Friday, February 07, 2014

Valentine's Mani Ideas


With the most romantic day of the year a mere 7 days away I thought I'd put together a few ideas for manicure's you lovely lot could sport. I'm by no means a mani-expert but these are pretty simple and easy to do at home.


Running left to right...

Essie 'Blanc' & No7 'Daisy Darling' ('Blanc' and similar to Daisy Darling here)
I applied two layers of Blanc (after all, not all roses are red!) and then did a gradient effect with the Daisy Darling glitter. Daisy Darling is perfect because it has lots of different size glitter particles, the pink is more muted and less garish too which is nice. Apply one light layer over the whole nail, let that dry then apply another just halfway, let that dry then add a final layer of glitter right at the tip. 

Max Factor 'Midnight Bronze' (here)
Sometimes you just need a simple coat of a pretty shade and Midnight Bronze is just that. It's one of my most favourite rose gold polishes and the formula is ideal because despite being metallic, it leaves so streaks at all. Rose gold is a beautiful alternative to your standard Valentine's pink.

OPI 'Bubble Bath' & OPI 'Nothin Mousie 'bout It' ('Bubble Bath' and 'Nothin Mousie bout It' or similar here)
These are some of my favourite polishes that I don't really wear that often. A light layer of Bubble Bath provides a perfect milky nude base. I then added the glitter on top with great difficulty! It's been a while since I used this and the hearts have stuck to the side - not cool - but when it is free flowing, manoeuvring the particles is easy.

Champneys 'Mocha' (similar here)
Another alternative to standard pink shades, this rosy-brown is something a little more mature, a little more muted. It's actually more pink than the picture shows it. This is Mocha from Champneys, I got this in a Christmas gift set so it can't be bought alone but L'Oreal do something similar which I've linked above.

Revlon 'Cherries In The Snow' & Model's Own Nail Art Pen (here and here)
This may or may not (read: definitely) have been influenced by the fact I've had Beyonce's album on repeat... but what better time to channel your inner B than on Valentine's? I applied two coats of Cherries in the Snow, a beautiful deep fuchsia that pulls a little red - I adore Revlon polishes, the formula is so creamy and applies so easily and they're pretty inexpensive. I then used a black nail art pen from Model's Own to draw 'XOXO' across the nail. This would look great with a red polish and even if this was just on an accent nail you'd get the same effect. Quirky, cute and a little bit fun!

Any of these can be swapped and changed for different polishes and colours but I hope it gives you a little mani-spiration so whether you're with your other half having a romantic meal or out on the town with the girls - I think this covers all bases!

What are you Valentine's mani plans?

Ax

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