Summer dresses: Color Club Splitting Image & High Society

Hello ladies,

During last week's heat wave, many Philadelphia ladies decided to meld with the temperatures by putting on their brightest floral dresses. It seemed like the whole city was a connection of fabric flowers on the vine. I appreciated the local effort to maintain a sense of beauty even in the oppressive heat. What is a lady to do but keep her parasol aloft at such times?   

I began with taupe as a base and chose the Art Club striper You're Golden to section the nail diagonally. I layered the blue shimmer fractured polish Splitting Image towards the tip. I picked dried flowers in hot pink, nude pink and burgundy to bloom along the gold shimmer. I featured more hot pink flowers on my right hand and the peachy tones on my left. To highlight the centers of the flowers, I used turquoise and pastel or hot pink gems. I also placed pink, blue and natural tone pearls. 

My right hand with more hot pink flowers. 

A morning glory with either pollen dust or pixie dust. 

High Society is a taupe creme. I applied three coats for evenness and opacity. I wore this polish for a couple days without nail art and received compliments. It's a classic shade that is simple and stylish.

Splitting Image has a versatile formula. A thinner coating will produce standard cracking. Adding a little more creates fine striations that reminds me of distressed denim. I would recommend trying Splitting Image over a pale blue. The light cobalt tone is really lovely. I have been really enjoying experimenting with the Fractured Collection. As much as I enjoy the look of the stronger effect produced through traditional layering, it's fun to see the variations when painted as a diagonal or French manicure.

If you are in a warm climate, I hope this manicure inspires you to put on a pretty, summer frock and move amongst the flowers.

The Color Club and Art Club items mentioned in this post were provided for review. High Society is from the Rebel Debutante Collection and Splitting Image can be found in the Fractured Collection. These shades can be purchased at victoriasnailsupply.com. Color Club/Forsythe has been revamping their company site. You can explore the product lines at cosmeticgroup.com.

Would you like the chance to win six crackle nail polishes? Stop by the Let's Get Cracking! Color Club Fractured Giveaway! to enter.

Happy painting, ladies!

Bunny in the marigolds!

Hello ladies,

I made a new acquaintance in the garden this morning. A wild rabbit and I were enjoying the flowers, each in our own way. 

Why hello, little rabbit!

I see you share my appreciation of these fine flowers!

Marigolds bring delight to all.

This bunny is still very young. A sociable little lad! I was leaning over the low fencing, only two feet away when taking these pictures. He seems more like a pet, doesn't he?

Happy painting, ladies!

Apothecary: Art Club Sealer Topcoat

Hello ladies,

I have been using Art Club Sealer Topcoat recently with great success. A new essential in my nail treatment apothecary, this product seals nail art stamping designs, secures gems, pearls and fimo slices, while adding a high gloss shine. It is my dream topcoat.

Art Club Sealer Topcoat is a quality replacement for Konad Special Topcoat. When applied with the same careful dabbing motion across the design, it seals stamping nail art more cleanly than with the Konad brand. I have found I can move the brush over the design a second time without causing the image to blur.

I am so pleased with the performance of this sealer for stamping nail art, I will never use my bottle of Konad Special Topcoat again. I will either keep it as a relic of my past frustration or ceremonially jettison it off the Walnut Street Bridge.

I have been utilizing Art Club Sealer Topcoat for designs created over dry nail polish. This topcoat goes on relatively thickly, but is still easily workable. The consistency is perfect to secure three dimensional items to nails in one coat. The formula works to adhere dried flowers to the nail and maintain their color and beauty. I didn't experience any fading of the petals after showering and applying hand cream.

I am very impressed with how well Art Club Sealer Topcoat helps fimo slices conform to the natural shape of the nail. First, I dab a small drop of topcoat, then add the fimo. Once I tap the piece of fimo with the edge of the pick up tool, it will remain firmly positioned on my nail. The final layer of sealer will quickly coat the fimo and keep it in place.

This is the only topcoat I have found that keeps tiny beads on my nails for days! I didn't lose one of the 300 black beads I employed for my kiwi nail art nor was I missing a single crystal from the 250 plus gems and beads in my $5.10 manicure. Amazing!

Art Club Sealer Topcoat is self leveling. It will add a brilliant, glassy shine to your manicure. The formula is scratch resistant as well. My nails kept their sheen and smooth finish even after doing housework.

It is essential when working with the Art Club Sealer Topcoat to wrap the free edge of your nails with color beforehand to avoid tip pull. When polishing my nails, I wrap the tips after each coat. The only difficulty I had with base colors and the sealer have been thin, jelly polishes. This is a common issue with the majority of topcoats.

When the bottle became about half empty, I needed to add thinner. This step might not be necessary for everyone. My bottles of topcoat get a good deal of air time given the complexity of some of my manicures.

Whether you enjoy doing nail art as a way of life or only occasionally, I highly recommend having a bottle of Art Club Sealer topcoat among your treatments. It is a fantastic product and, by far, my favorite to protect and add shine to nail designs.

Art Club Sealer topcoat was sent to me for review. I have seen this product at Five Below retail locations. It is also included in the Art Club Glitter Striper Set and Boudoir Collection. I am currently searching for a reputable on-line source to purchase bottles singly. It comes in a 7ml size.

Happy painting, ladies!

Into the fairy woods...

Hello ladies,

Would you like to take a walk with me through the Wildflower Preserve? Come explore the sunlit creek, stop by the log cabin, meet a gregarious frog, find dainty yellow lady slippers and be tempted along a mossy path deep into an enchanted wood.  

Virginia Bluebells

Cascading water brings tranquility in sight and sound. 

The creek is a mirror where the trees gaze. 

Purple Phlox

When can I move in?

The chimney is shaped a bit like a bottle of BB Couture nail polish. 

Such starry flowers!

A view from the stone bridge.

Taking a bath. 

He hopped around to greet me. 

And tried to steal a kiss!

Others at the local watering hole are a bit more demure. 

Yellow lady slippers!

The flower would make a suitable boat for a faery queen. 

The newly emerging ferns look like they are stretching after a long sleep.

The red flowers make me think of firecrackers.

Azaleas gone wild!

A mossy path beckons...

White flowering trees weave their branches through the green canopy. 

 Happy  painting, ladies!

Easter flowers: Diamond Cosmetics Bahama Mama

Bleeding heart flower

Hello ladies,

For those who celebrated Easter today, I hope you had a pleasant holiday. I couldn't resist creating a manicure to match the local blooms of the season.

I began with one of the new Summer shades from Diamond Cosmetics: Bahama Mama. With Konad green special polish, I stamped the leaves from image plate H10. Every other nail, the positioning of the greenery was switched and adjusted to the left or right. I added dried flowers in orange, yellow, green, blue and purple along with two sizes of coordinating rhinestones. So cheerful!

Bahama Mama is a vibrant pink creme. I would classify this shade as a bright, but there may be a bit of neon pigment in the mix. I applied three coats, more for evenness than opacity. For $2.50 a bottle, you can't go wrong with this polish!

For those of you wondering why I did not feature the three Spring polishes, it is because they never arrived. I did make requests for the shades when I put the promo photos up and again afterwards. I apologize for not being able to honor requests to see these colors. If the Spring Collection does arrive, I will certainly give it a nice showing.

I hope these bright flowers brought a little Springtime to your part of the map. Enjoy!

Bahama Mama was sent to me for review. This polish will soon be available for US residents to purchase at diamondcosmetics.com. For international shipping, keep an eye on boozyshop.nl for availability.

Image plate H10 was provided for my consideration. To explore the full line of nail art stamping products and supplies, visit chez-delaney.com.

Happy painting, ladies!

Flora and fauna at Longwood Gardens

Hello ladies,

My friend David and I recently journeyed to Longwood Gardens to view the flowering trees and the bright tulip display. We encountered some fauna as well during our garden jaunt.

The tulips are planted in drifts of color.

Red and orange tulips aglow like a fireplace.

The air was fragrant with white blossoms.

The soft yellow daffodils with their bright orange faces.

I love the pink and cream colored tulips. Silky.

Turned up like a lipstick display.

We encountered a sleeping beastie on the walkway.

It seemed to be a rare species that crosses a cat with a baked good and a pair of striped tights.

He raised his chin for scratching.

And succumbed again to the sleeping spell of the sun warmed path.

A view of the tree house between a sakura and a weeping willow.

This sociable goose is from the pair above. He swam over for a close up.

I hope you enjoyed a look at our day. Have you been enjoying the delights of Spring?

Happy painting, ladies!