Pastel Dry Brushed Nail Art

Welcome to Samantha by the Sea! Today I would like to share another nail art look with you! 

I used the dry brush technique for this look! If you haven't heard this technique before, it is when you wipe almost all of the polish off of the brush before applying it to the nail. As always, I started off with my Revlon Colorstay Gel-Smooth Base Coat. For the base color, I used Dream by PS Cosmeceutical in Southern Sand. I used Zoya Lillian, Neely, Kirtridge, and Cole for the dry brush technique. I sealed everything in with Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Top Coat.

Overall, I'm loving this - so much so that I'm already planning out my next dry brush look!

What do you think? I'd love to know in the comments below!

Pastel Ikat Nail Art

 I bought this.

Welcome to Samantha by the Sea! Today I wanted to share with you a pastel ikat nail art look that is perfect for summer!

To start off, I used the Revlon Colorstay Gel-Smooth Base Coat. I applied two coats of Pure Ice He Rocks My World as the base color. Once that was dry, I placed Wet N Wild French White Crème anywhere that I wanted an ikat design. I then placed Zoya Lillan in the center of the white and accented everything with the L.A. Colors Art Deco Nail Art Striper in Black. I sealed everything in with Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Top Coat.

I am really loving this look! Not only is it perfect for summer, but the colors can be switched up to match any occasion. 

What do you think? Let me know below!

Marble Nail Art

 I bought this.

Welcome to Samantha by the Sea! Today we will be exploring a hobby from my past, nail art! Nail art was a hobby of mine for quite a few years (I even blogged about it!), but I sadly fell out of it. I'm starting to get back into nail art, so I thought I'd take you on that journey with me!

For this marble inspired look I started off with my holy grail base coat, Revlon Colorstay Gel-Smooth Base Coat, on all of my nails. For the marble nail art I loosely followed a tutorial by Nina Nailed It. I started off with two coats of Wet n Wild French White Cremé. For the marbled look I used a mixture of a black sharpie marker and rubbing alcohol on a nail art brush. I accented it with L.A. Colors Art Deco Nail Art Striper in Black. Once I completed my desired marble look, I added silver foil pieces to bring the look together.

 

As for the rest of my nails, I applied two coats of Sally Hansen Jam Sesh on my index finger, two coats of OPI In True Stefani Fashion on my middle finger, and two coats of Pure Ice Shining Knight on my pinky finger and thumb. I topped everything off with a thick coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Top Coat.

I feel like this was the perfect look to ease myself back into nail art! While I know that there are some improvements to be made, I'm extremely happy with the overall look!

Have you ever tried sharpie nail art? Do you have any suggestions for what I should try next? Let me know in the comments below!

Ipsy Glam Bag Reveal: June 2017

 I bought this.

Welcome to my first blog post on Samantha by the Sea! For my first post, I've decided to share with you what I received in this month's Ipsy Glam Bag. The theme of the bag was Volume Up. This is the first bag I'd ever received from Ipsy, so I'm extremely excited to share with you what I got!

The Bag

As you can see this month's bag was adorable! It was tan with white polka dots and black accents, with a giant set of red lips on the center! I was very impressed with the quality of the bag; it was made well and I think it will last me a while.

The Contents

Beauty For Real I-LINE 24/7 Eyeliner in 24 Karat ($14): A shimmery gold gel eyeliner.

NYX Whipped Lip & Cheek Soufflé in Cocoa Bean ($6): A nude brown product that can be used as lipstick or blush.

Margaret Dabbs London Treatment Enriched Nail Polish in Green Daylily ($22): A jewel toned polish that only needs ONE (yes one!!) coat.

Trissola Chia 5-in-1 Defining Curl Cream ($8): A cream to tame unruly curls.

Luna by Luna Cosmetics Eyeshadow in Jace ($15): A vegan and cruelty free matte rose eyeshadow.

The Review

Overall, I thought that this was a pretty decent bag for my first time receiving Ipsy! It retailed for approximately $65 USD, which isn't bad for a $10 subscription! The nail polish was AMAZING, as was the eyeliner and eyeshadow. The lip and cheek soufflé matched my skin tone well, but I ended up giving it to someone who I know will get a lot of use out of it. The curl cream was probably the biggest disappointment in the entire bag, as not only was it extremely sticky feeling, but it left my hair frizzy and my curls undefined, which is the opposite of what it was meant to do.

Make sure to follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to see how I end up using these products! And stay tuned, they may appear in future blog posts!

I'm curious, do you subscribe to Ipsy? If so, how was your bag this month? Let me know in the comments below!