beauty how-to: JINsoon halloween nail art

looking for some halloween nail ideas? Jin Soon Choi, founder of the JINsoon Nail Lacquer line {and Jin Soon Hand & Foot Spas in new york} has created two fabulous designs that are perfectly suited for the occasion! take a look...

Ghoulish Nails {pictured above}:

1. prep nails by applying a coat of JINsoon Power Coat

2. apply JINsoon Nocturne on each nail

3. draw ghostly shapes with JINsoon Kookie White at the tips of the nail {feel free to use your imagination with the shapes!}

4. dot JINsoon Nocturne where you would like the eyes to be with the very tip of the brush

5. finish by applying a coat of JINsoon Top Gloss. 

Bloody Nails:

1. apply a coat of JINsoon Power Coat to prep nails.

2. apply JINsoon Kookie White on each nail

3. with JINsoon Coquette, wipe off all the liquid from the brush on the neck of the bottle and with varying short strokes, apply polish from top to bottom of the nail. tip from Jin: change up how long the strokes are for a more realistic effect and don't be afraid to blot it in a few places.

4. go over the strokes you made with JINsoon Coquette using JINsoon Audacity in the same way, but apply it in fewer places. the goal of this step is to create depth to make the JINsoon Coquette look more realistic.

hope you're inspired to try one of these manicures, beauties! be sure to visit jinsoon.com to see the entire range of nail products and discover more fabulous tutorials.

info and images courtesy of Jin Soon

total beauty: what your favorite nail color reveals about you

i often find myself drawn to the same shade of polish. yes, i have many shades and colors, and i love mixing it up depending on my mood, but pinks and purples are always my go-to shades. it has a lot to do with my personality, according to the following Total Beauty article.

 their descriptions are pretty accurate...

take a look for yourself ~ do you agree with the descriptions? let me know in the comments!

What Does Your Nail Polish Say About Your Personality?

your favorite nail polish shade reveals a lot about your inner self...

This is a TotalBeauty.com Nails article if you're anything like us, you have nail polish in every shade of the rainbow ... and then some. Then why, with all of those colors to choose from, do you keep going back to the same shade? It turns out your favorite nail color in your collection is actually an indicator of your personality type. See what your favorite nail polish color says about your personality.

nyfw spring '15 {trend}: glossy, natural nails

new york fashion week has wrapped up, and i'm sure i'm not alone when i say i'm still absorbing it all; so many looks and trends were created for the runway that will shape and influence what we'll be wearing in the spring and summer of 2015. and not just the clothes, but everything from hair and makeup to nails and accessories…

 one trend that stood out to me was that of glossy, nude, natural nails. this is something every beauty girl has obsessed over, including me; creating the perfect nude, shiny nail ranks up there to finding that  fab LBD, a pair of amazing-fitting jeans and goes-with-everything-but-still-makes-a-statement handbag in your wardrobe.

the nail looks are far from bare, but have a base color on the nail on the natural side. any added art or texture is subtle and simple ~ good news for me since i rarely have time to spend on elaborate designs. let's take a look at some of these interpretations, shall we?

at Prabal Gurung models' tips were coated with wispy stripes as they prepared to walk the runway.

 Katie Jane Hughes created a nude nail using a Butter London nude base and completed the look with a diamond embellishment at Lela Rose.

the graphic nail art at Tibi was created by Jin Soon Choi using Georgette ~ a nude color ~ as the base with Chamonix used to finish the look.

Michelle Saunders for essie created a classic pink nail for the hands and an opaque pale pink nail for the toes {classics mademoiselle and fiji, respectively}, which paired perfectly with the colors and prints found throughout the Diane von Furstenberg collection.

for Altuzarra, Michelle Saunders created a delicate, feminine nail by using spaghetti strap on both the hands and feet. the sheer pink hue, reminiscent of rosy cheeks, completed the overall look.

for BCBG Max Azria the models took the runway in nude, natural nails that perfectly complimented the airy, boho ensembles.

to compliment Proenza Schouler's american sporswear-inspired collection, a minimal, glossy nail was worn by the models both the hands and feet

Julie Kandalec for essie used fiji to create a nail look to represent the Naeem Khan girl ~ elegant and done up, but not too glamorous.

at Rachel Zoe, butter LONDON polishes were layered {first Tea with the Queen, followed by Nail Foundation, topped with 999 Base Coat} to create a glossy, creamy effect.

Jin Soon created a soft, glossy nude to complement the sheer romanticism of the Vera Wang collection

a "new nude" by Deborah Lippmann coated model tips at the Narciso Rodriguez show

a high-shine nude nail was creed using Jin Soon Tulle to complement the cool, utilitarian aesthetic of the Rag & Bone show.


will you be wearing the glossy, natural tone nail look come spring 2015?

nyfw spring '15 {beauty}: backstage at Derek Lam

the look on the Derek Lam spring 2015 runway reflected the designer's love of america in the 70's, but in his fresh, polished, understated way. i loved seeing the shades of violet and jade, that really stood out against neutral tones.

the beauty look was pretty and cool, with makeup that was "a process starting with natural, then mauve, lavender and violet were built on top of nudes."

makeup artist, Tom Pecheux for MAC created the look:

face:
studio finish spf 35 concealer blended over moisturized and primed skin as needed to perfect prep + prime transparent finishing powder swept through the centre of the face to set
and provide a flawless matte finish; go guava and must have melon lipsticks from m·a·c trend forecast spring 15/lip and cheek {limited edition available fall 2014} pressed and tapped into cheeks for a peachy flush lightscapade mineralize skinfinish blended over the upper cheekbones to highlight.

eyes:
haute & naughty black lash applied to the upper lashes to lightly coat
tarot mascara {available spring/summer 2015} applied over haute & naughty black lash
for a purple emphasis to lashes lowlights fluidline {available spring/summer 2015} smudged into the upper lash line to deepen and define m·a·c pro violetta lipstick blended from lash line to crease and outward with the 242 shader brush to elongate the eyes, vibrant in tone, but soft and sheer in payoff fingers were used to press above the crease to further diffuse fascinating eye kohl applied through the waterline to open the eye
lightscapade mineralize skinfinish swept over the browbone and inner corner of the eye to highlight brows were given a bit of depth with eye shadow and then brushed upwards to diffuse and perfect

lips:
seasonally peach and spring sensation from m·a·c trend forecast spring 15/lip and cheek {limited edition available fall 2014} blended into lips with 316 lip brush/covered for a fresh finish

nail guru Jin Soon Choi created a simple and classic manicure to complement the brand’s modern sensibility. here's how:

1. file and clean nails, removing all traces of polish
2. apply JINsoon Power Coat base coat to prep the nails
3. to create warmth apply one coat of JINsoon Nostalgia
4. next, layer one coat of JINsoon Muse for a warm soft look
5. finish by applying a single coat of JINsoon Top Gloss

are you enjoying fashion week, beauties? what have been your favorite shows?

inof and images provided by respected brand PR; first image courtesy of style.com

nyfw spring '15 {beauty}: essie backstage at Wes Gordon

to complement the Wes Gordon spring/summer 2015 collection, Rita Remark for essie created a sophisticated, yet effortlessly cool design resembling linen against the skin for the hands, drawing inspiration from the designer’s muted color palette. the sand tropez polish shade was used on the toes to finish the look.

get the look {hands}:

apply ridge filling base coat to clean, filed nails. once the base coat dries, apply one coat of cocktails & coconuts, followed by one coat of imported bubbly to mimic the look of dewy skin.

next, dip a striping brush into blanc and remove

most of the polish in order to have maximum

control, and to prevent pooling.

to create the linen pattern, add vertical stripes of blanc down the length of the nail, keeping the lines very thin and unevenly spaced. then, repeat the method above with horizontal blanc stripes across the nail.

finish the design by adding a thin coat of allure to diffuse the brightness, followed by good to go top coat.

i'll be bringing you more from essie and the manicures they're creating at ny fashion week, so stay tuned! for more nail style, tutorials and inspiration, follow the brand on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and tumblr.

first image style.com; model pics courtesy of essie brand's PR

manicure du jour + the shade i'm wearing on my toes

i love the combo of pastels and brights, so pairing nail polishes in this way is a no-brainer. the current combo i've been loving is Orly Lollipop with NARS Paradiso. 

Lollipop is a perfect pastel purple creme that was originally released in 2010, and is a great pick when i'm you're torn between wearing pink or purple. the formula dries relatively quick and is fabulously opaque, so 2 coats is all you need. 

Paradiso is on my toes for the time being. this bright strawberry-red creme is one of the 19 new {and not-so-new} polish shades that NARS recently reformulated and released as part of their permanent collection. just when i thought a nail polish couldn't get better...

tell me: what are you wearing on your tips and toes?

i bought the Orly polish; NARS polish sent to me for review consideration; pics taken by me:)

fall beauty 2014: butter LONDON Brick Lane Collection

inspired by a creative melting pot of color and texture, featuring shades inspired by exotic spices and bold street art, Brick Lane is butter LONDON’s newest collection and begs for experimentation and exceptional bespoke style.

"east london provides creative inspiration for artists all over the world, and beauty is no different," says Katie Jane Hughes, butter LONDON global color ambassador. "the seemingly dark colors are blendable if you’re looking for a softer look."

the Brick Lane Collection can be purchased at ulta.com and butterlondon.com.

take a look:

CHEEKY Cream Blush in Ruby Murray

LIPPY Tinted Balm in Jaffa 

LIPPY Tinted Balm in Tramp Stamp

 LIPPY Liquid Lipstick in Ruby Murray

WINK Cream Eye Shadow in Coriander

WINK Mascara in British Racing Green

WINK Mascara in Cor Blimey

WINK Eye Pencil in Cor Blimey 

WINK Eye Pencil in Busker 

and of course, the collection includes new shades of their fabulous Nail Lacquer:

Dubs

Brick Lane

 Cor Blimey

Bric-A-Brac

East End {set exclusive}

Chocka {set exclusive}

Brick Lane lacquer set

everything in the Brick Lane collection looks fabulous ~ bold, daring and uber feminine; all of the rich shades are so inspiring and fall can't get here soon enough! what do you think?  any products stand out to you?

visit butterlondon.com for more info!

info and images courtesy of butter LONDON