Winter Wonderland Mani

Although I seriously cannot deal with the cold, I couldn't have been more inspired by today's gorgeous white fluffy tufts of snow. It was truly a Winter Wonderland sight, and I couldn't wait to get home and record the weather on my hands. Normal, right? Earlier today, I spotted Free People's fun DIY Snow Nails, and immediately realized the improvements that could be made with a touch of Julie flare (because textured nails simply are not pizazzed enough).

A step-by-step on how I get my cutiepie designs looking fab.

(PS, the pictures do not do it justice. He-llllllo sparkly fingers!)

Not super necessary, but knowing which color palettes I'm going to need to achieve the most perfect nails possible ahead of time helps with my motivation. Just go with me here! ;)

I actually used two coats total before I slathered on the third for the glitter. Working with white is really tricky, for all you novice manicuristas!

The glitter I used is actually from my arts & crafts closet (can you tell I was an Artsy Annie as a child?), but powder-thin glitter is a supply that I'm sure is not that difficult to track down. *The step I didn't show, but is very important, is sealing your glittery nails with a thick clear top coat. Failure to do this will probably lead to sparkly bedsheets, and thus, vampire skin in the morning.

Picking out the colors I'm going to use for the snowman. I have an entire collection of thin-tipped polishes (minus an orange one - grrr), which certainly help small design application. For the record, I'd never be able to create intricate designs without these polishes, so if you're serious about having some fun (HA HA), invest!

Okay, so I'm totally telling the truth. I'm good at this stuff because I paint my nails every day (you can view some of my designs on my Instagram account). That said, you also need a chunk of time and a steady hand (if you're a novice, start applying simple designs with your dominant hand). I love getting ideas from Pinterest, WeHeartIt and good ol' trusty Google.

Voila! Do you like? So fun for this weather!