Friday 14 September 2012

Anyone for caviar?

 There is something so luxurious about the latest craze in nail art. It's the idea that you live such a fabulous, pampered life that you can treat yourself to an afternoon at the salon -where women spend hours adorning your perfectly manicured nails with individual tiny beads- and think nothing of it.

Luckily though, the reality is much simpler. I recently fell in love with the....oh maybe I can't say the brand name...ok let's call it 'fish egg' manicure sets. I wanted one. No, actually,I wanted every colour. I wanted to look like I had fallen hands first into a vat of 'hundreds and thousands'...who wouldn't? Ice cream topping beauty doesn't come cheap though and when I realised each varnish and 'fish egg' duo was retailing for £18 I set off in search of an alternative.

No shop in their right mind is selling these beauties at anything less than the price I'd seen- and when I followed a link to eBay I found I still couldn't get much change from £20. But, after a bit of investigation I found the answer.

Now, I don't usually like the idea of imitating luxury brands and looks I've seen in glossy mags- purely because I have all the creativity of a raisin and just can't ever seem to make it look a patch on the real thing- but in this case it's just not so. In fact, I found the cheaper version offered all the glamour of the look I loved, at a fraction of the cost and oodles more choice! I couldn't believe my luck when I found a 40g bag of beads for just £1.99 + 90p  p&p and you get SO much for your pennies! The girls at 'Gold Leaf Craft Supplies' are to be thanked for this find
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GOLD-CAVIAR-BEADS-METALLIC-COATED-GLASS-1mm-accent-beads-/290692435235?pt=UK_Crafts_Beads_CA&var=&hash=item43ae9e8d23



Using Nails Inc varnish in 'Spring Mews' & gold accent
beads from Gold Leaf Craft Supplies

Now, for me, a self-done manicure is usually a shoddy, streaky affair and anything vaguely fiddly has the ability to reduce me to tears. This was incredibly simple and if I can, you can. Trust me.
Here is how:

(Note: Here you can see I have used a contrasting colour varnish and accented one nail. I preferred this look as I thought the gold would be too much on all my nails for an every day look. However, in another colour or for a glam feel I would definitely try beads on every one)  
  • Apply a basecoat and 2 coats of good quality nail varnish to every nail- do use a good one, it doesn't chip as easily and has a better finish
  • Apply a third coat to every one (except the accent nails) and let them dry
  • One by one, apply a third coat to the accent nail and pour over the beads (in truth, I actually dipped my nail in to the bag- careful not to taint the other beads though if you choose this method)
  • Pat the beads in to place and tip off any excess.  Don't roll them around though, or they will be stained by the varnish)
  • They stick really easily so just let the varnish dry and coat all your nails in a top coat for extra shine and protection.
 (Oh and psssst- use a gold/nude base under the accent finger -or whatever blends with the colour you use- as it won't be as visible through any gaps in the beads)

They are tougher than you'd imagine too. Mine have survived hours of impact so far but I'll let you know if it doesn't last!








Looks lovely, it's easy and won't break the bank! See, all we need is a little smoke and mirrors!






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