Nails Inc Seven Dials... with some dots

Nails Inc Seven Dials (dots with Megan Miller Latte)

I'm on something of a roll with the dots - they're so fun and summery. I think dots, especially big ones, are my favourite nail art style. The base for this mani is Nails Inc Seven Dials, a soft emerald green and I did the dots with Megan Miller Latte. The colour of the dots surprised me a bit, as Megan Miller Latte is a soft coffee shade... but its rather sheer, so over the green became this interesting mustard. Not quite what I'd planned, but I like it all the same!

Nails Inc Seven Dials (dots with Megan Miller Latte)

Since people keep asking about the big dots, I use one of my silversmiths doming punches to do these. I have a bag of them in different sizes, and I usually just pull one out at random. The very biggest ones don't dot well (the dots become more like streaks) - I get the best results from tools that are about 5mm diameter. To be honest, any hard spherical object will make good dots, it just needs to be easy to handle - so these tools are great because they come with a handle. Before I thought about using these I made dots with various household objects - brush handles, bits of jewellery etc.

Nails Inc Seven Dials (dots with Megan Miller Latte)

Both the polishes in this post are from my collection and were purchased by me. I bought Megan Miller Latte recently from CutECOsmetics; I've not worn it on its own yet but I will make a post about it when I get around to doing so!

Pink Gradient with dots...

Essie Go Ginza and DJ Play That Song gradient with Barry M Lychee dots

A bit of jolly nail art for my newly rounded nails! I chose a couple of blue-leaning pinks for the gradient (Essie Go Ginza and DJ Play That Song), then added nude dots with Barry M Lychee. I put the dots on straight away, so no pictures of the gradient on its own, sorry! The gradient was done with my usual method of a fine, damp makeup sponge; I painted one coat of the lighter pink (Go Ginza) to give the gradient a base. DJ Play That Song is rather jellyish, but the formula blended well with the other Essie polish for the gradient and I love how the pale pink base of Go Ginza really makes the colour pop.

I really enjoyed this combination of colours, and I'm getting used to the new shape now - I was sad when I finally had to remove this mani the other day because there was too much growth around my cuticles.

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Essie Go Ginza and DJ Play That Song gradient with Barry M Lychee dots

All polishes in this post are from my personal collection. Barry M Lychee is one of my favourite nudes, especially for nail art - the formula is so rich and dense it works fabulously well for dots, striping and stamping.

Barry M Waikiki

Barry M Waikiki

From the moment I first saw this colour, I knew I just had to have it! Even though I knew I'd hate the finish - all the pictures I'd seen showed it to be a slightly rubbery, satiny finish. So I resisted buying it, but then I gave in.... it's a fabulous shade of parrot green, and with topcoat, I love it!  The formula was a bit strange, and I needed three coats, but that's OK - well worth it for a colour like this :)  I don't think I have a dupe for this shade either - it's greener (and much denser) than OPI Who The Shrek Are You or Priti NYC Envy and yellower than Gosh Early Green or Priti NYC Stonecrop. And darker than Butter London Wellies. Yes, I have a bit of a thing for yellowy greens!

Oh, and I've been fiddling with my nail shape again. This was kind of symbolic... I've just finished a years training for a job I've realised I don't want to do, and I want to move on now. So, amongst other things, I shaped my nails to a shape they've never been before. I can't say I liked them much at first, but I did resist just filing them straight back to squares and now I am starting to like them. They're also much more wetsuit, phone and keyboard friendly than either of my usual shapes, which is a bonus... not to mention since there are no corners, there can be no frustrating *curling corners* as my nails get longer!

Barry M Waikiki

I bought Barry M Waikiki from my local Boots.