Bye bye, 2012

Heya frugies,

Last post of 2012! Just quickly wanted to show you some glittery and girly New Year's Eve appropriate nails.

This adorable heart-shaped bottle of pink glittery polish came by way of a very thoughtful friend from whom visited Hong Kong-based cosmetics chain Sasa. To really get this polish to pack a punch, I used one base coat of e.l.f. polish in Lilac that came as a three-piece set called Vacation Trio. (The other two in the trio are a shade called Mint and another shade called Purple Punk.)

Now I'm ready to dance the night away to ring in the new year! What are you doing this New Year's Eve?

Thanks for stopping by,
yvrfrugalista

Merry Christmas

Heya frugies,

You know when you've been doing too much gift wrapping when your manicure is inspired by wrapping paper!

Without further ado, this manicure was made possible by deeply pigmented polishes by Joe Fresh and e.l.f. Each nail has 2 coats of Joe Fresh polish in Sun Kissed, a neutral gold colour that flatters every skin tone. From left to right:

• Bundle Monster BM321 pine tree in Joe Fresh Hunter Green
• Bundle Monster BM318 oblong ornament in e.l.f. Dark Red
• Bundle Monster BM316 wrapped gift in Joe Fresh Hunter Green
• Bundle Monster BM320 round ornament in e.l.f. Dark Red
• Bundle Monster BM318 snowman in Joe Fresh Hunter Green

Using the smaller end of the double-ended Konad stamper, this patterned manicure was surprisingly easy to do! Never did I think I would graduate from the full-nail designs. :-)

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Thanks for stopping by,

yvrfrugalista

And Snow It Did!

Heya frugies,

Exciting day! Joe Fresh shared my holiday nails on Twitter and Instagram! This is a truly exciting development for little ol' me as I do not assume any endorsed affiliation with the brands mentioned here on my blog. To be recognized by a leading, Canadian, fashion brand like Joe Fresh for my creativity is really an honour.

As Murphy's Law would dictate, as soon as I post that Vancouver doesn't usually get snow until January, a cold front blew in and we were blanketed by a few centimetres of snow. What does one do when one is handed snow? Make snowmen, of course (LOL)!

I used two coats of e.l.f. polish in Teal Blue as the base colour; a teal that has more of a green undertone than blue. Then, using Konad special polish in White and Bundle Monster image plate BM318, I stamped on one snowman per nail. To fill in the blank space on my thumb, I used the small snowflake design on BM319.

Normally I'm not one for cartoonish designs but I think this one turned out very cute! What do you think? Share with me your thoughts on your favourite nail stamping designs in the comments below.

Thanks for stopping by,
yvrfrugalista

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

Heya frugies,

In Vancouver, we don't normally see snow until January. But as of late, two out of three days, we've been seeing wet snow. Holiday colours and seasonal weather has prompted my inspiration for a festive manicure.

Two coats of e.l.f. polish in Medium Red served as my base colour. (Unfortunately, I don't believe this colour is available anymore. But I do recommend you give e.l.f. polishes a try if you haven't already because their formula is absolutely lovely. At $2 a bottle, it won't break the bank!) Then using Konad special polish in White, I stamped on the snowflake pattern found on Bundle Monster's BM323 image plate.

This nail design reminds me of nordic and fair isle sweaters! I may have to repeat this design using a different coloured base to emote a colder weather pattern. ;-) Hope you stay tuned!

What does this manicure remind you of, if anything? I'd love to see your holiday inspired manicures too! Leave comments and/or links to your blog below.

Thanks for stopping by,
yvrfrugalista

T'is the Season

Heya frugies,

I'm feeling the holiday spirit early this year. Only 18 days left to Xmas! No better time than now to start sporting festive, holiday-themed nails! These nails are sure to bring a smile to my face as I'm doing my Xmas gift wrapping. :-)

This simple, glitter-tipped look was created using two base coats of e.l.f. polish in Medium Red. Because I'm not very good at free-handing, using fauxnad image plate M19 (I purchased from Born Pretty Store) I used e.l.f. polish in Dark Red to stamp on a french tip. Then, using Joe Fresh polish in Starry I painted in the tips.

Hope today's post inspired you to get in the holiday spirit too!

Thanks for stopping by,
yvrfrugalista

Sex and the City Nails

Heya frugies,

You can say I was feeling nostalgic when I came up with the idea to do these Sex and the City-inspired nails. Not since Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, and Miranda stiletto-strutted themselves onto the small screen (then the big screen) have we seen such a dynamic and captivating quartet of women with such long-lasting appeal. This is my homage to Sex and the City:

Three coats of Joe Fresh polish in Starry served as my base colour (see note below). I then used Sally Hansen Insta-Dri polish in Racey Rouge and Bundle Monster BM316 to stamp on the inverted haphazard line design. This look was then topped off with my favourite top coat by Seche Vite (see note below).

Note: Joe Fresh polish in Starry is made up of clear polish with tiny flecks of silver glitter — it's really gorgeous. Because of its consistency, the glitter has a tendency to be concentrated on the tip of the brush; thus if you paint your nails from base to tip, you'll find that it will naturally create a gradient effect. I found that the formula is very forgiving and I easily went back for subsequent coats to fill in the sparse spots, no problem.

Note: I'm running low on my little sample bottle of Seche Vite! I literally had to tilt the bottle in between each stroke and use the brush to scoop the product out. I grew concerned that my top coat would be streaky and gooey, ultimately ruining my entire manicure. Thanks to Seche Vite's superior self-leveling formula, it dried into a beautiful and smooth shine. Phew!

Do you have a tip for getting use out of the last millilitres of polish at the bottom of the bottle? Please share them with me in the comments below!

Thanks for stopping by,

yvrfrugalista

Gangnam Style Nails

Heeeeeey sexy frugies,

Today's manicure is inspired by no other than the Korean hit song that has swept the continent. Of course, I'm talking about Gangnam Style. Psy's "dress classy, dance cheesy" and vibrantly fun tuxedos inspired these nails:

Starting from pinky to index finger:

• 4 coats of Joe Fresh polish in Lime Juice
• 3 coats of Joe Fresh polish in Crush
• 3 coats of Joe Fresh polish in Wave
• 3 coats of Joe Fresh polish in Canary

Then each nail was adorned with:

• V-shaped tuxedo shirt in Kiss polish in White
• Bow tie shape stamped on using image plate QA5 and Konad special polish in Black
• Seche Vite quick drying top coat (my favourite!)

I won't lie. Although this design is simple in concept, its execution proved otherwise. I had the worst luck masking off the V-shape tuxedo shirt as both clear and low-tack painter's tape would peel off what I thought to be dried polish. A lot of touching-up by freehand was required.

So, was I successful in capturing the Gangnam style? Do you have a Gangnam Style-inspired manicure? Would you attempt one? Let me know!

Thanks for stopping by,
yvrfrugalista

Oxblood Trend

Heya frugies,

It would appear that this awe-inspiring (or ew-inspiring?) fashion trend is in full swing and I can't ignore it. This deeply rich jewel tone is not for the faint of heart. I simply love it!

This look took all but 3 coats of Joe Fresh polish in Beet.

What do you think of it? Love it or hate it? Are you in on the oxblood trend? Let me know by leaving a comment below!

Thanks for stopping by,
yvrfrugalista

Cozy Up with Autumnal Shades

Heya frugies,

I might have turned a coworker onto nail stamping... Which is great, because we can now swap image plates! She was kind to lend me one to create an autumnal inspired manicure.

Using two coats of Joe Fresh polish in Hunter Green, I then stamped over it with Joe Fresh polish in Sun Kissed using image plate Bundle Monster BM212. This design was inspired by an elementary school teacher — we were folding paper ninja stars when she suggested I pair green paper with gold paper. Brilliant and stunning combination!

Does this nail design evoke a feeling of autumn for you? Do you have a memorable teacher from your past that influenced you in ways they probably don't even know? Share your insights with me by leaving me a comment below!

Thanks for stopping by,
yvrfrugalista

Classy & Elegant Roses

Heya frugies,

Because I wanted to make a good first impression at a very important meeting, I decided to say good bye to the Movember man-icure and welcome a more classy and elegant look.

This simple but beautiful design was achieved using two coats of e.l.f. polish in Innocence and stamped over using Bundle Monster's BM323 (I purchased from Nail Polish Canada) in Konad special polish in White.

I think this design is suitable for Sunday brunch with the mother-in-law, attending a wedding (whether you're in the bridal party or a guest), or high tea with a friend. What do you think? Where would you wear this manicure? Let me know by leaving a comment below!

Thanks for stopping by,
yvrfrugalista

Movember Man-icure

Heya frugies,

Every year, my friends including my brother-in-law grow a 'stache as part of Movember, a nobel effort to raise funds and awareness for prostate cancer and men's health initiatives. Since I've started nail stamping a month or so ago, I thought it would be cute and neat to do a Movember-inspired man-icure of my own.

With two coats of Joe Fresh polish in Wave serving as my base colour, I then alternated stripes and polka dots from image plate QA3 using Konad special polish in White, then crowned each nail with a "mo" using image plate QA28 and Konad special polish in Black. Plate QA28 actually offers a few different moustache shapes, each in 2 sizes. Since I prefer a uniform look, I only went with this one style of 'stache. Not only is this nail design fun and raises awareness for "down thereness," but it gets tons of compliments too! If you're wondering, I bought my QA plates here.

Had you been looking for a moustache nail image plate? Did you stamp your nails with moustaches for Movember or just because? Leave me your comments below!

Thanks for stopping by,
yvrfrugalista

Halloween Nails

Heya frugies,

With all its haunting and macabre decorations, Halloween has got to be my favourite non-statutory holiday! Surprisingly, my best Halloween manicure was not to be had with Konad's M13 image plate. Instead I went with this orange and black design:

Two coats of Joe Fresh polish in Crush served as my base colour. Using Konad special polish in Black, I used Bundle Monster's BM323 and BM305 to stamp the barbed wire and little devil design respectively. To show my 4th finger some love, again using Konad special polish in Black I stamped on the fishnet pattern using Konad M57.

Leave a comment below to let me know what you think of my Hallowee-nails!

Thanks for stopping by,
yvrfrugalista