Caring for your Claws

Here at NailsatNoon we're very conscious about keeping yourself in as tiptop condition as possible, so here are some handy tips for caring for your claws!

• Diet and what you are putting into your bodies can really affect the quality of your nails and hair! Iron and calcium rich foods can help make nails strong and healthy. For those of you that get white dots on your nails that can be a sign of a lack of calcium in your diet so having cereal for your brekky or adding a little cheese or yoghurt into your diet could really make a difference. For those of you who find that your nails break easily or are very weak so you struggle to grow them long. Add some iron into your diet, lots of pulses and beans are packed full of iron, so by adding some kidney beans to your chilli one night or having spinach in your side salad could really help. It'll also do wonders for you hair and can help add shine to your locks!

• Great hand moisturizer can do wonders, especially for those of you who find your hands in and out of washing up bowls all day long! I would highly reccommend CND hand cream, it is the company that supplies stock to nail bars and salons. It also is great in that it doesn't leave your hands feeling greasy and oily afterwards you hands just feel soft without that grimy slippery consistency left behind. You also need hardly anything to make an impact. Also staying away from ebrasive surfaces can make a difference. So using gloves to wash up so you aren't always holding that scowerer will make a huge difference to those dry and cracked hands.

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• Cutical care is massive for me, if you are prone to your cuticals splitting and you getting them standing on end around the edge of your nail, you need some cutical gel in your life. Just rub it into your cuticals it'll make them soft and will help any dead cutical come off which will stop them from breaking and ripping.

• When filing your nails its really important if you have weaker nails to file in the same direction i.e left to right, to stop excess breakage and snags. You'll get a cleaner line and you'll help to keep those nails long for longer!

If you're not too keen on nail polish every day and want your nails to look healthy naked. Simply get yourself a buffing block and buff those nails. Then finish with the side to shine your nails and you'll be amazed at the results! Buffing is a great thing to do prior to applying your base coat too as it creates some friction for the polish to stick to and I find it helps to keep my polish on for longer!
Happy painting and make sure to find me else where for more updates!

Post your pictures of you caring for your claws with the hashtag NailsatNoon Claws

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Become A Nail Art Artist

By no means do I consider myself a nail art artist, just simply someone who enjoys painting nails and experimenting with nail art. Its all about having fun with me. Its never been so easily accessible and affordable to be experimenting yourself.

Ebay is crammed full of super cheap options for you to get your hands on. Nail Art wheels are a must for anyone, as it allows you to practice design on a wheel of false nails, that way you save your nails from a lot of unnecessary potential damage from applying nail polish on and off again. Wheels allow you to display all your best designs in one place so when impressing friends with what you've learnt, you can show them options before painting their nails! Its a cost effective way of designing too, as it saves you all those cotton pads and nail polish remover. You can get hundreds for a couple of quid. They do often come from Hong Kong though so you will have to be patient in waiting for your delivery. But for all the pennies you save, it really is worth while.

For any budding nail art artist, dotting tools are the way forward. They are easy to use and allows you to do many simple but impressive looking designs. You can pick them up from eBay or do as I did and go to your local arts and crafts shop, and pick up some embossing tools. You can pick them up relatively cheaply and you will probably get better quality than the cheapest found online. Basically just a wooden handled tool with a metal ball on the end, allows you to dot the polish onto the nail to create design. Either leave the dots alone, and let them stand by themselves or use multiple dots connected together to create lines and designs. Its a good place to start and nothing looks cuter than perfectly executed than a spotted mani!

Design made with dotting tools! 

Nail art pens are the next step if you're feeling adventurous. Again pick them up from eBay for pennies each. I would reccommend to save money if you already have a relatively varied collection of colours in your nail polish collection, start off with just a black and white nail art pen. You wont be spending alot and also they go with every colour in your collection so you know any design you do will go with the base colour! Go for a pen that has a striper brush - basically a very narrow long brush that allows for thin stripe like strokes, and also a metal nibbed needle point pen, it will be like writing with a needle point pen but with polish! You can't go wrong with these pens, but just be wary to wipe down the edge of the bottle when using the brush as I have found that you can get dried polish there that makes it near impossible to then open your bottle, not what you want when in the middle of a mani!

For those of you who are daring and excited by sparkles. You can accessorize any mani with little gems and crystals to accentuate your design. Find bags and tubs full of various pearls, crystals, and acrylic shapes on eBay to add to your nail art design. From butterflies to pieces of fruit, you can find any 3D shape you desire to brighten up your look. Some are harder to apply. For simple flat backed crystals and pearls a quick bit of clear polish on the back will seal the gem onto the nail, but for acrylic shapes of fruit for example you'll need some nail glue. You can pick up some decent stuff cheaply from Body Care and other beauty outlets. Make sure you have some pretty heavy duty nail polish remover as if you want to remove the gems at all you'll need to fill the lid of your nail polish remover bottle with liquid and dunk your nail in, let it soak for about 20 seconds and you can peel off the gem. Make sure you wash your hands well after removing all the desired polish as you don't want all that alcohol and chemicals to sit upon your skin.

So there you have a few tips to getting started. Have fun shopping, make sure if you're buying any glue or polish remover that you are purchasing it from a store you recognise, I wouldnt reccommend getting brands you've never heard of from eBay as its going on your skin and nails you want it to be from somewhere you trust.

Show me your designs on Instagram by using the hashtag #nailsatnoon

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Cute and Camoflauged

I take my inspiration for nail art from a whole variety of places - one of them is fashion, and whilst surfing through google for something that would catch my eye and make a nice Nail Art design I stumbled onto this image...

Usually Im not a fan of camp as I don't think its that dynamic, but seeing it in this colour palette made me fall in love. The colours both contrast and compliment. So I decided to have a go at recreating this print but for Nails. 

To create this look I used the following colours: 

BASE COLOUR: Sinful Colours in 24/7 (Matte Finish)

CAMO SPLODGES: E.L.F in Yellow, BarryM Nail Paint in Pure Turquoise, L.A Colours Art Deco in Black. 

1. Apply the pink base colour all over the nail using two coats for a good coverage.
2. Then going from light to dark apply your splodge colours by using the brush in a  stippling motion creating camo style patterns. Continue this step with all the other colours. Making sure to leave space for the pink to still be seen.
3. Seal in with a protective top coat. 

If you re-create this look please send me a photo via my Facebook page ...

https://www.facebook.com/pages/NailsatNoon/577277732386439

NAIL POLISH GIVEAWAY - Facebook

Sooo...

Instead of bombarding my Facebook friends with all my nail related updates, I thought it would make sense to start a Facebook page for NailsatNoon that way all you lovely readers have somewhere to follow when new posts are coming. And have somewhere to discuss things easily.

Also I plan to hopefully get some tutorials going on Youtube so you can learn how to re-create some of my looks.

In the spirit of giving back to you wonderful people, I thought I would do a giveaway - a chance for you to win all the Polishes used in my MOST viewed post - 'Purple Passion'. Its £18 worth of polishes. And you could WIN THEM ALL!

How exciting.

So all you have to do is head over to my Facebook page, LIKE the page, and comment on the giveaway Status. Once I reach 100 likes then I will announce a winner! :)

Goodluck and get Liking!

https://www.facebook.com/pages/NailsatNoon/577277732386439

Purple Passion

So purple and I have had a long standing love affair. Its so beautiful and its been my favourite colour since I can remember!

So as and ode to this love, I decided to pull out my Purple Polishes and play around.

Using a mixture of Barry M and L'Oreal shades, I layered Purples, Fushcias and Blues to create this look.

Here's how :

Simply grab the darkest shade, here I use Barry M Nail Paint in Indigo, apply two coats as your base. Wait till completely dry. For the design on the top you'll need a scrap piece of paper to hand. Grab the next lightest tone - we're working from dark to light with our colours. Take out the brush, brush off the majority of the polish onto the scrap piece of paper, and then brush what little is left onto the nail, being artistic in your placement.

Continue this process until you have used all the colours you wish, and apply a protective top coat to seal it all in.

The colours I used are:
Barry M Nail Paint in - Indigo 312, Fuchsia 302, Pure Turquoise 295, and Gelly Hi Shine in Prickly Pear 311
L'Oreal in Nouvelle / Vague 851

This design would look awesome in O.P.I's new Brazilian collection which is perfect for Summer!

Hope you have fun re-creating this look, and re-creating it in different colour schemes.

Mermaid Magic

Inspired by the new Aquatics range by Barry M I decided to have a go at creating a mermaid look nail art design myself.

Simply grab a mid blue colour as a base - here I use Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine in Blueberry add a triangle of minty teal green from the cuticle with the end of the triangle stopping mid nail. Here I used Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine in Greenberry then add a golden shimmer preferably with iridescent glitter chunks in the polish like my Maybelline Colour Show Brocades in Knitted Gold.

Add the glitter polish until the blue and green look faded together and the design looks cohesive. And enjoy your Mermaid style nails!

Gelly Hi-Shine - Barry M Review

So I know this collection has been out a while, and I may be behind on the review bandwagon, but they keep adding more and more colours and I just adore the formulation that I want them ALL!

If you haven't come across them before, they are a high shine / gloss polish with a lovely thick formula that allows for beautiful almost shellac style finish. You can get away with just the one coat, or apply two for even bolder brighter colour.

With a range that contains beautiful bolds and more coral and pastel shades, there is definitely something for everyone.

Shades from Left to Right:

Lychee, Papaya, Mango, Prickly Pear, Blueberry, Greenberry, Blue Grape. 

Find them on the link below, or in Superdrug Stores.

http://www.barrym.com/products/nails/effects/gelly-nail-effects.html

Drip Drip Drip Little April Showers

Ready for April yet?

 

These nails will help you. Simply grab two colours of your choosing here I used white and Mint Green and get started. 

Prep your nails by doing your cuticles and applying a protective base coat. Then grab your white polish or whatever colour you feel like using and apply two liberal coats as a base colour. 

Then simply grab the next colour of your choosing, and holding your hand nails facing up to the ceiling drip the polish on in a stylised manner and have fun creating slightly different designs on each nail. 

This design is so fun and can look so dynamic and differently using different colours. 

So have fun playing around, I particularly like using my Maybelline Colour Show polishes for this design see my Review post on them to see the colours in my collection. 

Maybelline Colour Show - Review

Colours left to right:
130 Winter Baby,  282 Glitter, 220 Brocades Range - Knitted Gold, 181 Charged and Ready, 214 Green with Envy, 654 Superpower, 749 Electric Yellow, 118 Urban Coral, 248 Power Red, Brocades Range 224, Brocades Range 221, 198

Maybelline Colour Show, is a super fun collection at a crazy affordable prices. At just £2.99 a bottle it is Maybelline's answer to Barry M. A collection full of fun bold bright colours, with sparkles, and texture to knock your heart out! There is a little something something for everyone, and with regular promotions on their cosmetics you can get more for your money. 

I kindly, being the brilliant blogger I am (just kidding) swatched each colour on my nail art wheel and stuck them to the bottle so you can see exactly how the pigmentation holds from bottle to nail. As you can see, it holds pretty well. Colours are exactly as they appear in the bottle, the texture of the formulation changes with each range. For instance the standard Colour Show range is although quite thin in formulation lovely and smooth and easily build-able and the more coats you apply the colour just gets more rich and shiny! The brocades range, which is a glitter based formulation is a little thicker, designed I believe as a top coat you can apply to colours to add lovely textured glitter look, or for a bold statement you can use them simply on they own using two coats to create party ready nails in no time! 

If you love bold colours and statement nails then this is the collection for you, and it won't by any means break the bank either! So get yourselves down to Superdrug or Boots and get looking. 

Lily Allen Nail Art

So Lilly Allen is awesome, as you should all know anyway. But particularly because of her love of Nail Art, and Lily being the babe she is, is running a competition to create a nail art design for her new album, the winner of which will get the design chosen by Lily herself and re-created for Lily by Maybelline's Nail Artist Michelle Humphrey. AND the winner will also win a hot air balloon ride - in celebration of Lily's new single 'Air Balloon'.

So I've been racking my brain trying to think of a design. So I went with the following look - Nude nails with highlights of neon pink, lilac, mint green and peacock. By using geometric shapes I am hoping to create a funky modern take of the patterns you see in the stitching of the balloons. I am really rather proud of this design. Its cool and I can see it working really well with some stiletto acrylics.

I will be doing more designs of course, as I am bound to think of more. So will keep posting Lily Nail Art posts on here showing my designs.

If you want to enter yourself. Simply create a design can be on your hand, or a drawing. Post a photo on Instagram and hashtag it - lilynailart and you'll be entered! Good luck everyone.

Polish used: 

Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine in Nude 

Stargazer - Silver

L'Oreal - Lilac and Mint

Sinful Colours - Hot Pink

No.17 - Peacock 

Oddballz and Watermelons.

So for Christmas, I was a very fortunate young lady and received a box of SIX O.P.I Shatter Nail Paints. Two of which were Nicki Minaj special edition ones, 'Super Bass Shatter'. So I decided to finally start experimenting with various colours from my little treasure box of O.P.I - my first bottles of O.P.I I have ever owned, which in itself is very exciting to me.

Incidentally these beautiful creations were made. My sister and I deciding that they looked like Watermelon design and Oddballz - a 90s computer game where you hatched your own little dinosaurs from this eggs (Oddballz) which had these crackle effects in funky colours on them... for those of you who do not know this game but loved Tamagochi's and Catz and similar programmes you deffo need to get a copy of Oddballz - you may get addicted but you won't regret it!

Anyhoo, back to the nails....

For watermelon nails, the polish used was Elf's 'Mint Choc Chip' and O.P.I Shatter in dark green. For Oddballz nails Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine in 'Prickly Pear' and Nicki Minaj for O.P.I 'Super Bass Shatter' in Purple.

Simply protect your nails with a base coat, apply two coats of the base colour. A lighter colour works best for dark shatter colour - and reverse for dark base light shatter colour works best. Once dry apply a top coat to smooth out the base colour ready for the shatter. I find that putting the top coat on now works best, as applying it after the shatter can shrink the polish underneath. Then apply a thin layer of shatter for the Watermelon style to get that thin stroke shatter look. For the Oddballz look apply a thick layer of shatter on top, to create the bigger shaped shatter effect.

Have fun playing around with colour combinations, this look is very simple yes, but get the colours right and you can have a great look on your hands!

For more Nail looks follow me on Instagram - http://instagram.com/itsher92

Raindrops Keep Falling On My....Nails.

This is a quick and extremely simple way to create an awesome look. 

Simply need your favourite colour - a matte top coat and a normal top coat. 

Apply a base coat, following that two coats of your chosen colour. Then matte it up by applying a matte top coat - mine is Essie 'Matte About You'. Then to create the water droplets apply a top coat and literally drop it on in raindrop shape on top. Et VOILA. You are done!

Pretty Wild

I'm not going to lie, I'm not really the biggest fan of leopard print, but when it is bright and fun like the following design I am in love. 

Break up the pattern with a little glitter on one of the nails and it'll break up the continuity of the design, adding a little dimension. 

For this you'll need a bright base colour. I am using this Sinful Colours one in hot pink and it happens to be matte, which I adore! Then you'll need a mint kind of colour - mine is Elf mint chic chip. Then lastly you'll need a black nail art pen, and you're fav top coat to seal it all in!

Simply apply a protective base coat, then two coats of the pink, wait till dry. Add random sized splodges of mint to the nail leaving enough room around the colour to add the black and still have gaps between. 

Then once dry add black in a squiggly line breaking the line occasionally to get that leopard print look. If you want to add a glitter nail, use a base coat then apply as many coats of your favourite glitter polish that you wish, using a top coat to smooth out any lumps. 

ENJOY! 

Flirty Fade

I love this design. Its a great pop of colour and using the same colour to fade ties in the two different base coat colours. Feel free to change out the colours in this look to suit your tastes and colour coordinating needs!

Using a teal and purple base colour apply two coats carefully. Wait to dry then choosing a colour for your fade using either a nail art pen or brush, apply from tip to middle on two fingers in a quick sweeping motion to create an uneven fade look. On the other fingers apply from cuticle to the middle of the nail in the same sweeping motion.

Wait to dry and seal with your top coat!

Enjoy playing around with this design.

Nail Polish:

BarryM Gelly Hi-Shine Nail Paint - Greenberry
Barry M Nail Paint - Fuchsia
Generic Nail Art Pen - Glitter Blue.

Matte About Glitter

This is a fun look that I created to update an ageing mani that I had been wearing for a couple of days. This is a great way to brighten up a mani quickly if you don't quite have enough time, or patience to re-do a new nail look.

Simply using whatever paint you already have on your nails. Touch up any chips and apply a matte top coat to create a smooth matte surface for the glitter.

Taking your favourite glitter or simply a glitter in a colour palette that will accentuate your base colour, apply to ring finger and thumb all over. For an extra pop of fun, apply dots near your cuticles in either the same glitter or a different type as I did here, for an extra fun twist.

Nail Polish:

Barry M Nail Paint - Cappuccino
Essie - Matte About You
Maybelline Colour Show Brocades - Black

Pretty In Pink

Such a simple look, easy to do and can be applied to any colour palette.

Simply apply two coats of a pale pink to pre-shaped and base coated nails.

Then add a darker tone of pink in a triangular shape on the end of the nails for a modern take on a french mani.

The colours can be changed out for any you wish to use. Provided the base colour is paler. Or if you are feeling playful, then place the darker tone as a base and use the pale for the triangular shape.

Have fun playing around with this design.

Nail Polish:

Avon Nailware in Pink.
Barry M Nail Paint in Bright Pink.

Party Prep!

Tis the season to be jolly, and with Christmas and New Years and all the impending parties right around the corner, now is a great time to be getting in that nail care. If you change your polish like I do frequently and for specific outfits it is important to make sure you take care of your hands and nails just as you would your health and body. So follow my quick and easy tips to healthy nails that will provide a strong base for those glitter, party fabulous nails!

1. 'In the BUFF' 

Buffing your nails keeps them smooth and shiny, it is pain free and you can pick up a buffing block from Body Care for £0.99, so you can file, smooth, buff and shine your nails. This is perfect for tired looking nails and for those who love french mani's, as buffing before you apply the french pink will help create a beautifully soft smooth look.

2.  'CUTIE-cles'

Your cuticles really shape the nail, if they are uneven or have over grown simply pop down to Superdrug and purchase 10 cuticle pushers for £0.99 jump in a lovely bubble bath, soak, relax and when your cuticles are nice and relaxed like you from the heat, simply gently push them back into a nice crescent shape. If you wish to go one step further in cuticle care, invest in some cuticle removal gel and some cuticle clippers and gently clip the excess cuticle from the nail. Clippers and Sally Hansen cuticle removal gel can both be bought in Superdrug, Boots and Body Care.

3. 'IRON't you pretty'

Having a healthy balanced diet is something we should all strive for anyway, but iron has been proved to help stimulate good hair and nail growth, so if you want some extra length make sure you have plenty of iron in your diet for strong hair and nails. Whether you find that source naturally through foods such as Salmon and red meats or through supplements, if you start now, you'll reap the benefits when it comes to that Christmas Party you've been planning.

4. 'Having the MOIST fun'

Moisturising your body and face is, I'm sure in your everyday skin care routine, but most of us forget the hard work our hands go through with daily chores. Washing up liquid can reek havoc on hands making them dry and allowing the skin to crack. Invest in a great hand cream to help your hands fend against the drying cold winds and the chores we deal with day to day, for better looking hands and nails. For one step further invest in some cuticle oil to keep nail beds soft and supple.

So enjoy this tips to healthier nails, and I hope you find it helpful!

Holographic Wonder

I am always amazed at the new polish you can find simply by accident. I came across holographic nail polish accidentally whilst searching for something on eBay (of course). The price and the package was too good to miss so I bought a pack of 12. I have Perfect Polish brand and they are not quite perfect but the holographic effect will blow your minds.

The consistency is a little weak and you do need to apply one thin base coat and then one or too liberal coats on top to create  the effect. I also found that it was essential that each coat were distributed evenly or else the effect was somewhat lost in the gentle uneven surface. I also found that my clear top coat somewhat dulled the shine, and a holographic print with no shine is pretty useless!

The colour range was somewhat limiting I was supposed to have a light and dark shade of each colour, blue, pink, purple, red and orange. But the differences were slim to none and could not really tell the difference.

One final tip, shake well to make sure you have perfect balance between shimmer and colour, and just have fun. These holographic nails will look great on their own or as a statement nail as part of a mix for the holidays as we now lead up to Christmas!

So search eBay if your interest has been peaked. There are plenty of reputable sellers selling holographic nail polish for decent prices. Most ship from the far east though so expect long wait from dispatch to receiving the item!

Happy shopping, Happy nails and Happy Halloween. (Belatedly)

Winter Wonderland

With Autumn nearly behind us and Halloween out the way, whispers of Christmas are echoing in the air. It saddened me that I heard my first Christmas song on the radio on the 1st of November. Bonfire night has barely had time to be planned, and already Christmas songs are playing and stores are piling in the tinsel and baubles!
Having said that, there is something lovely about snuggling up in blankets and jumpers around the fire to keep warm, the dark cold nights bringing families and friends together. Which will mean plenty of time to do your nails, and your friends nails, in the name of the holiday spirit!
In this post I will be sharing a much loved nail design of last winter, all my friends wanted me to do their nails like this and it is super easy with a steady hand!
Snowflakes can be transferred onto a range of different background and can be jazzied up with a few sprinkles and sparkles here and there. Once you have mastered drawing the snowflake you can then run with it and really become creative in how you deliver that snowflake.

Simply follow the link to my instagram account to see my monochrome snowflake nails that I did for a friend last winter!

Glitterati

Looking at all my glitter polishes I thought about what you could do. Diamonds came to mind so had a play with design.

Using glitter top coats, to cover colour or a polish with shimmer built in, or simply just using a glitter top coat like the Opal Top Coat from Avon as a polish.

Have fun playing with polish and colour.