sense  Given the darkness of the base coat it makes it SO much easier to see the colours and makes it a lot more vibrant. As you can see i did my writing a little too far down so i couldn't fit the full circle in so i just improvised slightly with the shape in order to fit the colours in but achieve the right look for the design. Next time i'll definitely have to do the writing higher up.

To finish it off i mixed white with models own prussion blue again and just did streaks around it. This simply adds a bit of texture to the "can" part of the design. It should of really gone underneath as well but given the layout of my design i couldn't fit it in!!

As complex as it may seem this design only took about 10 minutes to do!! Again as with the skittles on if i were to do it on my actual nails i'd only do it on my statement fingers and probably just paint the others with the same blue but add glitter to or something.

I have a few more designs as part of the food and drink logo category so look out for part 3 coming soon!!

Rhiannydd
xxx


Wednesday 24 October 2012

nail art - food and drink part 1!!

Hiya guys!!

After my last post on my first experience with nail paintbrushes i thought i'd show a few more "technical" designs i tried out. For most of my designs i watch video's on youtube as i've got to be honest i have NO imagination what so ever.
The past few times I've been watching someone take brands from foods and put it onto a nail so i decided to have a go myself following the video. I did 4 designs in total and i have to say it takes ages!!! i suffer quite a bit from shaking hands so i was glad to have a minute break in between colours as it dried.

The first design i did was "skittles". I achieved through using one nail polish and then nail art pens i got off ebay and putting a drop onto kitchen roll as i've mentioned before. Here is a picture.


Obviously the first step was to paint the nail red. i used two coats to get a more vibrant colour. The red i used was models own red alert.

When that was dry i used my thinnest paint brush to do the white lettering i have to say you don't realise how many letters certain names have until your trying to paint them on a nail!! i then simple washed the brush and outlined it with black when it was dry. With some parts of the lettering i did have to go over some of the white again just to make it look cleaner.

Next came the rainbow. The colours i wanted to use weren't opaque enough when using it over the red. They were such lovely bright colours tho and i was desperate to use them. What i ended up doing was mixing the colour with a little bit of white on some kitchen roll. By doing this it gave the colour more of a base but still kept the lovely brightness. I used the same brush as i did the writing otherwise the stripes in the rainbow would of been too thick and wouldn't of looked right.

i then used a cocktail stick to make the little dots around the design. I didn't follow a particular system with this, just put any colour anywhere!!

This design did take around 20 minutes to complete, so if i was to do this on my actual nails i think I'd probably just stick to the ring finger on each nail as i would be there for hours doing each individual nail. And as amazing as it would look, my nails wouldn't be long enough either to achieve a good look especially with the last finger.

A quick tip if your like me and take quite a while with each section, the nail polish does dry quite quickly on the kitchen roll.  If this does happen to you, rather then adding another drop simply dip your brush in the nail polish remover and start painting again. It doesn't effect the colour or consistency in at all.

I will do a post each day on the different designs so that way i can talk about the products i used and the steps i took so look out for part 2!!

Thanks again to everyone who's had a look at this page and even more to those who have commented and followed

Rhiannydd
xxx

Monday 22 October 2012

First attempt with paintbrushes - daisies!!

Hiya guys!!

And a special hello to my 3 followers!!! thank you so much for clicking that button. It means the world to me xxx
Well tomorrow i have an informal chat at a beauty college near me to hopefully start a nail services course!! This is a massive step in the right direction to hopefully achieve my dream of working in a nail bar or salon. So please keep those fingers crossed!!

I thought today I'd take the opportunity to show some of my own nail art to you guys. I'm not trained in anyway shape or form, it's purely a hobby at the moment, so it won't be at the high standard others are, but i wanted to show you anyway.
As i don't have a job at the moment, i frequently trawl ebay for good deals on nail tools and polishes. One particular time i came across this set of nail brushes. I've seen them used in youtube video's and the precision people achieve with them is fantastic so i thought why not?? You can get lots of different sets varying in prices. Mine only cost £2 brushes which included shipping which i think is an absolute bargain!! 
These are the brushes i got.

When using them, i can't begin to explain how easy the are to use!! even the epically long one you still have complete control in what your doing!! definitely much better then the brushes which come with nail art pens.
I decided to start off with a fairly simply design just to try and get used to them. I did my first design on a false nail so i would have both hands free.

For this design i used Models own Jade stone for the base, A white nail art pen from New look and Barry M np307 which i actually mixed with the white to achieve a real pastel yellow.
What i did, was use the brush from the nail polish and nail pen and dropped a bit of the colour on a piece of kitchen roll - so it was a bit of a makeshift pallet!!
I then started off with the centre of the daisy's so i mixed a bit of the yellow with some white and did a dot at either ends of the nail - allowing room for petals.
I then used the white to do the petals, looking back i think it may have been easier if i'd done a petal at 12 o'clock, 3, o'clock, 6 o'clock and 9 o'clock first and then filled the rest in. This would of meant the petals would of been more even but hey you have to learn somehow don't you!!
I then simply used the dotting tool from the nail art pen to do the dots in between. It really is such a simple design with a really nice effect. When you've finished with each colour, simply dip your brush in some nail polish remover and wipe off with some kitchen roll. A bit like you would with a normal paintbrush with water!!

This design is definitely a good one to choose if it's your first time using paint brushes.

If anybody would like the link to the person i got the brushes on please feel free to ask and i'd be more then happy to send you a link

Rhiannydd
xxx

Sunday 21 October 2012

Barry M web effect

Hiya guys!!

Okay firstly i want to say a massive THANK YOU to everyone who has clicked on my blog. 80 views is just amazing, i didn't even think I'd get 1!! I have a few more idea's about reviews i'll do and i have many pictures of nail art i've done so stay tuned.

I went into superdrug the other day to but some hair dye and had a look at the Barry M as i absolutely love their nail polishes!! They're definitely in my top brands. They had a special offer on - buy any 2 products and get a web effect nail polish for free so of course as i was already buying 2 other nail polishes i took full advantage of the sale and picked up the free web effect. I already have 3 of the crackle effect nail polishes which i love, so i was really interested to see how it worked out. Here is the bottle for anyone who hasn't seen it yet.




I used a base coat of Barry M vivid purple as i couldn't find my black and i thought it would still look ok and give a Halloween type look with it. When you first put it on, the polish is actually quite thin and looks a bit peculiar as you can see the base coat underneath. However it is incredibly easy to apply!! It does take significantly longer then the crackle effect to begin to work so if nothing is happening do bare with it!!
This is what it looks like when it first goes on.



This is the final effect after waiting a few minutes

Admittedly the effect isn't how i imagined it to look, but if your someone who doesn't do nail art and wants an effect on their nails then i think you would love it. I personally haven't used the croc effect nail polish but having looked at swatches of them i think the effect is very similar. I think i could of done with putting a bit more on the effect nail polish on so the colour was more vibrant as it's such a lovely colour in the bottle. Or if i used a lighter base coat it might look better too. I think it's something I'll have to experiment with.
If anybody else has used it and had a different experience with it i'd love to know your opinions :)

Rhiannydd
xxx

Saturday 20 October 2012

Models own winter wonderland collection

hiya guys!!

Well i have now become the proud owner of the complete winter wonderland collection by models own!! I've only recently got into the models own nail polish and i can't believe how fantastic it is. i first their nail polish on a youtube video and straight away i thought "wow i have to get some of that" one became 3, 3 grew to 5 and now i have quite a collection. Obviously some people may not rate it  as highly as i do but each to their own. i have no complaints at all. I'm yet to find a colour i don't like and certain colours i can get away with only putting one layer on.

Anyway onto the winter wonderland collection. After models own had their summer sale as a celebration for reaching 100,000 likes on facebook they brought out this collection ready for christmas. I have to say they are gorgeous!! There are 5 bottles in the collection and all as pretty.

Here's a first glance at them.


the collection includes Blizzard, southern lights, northern lights, jack frost and snowflakes.


Blizzard
At first glance i thought blizzard would be very similar to the hed kandi ibiza mix but i was actually pleasantly surprised at how individual it was. The polish is made up of sliver only hexagons in various sizes. Its very easy to apply and you don't have to try and place them when applying. You don't even necessarily have to have a coloured base coat.  Here is a swatch with 2 coats applied.



Snowflakes
The next nail polish is called snowflakes. I thought this particular one gives the same effects Models own other new collection - the mirrorball collection. This nail polish is made up of pearly coloured flakes which can look  different  colours depending on the light.This particular nail polish definitely needs a base coat as there simply isn't enough coverage achieved without. Here is a swatch with 2 coats applied.



Jack frost
This nail polish is a gorgeous glittery polish, with very small pieces of glitter so is very different to the other glitter nail polishes models own already has. The colour of the glitter gives off a beautiful pearly effect with flashes of purple and blue giving it a real frosty effect. Perfect name!! Here is a swatch with 2 layers.


Southern Lights
This nail polish create's a similar effect to the Jack frost, only it is more opaque as the glitter is purple. This one is definitely one of my favourites as the sparkle it gives off is truly stunning. I would say with this one it isn't particularly opaque with one coat, but add a second and it's just right without the need for a base coat. Here is a swatch with 2 coats.


Northern Lights
This one is the same as the Southern lights only the glitter is pink. Again this really requires 2 coats if you want an opaque look. This colour is definitely my favourite out of the collection. The sparkle effect it has and the different colours it picks up is just gorgeous. I can definitely see myself getting this one again. here's a swatch with 2 coats.


Overall i have to say this collection really is amazing. Much better then i could of ever imagined. I can't wait to do some serious nail art with these at Christmas. Here's a final picture of all of the swatches together.



Boots currently have their 3 for 2 offer on so you can get them from there or check out the models own website where you can get all 5 AND a clear for £20!!


Rhiannydd
xxx

Wednesday 17 October 2012

First off introductions.....

Hiya to anyone who has so kindly clicked on this page!!

I'm totally new to anything like this so please bare with me. I've decided to set up this blog just to post my nail findings, any nail art i do and just general chit chat really....
i would absolutely love to have a job in nail art or nail technology but if any of you were to look on google you would see the courses are not cheap!! So for now i sit in my bedroom whenever i get chance and just paint various designs on my own nails and on false ones.

I will probably find that i end up posting about other things other then nails and just post general thoughts, and anything else i come across in day to day life.

Thanks again for taking the time to come onto this page

Rhiannydd
xxx