how to create “jelly sandwich” nails
(Cross-posted from the Birchbox Blog. Check them out here!)
If you’re looking for a fun new way to wear glitter, look no further than the “jelly sandwich” manicure. This nail technique has swept the blogosphere, and for good reason! It’s quick, foolproof for even the shakiest hands, and the color combinations are endless.
You’ll need two polishes to get the look. A jelly polish will serve as the sandwich’s bread, with a layer of glitter polish in between. What’s jelly polish, you might ask? These lacquers are somewhat translucent, even after a few coats, and provide sheer, glossy color. I’m using Essie True Love today, along with four different glitters to show you a variety of looks.
Step 1: After applying a base coat, paint each nail with one or two coats of jelly polish. Allow your nails to dry before moving on.
Step 2: Apply a layer of glitter polish over your base color. I like using chunky glitter, but you can use anything you have on hand. For a little extra fun, try creating a glitter gradient like I did on my ring finger by concentrating the majority of the sparkles at the base of the nail.
Step 3: Once the glitter has dried, apply an additional layer of jelly polish over the top. This coat will trap the glitter in the middle, giving your manicure tons of depth and visual interest. If you choose a white or pale jelly, the final layer gives the manicure a milky effect, which makes the glitter much more subtle. Perfect for when you want to sparkle without going too over-the-top.
Step 4: Even though jellies are quite glossy, I like adding a top coat for extra durability and protection, especially in the heat of summer when my nails take so long to dry.
Super simple, right? The best part about this look is experimenting with polish and glitter combinations – you really can’t go wrong! Looking to add a few jellies to your collection? Try these three bright, buildable shades from Zoya’s Blogger Collection.
Have you tried the “jelly sandwich” look? Let me know in the comments!
my top 5 nail polishes – fall 2012
After a summer full of neons and brights, I’m ready to dust off the darks and bring them back into rotation. Fall is just around the corner, so it’s time to share my top five polish picks for the upcoming season.
Thumb: Essie Going Incognito. This emerald/forest green creme is an older color from Essie (you don’t need to buy the new stuff to keep up with the seasons). It’s similar to a few of the new greens I’ve seen recently, including the brand-new Essie Stylenomics. This feels like a classic autumn color to me, and it’s muted enough for those of you who are wary of green.
Pointer: Kure Bazaar Afrika. This saturated orange falls right in line with the Pantone Color Report for Fall 2012. It’s fun and bright – a great alternative to the classic red. An added bonus: Kure Bazaar‘s unique formula is 85% natural, made from wood pulp, wheat, cotton, potatoes, and corn.
Middle: Butter London Trustafarian is one of my favorite new polishes right now. It’s a pale, holographic sage green with a touch of golden shimmer. The holographic effect is subtle, but stunning. I haven’t been wearing a lot of loud glitter lately, so this is a perfect alternative to add some sparkle and shine.
Ring: OPI Every Month is Oktoberfest. My camera isn’t catching the shimmer as well as I’d like it to, but this deep purple/red polish really sparkles when it catches the light. Every Month is Oktoberfest is a dark polish, but it has enough color and shine that it doesn’t feel like you’re wearing black, which happens with a lot of dark purples. I’ll be wearing this a lot this fall, especially on my toes. Check out the rest of this new collection here.
Pinky: Essie Gym Dandy. Gym Dandy is a taupe-y greige – one of those neutrals that is hard to accurately describe. It reads quite grey on me, though I’ve seen it appear more like a brown on other skin tones. Gym Dandy has the classic Essie formula we all love, and it’s a nice alternative to pale pinks or nudes as the weather gets cooler.
What colors are you looking forward to wearing this fall? Let me know in the comments!
the new neutrals
(Cross-posted from the Birchbox Blog. Check them out here!)
Pink, light pink, beige, cream, tan…are you bored yet? As much as I love a classic business-appropriate pink manicure, it’s time that we rethink our definition of neutral or acceptable nail polish shades. While lacquer sales have skyrocketed (627 new colors debuted last year!), only 10 percent of those sales in 2011 were pink. Here are my picks for this season’s new neutrals—no matter your age, job, or style.
Green: Whether you choose a pale pistachio like RGB Dew or a dark, saturated emerald like Essie Stylenomics, you’ll be in style without looking too daring or out-there. Work in a conservative office? Save the neons and lime green for weekends.
Taupe/Greige: That hard-to-describe shade somewhere between grey, beige, and purple is one of the easiest ways to step your nude polish up a notch. It’s classic yet trendy, and will fly in even the most buttoned-up workplace. Try Berlin There Done That from the new OPI Fall 2012 Germany Collection.
Blue: Yes, nail polish has become so mainstream, I’m calling blue a neutral. (20 percent of the top 130 polish colors sold in department stores last year were blue.) While a screaming neon won’t always fly, a well-polished medium or pale blue manicure always works in my book. I love Deborah Lippmann I Know What Boys Like, a dusty blue with a touch of purple.
Metallic: Metallics are sleek, sophisticated, and super-wearable while packing a major style punch. A metallic polish will carry you through all the seasons, and like silver or gold jewelry, it’ll coordinate with just about any outfit. Try Color Club Disco Nap or Nails Inc. Cambridge Terrace.
White: My favorite new neutral may be the simplest color of all—white. White nail polish, if applied nicely, looks clean and crisp, and really pops against all skin tones. If bright, eye-catching colors aren’t your thing, white polish may be your new best friend. My go-to white is the drugstore classic Sally Hansen xTreme Wear in White On.
What are your favorite “new neutrals” this season? Let me know in the comments!
love this: knob creek metal arts
How fun are these handcrafted metal bookends? I never got around to setting up shelves or a bookcase in my apartment, so these would at least make my haphazard book piles look intentional!
Etsy is a wonderful and dangerous place. Wouldn’t life be a little sweeter if we all had wiener dog-shaped bookends?
inside my birchbox, august 2012
Best Birchbox yet? Quite possibly. Here’s what arrived in my mailbox today:
Viva la Juicy La Fleur by Juicy Couture. I’m not an everyday fragrance-wearer, but this perfume will be nice to have on hand for a few upcoming events on my calendar.
Schick Hydro Silk Razor. This month’s “extra” item is a great one. Razors are expensive, and I still haven’t settled on a drugstore brand that I love. Maybe this will be the one?
Miss Jessie’s Pillow Soft Curls. I’m generally loyal to DevaCare Arc Angel to tame my crazy curls, but with the hair-ruining heat and humidity this summer, I’m excited to try something (anything!) new. Its blend of avocado, sweet almond, and coconut sound healing and moisturizing, and the two sample packs I received will get me through at least four tries.
Whish Three Wishes Body Butter. This organic (!) body butter has a nice, light scent and isn’t as thick and goopy as I would expect from a butter. Perfect timing to soothe dried-out summer skin!
DDF Brightening Cleanser. I’ve been using DDF products for a few years now to calm my stubborn, acne-prone skin, so a new-to-me DDF cleanser is a very welcome addition to my box this month. This sample is quite large, and if it keeps up its promise to brighten skin and fade scars, I’ll definitely be adding this to my nightly skincare routine.
I’m really happy with my box this month, particularly the cleanser and the Miss Jessie’s product. Are you a subscriber? What did you get in your box this month? Let me know in the comments!
style board: essie stylenomics
Is it fall yet? New York is hot, sticky, and smelly (really), and I’m beginning to yearn for the days of tall leather boots and chunky sweaters. Essie’s Fall 2012 collection “Stylenomics” doesn’t have a huge variation of shades, but the taupes and jewel tones are getting me excited for the upcoming season. That green – the collection’s namesake – is especially intriguing…
1. Hover Brooch, Anthroplogie, $58
2. The Sidewalk Skimmer in Suede, Madewell, $98
3. Ikat Saturation Loop, Anthropologie, $38
4. Essie Stylenomics Collection
5. Braided Hammock Belt, Madewell, $45
6. Shrunken Blazer in Embroidered Plaid, J.Crew, $198
Are you ready for fall? What do you think of this color palette from Essie? Let me know in the comments!
swatched: opi germany collection
It still feels like hot, sticky summer around here, but Fall and Winter collections are popping up everywhere I look. I’m not ready to retire my summer brights just yet, but there are definitely some winners in OPI’s latest, the Germany Collection. Here are a few quick finger swatches to give you a taste…
Thumb: Don’t Talk Bach To Me is a lime/yellow creme. I don’t love this shade on me, but for a polish in this tricky color, the formula is impressive.
Pointer: Nein! Nein! Nein! Ok Fine! is a great dark, glossy grey. Nothing revolutionary here, but I always love a good grey and I’m sure I’ll be wearing this one a lot.
Middle: Berlin There Done That is a deep taupe/grey with a beautiful smooth formula.
Ring: Don’t Pretzel My Buttons!, a classic beige, applied to opacity in two coats. This is a fairly standard neutral polish that will likely work on a range on skin tones.
Pinky: I really like My Very First Knockwurst, a pale nude with a hint of pink. It’s not sheer at all, which is a plus in my book.
Pinky: Suzi & The 7 Dusseldorfs is a very fun, bright purple with a hint of shimmer.
Ring: Unfor-greta-bly Blue - I have a lot of polish in this cobalt blue shade these days, but I like it nonetheless.
Middle: German-icure by OPI is tricky to describe. It has a hint of purple, a bit of brown, and copper shimmer running through it. Good dimension and shine.
Pointer: Every Month is Oktoberfest is a gorgeous deep purple with a hint of ruby red and a lot of shimmer.
Thumb: Danke-Shiny Red, a bright, shimmery candy-apple red. Great formula and could have been a one-coater. It reminds me a bit of the classic China Glaze Ruby Pumps.
Left: Schnapps Out of It! - I’ll pass on this one. It’s hard to wear mauve without feeling really dated.
Right: Deutsche You Want Me Baby? is my favorite polish from this collection, and it happens to have an awesome name, too. It’s a shimmery pumpkin-orange, and I can’t wait to wear it this fall.
Overall, this is a very solid collection with great formulas across the board. I like a lot of them, but my top two are dark grey Nein! Nein! Nein! Ok Fine! (despite the name) and the gorgeous orange Deutsche You Want Me Baby?.
Will you be picking up anything from this collection? Let me know in the comments!
