33 Day Challenge Day 01: Dots

Am I crazy? I must be, because I am starting another challenge before the 31 Day Challenge is over! This is the 33 Day Challenge (that's right, two days longer!) being run by the Crumpet Nail Tarts. So in my insanity, I decided to join in the fun. Why is it longer than a month? Well, it is running Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays for 11 weeks.

Inspired by my post from the Challenge's polka dot day, my lovely sister shared one of her own. She came up with a cute domino design, which inspired me to copy her for today's dot prompt. The circle of life!

I started off with two (or three? crap, I'm losing my mind) coats of white polish for my base color. For the black lines I used my large striping brush. Then I added all the dots with my dotting tool. I'm so glad today's prompt inspired something relatively easy. I honestly couldn't handle something more complicated right now. I am trying to complete three posts today!

Luckily it's not that easy to tell, but the top coat did transfer some of the dots' color. So around the dots the white is faintly saturated with their color.

What I used:
Sephora by OPI White Hot- base color
Sephora by OPI What's a Tire Jack?- black lines
OPI French Quarter For Your Thoughts- #12
Finger Paints Art Hue Serious?- #8
Wet and Wild Wild Shine Lady Luck- #3
Sephora by OPI Hi Def- #4
OPI Dating a Royal- #5
China Glaze For Audrey- #1
Seche Vite top coat

What do you think of the domino design? I'm so glad I have such great inspiration around me!

So here is to a crazy week while I finish up the first challenge, and continue with this one! Send good vibes my way, and please show me some love by coming back to see my new (or old!) posts! :)

31DC2013 Day 22: Inspired by a Song

I kept coming up with ideas for today's Challenge prompt, but I wasn't crazy about any of them. So I spent some time scrolling through my library, hoping I would finding something I was excited about. Anyone who knows me will have assumed I would pick a David Bowie song. We all know what happens when you assume...you're often correct. Ah, but which one? As soon as I saw "Let's Dance" in my library I got a mental picture of dance diagrams. I knew that I could make a fun design out of the dance steps. Here's what I came up with!

Let's dance

Put on your red shoes and dance the blues

I started with a gray polish for my base color. Then I sponged on a blue polish to create a gradient. Then I added a moon to my thumb using my striping brush. Next it was on to the the dance steps, which I also created with my striping brush. They were the biggest pain in the butt! I don't know why I thought they'd be easier than they were. But I think they finally turned out okay. I added the dashes with my Stripe Rite polish. It was completed with some top coat.

Let's sway 

Under the moonlight, this serious moonlight

What I used:
Essie Bikini So Teeny- blue
China Glaze Pelican Gray
OPI Red Hot Ayers Rock
OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls- white
Sephora by OPI What's a Tire Jack?- black
It's So Easy Stripe Rite- black
Seche Vite top coat


Does it make you want to dance? If you want to watch some delicious vintage Bowie, check out the video!

31DC2013 Day 21: Inspired by a Color

If there were one vague prompt in the 31 Day Challenge, this would be it. What does inspired by a color mean? Whatever the heck you want it to, apparently. Some people do manicures based around a color. I've seen Sarah from Chalkboard Nails draw inspiration from the name of a polish, and that's where I ended up. Originally I was thinking of just focusing on a favorite color. But when I was going through my polishes I came across Sephora by OPI It's Totally Karma, and I knew I had it.

I originally wanted to make it very colorful but then decided it would make the design less readable. So I ended up with a very green manicure (so unlike me!). I do like how bold it is.

I feel like some imaginary person has been twisting my arm, forcing me to try things that are beyond my capabilities. Obviously, there is no such person. It's just that this challenge makes me come up with these ideas that I don't want to let go of. So I try something ridiculous that I've never tried before. I have to tell you though, I had fun wearing these. It's like I felt they would help good things come to me :)

What I used:
Sephora by OPI It's Totally Karma
It's So Easy Stripe Rite in black
Seche Vite top coat

Did you feel the good vibes from this post?

I won't be posting Sunday, so I will have Day 22 and 23 for you on Monday!

31DC2013 Day 20: Water Marble

Today is the dreaded water marble day. Ug. I think these colors look fantastic. The rest.. didn't turn out so well. I have a number of complaints here. Before we get into that, let's just look at the pretty colors. Oooooo..

Once again, this is another first for me. Typically when I have been trying new techniques, I sort of just jump right in. This time I knew I had to depend on a tutorial to help me out. To prepare, I watched a couple of videos from the Queen of water marbling. Apparently I did not watch enough videos to have a good idea of how to do it.

Once I choose my colors I was pretty dead set on using them together. After not being able to get them to expand well in the water, I just decided to work with them best I could. It was too late at night to be changing the game plan. Some polishes started drying faster than the others. So I have broken gaps especially noticeable on my ring finger.

I'm not happy with how this turned out, but I'm not discouraged. There are way too many successful water marbles out there for me to give up. I want to try again! I need to figure out what polishes work well, and a few other questions I had.
 Even with how sloppy and broken this is, I love that water marbles still always look unique. No one else has one that looks just like this! Want to know my favorite part about this? It was the quickest manicure I've done this whole Challenge!

What I used:
OPI Live and Let Die-deep green
Zoya Bevin- sage
A England Holy Grail-gold

Have you done successful water marbling? What polishes have worked for you?

31DC2013 Day 19: Galaxies

What comes to mind when you think about "Space"? The final frontier, naturally. And what are you most likely to come across while voyaging through the stars?  The USS Starship Enterprise, of course. That is how I arrived in this strange new world of galaxy nails. As I began this manicure, boldly going where loads have gone before, I knew I had to include it!

Can you hear the theme music?

This is my first galaxy manicure. I have seen so many beautiful representations, and I've been excited to try one! I want to do this more, trying different approaches, and see the variety I come up with.

Would you believe I used 18 polishes here?! I'm not lying! It would be completely ridiculous to list them all here, so I'm not even going to try!
What you need to know is that I started with a base of Zoya Storm (one of my new favorites!). It's a beautiful black with holographic glitter flecks.  For the extra sparkly bits I used Out The Door Northern Lights holographic top coat. Then in between I sponged a few more polishes.

As far as the process went, I just kept sponging on colors until I achieved a look I was satisfied with. I tore off little pieces of a makeup sponge and used tweezers to hold them. I made little pools of polish on wax paper to dip the sponges in, and sponged off excess polish. I endlessly layered the colors, trying to fix areas where I got too much color. I added some larger white stars with a dotting tool. Then I freehanded the Enterprise with a striping brush and dotting tool.

I know, lot of photos..

Okay, now for the important part. Calling all Trekkies/Trekkers:
Who is you favorite captain? Which is your favorite series/movie? What would you rather have, Geordi's blindness or Data's inability to love? In episode 142... okay, I'll stop there. :)

So what do you think? Do you like the galaxy look? It's not my favorite thing I've done, but I still really, really like it! I don't want to take it off! Boo hoo.

Bonus photo!

 Me with Data at Salt Lake Comic Con!

Don't forget to come back to see my continuing mission of the 31 Day Challenge, as I seek out new techniques and new designs!

31DC2013 Day 18: Half Moons

I'm taking it easy today. Nothing ambitious to see here, folks. I had to do today's as simple as possible because I am freaking out about tomorrow's galaxy nails! Earlier I was joking about ulcers, but it wasn't that big of an exaggeration. Two nights ago while working on my glitter manicure I developed a broken blood vessel on my face! The stress is taking its toll. Maybe I need to get in touch with OSHA again..

Anyway, simple is good. I think that's what makes half moon manicures so popular. They are simple, elegant, and have endless possibilities of color combinations. I am really enjoying this color combo!

This is the first time for me doing a half moon manicure. Well, actually, that's a lie. I tried it once before, but that was before I knew what I was doing. This was also the first time I used both of these polishes. Aren't they so pretty?

How to:

I applied two coats of Zoya Robyn all over the nail, then applied top coat to help it dry faster. When it was completely dry I put round paper reinforcers in place above the cuticle. Working one nail at a time, I painted one coat of  Zoya Natty, the darker shade, then immediately removed the reinforcers. After they were drying for a few minutes I finished with a top coat. Viola! I love it when things are easy and they look good! 

What I used:
Zoya Robyn
Zoya Natty
Seche Vite top coat


Come back tomorrow for something much more complex! I'm not promising it will turn out since I've never tried it. We'll have to wait and see!

31DC2013 Day 17: Glitter

Skull Mail!!! Most of the time when I do my nails I am watching tv online. There are about four shows I've been rotating through, and America's Next Top Model is one that I look forward to the most. Tyra has changed it up this season with guys and girls competing together, and it's made for some great entertainment! I think it's helped to have guys in the mix to keep the drama and cattiness better under control than usual. And you won't hear me complaining that there is some serious eye candy now. Although, the best looking of the bunch was the first to go. Obviously I feel it was a poor decision. Now on to my nails..

I have been planning this mani for a few weeks now. I knew that the glitter theme for today was the perfect time for it. Before the judging and elimination each ANTM episode, the "skull mail" appears on the contestants' tv screen at the house. It's a pixelated skull, and that's what I am trying to emulate here. This is a very picture heavy post!

I started off with two coats of black polish. Then with a toothpick I carefully placed each piece of glitter to make the skull and crossbones shape. I used the toothpick to place a small dot of clear coat on the nail. I put a little more clear polish on the toothpick to make the glitter stick to it so I could place it on the nail. Once they were all in place, I added top coat over the glitter to make it smooth and keep them secure.
For the other nails I horizontally swiped on the glittery top coat across the tips, then put the hex glitter in place. I finished those off with top coat too.

From the start of the season I have noticed Tyra sporting various nail art (I haven't noticed in past seasons?). I'm always trying to get a good look at it. So it was no surprise when they did a nail art fashion shoot in episode 7. There were some guys who seriously rocked their crazy fake nails! Sooo fun!

Indirect lighting:

What I used:
Sephora by OPI What's a Tire Jack?
Sephora by OPI Meet Me At the Disco
glitter from the craft store
Seche Vite top coat

And a little something extra...

The contestants did little runway walks exhibiting their nail art (there's a behind the scenes video of it). So here, for your viewing pleasure, I have put on a little red carpet fashion show for you!!

 
Vivian flaunts her Angie-esque digits in a vintage 80's inspired glamour flourish.

Perpetually a rover, Portia is biker-chic in leather.

 Never one to shy from posh attire, Bianca struts her stuff in fur.

Zoey shows off her flirty side in lace.

 Devin embraces anything androgynous, and rocks these chains like a pro.


Combining the judges' and social media's scores, which one got photo of the week? Which one is going home?

ANTM 2.0!