Challenging Yourself

     Getting better at nail art will never happen if you don't push yourself to try challenging designs. This is what I have been learning lately.
     The other day, a client asked me to paint the Grinch on her nails for Christmas. My first thought was pffft, yeah right. That's too difficult, but then after I thought about it a bit more, I thought, I should just try it and see how it goes! Luckily I had some time before her appointment so I could practice. I pulled out an extra nail tip, a photo for reference, and some paint and got to work, and to my surprise, I got it on my first try! I didn't exactly nail it, (no pun intended), but I did paint a legitimate Grinch, which at first, I didn't even think was possible.
     My client was very happy with her nails and I felt great about my accomplishment.
 

All You Need is Love

Rainbows, Sunshine, and Happiness

     So I was feeling a little glum the other day. I guess the winter weather was bringing me down. It had been raining for days and I was finding it difficult to get motivated to get off the couch and do things. So, of course, being the nail tech that I am, I decided to cheer myself up by painting something cheerful on my nails.
     I used the word "happiness" as my inspiration, and here's what I came up with:

     It seems to have worked because I got myself out of that slump and I feel much better! It's funny how we can turn our emotions around just by thinking positively and spending a little time on ourselves. I always recommend getting a mani or pedi when you're feeling down. It might be just what you need to put a smile on your face.

Experimenting With Stiletto Nails

Hi folks!

     So, recently I've been very interested and curious about pointy nails, a.k.a. stiletto nails. When I first started nail tech school, we learned about all the different nail shapes on the first day. I remember thinking "ew, gross" when my teacher drew a pointy nail on the board and called it a "stiletto" shape. I thought it was creepy and weird, and wondered who would want that? Images of stabbing myself in the eye with my nail came into my mind.

     However, after being a nail tech now for a couple of years, I now understand the appeal of them and I actually think they're really cool! The trend is starting to catch on and many celebrities have been rocking long, pointy, stiletto nails. My initial dislike of the shape has transformed into a love and appreciation for a well-done stiletto design.

     Working in a salon, I see a lot of the same square and oval shapes, so it's nice to experiment with something different. I finally decided to experiment with the stiletto shape on myself. Here's how it turned out:

     I've been wearing the nails for a few weeks now and I absolutely love them! They are a lot of fun! I kind of feel like a bad-ass. They are actually pretty easy to work with. Even though they are long and pointy, I haven't had much trouble with them at all. I actually have found it pretty easy to open jewelery clasps and pick up tiny objects, because they sort of act like tweezers. The only thing I've had to adjust is taking out my contacts lenses. I did poke myself in the eye a couple times before I developed a finger-pinching technique, using the sides of my fingers, to remove contact lenses.

     One thing I did notice is that when painting them, certain designs and colours work better with this shape than others. I think that more "bad-ass" colours, like dark colours (dark black, blue, deep purple, red, etc) worked very well with this shape, while feminine colours such as pink and pale purple are a little bit more difficult to pull off.

     I think this trend is going to catch on more. I would love to see more people step out of their comfort zone and give this look a try. However, I want to hear YOUR thoughts! What do you think about this look? Would you ever wear it? Please leave me your comments below. Cheers!

-Careasa

Some New Nail Art

Here are a few things I've done in the salon recently.

I love these nautical toes a client had me do for her. Pretty much anything nautical gets me excited. I love being close to the water so anything that makes me think of boating, the ocean, and sailing in the sun makes me happy.

 Some modern-looking geometric chevron design with purple and teal glitter

 A client was going to a party and needed crazy sparkly nails. We used OPI's Metallic 4 Life from the Nicki Minaj collection and then blinged-out one finger and one toe on each side with swarovski crystals. Fun!

 A basic manicure with OPI's Midnight in Moscow with an accent finger

 Piggy toes

 Cow toes :)

 A funky pedicure

 Some Chanel-inspired nails

 Pumpkin patch! Perfect for fall

And my personal favorite - OPI's Blue My Mind with crystal-covered ring fingers

Let me know your thoughts below. Ta-ta for now!

Nails Fit For a Celebrity

Today I had the pleasure of doing a set of nails for singer/songwriter Rosette for her upcoming show in Toronto. Her song Amnesia played on the radio as I gave her the funkiest set of nails I've ever seen.

Each nail was unique and the set was adorned with chains, leopard print, crystals, neon, glitter and skulls.

It's always a pleasure working with the beautiful and very talented Rosette, and I wish her all the best with the upcoming show.

Vegas Nail Art

So I recently went to Vegas for a few days and just wanted to quickly post some photos of the nails I did for myself.

 

I hand-painted those cards, the martini, and the dice.

I know this is a quick post but it's late right now. Anyway, I had a great time. Stayed at Planet Hollywood and saw "O" by Cirque Du Soliel. It was fabulous! And my nails looked awesome.

Cheers!

-C