It’s Bournemouth Marathon Time!

So Sunday 6th October is nearly upon us and my incredible Dad is going to be running the Bournemouth Marathon!

To show my support for him and Myeloma UK, the charity he is raising money for, I thought I would dedicate my nails and this post to them this week.

The colours I have used for this one are Barry M bright orange and nail art pens in black and white.

The charity Myeloma UK is something that is very close to mine and my family’s hearts.

Six years ago my very lovely auntie, Deborah Clayton, passed away from Myeloma, also known as multiple myeloma, which is a type of cancer that arises from plasma cells which are found in the bone marrow. My dad has been wanting to run a marathon for quite some time and, when we found out that there was going to be one in Bournemouth, he just had to sign up. He chose Myeloma UK as the charity to run for as a way of helping us remember Deb and to show support for a charity that helps support families and patients that are affected by this type of cancer.

So far, he has raised just under £500, which I think is an incredible achievement!

I think tomorrow is going to be a very emotional one. I am so ridiculously proud of my Dad and I am so impressed by his dedication to training for the marathon, especially with a few set backs along the way.

Good luck Andy Phelps!

If you would like to show your support please visit my Dad’s just giving page at http://www.justgiving.com/Andy-Phelps1.

Also, if you would like to find out more about Myeloma UK please visit http://www.myeloma.org.uk

Blurred Lines

So this week I thought I would go for something a little bit different.

As I am sure you are starting to see, I really do love my nail art pens. However, I could definitely do with building on this collection!

The base colour I used for this one is the pink from a manicure set. It’s worth doing two coats to create a bold shade of pastel pink.

I have also used black and white nail art pens. The pattern is fairly random but quite easy to do. You just need to have a steady hand!

#UKTVShowcase

I am truly shocked at the amount of time that has passed since I last post. I can only apologise!!

It has been a very busy couple of months since starting my placement and sadly my nails have taken a bit of a back seat.

BUT

I’m back and keen to get creative once again, especially now the sun has gone in and we have been graced with huge amounts of rain in London.

Anyway, this week I decided to get on brand with UKTV!

On Tuesday 10th September we held our annual UKTV Showcase event at the Saatchi gallery. This was a fantastic opportunity for journalists to gain an understanding of the new commissions that will be coming up in months to come on the UKTV channels.

It’s safe to say that I had an absolutely amazing time! I got to mingle with the stars (namely shared a lift with Anthony Head and was told by Harry Enfield that I ran around a lot).

So, I thought I would go all out and do a fancy branded UKTV design on my nails!

The main colours I have used for this design are a Topshop pastel Blue, a standard white polish, Barry M silver glitter, Topshop blue nail art pen and black and white nail art pens.

I’m so glad I did these. They certainly became a talking point!

From Paris with Love…

Once again the weekend is nearly over, so the only thing to get me through the week ahead is having a fancy design on my nails!

The main colours used for this one are Barry M pink and lilac with black and white nail art pens.

The Eiffel Tower is quite easy to do (even with a cocktail stick if you don’t have any nail art pens). Start off by drawing two lines that meet in the centre of the nail at the top. Next, draw two lines across and fill in the gaps.

Aztec Orange

All of this sunshine is definitely making me bring out my most vibrant coloured nail polish!

This design I found on Pinterest and thought I would give it a go.

The main colours I have used for this one are Barry M high shine gelly paint in Orange, a basic white and a black nail art pen.

I would suggest doing two coats of the base colours, white and orange, to ensure that they are nice and bold on your nails.

The aztec pattern I created is fairly random and I’d suggest just doing what ever you find easiest as it can get quite tricky when it comes to really detailed design.

Also, if you don’t have a nail art pen you could always used a cocktail stick and dip it in a black nail paint. However, this might be harder to manage the detailed parts.

Zoo inspired Giraffe

Last week I took a trip to London Zoo for Zoo Lates and it was amazing!

So, I felt it was necessary to jazz up my nails with an animal inspired design.

The main colours I used for this one are Topshop celestial blue for the base, Bee’s Knees yellow for the head and neck, Barry M mushroom brown for the spots, pastel pink textured nail polish for the nose and nail art pens in black and white for additional detail.

This is nice and easy to do as the main detail comes in when you do the head on the thumb nail.

It’s good to double check that you have done the head the right way round so that it lines up with the neck. I got this wrong on my other hand…not the best when you have to start over the most detailed part! But, that’s trial and error I guess.

All that glitters

It’s been a while but I am back in full swing of painting my nails again!

My love for Barry M continues as I had to purchase a nail paint from their lovely new range.

This is the white shade of their latest Sequin Effect range and I think it is really pretty. I have applied two layers as it is quite pale when first applied and I wanted a fair amount of sequins on my nails.

It’s also worth adding a top coat of clear polish to ensure that no sequins go astray.

Suuuuperman!

In order to celebrate the release of ‘Man of Steel’, I felt it was necessary to get creative with my nails (as per usual).

I found a design similar to this on Pinterest and thought it was worth giving it a go!

The main colours used for this one are Barry M cobalt Blue, Mushroom, Red wine, Topshop Bee’s Knees and a black nail art pen.

My favourite part of this design is the quiff! It’s a fairly easy one to do as it is mainly stripes. The only tricky part I found was creating the Superman logo as I don’t have a red nail art pen (which definitely would have come in handy!).

Buzzing around

I haven’t posted on here in over a month! It’s shocking! But, the reason for this is because I have started an incredible placement (and I have yet to get any internet sorted in my new place).

Anyway, here is a little design I did to celebrate the sun making a very belated appearance at the end of June! Nothing beats having pastel yellow nails when it’s a lovely summers day.

The main colour used for this one is Topshop Bee’s Knees pastel yellow and nail art pens in black and white.

It was quite tricky doing the bee as you definitely need a steady hand to be able to make the stripes. A toothpick can come in handy if you don’t have a nail art pen to hand.

Up up and away!

I have two weeks left until my work placement starts, so doing my nails is definitely the perfect way to spend my days!!

I love the film UP so it felt necessary to add a bit of Disney to my nails.

The main colours used for this one are Topshop celestial, bee’s knees, Barry M bright pink, mint green, gelly papaya, lilac and nail art pens in black and white.

This really easy to do as it is generally lots of dots for the balloons and block colour for the house.