Saturday, December 5, 2009

Slush Queen

Hello ladies,

Given the weather in Philadelphia, it would be inaccurate to purport this manicure had been inspired by snowfall. Based on the forecast, I created a new faery tale character: the Slush Queen. She is the estranged sister of the Snow Queen. The Slush Queen is far less menacing than her sister. Uninterested in kidnapping children, she sips from a magical mug of tea that turns snowfall into slush. As the tea warms her, it shifts the temperature outside as well. Her dark power is that she causes people to leave home without umbrellas. 

This manicure shows another option to create the look of a gradient. From the Sweet Time of Year collection, I used Essie Rock Candy as the base. I followed with the Art Club striper in You're Golden. This gold and silver glitter striper is from the Pretty Shiny Things Nail Art Kit. This striper a teaser of the full review to come. The melting icicles at the tips were created with a Migi Nail Art Pen. I used the white pen with the creme formula. The holographic glitter overlay was painted with Wet 'n' Wild in Gilded. This polish is from their Holiday Flirt display.








I was really surprised by how much I love Essie Rock Candy. I've seen many nail art creations that start with a nude base. While I have admired the designs, I never found the right shade to complement my skin tone and apply without streaking. Having long nails also makes sheer polishes undesirable in most cases. I applied two coats of Rock Candy over one coat of Brucci 2 in 1 Nail Perfection. It has a slightly milky quality that helps Rock Candy appear opaque enough to cover, but without changing the jelly finish. Rock Candy has a glassy shine. When I think of crystallized candy, I can see how the color fits it's name. 

For readers who enjoy classic French manicures, Rock Candy would be such a pretty component. I was on the phone with my friend Lisa while painting my nails. I remarked to her that I could imagine myself with a French manicure embellished with Konad stamping or a hand painted decoration. I plan on wearing Rock Candy again as a base for such looks. I am really happy Essie sent this polish to me for review. I may not have tried it otherwise and I certainly would have missed out on a quality basic.

To form the golden layer, I painted longer stripes at the sides on the nail and made them progressively shorter as I worked towards the center. I alternated sides while painting and ended at the middle of the nail. The Art Club Striper in You're Golden was easy to work with. The only recommendation I have is to keep watch on the brush wand because extra polish can accumulate and snowball. I had to remember to only dip the brush in and not the entire wand as I needed to refresh.

For the white layer, I used the creme formula Migi Nail Art pen. I liked how the edges were softer than the striper. The two styles worked together nicely. Because the pen will create thinner lines, I had to let the tip hover above the nail in spots and fill in any areas empty of color. The result before glitter looked a bit like white out, but it evened beautifully. 

I painted one coat of Wet 'N' Wild Gilded over the white portion only. This polish is a must have for glitter lovers. It has holographic glitter hexagons, silver round pieces and gold micro glitter in a clear base. Gilded is proof of the amazing things to be found in the drugstore.

Essie Rock Candy, Art Club You're Golden and the Migi Nail Art pen in white were sent to me for review. You're Golden is part of the Pretty Shiny Things Nail Art kit, which can be purchased at victorianailsupply.com

I hope you enjoyed the Slush Queen manicure and the whimsy inspiring it. Happy painting, ladies! 




13 comments:

  1. Very pretty! I believe the Slush faerie has been here already!

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  2. Beautiful design - love your idea for this one :-)

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  3. Really lovely design, I think I know this Slush faerie really well ^_^

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  4. The Slush Fairy is a wonderful idea. Glad she showed up today instead of the Snow Queen. That's a beautiful manicure. Very apropo for the day.

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  5. So pretty and yes, a very fitting name! I really like Rock Candy also. When I first saw it in the bottle, I thought I wouldn't like it at all, but I was very wrong!

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  6. Very unique manicure. This is what the Withces nails in Narnia should look like. =)

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  7. Oh, I think Nihrida is SO right! And I utterly love your imagination, this is one of my favorite manicures I've seen you do. It's gorgeous. Although I have missed two weeks' worth of posts! Haha.

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  8. Oh, wow! This is just amazing!:)

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  9. I LOVE the slush queen!
    Very original and lovely!

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  10. Evil Angel: Thank you! The slush queen certainly likes to tour the kingdom!

    Jessica: Thanks, sweetie!

    Tuli: Thanks so much! The weather was certainly inspiring. There were these amazing big snowflakes that melted before touching the pavement. That warranted a manicure!

    chocaddict: Thank you kindly. The Slush Queen is not a shy one, is she? ;)

    Lucy: Thank you! So true. I am not quite ready for the Snow Queen. I appreciate the lovely compliment. xoxo!

    Mary: Thank you! Such an unlikely color for us to love, but it was so well formulated.

    Stephanie: Thanks so much! I appreciate it.

    Art of Nail: You are so sweet. Thank you! <3

    nihrida: Thanks! The Chronicles of Narnia were my favorite childhood books. I am glad my nails are ready for the other side of the wardrobe. :)

    Nicole: Thank you. You have had quite a lot to deal with lately. I appreciate your stopping by. I'm glad you like this manicure so much. I enjoyed creating it. xoxo!

    Madeleine Bouquet: Thank you. You are so dear. <3

    contests and such: Thanks so much, Nessa. :)

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