Bada Bling Bada Bloom

My family has a tradition that every year on our birthday we go shopping for our birthday gifts with my grandma. One of these shopping trips has forever stuck in my mind. My grandma would be considered a prude by most everyone.  She is very old fashioned and definitely stuck in her ways.

We had been shopping for HOURS and everyone (myself included) was exhausted because of my inability to make a decision.  After stopping at about a hundred different stores, I emerged from the dressing room in a kind-of-cute-but-kind-of-not dress. My grandma was waiting for me outside of the dressing room in a chaotic mess of people to see what I had tried on. Grandma stood up, looked me up and down, and uncharacteristically said, or more like yelled, "Oh my gosh Harli! You look so bitchen in that!" I mean, she said it loud enough for just about everyone to hear. Most of them turned and laughed and some looked somewhat shocked. Although the dress made my grandma use the term "bitchen" I still did not buy the dress, I don't even remember what I decided on. All I know is that I will never forget that moment and neither will the rest of my family because my old-fashioned grandma had a burst of super sass.

In spirit of my sweet, but occasionally sassy grandma, these nails were inspired. The vintage floral portion of the nails are based on the old-fashioned grandma my entire family knows and the added bling is the part of her that yells "bitchen" in crowded places.

YOU WILL NEED:
Black Polish-I used "Black Lace" by NYC
Light Pink Polish- I used "Pink Champagne" by NYC
Darker Pink-I used a shade from the Flower brand
Green Polish-I used "Jade" by Essie
A larger dotting tool
A smaller dotting tool
Top Coat-I recommend Sally Hansen's no chip top coat
Base Coat-I used Revlon's base coat

                                                                       

                                                          (This is about the size you want your dotting tool to be. $.99 on Ebay)

*Prep nails for manicure by thoroughly washing off any excess polish, oils, and dirt from your nails. This step is to ensure a longer lasting mani.

Step 1:
Apply a thick coat of the base coat polish of your choice. This is so the polish doesn't stain your nails and just keeps them healthier over all.

Step 2:

Apply the black polish of your choice. Wait for the polish to completely dry and then add a second coat.

Step 3:

Using the larger dotting tool apply 3 to 5 large dots of the light pink polish to whichever nails you want to be accented. I did it only on the ring fingers.

TIP: You may need to apply two coats of the light pink if you desire a more vibrant color... the black often causes the light pink to appear faded. 

Step 4:

Once the dots have completely dried (trust me, it's easier if they are dry! I learned the hard way.), using the smallest dotting tool and the darker pink polish, create swirls in the middle of the light pink dots. Surround the swirls with curved lines to create the petals of the flowers.

Step 5:

Using the small dotting tool use the green to create tear dropped shapes around the flowers for the leaves. Leaves are my favorite part because by using different shapes for the leaves, it creates a lot of uniqueness and diversity. 

Step 6: (OPTIONAL)

Apply small glitter to the black spaces on the flower nail(s). Apply silver circle gems to the bottom on each nail, centered. 

Just like my grandma, these nails are the perfect mix of old fashioned and sassy.

Harli