{Mad About Nails} Halloween Nail Art

I've had quite a few people comment on my nails in the past ask what I was using or wish I'd done a close-up so they could see better, etc., etc., and had a realization: Why not do a feature on nail polish? It's not book-related (Unless you're wearing the new HUNGER GAMES-inspired line from China Glaze, but I'm not even going into how wrong that is...), but it's fun. Plus, if I do this feature, I'll be more likely to re-paint my nails this week and less likely to let them chip their way to the bare bones (which would mean that I could see my nails...and if I see them, I want to bite them!).

Welcome back to another edition of Mad About Nails! 

Here's my FOURTH Halloween-inspired look for October!
...And I think it's my favorite yet! (Don't you think?)

Check out the other designs here and here! ^.~

I may or may not have one more design next week. I want to do a manicure with Halloween-colored dots (like this brown version I did earlier this year), but I only did these on Friday and I have to re-do them on Thursday for a baby shower so.........probably won't happen. ;_;
Oh well, next year!

Here's a video of the materials used

(Or keep reading below!):

YouTube Link

These two are POWERHOUSES for
long-lasting manicures!  One lasted
1.5 weeks, the other for 2!!!

I started off with a basecoat of ORLY "Bonder."  Many of the professional nail studios use this as a basecoat when doing nails for their clients.  It's a rubberized coat that helps polish adhere to the nail.  It stinks, but it's great!

I finished everything with a top coat of Revlon's "Quick Dry Top Coat."  I'd heard it was a rival for the legendary Seche Vite, but with fewer harsh chemicals.  It also doesn't go bad in the bottle or shrink when used.  I was intrigued, and so far, this stuff is

          FABULOUS.

Together, this combo has made my nails last, on average, 1.5 to 2 weeks. They're both awesome!

THE DESIGN:

I started out with ULTA's bright-orange "Sun of a Gun" as a base color. It's a perfect orange for Halloween, and opaque in one coat, though it takes a second coat to level out streaking.

After a few minutes when the polish was harder and wouldn't smear, I grabbed my L.A. Colors Art Deco "Black" from Dollar General and created some curved stripes on each nail. It's a little thicker than the It's So Easy Stripe Rite "Black" from Sally's Beauty Supply that I love, but I think that fell behind my headboard...and I didn't want to go crawling for it! A couple of my lines are thicker than I would have wanted (mostly on my right hand because my left hand isn't dominant to begin with), but it didn't come out bad at all! (This is the same nail art striper I was talking about yesterday in regards to my ALLEGIANT launch party nails!)

I decided to experiment with glitter on my ring fingers. If I didn't like it, it would be an accent nail. If I did, I'd do all my nails like that. Well...obviously, I didn't! The glitter obscured my awesome lines. It's still a fun glitter, though. I used China Glaze "Whirled Away" from the Cirque du Soliel: Worlds Away Collection that launched this past December/January. I still see this collection sometimes at ULTA. Check there, Sally's Beauty, or online. It may still be around! You have to fish for glitter at times if you don't want a bald spot on your nail. I wish the glitter was denser!

For the rest of my nails, I decided to add a pop of color that's barely there except when the light hits it. I had just bought a holographic polish on clearance by China Glaze, "Luxe and Lush." Looking up information on it, it's apparently from 2012's THE HUNGER GAMES: Capitol Colors Collection. I had no clue! Last year, I wasn't inspired by this collection AT ALL. There are twelve colors for the Twelve Districts. "Luxe and Lush" represents District 1: Luxury. 

The flakies are larger than in other holographics I've used. I was hoping for something a little more subtle, such as what's in Zoya "Chloe," but I can see these thicker flakies layering to create a cool design on their own. It wasn't exactly what I envisioned when I first picked it up, but it's still fun and colorful!

If you do a Halloween-inspired look, shoot me a link or tweet me a pic! I want to see what everyone else is doing this month!!

 Is anyone else obsessed with nail polish? What are you wearing right now?