When I was in elementary school, I loved Pokèmon. I had the cards, the games, the movies, everything. And even though I'm a senior in high school now, I still have a soft spot for anything Pokèmon related. So today I have a Pikachu inspired manicure. I was having a bad/sick day when I painted my nails, so the application is a bit sloppy...not to mention the formula of the polish wasn't amazing either. I probably should have gone for something more simple considering how sick I felt. Anyway, the base yellow colour is Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Lightening. It was a fairly opaque polish but it was too streaky and uneven to work. Some nails have 2 coats, others have 3. I got this yellow because it was mentioned to me in the comments of my last post, it was easily available, and Walgreens had this particular colour wrapped with a free Sally Hansen Insta-Dri top coat. (I was really pleased with how quickly this topcoat dried, I'm trying to find another quick dry top coat because my bottle of Seche Vite is getting way too thick and stringy.)
For the zig zag lines I used L.A. Colors Art Deco in black. As you can see, my pointer finger looks really messy...which is due to the brush having a few stray hairs. Once I cut them down my lines became smoother. The red dots on the side were made using another Art Deco, in red glitter. The black lines and the red glitter dots smeared a bit with top coat, but that could be avoided if you're more cautious. I really love the concept of this manicure and surprisingly several people noticed my nails and made the connection with Pikachu. I'd really like to do this manicure again someday, only with a better yellow and when I'm not sick. I feel so weird wearing yellow polish though...I kept looking at my nails in disbelief. I've never worn yellow before! Here is one last "bonus" picture:
What do you think of this design? Have you used Sally Hansen's Insta-Dri topcoat? I'd really love to know what other quick dry topcoats people use...I've tried many that don't live up to their claims. I think I'll be doing a 'skittle' type manicure soon, one I thought of while trying out different layering combinations on paper. =)
Thanks for reading!!
Peace and Love,
Serena
I love it! Pikachu is so cute, I've always loved Pokemon too ;) Great idea for the design; abstract, but still very true to the inspiration!
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh. I, too, have a soft spot for anything Pokemon related so here I am gushing over this. I'm definitely going to do this! I'll have to get some yellow polish first, though.
ReplyDeleteOh, and I like to use the Rimmel brand top coat (which also doubles as a base coat). I like it a lot, but I wouldn't say it's quick dry..probably takes about 2 minutes, though so it's not too bad.
This mani rocks!
ReplyDeleteGreat design!
ReplyDeletehttp://becksmakeupcorner.blogspot.com/2010/07/my-first-giveaway.html
haha i remembered pokemon thanks to you! I didnt like that cartoon, but pikachu was so sweet. Thats a great design.
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love the pokemon theme xx
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Pika, pika! Very cute!
ReplyDeleteI love SH Insta Dri top coat and will be very sad if they discontinue it.
Ahhh that is so cute!
ReplyDeleteI used to love Pikachu as a kid!
It's very funny! I was a great pokemon lover and I collected their card too :)
ReplyDeletesuch a cute manicure! is this the yellow you've mentioned? it's a bit warm indeed. a cooler yellow could look even better on your skin! =D
ReplyDelete@Trincess Yes this is the yellow. I think a cooler pale yellow would suit me better. =)
ReplyDelete