#NOTD1 (Nails of the day)

Lovely afternoon, everyone! Just wanna share with you guys my colorful but not so colorful(?) nails of mine for today! I'm just in the mood to paint my nails and guess what, this is my first-ever nail art that I did right in my entire life, so yeah, I hope you like it just how I do! Keep scrolling! >:D

Here's what you'll need to achieve the design!

Of course you will need a base coat before you put on the base color to avoid stains which is definitely hard to remove! You don't want that obviously. Currently, I am using San San Nail Hardener as my base coat. You can get it for only PHP37 at any HBC stores nationwide. For my base color, I used Cutex in Black (PHP50). Then, for my second coat, I used Cutex Nail Polish in Pure Cotton (PHP50) and Sally Hansen in Impatiens (I forgot the price). I could use another Cutex Nail Lacquer, but I found this Sally Hansen first on my stash so yeah. And of course, don't ever forget to use a top coat after everything's been dried up to prevent early color chipping!

For the design, you can use  single or two brush (the smallest and thinnest best work for me though.)

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

It's hard for me to explain everything but I'll try my best though. So first, just color your nails black. When dried, using a nail brush, create a wide V-shape on the middle part of your nails then fill the gap with your preferred color. Let it dry. Do the same thing as you've done with the second coat for your third coat then fill everything in. After it's all dried up (seriously, everything must be dried up first or the color would smudge when applied with the top coat), cover everything using your preferred top coat to seal in the color and add shine to your nails.

I don't claim to be any expert in painting nails and this nails art seem to be so much far from nails-that-are-done-by-a-pro. You can see that it isn't neat enough but I'm working on that. Hoho! Anyways, make sure that the previous coat is dried well enough that it won't smudge when touched by the brush. So basically, it took me an hour or two to finish the nail art as I don't have a nail polish dryer.

Share it when you tried it! Have a nice day, beauties! Happy blogging! xx

Love,

Hanna

My Favorite Shades from Cutex

Hello! Today, I am going to swatch two of my most favorite nail colors by Cutex! These are green and Coral! Well, I actually don't like green of any shades or brand before I get to try these gorgeous colors from Cutex. I found these two as I went to Watsons at SM San Lazaro last December. Right. They have been sitting on my stash unused for quite a long time now. I hate myself for not trying them on as soon as I got them.

As I have told you, I used to hate greens of any shade so I didn't get the chance to try the green one the soonest since I also bought it for collection purposes. It turned out that it's the very first green polish I have ever had in my stash. Would you give me a high-five for that? LOL.

Picture! Picture!

Look at them! Aren't they cute? They are a bit different from the actual colors because I took the pictures during night time since I prefer painting my nails at night.

And the best thing about these colors is that I thnk they are perfect for my complexion! Plus they make my nails healthier because it's keratin-infused! I love that the texture's neither too runny nor too thick. It just glides well with every stroke, you'll definitely feel like you're a pro! I used to apply it after my preferred base coat. For the photos below, I used two coats only and I got a very pigmented nails already.

This is the actual color. Isn't it the best shade of green ever? Hihi I think the color's between pastel green and dark green. And on the back of the bottle, the name says, "Green there, done that." I currently have more than a dozen of Cutex Nail Colors, yet I have used only these two. Anyway, I'm planning to use the other shades the next time for another blog review.

This one's the "Tropical Bliss". The color here's a bit darker than the actual shade. It ranges between neon pink and coral pink. Hihi. It's just too girly but I'm loving it even more every time I look at my nails! I love how it makes my hand elegant-looking and everything! Looking forward to try the other shades on my stash soon!


What I like?

• has keratin for healthier nails
• packaging doesn't look cheap.
• not too thick nor too runny.
• costs 109php for a 7ml bottle originally, but I bought it at more than half the price (PHP50) because I think they are on sale?
• the brush is quite manageable and thick for the bottle size that it doesn't need too much stroke to cover my nail plates
• single coat could be enough, that's how pigmented the polishes are (I just apply another coat so it won't chip faster)
• big-5 toxins free!
• quick-drying
• doesn't create streaky lines
• doesn't smell like paint or rugby
• available on Watsons (SM Valenzuela, SM San Lazaro particularly)

What I don't like?

• comes in a very limited shades (I think what Watsons in SM San Lazaro been selling are pull out or surplus of US Cutex branches because they any comes in a very limited shades (for these 7ml bottles only). There are bigger ones, I forgot the size, but they are pricier of course.)
• They are too small. I hope there's bigger sizes available because they run out too fast considering I change my polish every other day!

Would I buy this product again? Definitely, yes! Until the last stock runs out. Hahah!

Would I recommend this brand? Totally! If I'm not mistaken, it's the very first ever brand of liquid nail polish that has been established worldwide back in 20th century, so for me, it's quite a privilege to own even a single bottle from this brand!

Have you tried Cutex already? Feel free to share it here with me! Happy blogging! xx

SWATCH & REVIEW: Cutex Nail Polishes in Shades of Pink Nail Art

Do you know what's the best thing to do when bored? Paint your nails.

I started this blog when I figured out that I want to build my own nail polish collection. I prefer buying local products at the moment since they are much cheaper compared to those high-end ones, though, in my own opinion, they offer less satisfactory results. I do not consider it as a problem since I am changing my polish more so often that I don't mind if a bottle of a local nail polish brand chips more easily compared to those expensive ones because I can always re-apply depends on my kind of shade. It would also save me a lot while I do manicure myself.

Rummaging through my nail polish stash, I found these pink shades from Cutex (I believe that it isn't a local nail polish brand though it's four times cheaper). Cutex is so far my most favorite nail lacquer brands because;

• it does not easily chips
• it does not create bubbles
• it dries out quickly
• it has a nice brush for easy application
• it is toxic trio-free
• it has keratin to strengthen nails
• it comes in a cute size bottle
• nice shades especially those shades that are duo-chromatic
• it retails for only 109.75php, but they are 50% off at the moment

However, I have here few negative points for this brand because they are;

• difficult to look for. I bought mine from Watsons (SM San Lazaro & Victory Mall). I don't know if other Watsons have them.
• comes in very limited shades only and I hope there are some more
• frosty nail polishes are streaky when applied
• smells too strong

Anyway, here's a photo of my current nails! I really love it because it's just so easy to do and let me show you how I did it! Picture! Picture!

My oh-so-yummy nails!

 What I used for my nails this time?

Cutex Nail Polishes in It's My Mystique, I Pink Therefore I Am, Strawberry Fields, Charmed, Caronia Base Coat, Top Coat, Cuticle Conditioner, Scotch Tape, and Scissors

Four shades of pink by Cutex! L-R: I Pink Therefore I Am, Charmed, It's My Mystique, Strawberry Fields

Here's the process on how I made this elegant-looking nail art!

First, is to paint your nails with all pink for the base color. It's somehow carnation pink in shade and if you can just see the frosty finish (well, I know you can't because the picture is on its low quality, sorry!) Be informed that before I painted my nails with this shade, I already applied base coat to protect my nails from polish stains and other chemicals the nail polish has. Don't forget to let it dry first before you proceed to the next step, otherwise, the tape will ruin the polish seriously and you don't want that to happen. Hoho! And when I say dry, it should totally be dry--the kind of dry wherein parts of polish will no longer be attached to the tape when removed.

First step (at least two coats)

Second is to paint your accent nail and every middle part of your nails with the Charmed shade then follow it with the It's My Mystique shade for added shimmers. You can do this by sticking tape on the upper and lower part of your nails, leaving a small rectangular shape in the middle where you will apply the glittery shade. You can use either Charmed or It's My Mystique alone, depends on your choice. But I apply both for a well pigmented and shimmery finish. Don't forget to let it dry!

*DIY TIP: To avoid ruining your polish, you can do so by sticking the tape on any surface first (e.g. skin) before putting them on your nails.

Second step

Results of the second step!

For the next step, I apply the I Pink Therefore I Am shade on the upper half of each nails except the accent nails.  Hmmm! It looks so yummy now! Hahahah! And then of course, don't forget to apply top coat for each nails to lengthen the life of your newly-painted nails or to avoid early polish chipping. Then apply the Caronia Kwik-Dry Conditioner for a smudge-free nails! Then tada! Isn't it so easy? Hoho!

Third step

Note: You can use whatever shades you want for this nail art, of course! :)

So that's my tutorial for today! Stay tuned for more easy nail arts! Happy blogging! xx

Love, Hanna