Watermark it yo!!

The Watermark.

What is it?  What is it for? Why is it important?

Today I wanted to talk a little about why it is so important to watermark your pictures.  People are jerks....that's why!  I'm sure you have seen and/or heard of nail bloggers getting upset because their pictures are being used without their permission by screen grabbers for various reasons (fashion pages, nail inspiration pages, press, etc).

To my knowledge I have not had a picture stolen yet, but that doesn't mean it hasn't happened (please let me know if you see my pics posted by someone other than me!).

The best way to combat this growing problem is to Watermark your pictures in such a way that if it does get stolen your name and website/instagram handle/etc is front and center so unknowing eyes will see exactly where the pic came from.

There are several ways to add a watermark. 

Photoshop is the first thing that comes to mind, but don't fret if you don't have a fancy shmancy computer program.

I do most of my editing on Photobucket or with photo editing apps on my iphone!

Most editing software (photobucket or apps) will only let you write in a straight line, which limits where you can put a watermark and still look pleasing to the eye.

Well until now!  I recently found an app that will let you write in a free form line...so curved, wiggly, spiral...you name it!  It's called "TypeDrawing" (on iphone - not sure about Android availability...sorry) and it a Godsend

Here is a quick tutorial on how to do a cuticle Watermark on TypeDrawing:

Buy the app

You can create many phrases or watermarks to choose from 

Turn off the repeat so you only get 1 string of your phrase/watermark

The "F" at the  top will let you choose your font

Once you choose your font and size you can get to drawing!  Choose the photo button on the right and import your photo.   Click on the "T" to pick your pre-saved phrase(s) and draw with your finger or stylus.  This part can be tricky, but if you keep trying (I used Undo a lot!) you will get the hang of it.  Save it to your Gallery when you are done.  You can only save your picture to your camera roll from the Gallery (weird I know).

Once I have saved it to my camera roll I can upload it to Photobucket or Instagram and take comfort in knowing that my info is on my photos in a way that can't be cropped out.  People will know that it's your picture.  If you would like a tutorial on how to do this another way visit Kayla's blog.  She did a post on how to do this with the GIMP program that is very similar to Photoshop.

As a courtesy, if you see a fellow blogger/nail designer pics being used by someone other than themself, without credit, please let them know.  From time to time I will troll through several hashtags to see what is going on out in the world and if I see a pic that is not credited I tag the owner so they can handle the problem.  We work hard on our designs and swatches and it infuriates me that people think its no big deal to grab the image and use it without credit.

Any other handy tips and tricks let me know and I will pass them on!

Keep your pics safe!!

Pink and Nude Gradient Mani (with easy cleanup?)

Remember how in my DIY Peel off Base Coat post I mentioned

that I would see if the glue helped in the cleanup process of a sponged gradient mani?

Well, I did....and it does!  Last week Sam from The Nailasaurus did a post on

Liquid Palisade, which is a masking product that allows you to simply peel off the mess after a mani is done.  This got me thinking...its pretty much the same idea of a peel off base coat which is really just glue.  Who didn't enjoy putting glue on your hand and peeling it off as a kid?

Anywho, I tried this technique this weekend by painting all around my cuticle and down my finger a bit (where I usually have mess from a sponge gradient).

After I let it dry (1-5 min) I painted as usual and then the fun began.

The mess just peeled away!  All I had to do was alittle cuticle clean up at the end and maybe a little warm water clean up to get any glue residue off.  Plus I got the added fun of peeling glue.

I have also read that Liquid Latex is a cheap alternative to Liquid Palisade.

Both dry to a rubbery finish, which I'm sure makes it easier to peel than glue, except that Liquid Latex is just pennies compared to Liquid Palisade.  I found this option on Amazon and it comes with a brush for around $4+shipping (around $8 total).  That's much better than $22. 

But if you don't want to spend any extra and you have some Elmers glue hanging around...go for it.  It works just as good!

Here is my finished mani.  My base was OPI "Don't Pretzel My Buttons" combined with a coral and hot pink from Sinful Colors for the gradient (dont remember the names at the  moment).  For grins I added a coat of Orly "Too Fab" mainly because I'm a little obsessed with the way it looks on top of everything.

DIY Peel Off Base Coat

This is by no means an original idea.  DIY peel off base coat instructions

have been floating around the nail blogosphere for a while, but I figured

I may as well document how I made mine.

You will need White school glue (the main ingredient in "peel off base coats") and an empty nail polish bottle.  If you don't have an empty you can empty a regular np bottle and swish acetone around in it till its clean.

Step 1: Fill bottle with glue

Step 2:  Enjoy!!

When you are ready to paint your nails with glitter just paint a thin coat of glue on your nails as a base coat, let it dry and apply polish as usual.  That's it!!  

When you are ready to peel off your glitter, gently push it up at the cuticle and peel it off. 

*Usually it peels off in big chunks, but the polish was fresh and just barely dried when I peeled it off.  There will be little to no clean up afterwards....and a lot less wasted time, remover, and cotton pads.  I think am going to try this approach next time I do a sponge gradient, but paint glue all around my cuticles/finger so that i can just peel off the mess and have a clean gradient...hmmm.