I'm officially a member of ICMAD!

Compassion. Long story about the name, but this is my breast cancer color ! - Patricia Yankee Nail Lacquer

Mary J. Blige wearing my Patricia Nail Lacquer! Much love to Lisa Logan for sharing!!!

Step by Step with Pattie for Katy Perry's MET GALA nails!

Step 1: Start with a prepped almond shaped nail.

Step 2: Paint nail with a gold polish such as Patricia Nail Lacquer in ‘Diadem’ (You could also use gold metallic gel polish such as ‘Orly Luxe’)

Step 3: Allow polish to dry. Then, burnish CND Additives in ‘Antique Bronze’ (This will subdue and “antique” the brighter gold polish.)

Step 4: Next apply CND Shellac  top coat and cure. Do not cleanse.

Step 5: Using silver rainbow foil, randomly dab the foil pieces on to the nail, in the tacky layer of the cured Shellac Top Coat. Next use gold foil and again randomly dab in between the silver rainbow foil.

Step 6: Seal with another coat of CND Shellac top coat and cure. Do not cleanse.

Step 7: Apply a third coat of CND Shellac top coat and cure working on one nail at a time. Place a deep red Swarovski crystals in the center of the nail (For Katy Perry’s nails, I used antique set synthetic rubies from my client who is a jeweler).

Step 8: Next use large square, gold metal studs and place them around the center stone turning to look like a diamond shape. Place the four studs around the center stone to create the look of an antique “cross”. Cure nails. (I worked on one nail at a time so the studs wouldn’t slide around.)

Step 9: If desired seal embellishments with a final coat of CND Shellac top coat and cure. Cleanse to remove tacky layer. (For Katy Perry, I did not apply a top coat over her embellishments as I wanted to leave as much texture as possible). 

Behind the Scenes MBFW SS 2013

Hi Everyone,

This years Fashion Week was awesome and crazy as usual! I got to see some beautiful work and some of my favorite familiar Fashion Week friends. This year was especially exciting as I got to introduce Dashing Diva's  new Colorfx and Designfx appliques to the runways! Check out the pics below.  

Me with my Fashion Week assistant Isaiah. I wouldn't want to do this week without him!

Me with one of my several teams backstage at the Farah Angsana show. Several of them traveled out of state at their own expense. Now that's dedication!

Ran into one of my favorite people Kari Frost, Nail Pro Editor, backstage. It's always great to see her.
The Farah Angsana Show.

While backstage at the Tibi Show, I was privileged to be part of Teen Vogue's Eva Chen live  feed.
  A Day In The Life of Eva Chen.

My favorite look of the week.
TheTimoWeiland  Show. 

Was happy to use our Colorfx with a twist at the Naeem  Khan show.
Gorgeous Moon Manicure. 

Backstage Jeremy Scott Show with my favorite male model. I'm mortified to admit I don't even  remember his name. Ryan.... ??

The amazing luxurious urban gold cutsom Dashing Diva Designfx for the Jeremy Scott show.
Jeremy Scott... Always my favorite show. 

With Fashion Week over, it is always bittersweet for me. I have been receiving some press request for my How To blogs, so stay tuned and keep a watch out for new looks coming soon!

Until next time...  

I'm In Perez Hilton's Blog!

Hey Guys,

Check out my behind the scenes video for my August NailPro Cover! 

http://nailpro.com/nail-art-how-tattoo-inspired-nails-august-2012-behind-nail-pros.

I am so excited to share it with you. Speaking of sharing, there has been quite a stir in the nail world. As many of you know, in 2010 for Fall Fashion Week, I coined the phrase "caviar nails" based on a look I created for Cushnie Et Ochs. It received a lot of attention and later controversy. Ciate, a nail manufacturing company, would send cease and dissed letters to bloggers who used my phrase. This was in response to a product they would be releasing in 2012 under the same name "caviar nails" which is now available in Sephora. Check out Perez Hilton's Blog where he shared his thoughts on the matter... and leave a comment too!

http://cocoperez.com/2012-08-05-nail-polish-company-ciate-did-not-invent-the-caviar-manicure

Until next time...

My August NailPro Cover

August NailPro Cover 2012

Hi Everybody, 

Now that is is officially released, I am able to write about my August cover for NailPro. What do you guys think?!! I was a little nervous at first when Stephanie told me it was going to be a cover based on tattoos (because... anyone who knows me at all knows how much I DESPISE tattoos lol). Nonetheless, I had to rise to the occasion. Fortunately for me, the timing was perfect as about a month prior to NailPro's request, I was working in the Dashing Diva office on our new line of nail tattoos that will be released early of 2013. Luckily for me, there were a couple of samples that I was able to snag from the office and utilize on this shoot.    

Up Close and Personal

After Stephanie Yaggy sent me her inspiration vision, I sought out my favorites of the nail tattoo samples that we had just received. From there, I made some sample nails and collaborated with make-up artist, Anthony Merante, who is amazingly creative. We agreed upon the above look. To match the nails tattoos I had chosen, Merante designed and airbrush a temporary tattoo to match. To add even further intrigue to the concept, I based my pallet with a flesh tone polish. I developed this look to really make the nails become one with our model's flesh. Using a method I conceived at a 2011 Fashion Runway Show for Cushnie Et Ochs, I mixed a sheer nude polish with Bare Escentuals mineral makeup. I added little bits of the mineral make up at a time in various shades until I arrived to the perfect match of my model's skin. I feel this really enhanced the look of the tattoos and completed the overall concept. The behind the scenes video will be up really soon on the NailPro website, so be sure to check it out! http://www.nailpro.com/videos/behind-the-nailpros

I also just did an awesome shoot for Seventeen magazine that I will fill you in on next time. I feel really blessed to have worked with  the awesome makeup artist, Romeo Jennings, from MAC. Stay tuned for more details on the amazing look we created.

Until next time...