BURKATRON

yikes my nails have been so neglected! I love to give my paws a manicure every week but since I started decorating my new house I've not had much time for pampering! just keeping them from breaking as I'm sanding down floors is an achievement ...having a few hours free to file and paint them is a bit of a treat! this is quite a quick nail art so thought I'd share it with you guys! start off with a white base coat, I've used topshop spilled milk polish here...  take a pink and yellow polish and draw on alternate circles using the brush, space them evenly I have 3-4 circles on each nail.  once dry take a black nail art pen (mine is from models own  and I really recommend theirs) roughly outline around the circles and add a small flick in the center to suggest the petals. use a dotting tool dab on green polish to add the leaves, seal with topcoat and you're all done! I did these fairly quickly so I'm sure they would look neater if you try them yourself!  now all I ...

I thought I'd show you a really easy little DIY for those cami tops we've all been buying this summer! it's a simple update for strappy tops and perfect wear for nights out (it's so basic even the most sew-phobic can get involved!) here's how I made mine: the most important items are a simple cami top and a length of chain, the pliers are just used to open the chain links! cut the straps off your cami and lay them out flat; use your pliers to open the links on chain and cut into two equal lengths (use the original straps as a guide to the length) take a needle and thread and simply sew the chain lengths onto the cami where the original straps were; you're just replacing the fabric straps with chain ones! there you have it; a simple twist on a basic cami top!  what do you think? would you try this yourself? caroline x

topshop spilled milk polish models own black nail art pen today's nail art post is a little bit different. I'm taking part in 'getting artsy for anxiety' a collaboration with molly at lyon notes and some other wonderful bloggers.. molly is raising awareness for mental health; in particular anxiety and depression. I think it's a subject that has touched most of our lives in varying forms whether through personal experience or through our wider circle of friends and family. we're each posting a nail art to reflect our personalities, I opted for a stark black and white combination at first glance a simple pairing but I added the paisley design to reflect my life; more tangled and complicated up close. the message behind the collaboration is a simple concept; be comfortable with who you are and what you've experienced, don't be afraid to speak up- you're not alone. if you'd like to be involved please pop over to molly's blog ; there's a ser...

hello guys!  today I have some geometric nail art that I've created using some polishes from nailgirls! I also have a little giveaway for you hurrah! nailgirls kindly asked if I'd like to be their nail art blogger of the month and create a nail art for them, they've also offered some polishes for you guys to win too... (pop down to the end of the post if you want to enter!) I decided to come up with a really simple and bold design that would make the most of the two nail polishes I'd picked  canary yellow  and bright tangerine ! the formula of the polishes is really good, I've always found yellow a difficult polish and this is the best one I've tried to date, the coral formula is fantastic needing practically 1 coat for full coverage (wowza!) I added some studs and a slick of topcoat to finish off the design! so onto the fun part the GIVEAWAY!! we have two nail polishes and a nailgirls top coat up for grabs and the winner gets to choose which colours they rece...

I've been so busy recently I've not had much time to dedicate to my favourite pastime.. nail painting!  I can't help but get a little bored of plain nails so nail transfers are my go-to 'nail art' when time is precious (if in doubt cheat your way to fun fingers!)  I have quite a few favourites but these tiger transfers from janchristie are definitely in my top 5!!  they're incredible easy to use just peel off the transfer and stick the image onto your nails.. voila! make sure you apply a few layers of top coat to seal the image otherwise it will rub off when they get wet!  in case you wondered the nail polish is the gorgeous lemon meringue from models own  (yum) the transfers are available from  janchristie  in dozens of animal varieties! in other news I realised I never did anything to celebrate reaching 1000 followers so I'm planning a nail art giveaway next month hurrah!! (I'll buy a few transfer sets to pop in along with some other surprises as I ...

I actually painted these nails a while ago! I'd thought I'd pop them up so you could see them before they disappeared into the nail art archives never to be seen again! maybeline colour show in nebline* I used a beautiful shade called nebline from the maybelline colour show range. the colour is a perfect pastel pink but that's the only positive I have for this polish as I found the formula really disappointing!  I've only used two colours from this range and both needed an excessive amount of coats for full opacity (I found the yellow in the colour show range needed at least 5 coats!)  (the price range is very affordable at £2.99 but I have to say for the same price range I'd rather invest in a barry m polish)  I've gone for a basic leopard/animal print which is great for beginners!  I began by drawing silver circles and then just outlined them with a black nail art pen once they dried. add a few random dots here and there to break up the spaces and seal with to...

today I have an incredibly easy DIY for you! covering planters in fabric is a great way to decorate boring old pots and inject some fun into your decor. it's also quick and easy (my favourite combination) so even the laziest of DIY-ers could try this one! you'll only need a few things: terracotta planters work best for this craft project (glazed pots and PVA don't adhere well) I picked up this little pot for 75p in my local garden center! you'll also need a square of fabric, PVA glue and some scissors. first check your fabric to fits around your pot (you'll need the leave a few inches of excess to wrap over the rim and base) I found it easiest to work with a square shape of fabric rather than an rectangle as when you wrap you'll turn the pot diagonally.  brush on PVA glue to a small section of the pot and start to apply the fabric. simply work your way around the pot applying the PVA glue in sections followed by fabric (don't cover the entire pot with glue i...

I saw a gorgeous dress on the motel website.. baby doll shape.. cute daisy trimming.. yep it was a keeper.  however it occured to me I could probably make my own version for a fraction of the the price, I love it when a (thrifty) plan comes together! I went out to explore my local haberdashery and to my delight discovered the very same daisy trim.. mission accomplished!  so here's how I made my own easy peasy DIY daisy dress.. if you want to upcycle some of your wardrobe here's the basic steps: you'll need approx 1.5 meters of daisy trimming (available on eBay) an old dress (I've used an old topshop basic jersey dress) a needle and thread  decide where you want to add the daisies to your dress and pin the trim down to hold it in place. using a needle and thread sew the trim to secure it, repeat for all sections and remove any remaining pins.  that's it you're all finished! very quick, very easy and the perfect way to give an old dress, shorts or tee a new lease ...

summer heatwaves call for fresh fruity fingers so I thought I'd share one of my favourite tutorials with you! you may recognise this design from my collaboration with the awesome LA based company scratch .. it's been a dream come true having them made into nail wraps and seeing other people wearing them! I though I'd revisit them again this week as the weather has been glorious and it's the perfect summer mani! I've always used the two same colours for this nail art barry m bright pink and spring green, both having great formula's for the price! I'm a little hooked on barry m this month particularly the gelly range.. yum. start off by painting the cuticle half of your nails green, fill in the remaining half with the bright pink! use a white nail art pen or striping brush to draw a white band where the two colours meet! once dry use a black nail art pen or dotting tool to add black dashes to suggest seeds, leave to dry and seal with a good clear topcoat! if ...

wowza it's been a while since I first painted this nail art... an oldie but a goodie! I figured that some of you wouldn't have seen these (I first painted them just over a year ago here ) I never posted a full tutorial and I wanted to show you how I did them! I've used one of my all time favourite colours  models own beth's blue as the base. the formula of this colour is crazy good- I'm wearing just one coat in the photos below. so here's the steps I've used! first start off with the base colour and leave to dry next use a white nail art pen to draw a white circle, dab small dots around the edges to create these 'cloud' shapes above. next use a dotting tool to add a small dot of a light and dark pink to suggest flowers, then dot on greens to suggest leaves. finish off the design by adding tiny white dots in a circle shape around each flower centerpiece (it's important to space out your design so you have enough room to do this!) seal with topcoa...

I saw a tutorial for these nails in company magazine and just had to try them (thanks for the inspo you wonderful bunch!) the tutorial is a simple one but if you drink a gallon of tea a day like me I'd recommend you do these before the caffeine shakes kick in!  (if you want these to be really perfect you can always paint a set of false nails and stick them on once dry!) start with a blue base coat (I used illamasqua nobel ) use a white nail art pen to draw on cloud shapes. next draw in a white rainbow shape emerging from the cloud. use yellow, pink and green stripes for  the rainbow and leave to dry. finish off by outlining it all with a fine brush or black nail art pen! I did these quite quickly so I'm not 100% happy with them but I love the design, definitely one I'd do for a festival or day out at the seaside!  have you seen the nail art tutorials in company? tempted to try out any of the others?  back soon! caroline x want to follow my nail art posts?  chec...

I was so excited to create some nail art for laura ashley recently! they're one of my favourite stores and their home department kick started my love affair with all things floral when I worked for them as a teen.  the lovely peeps asked if I could create some nail art inspired by their fabric and wallpaper designs; I couldn't have asked for a more fun project! the hardest part was picking from their range of adorable vintage inspired collections but I finally settled on their clarissa print- a gorgeous pink, yellow and grey themed floral concoction. so here's how I painted mine, you can follow these steps to create your own version! Step 1: Begin by painting a pale pink/cream base colour and leave to dry.  Take a dark pink polish and paint a rough circles on some of your nails. Step 2: Take a few pink nail polishes varying from dark to light in shade, you'll be using these to add depth and turn the pink circles into blooms! Wipe any excess from the polish brush and li...