My new heels!

So, I went shopping on Friday, and made a few mistakes. :)

That's always my phrase when my family or boyfriend see millions of shopping bags in my hands when I arrive home after an innocent window shopping session.

I only bought 2 pairs of shoes, the sales were irresistible. I have absolutely no more space in my shelf, I think I need a new 'book' shelf built.

The pair of ankle boots I bought I've liked for a while, since I first  saw it online. I will do a post on them soon.

The pair in this post is so stunning, and kind of similar to the Louboutins I've been lusting over and could never afford.

Disney on ice! Minnie mouse nails

Last night, my boyfriend and I took my 3 cousins and 3 of his nieces and nephews to watch Disney on ice.

I decided to do Minnie Mouse inspired nails for the occasion. It was harder than I thought to get the shape of the head and ears, but below are pictures of my attempt.

I will upload a tutorial on each nail design in the next week.

Which design is your favourite? 

Nude love and hearts

This is a very quick and easy understated look, nude on all nails, and a cut off heart on one. You can use any colour, it actually looks stunning on a light blue base. 

The nude colour is really glossy, it is Nude Glam by Essence. The pink colour is a brand I don't know, and the black is also by Essence.  I used the brush from the nail polish to make the design, it was way easier than the nail art brushes.

Step 1: Paint all nails with a base coat and then with the nude polish

Step 2: Wait for the nails to dry completely

Step 3: Use the brush from your nail polish and make two stripes toward the edge of your nail. You can fill it in with nail art brushes around the edges to make the shape you want. Remember only the outline of this will be visible, so don't stress about it too much.

Step 4: Then use your pink nail polish brush and make two stripes within the black stripes. You can perfect the shape with nail art brushes, but I just used my brush from the nail polish.

Step 5: Put a top coat on all your nails, and that's it.

Easy Peasy!

Red hot and feathered up!

A while ago, my cousin had red nails, a stunning highly pigmented colour from the old faithful Essence. I then decided that it's too boring, so lets add a feather. 

Below is what the finished product looked like. We were quite impressed!

You can use any base colour, gold would look quite stunning!

We used the Essence white tip painter, which has a really thin brush. 

Here's how:

Make one long diagonal  line from the cuticle to the tip of the nail

Make short lines diagonally from the long line, toward the tip

Lastly,  make very thin light strokes on the short lines to make the feathers

 It wasn't as hard as it seems, but you do need a steady hand, And I recommend having a partner to help out.

P.S. Don't forget your base coat!

Thanks for reading!

Sissy Boy Hi-tops

These are my Sissy Boy Hi-Tops!

I really love the nude colour of them, and the paisley design, which makes it feminine, while still being funky.

They can be worn with everything, I've only worn them once with jeans though. I can say I've only worn most of my shoes once, which is a problem, but also oh so glamorous!

I'm not really a takkie(that's South African for sneakers) person, but I just loved the look of these.

What do you guys think?

Groupon and Style36! Pay R250 and get R500 worth of beauty products!

Another amazing sale from style36, but this time their beauty section. Buy a R250 voucher from Groupon, and you can spend R500 on selected products!

Here is the Groupon link: http://www.groupon.co.za/deals/national-deals/36-Boutiques/23362665

And these are the products available for this special: http://www.style36.co.za/groupon-deal?utm_source=groupon&utm_medium=online-platform&utm_campaign=PROM_BTY_F_01_20130626

Once again, be quick!

Style 36 is going to be the death of my bank account today!

And yes, I bought 3 more nail colours... ;)

Will put the pictures up at a later stage, need to get this post up, so you guys can get shopping! :)

Amazing sale at style36.co.za

Hi Everybody

Sorry for the quick written post, but I wanted to let you know asap that there is a mega sale at style36.co.za!

Get browsing now, click on the link below:

http://www.style36.co.za/sale-fever-lp

Happy Shopping!

Impressive wedge by Impress

For the passed year I have had a more than slight obsession with wedges. I love the height of platforms, but they are such a mission to walk in, unless I get picked up at my door, and dropped off at my destinations door with minimal walking distance, my platform shoes stay in my shoe shelf.

This is where my obsession with wedges came in, I get the height, as well as so many stunning designs, but I wont trip and fall on my face!

This is one of my favourite pairs of wedges. They are quite high, and I love the pattern and the shape of it. 

Hope you guys like it too!

Thanks for reading!

More shoe posts to come soon :)

My shoe collection :)

So, my blog so far has only been focused on nails. I decided to show you guys a bit more about me, I'm not all nails and nail art. I'm also clothes, beauty and shoes!

These are pictures of most of my shoes. I will try take pictures of my fav shoes separately and post them soon.

I have two separate sections for shoes, a shelf for all my heels and flat boots in the bottom shelf (it was meant to be a book shelf). I do not have enough days in the year to wear all my heels, because I mostly work from home, my work shoes are usually slippers or ugg boots, and heels are reserved for the weekend! Most of my flats go in a zip up bag, and I have a few in boxes and other storage spaces.

I take care that all my shoes are in boxes or in a sealed bag, like my flats bag. I have some boxes with three pairs of heels in, which can sometimes get confusing, but at least they are safe, I do label those boxes though. I have started collecting the clear shoe boxes, but they are not completely sealed, so dust can still settle in them.

Below are some pictures

Shoes make me happy! :)

Black and gold tutorials

Below are the tutorials for each of the black and gold looks from the Black and Gold post: http://prettifulblog.blogspot.com/2013/06/black-and-gold.html 

They are all really easy to do and don't take very long.

I haven't put the finished looks individually on this tutorial, as they are on the Black and Gold post here: http://prettifulblog.blogspot.com/2013/06/black-and-gold.html 

Step one for all nails is a base coat, and then the gold polish.

Your nails now look like this. You can decide to do one design on all your nails, or like me do different ones on each. 

Fanning:

This is the first time I have tried fanning. I used the black polish by Essence, and put a bit on a piece of foil. I then rubbed my fan brush in it, and then brushed it across my nails. I think with this look it is best to fan on more than one colour. Remember to seal your look with a top coat!

Will try it in the future and keep you posted :)

Sponging: 

This look is so easy to do and looks stunning in any colour combination. Different sponges give a different type of look. The sponge I used is part of an Essence kit. A denser foundation or make up sponge will give you less of a dotty look.

Use your nail polish brush, and paint a line of polish on the edge of your sponge as seen in the picture below. Start at the top of your nail and dab the painted end of the sponge gently onto your nail. Remember you want a fading look, so dab less and less toward your cuticle. Rather start with less colour, and you can always build it up.

Remember your top coat!

Caviar:

This caviar look is really easy to do, and because the beads are random, you don't have to worry about being precise. Paint your nail in black, and while your polish is still wet, dip half your nail into the tub of caviar beads. Then take a finger from your other hand and press it into the tub to pick up a few beads, press these onto the rest of your nail to give a fading look. Remember you have to be fairly quick, else the polish will dry and your beads wont stick very well.

You can gently press the beads to make them stick a little more. 

Remember this look doesn't need a top coat!

Below is a picture of my caviar nail when the beads fell off. I have done a post on how to do this.

Click here: http://prettifulblog.blogspot.com/2013/06/caviar-manicure-here-today-gone-tomorrow.html

Nail striping:

There are two ways to use striping tape, I will show you both ways in this tutorial.

The first way is to use the tape as the design. 

Select the colour of  the striping tape that you would like to use, in this case I chose the black. Cut strips of the tape and place them in any design on your nail. I did a fan type of look, but anything will work. Once you have completed your look, snip the edges to size, a nail clipper or cuticle cutter works best, as you can get close to the nail. The tape sticks quite nicely, but it is very important to put a top coat to seal it.

This look is very simple. Remember to let your nails dry completely before applying the tape. And if you misplace the tape on your nail, you can always peel it off and re-stick it.

Nail striping two:

This is the second way to use nail striping, by painting over the tape. 

In this case the colour of the tape doesn't matter as you are going to paint over it. Cut the striping tape and place them in any design on your dry nail. If you misplace the tape on your nail, you can always peel it off and re-stick it.Cut the tape longer than you need it, as you will have to peel it off later. Make sure the tape is completely  stuck down, and no polish will be able to seep under.

Next paint the black polish over the tape. Wait until this is completely dry, and then peel the tape off slowly, one stripe at a time. You need to start with the top tape, and work down in layers.

This look is very simple, but remember to let your nails dry completely before applying the tape and removing the tape. 

Finish off with a top coat!

Hope you enjoyed this 5 in 1 tutorial! 

Thanks for reading!

Caviar manicure; Here today, Gone tomorrow

For anyone who has tried a caviar manicure will know that it doesn't last very long, but don't despair! Caviar is perfect for a night or day out, and then the beads start disappearing. The first picture shows my caviar mani in black and gold, and the next picture is the same nail with all the beads off. It still looks quite stunning. So, when your beads start falling off, don't remove your mani, just gently take the rest of the beads off, and you will have a brand new look that lasts way longer! Don't be rough when taking the beads off, or else your base polish will peel off too. The second look is still textured and interesting, some people even prefer it to the caviar beads.

So, don't be afraid to try the caviar mani, even if they fall off, you will still get two looks from all the hard labour you put into the bead work :)

Black and gold

Today's inspiration was the glam combo of black and gold. I couldn't decide what design to do on my nails, but I knew that I wanted to use black and gold. So, I decided to go bold and do a different black and gold design on each nail. I will post a tutorial in the next few days on how to do these designs. 

Below are the five different designs:

Gold base with black fan effect

Gold base with black sponged on

Black base and gold caviar beads

Gold base with black striping tape

Gold base with black polish and striping tape removed

Caviar beads removed

For anyone who has tried a caviar manicure will know that it doesn't last very long, but don't despair! Caviar is perfect for a night or day out, and then the beads start disappearing. This picture above is a picture of my caviar finger with all the beads off. It still looks quite stunning. So, when your beads start falling off, don't remove your mani, just gently take the rest of the beads off, and you will have a brand new look that lasts very long!

All my designs with caviar removed

Thanks for reading! Keep an eye out for the black and gold tutorial post coming soon!

New nail products

I tend to buy nail polish and nail art every week, even though I really don't need anymore! I keep justifying myself by saying I don't have this shade of purple, or this shade of blue. My newest buy is "Mint candy apple" by Essie, and "How do you lilac it", by Rimmel. I love the pastel shades, and they compliment each other too. The Rimmel one is not as pigmented as it looks, it comes out more as a nude purple. I will take pictures of the colours on my nails and post it soon.

My next buy were these nail brushes, it's a set of 15, and includes fan brushes, a dotting tool, and different lengths and thickness brushes. Will use these in some tutorials over the next few weeks.

Happy Sunday everyone!

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The first

My latest obsession is nail art (this excludes the ongoing obsession with clothes, shoes and beauty). So I thought it fit for my first post to be a nail art tutorial. The thing with nail art, is sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. It's best to have a friend near to help, in my case my cousin. Its hard enough trying to paint with my left hand, never mind making designs!

We decided on a sailor look, and found this picture on FASHIONFREAX.

 The Inspiration

In my tutorial I will show step by step how to do this design, as well as all the tools you need. All my tools and polishes are affordable, mostly Essence :)

First of all this is what you will need: 

A base coat, I use Bourjois So Perfect

You will also need a white, blue and red polish.

I also have a white tip painter by Essence which I used for the anchor

I have a dotting tool as well as a nail art brush, both by Essence

And a top coat to finish off your look

Step 1: Apply the base coat to all your nails. This is a very important step, especially when using high pigment colours. If you do not use a base coat your nails will stain. A base coat also prolongs the life of your mani as your polish sticks better to it than to your natural nail. I do not have a picture of the base coat, as it is pretty straight forward :P

Step 2: Choose which nail you would like to be blue with the anchor. I personally prefer my ring finger or middle finger. Paint all your nails white, except the "chosen one", paint that nail blue. You may need 2 coats, depending on your polish.After every nail that you paint, use a toothpick or even a dotting tool and run it around the edges of your nails where the nail and finger meet, this prevents your polish peeling when you clean up the edges. 

I should add that I am a very messy painter, so half my finger ends up with polish. Instead of cleaning it with remover, I run my fingers under hot water once my nails are completely dry, and the polish peels off my fingers very easily. 

Your nails should now look like this:

Step 3: The next step is to make the red stripes on your white nails. You can use tape for this by putting strips of tape over the white and the painting red over. You then peel off the tape and you will have your stripes. If you use this method, ensure your nails are completely dry before applying the tape.

I did it free hand with the brush by Essence and the red polish, also by Essence. This brush came in a pouch with 3 sponges, which I use for an ombre sponging look, I will do a tutorial for this in days to come. This kit is very cheap, and works really well, I bought mine from Dischem. Your can decide how thick you want your red stripes to be, as well as how far apart you want them. Because the brush is quite long, I placed it on  my nail, to make a straight line across, and filled in the edges after. 

It is important to clean your brush with nail polish remover after making all your stripes.

Step 4: Now, for the anchor. I used the dotting tool, and the white tip painter, again, both by Essence. To start make a dot in the center of your nail, about 3 mm from your cuticle, this is for the head of the anchor. I used the dotting tool dipped in white polish for this. I had to dot a few times to get the size I wanted, I even increased the size again after the rest of the anchor was done. Then draw a line straight down toward the tip of your nail with the tip painter. Stop about 3 mm from the edge of your nail. Then draw an arch across your nail, perpendicular to the long line you did before. Draw triangles on the ends of the arch. You then need to make a hole with blue in the center of the dot at the head of the anchor. I pressed the dotting tool into it, and it made a hole without me having to put blue polish on. If this doesn't work for you, clean the white off your dotting tool, then dip it in your blue polish and dot on top of the white dot. 

And VOILA!

It doesn't look as perfect as the inspiration, but pretty good for my first try. I just realised now that I did not put the line that cuts across the long line, sigh. So don't make my mistake, and make a short line about half way between the dot and the arch. 

Thanks for reading!

If there are any inspirations that you like and don't know how to do, I would love to give it a try, so leave a comment or send me an email and I will try my best to help.