Thrifty Adventures with Rainbow Hex Glitter

Happy Grey Thursday! I suppose there's an irony in that as grey skies aren't usually a cause for joy. But it does mean cooler temperatures and I'm definitely down with that. I was debating earlier about featuring a sunshine bright yellow as a contrast to the dreary weather. In the end, I decided to just go with a grey number with an accent nail inspired by Sammy (aka The Nailsaurus) and her Disco nails:

Grey and frosty but with a pop of color!

What I Used:
Grey frost base: Barielle Snow Day
Large hexagonal glitter: Nicole by OPI Rainbow in the S-kylie
Tweezers or wooden stick and a piece of foil/paper plate

How I Did It:

Okay, so first things off, no graphic tutorial for this one. It's fairly straightforward and simple enough to explain with words that I decided to do away with it this time. Anyway, here's how I did it:

After applying my base coat (I used Essie Feed Me Hydration Base Coat), I applied two coats of Barielle Snow Day. There's not much rationale as to why I chose this frosty grey, except that I hadn't used it before and I wanted something neutral as a backdrop against the rainbow hex glitter. After that dried, I took my piece of foil (or paper plate, piece of plastic, whatever you have handy) and smeared on some of the glitter nail polish. Working quickly, I picked out the larger hex glitter pieces with a tweezer and placed them on my ring fingernail (you can also opt to use any other nail or two for your accent). I wasn't too concerned with the color as much as I made sure they were lined up as straight as possible. Make sure to cover the entire nail. Finish everything with a generous layer of top coat and you're all set!

I got the idea to try out this look using an existing glitter polish I owned, like I did with the star glitter I used for my shooting stars manicure. I was curious to see if I could replicate the inspiration using nail polishes I already had in my stash. The verdict? Definitely doable. I would, however, still prefer to work with loose glitter. Fishing out the right size of glitter before the suspension base it was in dried (it acts like glue to help it stick to the nail) meant moving quickly and working with small amounts of the glitter polish at a time. Sometimes, you'll get smaller pieces of glitter stuck to the larger hex ones that we want so it's not as clean looking either. You'll also have to be more patient if you want particular colors in a rainbow mix of glitter.

Notice the smaller glitter pieces stuck to the hex ones?

I'm proud of how neatly lined up it looks, regardless.

I think the random colors actually work really well with a neutral colored base.

Probably the only time I didn't mind a frost finish! ;)

I was surprised by how much I ended up liking the look of this particular manicure. It's not fancy by any means, nor is the finish a fast favorite (truth be told, I'm quite averse to anything remotely frosty that isn't a snowman or iced beverage) but the elements came together pretty well, if I say so myself. How are you faring on this grey Thursday? It's turning out to be quite the "grey day" for me as I also just started reading the (in)famous Fifty Shades of Grey. (Rainy days and books always go hand in hand in my mind.) I'm a third into it and I have to admit, I'm feeling a lot bemused. Why do so many people like this series? I can't shake off the Twilight parallelisms and the cheesy writing isn't doing it for me at all. ("Pushing pedal to the metal"? *cringes*) I'm giving it a chance anyway so I'm hoping the supernatural aspect picks up the plot soon. Have you played around with loose glitter in nail art or do you prefer the random look of a glitter top coat? Would you ever sport a frost finish nail polish on your own volition? What books are you currently reading?

**This has absolutely nothing to do with the post but because I just rediscovered it again and now have it stuck in my head, I thought I'd share my current earworm. :P