Gold and Jewels with Zoya Island Fun

Gold and Jewels with Zoya Island Fun

color block gold gold leaf tape zoya

This little numba was inspired by the luxurious tones of the Zoya Island Fun collection. The jewel toned shades were just ASKING to be paired with a bit of extra luxury, and I chose to load on the gold.

Polishes used used:
Zoya Nana (pink)
Zoya Talia (blue)
Zoya Demetria (red-orange)
Zoya Serenity (purple)
Zoya Jace (green)
Zoya Ziv (fine gold)
Zoya Gilty LE (gold leaf)

Each shade needed just two coats for opacity. I let the base colors dry, then blocked off parts of my nails using tape. I polished on a light coat of Ziv to give it a glint of gold, and then loosely added some of Gilty's gold leaf for extra luxury. Since Gilty is not currently for sale, you could also use loose gold leaf from a craft store.

Standout colors for me in this collection included Jace and Demetria. The other shades are nice and the formulas were fine, but they just didn't capture me like those two!

Zoya Island Fun (and its sister collection, Paradise Sun) are available now on Zoya.com for $9 per bottle.

The 31 Day Nail Art Challenge 2015

The 31 Day Nail Art Challenge 2015

31DC2015

September is on the way, and you know what that means? THE 31 DAY CHALLENGE! This yearly tradition is something I always enjoy, and I'm taking it on again for 2015. I invite you to join me if you're interested in challenging yourself, developing your nail art, and having a blast!

This year, I'll probably be making a couple of modifications. Since I am constantly wearing gels for my job as a nail tech, I think that I will be doing most of my artwork on sets of nail tips. I'll likely post them daily on my Instagram account, and then do roundups for each section of the challenge here on the blog.

Unfamiliar with the challenge? Stop by the 31 Day Challenge FAQ to learn more!

Want to check out the work that I've done previously? Check out my roundups for 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014.

And one final note: don't forget to use this year's hashtag: #31DC2015!

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Here are the 31 Day Challenge prompts for 2015! Feel free to share, repost, upload to your blog, put on Instagram, etc. Click to enlarge.

Ride the Waves with a Pop of Pink

Ride the Waves with a Pop of Pink

akzentz black favorite freehand gel gelish nail art pink white

Black and white with a pop of color is a tale as old as time. It's such a classic combination: black and white on either end of the spectrum, with a color that falls somewhere in between. I had this manicure in my mind for a while now, and just had to pick the perfect base color. I found it in Gelish Tokyo A Go Go, a beautiful, bright pinky-purple.

And there's good news for those of you that don't wear gel: this pretty pink is also available in regular lacquer form from Morgan Taylor!

To begin this manicure, I applied Gelish Foundation before adding two coats of Gelish Tokyo A Go Go. It's just... ugh. So pretty. I'm obsessed.

Then, I used Akzentz Gel Play Paint in white to block out the general shapes of the waves. It was pretty opaque, but I went back after curing the first coat to fill in a couple of patchy areas. I used Akzentz Gel Play Paint in black to add on the thick and thin wavy lines.

Finally, I finished the manicure with Gelish Top It Off.

I was really happy with the outcome of this manicure and enjoyed wearing it quite a lot! It's always satisfying when a manicure you have in your mind turns out how you hoped it would on the nail.

Purchasing Information
The Gelish Hello Pretty collection is available from Esther's Nail Center, as well as Amazon.com. You may still be able to find the LE collection in Gelish MINI at Sally Beauty.
Morgan Taylor lacquer equivalents are available from Loxa Beauty.
Akzentz products can be purchased through Gellipop.