Halloween Nails: Candy Corn-Colored Polishes

Boo!-hoo... Too bad Halloween only comes once each year. Be that as it may, we're gonna supersize our sweet tooth craving with one of the most iconic treats of the annual celebration--candy corn. This classic confection not only screams Halloween, but also bursts with bold colors of the season (pumpkin orange, leaf changing yellow and ghostly white). 

Candy corn serves as a drop-dead template for a scary good mani. The devil's in the details, so begin with a base coat and two layers of yellow polish. Next, apply two coats of orange lacquer over two-thirds of the nail starting from slightly lower than mid-range to the top. Then, layer two coats of white polish on the tip of the nail. Finish with a top coat.

No matter "witch" polish you select, the following lacquers make your nails look more delightful than frightful. They may not raise the spirits, but they're guaranteed to lift yours. 

Happy Halloween Eve!

SHINE: Butter London. BEAUTY: Cream Tea (white), Cheeky Chops (yellow) and Jaffa (orange). BEACON: Free of formaldehyde, toluene, dibutyl phthalate and parabens.

SHINE: Dazzle Dry Nail Lacquer. BEAUTY: Sheer Elegance (almond), Frozen Lemonade (pale yellow) and Orange Sorbet (orange). BEACON: Vegan, and contains no formaldehyde, toluene, dibutyl phthalate, camphor or nitrocellulose.

SHINE: Milani Nail Lacquer High Speed Fast Dry and NEON (right). BEAUTY: White on the Spot (white), Yellow Whiz (yellow) and Awesome Orange (orange). BEACON: Free of dibutyl phthalate, toluene and formaldehyde. 

SHINE: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Nail Color (middle) and Complete Salon Manicure. BEAUTY: 120 Polar Bare (white), 360 Mellow Yellow and 560 Kook-A-Mango (orange). BEACON: Contains no dibutyl phthalate, toluene or formaldehyde.

SHINE: Zoya Nail Polish. BEAUTY: Christinna (white), Pippa (yellow) and Pia (orange). BEACON: No animal testing. Free of toluene, camphor, formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin and dibutyl phthalate.

Mardi Gras Manis

Let the fun and frivolity begin. Today's Fat Tuesday, which means it's all about the Big Easy, Bourbon Street, beads--and maybe a few brews.


Fat Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras, falls on the day before Ash Wednesday on the Catholic calendar. In the 12 days leading up to it, dozens of celebrations take place in the French Quarter of New Orleans with parades of fancy floats, and face-painted revelers wearing elaborate masks, wild costumes and tons of colorful beads. Call it Halloween on steroids with lots of sparkle. 


In honor of Fat Tuesday, we've created four shimmering Mardi Gras Manis. The traditional colors of the festivities--gold, purple and green--serve as the inspiration. 

SHINE: Dazzle Dry Grape Lollipop (purple), Sahara (yellow) and Emerald (green jewel effect). BEAUTY: Parade around in a purple mani featuring two accent nails of yellow (ring finger) and green (pinky).

BEACON: Vegan, and contains no formaldehyde, toluene, dibutyl phthalate or nitrocellulose. 

Mani model/nail artist: Natalie J. Wilson

SHINE: Milani Nail Lacquer High Speed Fast Dry Yellow Whiz (warm canary cream) and Milani Nail Art Purple Outline (purple glitter). BEAUTY: Unmask the glory of yellow digits with shimmery purple tips.

BEACON: Free of dibutyl phthalate, toluene and formaldehyde.

SHINE: SpaRitual Disco Inferno Shimmer (iridescent purple), Enlightened Soul Creme (bright yellow) and Earth Matters (green glitter). BEAUTY: The party never ends with this color block mani. Begin with a top coat and then paint each nail with two coats of yellow. Next, apply two layers of green to the top two-thirds of each digit. Finish with two coats of a wide purple bar down the center of the yellow block and a top coat. 

BEACON: Vegan, and contains no synthetic dyes, dibutyl phthalate, toluene or formaldehyde.

Mani model/nail artist: Natalie J. Wilson

SHINE: Zoya Nail Polish Holly (gem-toned, metallic green), Charisma (neon magenta/purple cream) and Creamy (bright yet soft banana peel shade of yellow). BEAUTY: Enhance the fun and festivities of Fat Tuesday--or any other day of the week--with a sparkling green mani accented by a purple/magenta ring finger nail with a yellow tip.

BEACON: No animal testing. Also contains no toluene, camphor, formaldehyde or dibutyl phthalate.

Lady Gaga Sunny-Side-Up Manicure

Someone forgot to tell Lady Gaga that it's the Year of the Rabbit in Chinese culture--not the Year of the Chicken. Nevertheless, the pop music icon managed to make a grand entrance in an egg at the Grammy Awards earlier this month. For the most part, it went over well--or, shall we say, over easy--with fans and critics.

Her sp-egg-tacular arrival inspired SHINE Beauty Beacon to create a Sunny-Side-Up Manicure. We recommend wearing it during a brunch date, Lady Gaga's next concert or while participating in an Easter egg hunt. The video below illustrates how to do it in five easy steps, and the image beneath it shows you what the full manicure looks like.

Protocol for the Sunny-Side-Up Manicure:

Step 1: Apply a layer of base coat to each nail.

Step: 2: Coat each digit with yellow lacquer.

Step 3: Apply another coat of white lacquer to each nail.

Step 4: While the lacquer is still wet, use a toothpick (or dull implement) to carve out a circle in the middle of each nail. This allows the yellow lacquer (or yolk center) to emerge from beneath.

Step 5: Gently place a dollop of yellow lacquer in the center of each nail to enhance the yolk, and then apply a top coat to set and brighten the look.

BEAUTY: The Sunny-Side-Up Manicure features CND Bicycle Yellow and Brilliant White Colour lacquers. BEACON: These products are "three free," which means they don't contain toluene, formaldehyde or DBP (dibutyl phthalate).