Kell's DIY Nails

Today I've got a little 'Extend-A-Mani' action for you. I layered 1 coat of Sprinkles , multisized matte hexagon glitters in White and Magenta, over Zoya, Rory . The clear base is very thick but definitely suspends the glitter well. I used the dabbing method to get good glitter placement. Dry time was quick and did dry a little gritty so I used a coat of Gelous and then In A Hurry to smooth everything out. P.S. 62 Days til Halloween! I'm so excite! I'm already planning out my decorations and outfits; but I still haven't decided on my costume... I want to be The Ringmaster or Zombie Bride or maybe even a Gunslinger . What costumes are you guys looking at? Have you already decided what you are dressing up as? Or do just not dress up? Personally, I love it. Halloween is my favorite holiday! I've got my Halloween Board on Pinterest that I've been busy pinning too; check it out!

I just got this polish from Zoya; they had another great promo so I got this one and Channing . It has such a nice formula and it's packed with a silvery white shimmer. I knew I had to put it on right away! Am I the only one who thinks of The Gilmore Girls when I see the name Rory? I used 2 coats of Zoya, Rory and the formula was very nice and easy to apply. Dry time was average. I always find that shimmer polishes like these are always very nice in formula and consistency. Rory is from the 2012 Summer Beach & Surf Collection . She looks very pink in these photos but she also has some cool lilac undertones; a unique pink and also unique to my stash. She falls right between SpaRitual, Courage (lighter, more mauve) and Illamasqua, Ouija (much brighter pink).  In looking at my pinks I have found they have become the underdog in my collection; I will need to remedy that. Can you recommend any great pinks? What's your favorite pink?

I wanted to join in on the #FightForLightAndLive manis to bring attention to Depression Awareness. After losing Robin Williams I am pretty much heart broken and I can't help but wish someone had stepped in. But in all honesty I know how depression feels, I've been there and I still to this day have some periods of mild depression here and there. When you're there the world is upside down and the little devil in your head twists things all around. People don't see what's wrong with you. And those of us with depression are really good at dismissing it when others try to reach out to us.  I selected Butter London's Dosh for this mani because the green is a muted and unique shade of green but it has this gorgeous golden shimmer in the sun. I felt that was very much a good interpretation of the complexity of depression. Dosh is sheerer than I was expecting so I needed 3 coats. Dry time was average and formula was nice and easy to work with. I topped my nails off wi...

Back in the early 90's I was in Jr. High and among all of the trendy and popular brands was Maui and Sons . They make board shorts, tshirts, tanks, hoodies, etc.; it's all beach inspired wear. A trademark of theirs was a shark called Sharkey. They used either neons or washed out colors in their designs so I thought I would close out Shark Week with a Maui and Sons inspired shark mani. Thumb & Pinkie: I used 3 coats of Julep, Nadia . This soft golden yellow shimmer isn't bad; I was expecting it to be sheerer than it is. I also thought it would be streaky and plagued with brush strokes but I was pleasantly surprised. The formula was easy to work with; I actually used my Plié Wand for the first time doing this mani and it worked pretty well. Dry time was average. Do you know what type of shark this is? Index & Ring: 3 coats of Julep, MacKenzie . I really like this bright lime green shimmer and it would probably look even brighter over a white base. It's a lot...

It's Shark Week, Bitches!!! (Said in a playful and silly way!) I am fully prepared to partake in Shark Week activities and I grabbed some awesome new Shark Nail Decals from Jane's Tiny Things a few weeks ago. Index & Ring: 2 coats of Zoya, Blu . This is a very opaque super pale blue. It's even paler than Kristen . The formula is on the thick side and it tends to be a little streaky and not good at self leveling. I added a topper of Zoya, Opal (an irridescent flakie that flashes green and blue) to give it a water effect.  Middle & Pinkie: 2 coats of Barielle, Money Talks . A light teal green, but not as light as Blu. It's lighter than both China Glaze, For Audrey and Wet n Wild, I Need a Refresh-Mint . It's darker than Illamasqua, Nudge . The formula is much like Blu and if you click here you can read my review on Money Talks. I also added a coat of Zoya, Opal to these nails as well.  Thumb: 2 coats of Zoya, Purity . This is a very thick & streaky whi...

No new nails just yet but I wanted to share this delicious new drink recipe I made the other day. I got the recipe from the Cruzan Website HERE . I tweaked it a little. I poured a 750ml bottle of Cruzan Strawberry Rum  (21% ALC./VOL.) into a beverage dispenser and added 4 sprigs of fresh Rosemary. I let it sit and infuse the rum for 1 hour at room temperature. The original recipe says to remove the rosemary but I left them in. Then I added a 2 liter bottle of Ginger Ale and the juice from 3 limes (approximately 6 oz.).  I sealed the beverage container and gave it a few swirls to mix everything together. Serve over ice. Everyone really enjoyed it; very light, fruity, and refreshing. Perfect for a slow summer day of relaxing.

Hey Gang! If you follow my Facebook Page you know that I recently purchased a huge lot of stripping tape from Amazon . So, I decided to start with a negative space mani. I applied my base coat of ACI's Bridge The Ridge and let it dry thoroughly. On my Middle & Ring nails I applied stripping tape; I did a cross cross towards the cuticle on my Ring and double stripes on my middle. On my right hand I did the same patterns but switched nails. I then applied a coat of Maya Cosmetics, Bittersweet Symphony and promptly removed the stripping tape. Bittersweet Symphony is almost a one coater and a glitter bomb. Per Maya Cosmetics it consists of  gunmetal, periwinkle, and white glitter with flashes of fuchsia glitter and violet-blue-pink micro flakes in a sheer dark gray base. I don't see the white glitter but otherwise that description is accurate. It's very, very thick. I added some thinner but I really didn't see a difference.  After the first coat was completely dry I a...