Friday, June 18, 2010

A Celebratory Gold-Tip French!


Not only is the World Cup going on (Hup Holland, Hup!) but today my PI leaves for several weeks in Europe - an entire ocean of peace of mind for me! I wanted to do a mani to celebrate, but nothing too wild. I thought I'd try a French with gold tips!

This look has always appealed to me. I think it is quietly subversive but yet manages to maintain some elegance. Here I used 2 coats of Essie Mademoiselle plus 1 coat of Essie Tennis Corset as my base. The tips are OPI Opening Night Champagne. This was my first time using French guides, and there is definitely a learning curve - I got better with them as I went along. I normally freehand but I didn't want to do that here with a metallic polish, because I wanted my strokes to be vertical and the polish to be thin and even.

Take a look at the results!:


Different angle so you can see how brightly metallic Opening Night Champagne is:


Close-up so you can see the shimmer in Tennis Corset - one of the two polishes I own a back-up of!:


I absolutely adore Opening Night Champagne - I just received it from a lovely lady (you know who you are!) and it is like a mix between yellow gold and rose gold. It applies incredibly smoothly, but is still hyper-shimmery and metallic. I also have OPI I Get a Kick Out of Gold, which is from the same collection and is the same texture but much more yellow gold in colour. I wish I could get my hands on a silver with this texture - does anyone know if one exists? I would love to do a silver version of this!

I'm really loving wearing this mani - it definitely gives off that celebratory vibe I was looking for! I see more gold-tip Frenches in my future - perhaps OPI I Get a Kick Out of Gold tips with Chanel Illusion d'Or base?

What do you think of the metallic-tip French manicure? Do you use guides, tape or freehand for your French manis?

kittytokaren


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20 comments:

Unknown said...

YAY :D i'm loving the gold tips!! i usually free hand when i do french tips then clean with a brush & acetone. but sometimes guides are a welcome asset.

Bunny Masseuse said...

LOOVE this, the gold shimmer on the cream section looks great with the gold tips.

Gwen - SpaceLifeThoughts said...

Funky!

DesertNails8 said...

Your mani looks beautiful. I do a french tip using either a nail art brush or sponge it on with a cosmetic wedge - I have very short nails.

Audrey said...

This is so chic and clasy!! You'd make ur mother proud!! *wink* *wink* Love the gold tips & shimmer! Great job!!

Anonymous said...

I love the gold french tip, i did a version using dazzled by gold then topped it with Cleopatra.

i didn't use a color for the base so i just applied the gold on my tips free hand & then i used a rounded eyeshadow brush for clean up. =)

Tilly said...

I knew I was going to like this when I read the title. You are inspiring me to do a french manicure. Although I haven't for years! I did however, attempt a half-moon manicure yesterday. Have a look on my blog if you like :)

Tilly, x

Book and Cat Librarian said...

I love it! For silver, maybe Trixie by Zoya?

kittytokaren said...

@kelligonzo - Aw I'm glad you're liking it! I'm the same - mostly freehand, but with metallics I like guides.

@Bunny Masseuse - Ah thanks! Essie Tennis Corset is the BEST!

@Spaceinvaders - Agreed!

@Desertnails - I never thought of a sponge...hm...

@Audrey - Hahaha my mom would kill me for this...and then call me trailer trash!

@LisainFL - OOooo Dazzled by Gold...so pretty....I considered not using a base colour, but I always wear base coat so I didnt want to attempt it..

@Tilly - I don't do French manis often, but I think this one is kind of fun! I've wanted to do a half-moon mani, but my nails are so square at the bottom I'm worried it will look funny...checking out your blog!!

@Art YOu Dream About - That would work!

k2k

tasha~ said...

ohhh I love it!! I really like your blog too! All the nail looks you do are so elegant! Are you from Holland????

Erika said...

Very pretty. I am inspired to get some gold and try this look.

I use French tip guide tapes. I can't freehand a straight-ish line to save my life. lol

Crystal Polish said...

Super cute!

I'm not even typically a gold person, and I love this.

nailspotting said...

That's gorgeous! I've never been a fan of French manicure nor gold polish but this I have to try! Thanks for the inspiration :)

Anonymous said...

french manicures are not my thing, but this is obviously adorable!

Ashley said...

I like the idea! I use guides since I have shaky caffeine-addict hands. :)

kittytokaren said...

@tasha - Thank you and yes I am from Holland - I grew up there my whole life even though my father is American and my mother is German. Hup Holland hup!!!

@IceQueen - Glad I could encourage you to experiment! I'm just learning how to use these guides and there is definitely an art to it - I'd love any tips you have!

@Crystal Polish - Thanks! Opening Night Champagne is a very subtle gold because its not overly yellow. If you're not a gold person I think you'd like it!

@Nail spotting - Thank you and I'm happy you're going to try something new! I love gold polish so I 'm trying to spread the love!

@deathbypolish - First, I love your name!!! And thank you! I'm not a huge French person either but this was fun to do.

@Ashley A - Haha I am soooo weak to caffeine and I shake horribly too! Any tips on how to use guides better?? I'm not that great with them yet....

k2k

Libby's Pink Vanity said...

I love French manicures. And this one is so elegant.
I do my Frenches however the mood strikes me. I do find it easiest to use the guides. And the hardest is using the stamps. That's what I need practice on!

tasha~ said...

Ahh my mom is from Holland and my Dad is french but I grew up in Canada ;) ! I spent lots of time in Holland as a child! Groetjes :P

kittytokaren said...

@Kimberly - Oh my goodness, I'm shaky enough with guides...I don't see me ever even attempting stamps!!

@tasha - Ahhh so you're a Third Culture Kid as well! Hup Holland Hup!!

k2k

B.Stone said...

VERY pretty! A simple idea, but WOW, it's such a nice mani!

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