Challenge Your Nail Art: Snowmen

Alright...as soon as I saw this challenge theme, I knew exactly what I wanted to do - and it was going to be unconventional, and probably only familiar to a certain "crowd."

How many of you are familiar with the old comics of Calvin and Hobbes?  Well I am, and my hubby absolutely adores them!  My favorite of the cartoon is alllllll the awesome snow man ones, and I have made it my goal to re-create a few of them in real life, the next time I visit or live somewhere with snow ^_^

So, I decided to take one of my favorite snowman Calvin and Hobbes, and put it on my nails for this mani!!  Here is the inspiration comic:

And here is my design:

I had to cut the little dialogue lines because, to be perfectly frank, there just wasn't enough room on my nails for it :-/  But, I wanted the picture there, because it is still comical :D  I am very happy with it, and I hope for those of you that remember these, it's a little wave of pleasant nostalgia ^_^

I'll be back tomorrow with another polish post for you!  See you soon <3

An InLinkz Link-up

Challenge Your Nail Art: Christmas Trees

Today is the 2nd design for Challenge Your Nail Art and the theme is Christmas Trees!!

Remember the Octopus Party Nail Lacquer/Gothic Gala Lacquers Duo I showed you yesterday?  Well I had come up with a design incorporating the polishes together, and that design was Christmas Trees!!  ^_^  Here it is:

I used "Oh Tannenbaum" for the base and "The Royal Tannenbaums" for the trees.  The stars are tiny loose glitters I received as a freebie from a Sincerely Polish order I placed a few weeks ago :D  These turned out so well, and they sparkle like nobody's business!!  Love it!

Hope you love it, too!  Check out the other beautiful Christmas Tree designs at the inlinkz below :)  See you soon <3

An InLinkz Link-up

Challenge Your Nail Art: Snowflakes

Hello Monday!  I feel like that holiday weekend went by too quickly, don't you?

Today is the first day of the 12 days of nail challenges ahead of me in the group Challenge Your Nail Art on Facebook.  Here's my schedule for the month:

It looks pretty fun, and I'm very excited to challenge myself to do each and every one of these!!  So, for today's snowflake theme, here is my design:

One of the features I love most about snowflakes is the intricate geometric detailing in them, and I just love the fact that they are all unique - every single snowflake is one of a kind.  That's incredible!!  I wanted to capture a bit of that with this nail design.  I looked up macro images of snowflakes and painted my favorite sections from four different snowflakes.  It's amazing to think that that little tiny floating speck of snow is so detailed and intricate - and gone in a flash.  Like I said - incredible!!!

I plan to try to post regular polish swatches and reviews in between these art posts, though it will depend on how much time I have.  I do have quite a lot of awesome Christmas polishes from some fantastic polish companies, though, that you really need to see.  I'll do my best!!

See you soon <3

An InLinkz Link-up

Challenge Your Nail Art: Fall Food

I am very, very late to post today - I apologize.  I've been feeling quite under the weather and very slow-going today.  I'll be keeping this one short and sweet :)

As you can see, today's theme for Challenge Your Nail Art is Fall Food.  I decided to go with a lattice and traditional pie look - check it out:

I found a great tutorial on how to do this here.  I used acrylic paints, though, instead of nail polish (as she did in the instructable).  I'm pretty pleased :)

Be sure to check out the other amazing designs by fellow members of this Challenge Your Nail Art group!  See you tomorrow with the next design <3

An InLinkz Link-up

Challenge Your Nail Art: "Fall Leaves and/or Trees

I hope you all had a fabulous weekend!  Mine was a bit busy, full of errands and chores.  I had an archery tournament last night and placed 2nd!  That was pretty exciting for me - I wasn't expecting to place at all!  :D

You may remember all the Halloween nail art I did in October as part of a challenge for a nail art group on Facebook.  Well that group has a new set of challenges for this month, all themed around Fall/Thanksgiving!

Here is the design I came up with for today's challenge:

I wanted to create something was was a little more unconventional for a fall leaf design.  I wanted to do something reminiscent of my childhood, because Fall has always been my favorite season.  One of the reasons why it is my favorite is because, growing up, my family and I would go to the park in our neighborhood and rake all the leaves into a giant pile we would then jump and/or fall into.  It was so much fun every time - even though it totally did NOT feel like landing on a bed of pillows :P  I tried to convey that memory through this nail design :)  I hope you like it ^_^

Tomorrow I will have a new design for you for the next challenge!  Until then, take a look at all the other beautiful designs of the other ladies participating in this challenge!

See you soon <3

An InLinkz Link-up

This Is Halloween - Movie Inspired

Happy Halloween!!!  I hope you all have some fun plans tonight, whether that be trick or treating, passing out candy, going to a party, or just chillin' at home :D  I will be taking my boys trick or treating, and this is the first time for my youngest!!

The theme for the final day of this awesome nail art challenge is Movie Inspired.  I went with Corpse Bride, because while it is not technically about Halloween or centered around it, it is a spooky film that is super fitting for Halloween.  C'mon, it's Tim Burton!!  Most of his stuff is definitely Halloween worthy.  Here is the design I came up with:

I wanted to see the difference in it if I did a matte topcoat, and I gotta say, I actually like it a lot better.  Here's what it looks like:

What do you think?

I'm pretty pleased with it.  She had a LOT of detail to put in her face and hair, it took me a little longer to complete her.  But in the end, I'm happy :)  This whole challenge was a LOT of fun!!  I hope you've enjoyed all the fantastic nail art, too ^_^  Below is are more blog posts on today's theme by the other lovely talented ladies in this group.  Check them out!

Have a wonderful (and safe!) evening!!  See you soon <3

An InLinkz Link-up

This Is Halloween - Villains

Today's Challenge Your Nail Art theme is Halloween villains.  I had completed a design earlier this week with the intention of posting it tomorrow - however, I really wanted to post this one today because it fits the theme so well!  Here is my submission - The Headless Horseman!

I used one of the movie posters from Sleepy Hollow as a reference for this image.  The background color is "Earth Day 2.0" by Above the Curve, I painted the moon using acrylic paints, painted two coats of Blue Glow by Indigo Bananas, then finished out more detailing on the moon and added the Horseman on his horse and the creepy tree.  All in all, I think it turned out pretty awesome!  Just wish I could have gotten a clearer picture of it glowing >.<

Here are the rest of the entries by the lovely ladies in this challenge - seriously, amazing stuff here!! :D  See you all tomorrow <3

An InLinkz Link-up

This Is Halloween - Pumpkin Faces

In my house, every Halloween, rather than carving our pumpkins, we paint them!  I've done everything from the usual witches and mummies to comic book characters - it's a lot of fun, and our pumpkins last a lot longer!  We used to live in Washington where a carved pumpkin would start to mold within a few days, so we always painted them.  Now that we live in Arizona, while it is a much drier climate, we still prefer painting out pumpkins :)

When the challenge for today's nail design was "pumpkin faces" I immediately knew I wanted to do painted faces :D  Check it out!

Yeah, I had to cut my nails down to the same size yesterday after one broke while I was closing a window :(  At least they grow fast!!  Just means no long pretty nail designs for a few weeks.  Bummer :(

Anywho, hope you enjoy this design!!  Check out below all the other amazing, adorable, and creative pumpkin face themed designs by the other fabulous ladies in this challenge group!!  So awesome to be among these super talented chicas ^_^

An InLinkz Link-up

This Is Halloween - You Pick My Art Mummy

I know a lot of people who are super excited that Halloween is this Friday - I'm one of them ^_^  To celebrate, I have decided to upload one (or more!) Halloween-themed designs every day through Friday! :D  Let's start with last Friday's You-Pick-My-Art winner - the mummy!

I used Zoya's "Evvie" for the background color and the rest us freehand painted using acrylic paints.  I wanted to do a mummy that is not your traditional mummy wrapped in bandages and such.  Most mummies actually aren't found wrapped in bandages like that - only Egyptian royalty was really done that way.  I'm pleased with how it turned out!  I wanted it to look like it was crawling out of its coffin/grave, perhaps one that is on display in a museum!  I added a red eye to give it a real creep factor, since every time I tried just black/gray, it looked a little off.  Like I said, I'm pretty happy with it!

Here's a more creative photo, cuz I'm artsy-fartsy like that :P

Have a wonderful Monday, and keep an eye out for another Halloween-themed design tomorrow!  See you soon <3

Princesses and Villains: Cinderella & Evil Stepmother

Oh man, I am so happy it is Friday!!  I've got some Halloween costumes to finish this weekend, as well as lots of nail art :D  Good stuff!

So this is a very awesome post for me in more ways than just nail art - let me tell you why :)  Ice Polish is the very first company to ever send me pre-release polishes to swatch and review.  I was (and still am) a baby blog, and at that time was still trying to paint my nails without making a huge mess - and I was still working on my photo skillz.  For her to have sent me polish meant a lot to me, because it was giving me an opportunity, and I will always be very grateful for her taking a chance on me :)

Mushy stuff aside, let me show you the last Princess/Villain set, which happens to also be the set Ice Polish sent to me to review :)  Coming full circle!  Here is Cinderella and Stepmother:

Cinderella is a beautiful powder blue with a subtle holographic effect in the sunlight.  It is a thin formula, and took 3 coats to make it opaque for me.  Dried in under five minutes to a shiny finish.  Stepmother is a gunmetal grey with a more powerful holographic effect in the sunlight.  It took about 3 coats to make it opaque, as well, and also dried in under 5 minutes to a shiny finish.  Again, another perfect set!

Cinderella and Mulan have been the only two princesses I feel I was able to capture pretty well.  Though, I had to re-paint the skintone on this Cinderella, because what I had done before made her look like a Warhol painting O_o  Lesson learned about using low artificial lightning when painting.  But my Stepmother looks awesome! :D

I'm bummed this is the last set, but had a lot of fun doing these!!  I hope you enjoyed them, too ^_^  Today is Friday, which means another round of You-Pick-My-Art!  We're sticking with a Halloween theme since it is only a week away!  So make sure you check my Facebook Page for this week's options!  See you soon <3

*Note: Cinderella and Stepmother were sent to me as a press sample months ago, NOT for this art.  Links I provide are NOT affiliate (i.e. I do not get a kick back when you click on the through my bog).  I simply provide them for your convenience :)  

Princesses and Villains: Mulan & Shan Yu

Sorry for the delayed post today - I slept in later than I anticipated.  Clearly I needed the sleep :P

I gotta say, this is my favorite set so far with regards to accuracy.  This is the first princess I'm not embarrassed to show!  Hooray!!  Here is Mulan & Shan Yu over Mulan and Shan Yu by Ice Polish.

Mulan and Shan Yu (the polishes) are my favorite of the Princess/Villain polishes in the Dreams Come True...Not If I Can Help It! collection, not just because they look fantastic together, but because they have the loveliest colors to me.  The application was really smooth, and even though Shan Yu's formula was a bit thicker than the others, it still applied evenly without gooping or pulling.  It was practically opaque after one coat, but I added one more to make sure it was nice and even.  Another great set of polishes by an awesome indie brand :)

And like I said, I'm darn proud of this art!!  I feel like I finally captured the Princess well instead of making her look like the oddball cousin :P  I hope you all enjoy this art, too!

Next Thursday is the last Princess/Villain set, so keep an eye out for it.  Tomorrow is the next round of You-Pick-My-Art on my Facebook Page - we're going to go old-school horror for that one ;)

See you soon! <3

*NOTE: Links in my blog are NOT affiliate (i.e. I get no kickback when you click on them).  I simply provide them for your convenience :)

Go Ahead, Make My Millennium!

Last Friday was another round of You-Pick-My-Art on my Facebook Page, and the winning theme was Beetlejuice!  Now I will admit - I have only ever seen Beetlejuice once, and it was a looooooong time ago.  I remember enjoying it, and have actually added it to my Netflix queue to watch again ;)

It was tough to come up with a unique design that hasn't been overdone before.  The two most popular posters/pictures out there have already been done (by much better artists than me, too).  So, I decided to come up with one based on my favorite scene from the movie, which happens to be at the end :P

I remember laughing quite a bit when I was kid because of the sound of his voice, and the silly look of the dude with the shrunken head :D  Here is the design I came up with based on this scene - and forgive the amateur art, I'm still trying to get down painting people :P

I could have done the witch doctor on the middle finger and Beetlejuice on the ring, but it would have been practically impossible for me to fit that uber long number on my pinky :P  Plus, the shrinky-head guy is the one that made me laugh as a kid ^_^  The two polish colors I used for the background are "Queen of the Night" on the middle and ring finger, and "Flor de Muerta" by Black Dahlia Lacquer - their Halloween Duo :)

I hope you all enjoyed this art!  What would you like to see for this Friday's theme?

Princesses and Villains: Aurora & Maleficent

I've come to the conclusion that my Princesses are always gonna look like poop.  For some reason, I just can't seem to paint them well.  Oh well - you win some, you lose some!

This week's Princess/Villain set is Aurora and Maleficent from Ice Polish :)  Here you go!

Aurora is a gorgeous baby pink with a light scattered holographic effect, and Maleficent is a beautiful duochrome with a nice sparkle in the sunlight.  Maleficent was a limited edition polish and is no longer available, but Aurora is still up for grabs in the Etsy shop!

Tomorrow is the next round of You-Pick-My-Art!!  Be sure to check my Facebook Page and vote for your favorite!  See you soon <3

*NOTE:  One of these two polishes was a prize for winning a giveaway.  While it was not purchased, it was NOT supplied for the purposes of a review.  Links are NOT affiliate (i.e. I do not get any sort of kickback when you click on them through my blog),  I simply provide them for your convenience :)

Princesses and Villains: Belle and Gaston

Alright, I'm gonna cut right to the chase, here - I hate these nails.  I painted over them multiple times, I tried Belle 3 different ways, and Gaston twice before I threw in the towel and accepted that the Nail Art gods are trying to tell me that's the best I'm gonna do for now :P  So, I left it alone, fixed it up, took some pics, and washed my hands of it.  Practice makes perfect, and I will most definitely be coming back to this design again in the near future :)

So, without putting it off any further (and I'm wincing as I upload these), here are Belle and Gaston over the beautiful "Belle" and "Gaston" polishes by Ice Polish.

For some reason this lighting made the polish look more butter yellow, when it's definitely more golden, like in the other pics.  At least you can see the pretty gold and light pink flecks of glitter in this macro ^_^ 

Like I said, lots of room for improvement in the art, but the polish is great!  I applied two coats of each polish to make it completely opaque, and they both dried very quickly, as every polish by this brand has thus far.  Belle dried to a semi flat finish, whereas Gaston dried to a shinier finish.

I love that Ice Polish managed to replicate the beautiful gold of Belle's dress for this polish, it's just lovely :)  And the deep maroon/red of Gaston is perfect for him, as it reminds me of his barely-fitting shirt.  She did a great job with this duo!

To keep up-to-date on Ice Polish, here are some social links for you.  I'll provide her shop link, too, though she is currently on vacation mode.

Facebook: Here

Etsy: Here

Instagram: Here

There will be no You-Pick-My-Art this week since I will be out of town, but I will still be posting for you :)  Hope you all have a wonderful Thursday!  See you soon <3

Polish Post: Colors by Llarowe "Black Gold, Texas Tea" Swatches, Review, and Nail Art

Good Monday Morning, lovely people!  I've got a polish post for you along with the design from last Friday's You-Pick-My-Art.  While I'm waiting for my caffeine to kick in, let's dive right into it :)

The polish I used for the base of my nail art is "Black Gold, Texas Tea" by the brand Colors by Llarowe.  Here are some pics:

Outdoors

Indoors

Black Gold, Texas Tea is a gorgeous ultra linear holographic black polish.  Opaque after two coats, it dried almost instantly and application was super smooth.  I added a topcoat to make it shine and bring out the holographic effect even more.  My nails are POPPING!  I just love this color!  Clean-up was pretty neat, too - no staining around the cuticles, though Llarowe recommends a good base coat to prevent the nails from being stained due to the  high pigmentation of the polish.

I chose this polish as the base because it made the perfect "space" backdrop for my Captain Amelia nails from Treasure Planet.  For those unfamiliar with the movie, Treasure Planet is a take on the classic Treasure Island, and takes place in the 17-1800's but with a steampunk twist.  Aliens everywhere, ships fly, it's just amazing.  Definitely one of my favorite Disney movies, and my son absolutely loves it too ^_^

In the movie, the captain of the ship taken to find Treasure Planet is Captain Amelia, the winning choice from the You-Pick-My-Art last Friday.  Here is the design I came up with for her:

Her ship is on my pointer finger, Treasure Planet is on the middle, Captain Amelia is on the ring, and Morph is on my thumb (he's just such an adorable character, I couldn't leave him out!).  I had a lot of fun with these, and am pretty happy with how they turned out :D  I hope you are, too!

Got some nice polish posts set up for this week I think you will all enjoy :)  I hope you survive your Monday!!  See you soon <3

*NOTE: Links I provide are NOT affiliate (i.e. I do not get any sort of kickback when you click on them through my post). I simply provide them for your convenience :)