Another NYE mani...

Hey ladies!

At the moment I'm totally into gradients, not only because they look awesome, when well done, but also I try to figure out, how to protect my cuticles and an easy clean up method.
You may have heard about Kiesque - Liquid Palisade, this pink liquid latex stuff, many known bloggers and nail artists use, to protect their cuticles when they stamp, gradient or watermarble.
Well, this stuff seems to be the holy grail for clean up, but it's expensive - $22 for this little bottle.
So, smart me looked up alternatives, but before I tell you about it, lets see what I also thought would look good for New Years Eve!


Used polishes:
ILNP - Bottle Service
ILNP - Pixie Dust
China Glaze - Liquid Leather
Glisten&Glow - HK Girl Top Coat
straight nail vinyls from Nail Vinyls


Ok, first of all, sorry but these pics look a bit strange. Sometimes you can see the nail line, which was also like in real life, but only if the light hits in the right way. On my pics you can see it more clearly, but you can believe me when I tell you, that the holoness of Pixie Dust doesn't let you see it in reality. (I hope this sounds only half as confusing, as it seems to me...).


I wanted a very light and subtle gradient and these two polishes fit so well together, it's like a dream come true.
Pixie Dust is a very soft pink polish with a strong holo effect, but I recommend to wear it over white or a soft pink, so you can avoid the visible nail line.
Bottle Service is a champagne shimmer AND holo polish, the finish is a bit satin or maybe metallic. It really shifts from gold to silver and in between it is champagne. It's an awesome one!



You may have noticed that the little triangles are not the same size on both hands. Well, I could be a bad girl and tell you it's intention, but I'm a good girl and tell you the truth - it's not! I simply didn't manage to apply the vinyls even on both hands =) But I like both versions!






















Ok, now something about the methods I've looked up and tried so far:
Craft glue: I got me a bottle of craft glue from Pritt. I think it's an international brand, if you want to try it, but I think every water based craft glue will have the same effect.
I applied it with an old nail art brush around my cuticles. I also did it when I created my New Year Mani to simplify the clean up of the glitter polish.
The verdict: Meh... The first time, I applied a too thin layer, so it broke and I had lots of small pieces to peel off. Also the glue I applied near the nail, was hard to remove. I think I spent the same time removing the dried glue as I would have removing the glitter with nail polish remover.
The second time, I applied a thicker layer, so it came off in nearly one piece. But a thicker layer means a longer drying time... argh...
So you see, craft glue is not a real alternative. The only positive thing is, that you can get rid of leftovers with simple water.
O.P.I. - Glitter Off Base Coat: You may have heard of this glitter off base coat from O.P.I. . I heard that folks like to use it as cuticle protector for messy nail art. I tried it and it's better than the craft glue, but I had the same problem with the glue near the nail. It's really hard to get rid of it.
The verdict: works better than craft glue, but it's also more expensive.

I will try it again with both methods, because I got some new intel, hehe! The Liquid Palisade site says you have to remove it, before the polish is dry. So the next time I will remove it, before the polish dries and tell you about it.
I already ordered some cheap liquid latex from Amazon, it will arrive soon, I will update you how it works.

One last thing, please be honest - was this little "review" helpful? Do want to know about my experience with the liquid latex?