DIY Shellac Nails

DIY Gel Shellac Nails

So my first DIY project for women is - Gel Shellac Nails. Although i am a qualified nail technician, this should be simple enough for any girl to follow. if you can paint your own nails then you'll be able to do this. I will be showing you both; a luxury version and a budget version. This will be followed by a step by step guide for how to do it yourself and a review of what products I would personally use. I will also link any relevant websites below. 

This what you will need;

Luxury 

.UV Nail lamp                         £160         CND

.Gel Base Coat                      £12.99  CND

.Gel Nail Colour                      £12.99 CND

.Gel Top Coat                        £12.99       CND

.Nail File                               £3             Boots

.Nail Varnish Remover            £3             Boots

.Acetone                              £6.85 Ebay

.Gel Wipe off                        £8.99 Ebay

.Cotton Wool                        £3             Boots

Total                               £223.81 (approx)

Budget

.UV Nail Lamp                       £10.99 Ebay

.Gel nail base coat £5 Bluesky Shellac

.Gel nail colour                      £5              Bluesky Shellac

.Gel nail top coat                   £5              Bluesky Shellac

.Nail File                             £0.99          Home Bargains 

.Nail varnish remover            £0.50          Home Bargains 

.Acetone                             £0.99          Home Bargains 

.Gel Wipe off   £5.99          Ebay

.Cotton Wool or use old felt   £0.50          Home Bargains 

Total                                £34.96 (approx)

Instructions

Above, I have listed luxury and budget versions. I personally have a mix of both - As long as you have all of the required items, it will work. 

Preparation is key - Start by filing your nails into the desired shape, then clean your nails with nail varnish remover.

Base coat first (1 coat). Colour coat (2 coats). Top coat (1 coat). 

Using a 36 watt Uv lamp. Each time you apply a coat of varnish. You need to place one hand in the UV lamp. 

Once all varnish coats have been applied and set in the UV lamp you need to remove any stickiness from your nails. Get your wipes/felt, dab with UV gel wipe and remove the stickiness of the gel. 

Finished. Normally lasts around 14 days. No chips. Easy as that.



Instructions to remove Shellac nail polish

You need to use pure acetone. Budget version is just as good as the luxury version.  You can either pour the acetone in a bowl and soak your nails for about 10 minutes. Or when Shellac polish peels easily off. The other way, is to soak cotton wool with acetone. Put one piece of cotton wool on each nail, then wrap each nail individually with tin foil. Wait till polish removes easily.

Review

I personally don't think you need to have all the luxury items. The main items you can go budget on are; Nail file, Acetone, Nail varnish remover, using felt instead of wipes and gel wipe off. The budget UV lamp is really good for the money. However, CND lamps are amazing and I would love one. It would be so much quicker to do your nails. On a budget lamp, you always need to double your time under the lamps for each coat. With the varnish itself, CND products are also easily the best - they last really well. The Bluesky Shellac are not far behind though, and are worth the money. 

Have fun! Let me know how you get on. 

Websites

cnd.com

ebay.com

boots.co.uk

homebargains.co.uk

My house was clean. Then the kids woke up.

I swear all I do is run around tidying after my three year old! It just seems like a whirlwind of destruction. As soon as I have finished one room the next is completely destroyed. 

However, If you have this beauty, then problem solved. I love these tidy up bags. They are functional, unisex, simple and pleasing to the eye. 

                                   available @ http://www.itskaos.com/collections/all

Sock Head

 Instructions

All you need are 3 socks. Preferably men’s socks, preferably washed. Begin with dry hair (you can use products such as moose on your hair before you start) I didn’t as I wanted to see how well it would work without. 

Split your hair into 3 sections - 1 larger one at the front and 2 at the back. Start the sock at the bottom of the hair and roll up towards your head. Tie the sock in a knot then repeat until all the hair is up. In the morning, take the socks out and give your hair a little Mess up. Spray with hair spray and style it how you like.

Review

It wasn’t bad at all, in fact, i found it even better than sleep-in rollers. It’s a little tricky to do at first, but it gets easier with practice - just remember to tie the socks tightly.

I was really impressed with the curls. Though they don't stay in as long as the ‘tin foil curls’ I tried. Final impression - it's a great thing to do to glam up early school runs/work. 

I love blank walls

I don’t think there is anything more exciting than a plain wall in a house. I am a fan of minimalism, but, this is not the reason. I love a plain wall for the opportunity it poses. A blank wall is an opportunity to find an amazing print or design to hang, a chance bring to life this once blank space.

The first challenge is the designs themselves. Yes, you can just buy them, but I think you can totally do them yourself. Find a piece of gorgeous wrapping paper or make a simple print and simply frame it.

The alphabet print (below) is a classic example. I bought some as wrapper paper for £2.50 from Waterstones. Recently, I was browsing a well known selling site (I’ll give you a clue, it rhymes with betsy!) Anyway, on the site I found the same ABC wrapping paper in a frame selling for £35.00 a piece! Cheeky!

So, the next time you see a plain wall in your house, grab some wall paper, a pice of wrapping paper or just your imagination and frame it. You can even bring to life an old frame with a splash of paint if you want (I normally just get a tester pot). Wall-ah! Blank wall no more.

Bedroom print. Wrapping paper

Bath room print (wrapping paper)

Henny and Rose's bedroom.

If you don’t fancy making your own. Then here are a couple I love from

www.yellowbungalowshop.com

Yellow Bungalow

Yellow Bungalow

A couple of other sites you should check out. 

www.theposterclub.com

bespoke designs @ katiewatts@hotmail.com 

Tin Foil Curls

 When I first heard the term "tin foil curls" I though, what the heck!? My hair is so dull and flat, that I had to investigate more into this. I wanted to share my results, as I thought this would be great for older kids as well as adults.

Review

I'll be honest. This was my first attempt. Its not as quick or as easy as some make out. I do think it will get easier and quicker in time though. I think I will get better curls too. 
I didn't put any products on, when I finished. I wanted to see how long it would last for (my hair does not hold curls very well). I must say, I did the school run in the extreme wind today, and the curls stayed. Amazing! 


Please note: Take care. The foils get really hot. 

This is my hair dried naturally (very flat and boring)

Take a section of hair. How big depends on how bigger curl you want. Smaller for more  curlier curls, large pieces make a loose curl. Then use about 3 fingers to wrap it up. Hold your hair as shown on the picture.

Put your straighteners on each foil piece for around 45 seconds. Leave foils to completely cool.  

Ta Da!!  

Mini Rodini

Mini Rodini is a sweedish company that was founded in 2006. The Woman behind all the creations is, Cassandra Rhodin. The prints are very playful, and I am sure all kids will love them. 

I think these prints are one of those, If you see someone walk past, you take a second look. 

Love or Hate? 

@minirodini

http://www.minirodini.com/en/start