Monday, September 21, 2009

Pretty Purple Toes

Good Morning Lovlies!

Today I have for you the Pedi I am currently sporting.  I just love how this came out!

I started with a base of China Glaze "Let's Groove" from the Retro Diva Collection.  Man is that purple gorgeous!  Then I took out my M73 plate that I've been obsessed with here lately.  I stamped the viney/floral image using China Glaze "Harmony".
Behold:


 

Man I love purple!

Now for a reader request!
PullStrings asked if I could provide a list of non-Konad polishes that work well with Konad.  I will pass along to all of you the list I always refer to!  It is from the fabulous Sasse's 'nad Stamping Stampede.  She, with the help of her readers have compiled an awesome list of polishes that work with Konad.  you can find it here:
Other than that I typically look for polishes that are opaque in 1 coat.  A good way to test in the store without ruining your mani is to swatch the color on the underside of your nail.  Chromes are almost always good, but beware, some colors look chrome in the bottle but are way more sheer once you swatch them.  Sally Hansen Insta-Dri colors are also good, for the most part.  BUT, they are tricky to work with!  I did a mani using a darker blue (cant remember name at the moment) to stamp with and had more trouble with that then any other mani ever!  If you use them just remember to make sure you have a nice thick coat of top coat before you start stamping and work in double time.  The faster I was able to go, the better it worked out.

Thanks for visiting!
Have a great day!

{{{Hugs}}}
Christy


19 comments:

Doo ♥ said...

I love the way your nails always fit to the blog's background - you stay true to your style :D

Deez Nailz - Canadas most fabulous hand model said...

oh-my-gosh, this is soooooooo awesome!

Stiletto said...

Doo,
It cracks me up! I don't even notice it until someone points it out! LOL

Deez,
Thanks! So glad you like it!

Paige said...

That is such a cute pedi!!

awesomevegan said...

That's SO PRETTY!

Shayla said...

This is a gorgeous pedi! Makes me want that polish from the Retro collection.

I have a quick question for you as well...you've mentioned that you do your own acrylics, but you paint over them as well. I always thought that was a no no...do you find that changing your polish so frequently degrades the acrylic, or is it usually okay?

Lucy said...

That is one gorgeous pedicure! Love the purple shade and the Konad is one of my top favorites. Just lovely.

Anonymous said...

How do you double stamp when your nails are longer than the stamp? I hope that my question makes senses.

pullstrings said...

Oh, how I wanted Let's Groove. I tried 3 Sally's and a couple Ulta's and they were all sold out! That sure is a beautiful combination of colors. Love it.

Thanks so much for the link referencing polishes. Very helpful. Today I tried some SH Insta-Dry colors - since they are 40% off at Walgreen's, plus there's addition coupons :) - they worked great!

flinty said...

That looks incredible! so beautiful.

Inbal said...

WOW! amazing pedi! thanks for the list :-)

Stiletto said...

Thanks to All for the sweet comments!

Shayla,
The only time I have problems is when I use Pure Acetone. I get my acetone from Sally's and they have a bottle labeled "Acetone" and one labeled "Pure Acetone". When I started doing my nails I got a massive bottle of Acetone and didn't have any problems. Then when I ran out I picked up Pure Acetone and didn't realize til I got home. When I went to use it, it started dissolving my nails. Other than that the only time I have a problem is when I get the pad too wet and it drips and pools around the finger nail I'm holding it with. Then it will dissolve the top layer or so. But since I fill in every other week to every 3rd week, its fine for me. Nothing a little buffing with a fine filing block doesn't fix.

Anonymous,
I will take pics very soon of how I double stamp and do a segment on here about it. My thumb nails are large so I have to double stamp them!

~Christy

Shayla said...

Thanks, Christy :)

Denise said...

I totally like this design. It's so cool to have blogs that will show you something other than plain color w/o design. I love China Glaze, their formula is always sooooo good. I'm a sucker for purples too. I have not done konad before but am looking forward to it. :-)

Flame said...

First, I polish the underside of my nails for a more finished look. Nothing looks nastier than to see the underside of a nail that is yellowish from the red or brown nail color. Now, telling people to try a color on the underside of their nail is wrong, it is considered stealing by the stores you are in when you test drive these colors. Also, would you like to buy that bottle of color that someone else may have tested as you have suggested. We have recently had some customers doing that in the store. Ask the sales associate to give you a piece of tape. It is transparent like nails. Gives you a pretty good idea of how it will look on your nails. Also, at the Sally's stores China Glaze now has spoons (nail tips with the color name on it) with the color on them hanging at the end of each row of nail color, you can place them over your own nail and see how they will look on you. So please do not tell your readers to try the color on the underside of their nails. Thank you.

Stiletto said...

Siameseflame,
First, I have no problem buying a polish some one has tried. I'm not telling people to test the color out to see if they like it on themselves. I test to see how opaque it is since I am always looking for opaque in 1 coat colors to use with Konad, so seeing the swatches from the company doesn't help me one bit since they are not done with 1 thin coat.
As to associates having a problem with swatching, I have never encountered it. Quite the opposite actually. I am usually encourage to give it a try. I'm sorry you have a problem with this in your stores, but the stores I frequent, including Sally's does not have a problem with it.

As to the stealing aspect I find it hard pressed to believe that a 1/8 inch by 1/4 thin stripe of polish on the underside of my nail tip is enough to get worked up about. People spritz perfume to "test drive" it. I'm not giving myself a manicure. It's less than a drop of polish, I could do a whole nail with a drop. I hold myself to a high moral standard, and I'm sorry but I'm going to have to agree to disagree with you on this.

~Christy

Nessa said...

Christy,

I have never stamped a full 'nad on my toes, only just a flower or something. Was it hard to do?

I agree that 'testing' a strip of nail polish on your finger is NOT stealing. I do it all the time!

Thanks.

Stiletto said...

Contests and such,
{{{HUG}}} thank you so much! it is nice to know I'm not the only one who feels its not stealing! I mean I don't even test the grapes at the store cause I feel bad! The girls at Sally's call me when they get new China Glaze, and will sit there ans swatch it with me!

At to 'naddin on the toes, the more flexible you are the better! lol The main thing is having to double stamp my big toe, that's the hardest. Tip for other toes...use the Green side if you have the double ended stamper to pick up the image to do the tinier toe nails, and make sure the image is all the way to the edge of the pad. The green pad sticks out a bit farther than the pink side so you can get closer to the cuticle!

Brooke said...

Im sorry but I have to LOL at the stealing comment - good one!!