R is for Ruffian

Good morning!!  What a beautiful day!  The sun is shining, the air isn't humid and has cooled off a little.. I'm a happy girl!

Today I have my R nails for the ABC Nail Art Challenge.  I can't believe there are only 8 more weeks left of the Challenge after this week!  Where does the time go??

R is for Ruffian

For this mani, I went a little outside the box.  I used Aly's Dream Polish #23 Vivid Violet for my base colour as the COTW for my Facebook group was purple.  I really love this polish - it's a gorgeous bright purple holo.  The holo is a happy medium between linear (like the Color Club holos) and scattered (like the Zoya Ornate collection).  Then, using some white microbeads that Kara from Never Gonna Give You Up sent to me MONTHS ago, I created a ruffian on my index, middle and pinky nails.  I applied a top coat (not quick drying) to one half of the cuticle line of my nail.  Then, using a toothpick dipped in water to pick up the microbeads, placed them in 2 rows along the cuticle line of my nail to create a ruffian.  On my ring and thumb  nails I put a coat of the top coat on my entire nail and dipped my nail into the container of microbeads to create caviar nails.

I kind of dig the caviar nails... I didn't think that I would.  I actually applied my Pro-FX top coat to my ring and thumb nails after applying the microbeads to seal them onto the nail, and they stayed put!  I did have trouble with the ruffian beads staying on the nail though, but I didn't top coat those ones.

So, what do you think?  Don't forget to share your R mani with me on the Facebook page!