Patriotic Gel Art! and How to do it!

Hi Monkeys, this is a bit over due, sorry things have been super busy lately! My 4th of July mani was super fun and easy and got tons of compliments.

For those wondering how to stamp over gels (love this because it lasts longer!) here's the order:
Prep your nail as you would for gels (buff, clean with alcohol or acetone)
Base gel layer, cure
1-3 coats of color gel, cure after each coat
wipe tacky layer off with alcohol
Stamp as you would a regular mani (I used Konad white polish)
clean up your edges with acetone (be careful here not to flood your nail)
add top gel coat and cure
wipe off tacky layer
And you're good to go!

The white I used is Whipped Cream by IBD and it is by far the best gel white I have found, two coats for that and 3 for the shimmery blue. Loved this mani, reminded me of distressed jeans and Bruce Springteen! Total American!

Skulls Halloween Mani BM413

JORD wood watches gift card giveaway HERE!

I have a cool black and white Halloween mani for you today. I started with two coats of Milani Black Swift (my go to black creme and it dries fast!). I used Bundle Monster 413 to stamp sugar skulls, a skeleton and a little monster guy. I used sequins to make the eyes sparkle a bit more and add color. I'm pretty surprised at how well the white stamped over the black; I used Konad white stamping polish.

Don't forget to enter my JORD wood watch giveaway!

Halloween Kitties that Glow

JORD wood watches gift card giveaway HERE!

 Halloween time Monkeys! I'm not sure when purple became a standard Halloween color, but it's a bandwagon I was more than happy to jump on. I used two coats of Milani Imperial Purple then stamped black Halloween cats on 2 fingers only. I wanted to show off SinfulColors Splatter Spell because it has some shredded glitter mingled with hexes and all orange and black, really fun glitter! I did one coat on my index and little finger and dabbed glitter around the stamped cats. Whenever I do a single image stamp that doesn't take up my whole nail, I like to add glitter in to make it pop and be more interesting. I also used SinfulColors glow in the dark top coat under a black light to show you it's pigment (I did this mani during the day so photos in the dark was not an option). I had to restamp the ring finger cat and ended up taking off some of the glow in the dark so you can see the difference, but for this purpose, I'm ok with it, plus it kind of looks like a moon or spooky clouds.

Milani Charcoal Charm + BM 413,H06

check out the current giveaway HERE for a chance to win a gift card from JORD wood watches!

Another ghoulishly mani for Halloween! I started with two coats of Milani Charcoal Charm which is a fantastic dark graphite gray. I then stamped the scary pumpkin face and the sugar skull from Bundle Monster plates 413 and H06. I wanted to jazz it up a bit so I added orange rhinestones to the eyes of the jack o lantern face and purple rhinestones for the eyes on the sugar skull. Another simple yet fun and eye catching mani for Halloween!

SinfulColors Pumpkin Spice and BM H06

JORD wood watches gift card giveaway HERE!

 Halloween is so soon you guys! I thought I'd do a fun but simple mani for the occasion! I started with two coats of a white creme, one coat of Pumpkin Spice for that orange glitter factor. I then used stamped various scary pumpkins using the Bundle Monster  H06 plate. I love the way Pumpkin Spice adds to the theme without it being a solid orange. Pretty simple but still festive!

Frenchie Flowers and Sequins!

Hi Monkeys, I have a jazzed up french for you today. I started with Milani Spotlight White for my tips, then used Black Swift and plate M60 from Konad to stamp the flowers. Then I added in fun sequins to the flowers for a bit of dimension and color. It's been so long since I've worn a regular french mani, I'm digging the simple but fun nail art. Plus I'm obsessed with side nail art lately. 

Soapy Dog Mani

In honor of yesterday's  post and review of Come Clean dog soap, I did this summer time themed mani.

 Nothing screams summer more than neons and the ultimate neon yellow is Orly Glowstick. Love this so much. I laid down a white base first, the Glowstick. I stamped the bubble (M85 from Konad) using Sally Hansen's Celeb City (another one I love to stamp with), and used a brown Milani polish for the dog and paws (SH08- shany). In case you missed my review of the awesome Come Clean soap you can see it HERE and find out more about the company and order it from their site HERE.

Finger Paints: Dream I Can Fly + BM H10

I have an Easter mani for you today! I used Finger Paints Dream I Can Fly which is a great minty blue creme (2 coats, great formula!) and stamped using Konad white polish and Bundle Monster plate BMH10... easter eggs, bunny, an egg with legs and a crown which I put cute blue flat round studs on the tips. it's cute, I like the large egg pattern but my favorite would have to be the chick and the eggs, it is easy to glance at it and know what the image is and what it stands for. All in all, a cute easy  mani for Easter!

I Just Can't Cope-Acabana + BMH16

I'm loving this yellow from the OPI Brazil collection. I Just Can't Cope-Acabana melts on the nail in two perfect opaque coats but takes a bit longer to dry (see index finger oops!). I stamped using Milani White and the BM-H16 plate. They're all Valentine's Day candy hearts but I'd rock this mani anytime because when you use the yellow base, it doesn't look Valentine specific. Is everyone hung over on candy hearts this year?

Christmas Winter Challenge: Christmas Food (Gingerbread Men using GA41)

Mmm, gingerbread men... Happy December everyone! I used OPI Cajun Shrimp from the Take Ten mini set.. it's a great coraly red creme. Then I stamped gingerbread men twice, once using Milani Black Swift and then in a Milani Gold... My middle finger was stamped with black first and then gold... looks too confusing so I changed it and you can see the gingerbread men much better when the gold goes down first. My accent is just gold and doesn't stand out that much. This may be better with a more true darker red underneath but I like the layering of the same stamp. Everyone's manis after the jump!

Holly Mani: BM H04

Winter Giveaway!

Hi Monkeys, I have a Christmas inspired mani for you today. I started with a base of Zoya .
I then stamped using SinfulColors Gold Medal and the ornament and wreath images from Bundle Monster H03. I dabbed some Sooki on as holly berries. While I like the idea of this mani, the stamping completely gets lost on the dark background. If you look close enough, you will have no real problem noticing the holly part but it's pretty dark. Adding the holly berries helped a bit though. I do however, like the wreath in my little finger. Thoughts?

Fashion Disaster 101 Plates- FD 1 and FD 6 hearts

Winter Giveaway!

Fashion Disaster stamping plates are new to me. So far, I'm loving them. Plus Katherine is very sweet! I did some photoshop stuff for her and she surprised me by sending me some of her plates. The first one I used was FD 1 and FD 6 ... they both have great heart lovey dovey designs on it. I used Milani White to stamp with and as you can see, all went smoothly. This may be a little Valentine's Day appropriate but heart manis are year round in my book :)  I think I used Malaga Wine from the Take Ten mini set. Malaga Wine is a nice deep crimson that still shows red and serves as a good contrast against the white. I'll have more FD plate manis for you to come as well, but check out Katherine's shop, her plates are affordable, she ships from the east coast and she's super sweet :)

#33DC - Shapes

Today's challenge theme was "shapes". I have some more Lush Lacquers Polish Me Silly bottles sitting around untried so I grabbed one: Monster Mash. I did a coat of white followed by two coats of Monster Mash. MM is a pain to apply. I have a mini bottle and I had to fish out the bigger glitters with a toothpick. I think the mini bottle is too small for the large glitters. After fishing them out it was fine: large blue, lavender and green hex glitters and smaller blue, green and purple matte glitters. Love the combo, hate the formula. I then stamped with Bundle Monster plate 406 ... a very cute celtic knot heart in black for my challenge pattern. not too shabby.

#33 DC- Favorite Pattern - Drip Mani

Enter my current giveaway here!

Today's challenge theme was "your favorite pattern". I chose a drip mani but only because I like the way they looked and wanted to use my  new Bundle Monster plate with the drip on it :). I don't know if I'd commit to a drip mani being a favorite per se, but having the ability to stamp it helps me like it even more. I started with 2 coats of You Don't Know Jacques from OPI (included in the take ten mini set available now!). I stamped in white then added Piroutte My Whistle which is silver glitter in a clear base... and apparently doesn't show up that well over the drip whites... oh well. I like the drips from the cuticle best, plus it's easier to place when yous stamp versus backwards on the tip to the cuticle.
Be sure to check out everyone else's favorite patterns!

Circuit Board Nails- BM 415

Happy Sunday Monkeys! I have nerd nails for you today. I started with two coats of Zoya Suvi and topped it with a coat of Ozotic 505 but you really can't see the Ozotic. I then matted it using OPI Matte top coat and stamped with Milani Gold using the Bundle Monster 415 plates. Viola! Circuit board nails!

You can win this plate along with the entire Bundle Monster 4 series plate set by entering my nail art contest and or voting for your favorites, more details HERE!

Winter Nail Art Contest and Giveaway Info!!

Hey Monkeys! I'm hosting a winter nail art contest and a giveaway on the blog. You can participate by submitting nail art or just be a voter, there's 2 winners.. official page HERE when voting begins. In the meantime, submit a mani!

Submit your best winter nail art- it can be freehand, non-freehand, holiday or non-holiday, traditional or not- where ever your creativity takes you! Nail Art entries are due by November 27th, 5pm pacific time (email manicuredmonkey@gmail.com). I'll announce shortly after that when voting will begin (give me a day or so to get photos posted). 

There will be two winners: 1st winner will be the winning nail art participant (will have priority choosing prize).  2nd winner is someone who participated in voting (you can get multiple entries daily to increase your chances). Nail art participants can also vote daily for themselves. Prizes are shown below and I'll have an image with a direct link you can re-pin\tumblr\tweet when voting begins. Let the nail art commence! 

#33DC - Color You Own The Most Of...

Hi Monkeys! Today's challenge theme was the color I own the most of... purple of course. I did two coats of Color Club's Eternal Beauty- an amazing linear purple holo.. Top picture is in direct daylight bulb and the bottom is in my light box with diffused lighting. Even with the diffused lighting, you can still see the great holo come through. I stamped BM315 fish netting design using Milani Black Swift then added some fun silver and black pyramid studs. Not a huge fan of the studs because I like functional manis, but it looks cute. Be sure to look at everyone else who participated!

#33DC - Geometric design

Hi Monkeys! For today's 33 Day Challenge the theme was "geometric design" so I got a little creative.

I first used 3 coats of OPI Peace & Love & OPI from their San Francisco collection. It's a fab duochrome shifter from a gray plum to a steel blue gray... pretty great.

I stamped with a rectangle design using OPI Matte top coat over the Gals stamping plates. I really like this mani. I don't think it would work with a dark like black creme but the shifting color dulls enough to be completely noticeable and interesting to the eye.

Overall, I'd say it was a win. Be sure to check out everyone else's manis!

#33DC - 3 color gradient and pattern- Fall Manicure

 Hi Monkeys! Today's 33 Day Challenge is a 3 color gradient with a pattern. I wanted to do fall colors because the weather is getting chillier! I started with a white base, painted half my nail with Zoya Darcy. I painted half my nail one coat so when I sponged over the white, it would be more opaque as yellows are pesky. I haven't sponged in a while so I'm a bit rusty but I used Milani Jiffy Orange and China Glaze IX for brown. I also stamped with IX for a fading effect. This is probably my  most memorable gradient, I love it and it's perfect for fall. I included a picture of the mani before the stamping, Enjoy! You can follow me on Blog Lovin' now too!

#33DC - Europe-

Today's #33DC  theme is Europe. I have a friend who loves all things Parisian, so I took the opportunity to do a Paris mani. I started with a base color of NOPI Late Blu-Mer from the Modern Family holiday collection 2013. It's a medium icy blue that reminded me of the sky so I stamped clouds using Bundle Monster BM-312 in White from Milani, then the Eiffel Tower image from my Fun-2 plate (love this plate) using Milani Black Swift. While it looks quite busy, I love the idea and look of this mani. The clouds may be better suited for a gray color but the high contrast I think gives the mani an interesting look to it. I've also included a shot of the base color because it's too pretty not too!