NEW DC: Inspired by Fabric

Hello, dears! I certainly hope that you're warmer than I am today- our high here in Wisconsin was all of 2 degrees! (Fahrenheit)

Our prompt for the day was nail inspired by fabric. The above picture is a scarf that I absolutely fell in love with this winter- a mixed Nordic print, knit scarf in grey and berry tones- gorgeous!

Here we have my attempt to recreate said scarf. I had this mani planned out from the beginning. There are so many stamping plates out there with amazing "ugly Christmas sweater" images on them, and I love them so much, that it didn't even dawn on me that I didn't own any of them! I had to improvise :) My bases are Sinful Colors Cool Grey (index), Sinful Colors Cool Grey topped with a few coats of Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Polar Bare (middle, ring) and Wet N Wild Wild Shine Tickled Pink. I then drew the designs on with Sharpie. That's right: I own a HUGE pack of Sharpies in every color imaginable, and while the colors aren't as vibrant as polish or acrylic paint would be, they give me much more control over the image I'm creating. 

What fabric designs are you constantly drawn to? Nordic knits and paisleys are definitely eye catchers for me! Be sure to check out the rest of the fabric-inspired nails in the links below!

NEW 31 Day Challenge: New Technique

Late post, sorry dears! Today's challenge was to use a technique that is new to you. I've done so many new techniques throughout this challenge (Saran Wrap, The Crumpet's Splodgerama, Watercolor . . .) that I thought I would have a difficult time coming up with a technique that I've never used. Pinterest to the recue! (Hey- follow me- I Pin tons of nail stuff :) I finally settled on drymarbling.

I started with a base of Sally Hansen Insta Dri Mint Sprint (bad move- don't use fast dry polish!), then randomly added some drops of Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Limestone and Nina Ultra Pro Blue Blaze. Then I used a toothpick to create swirly patterns in the wet polish. 

I'm undecided on this mani. I'm not a huge fan of blue polish, but I do have some, and in the interest of color variety, I decided to go outside my comfort zone for today. My only two attempts at watermarbling have been moderately successful, and I prefer the look of a watermarble to that of the dry marbling. I don't hate this mani, but it is kind of . . . meh.

Be sure to check out all the links below- I'm excited to see what "new" things some of these mavens have come up with!

NEW 31DC: Stamping

If you're at all familiar with this blog, then by now you're quite aware that I am a HUGE fan of stamping! Even for those with questionable nail art skills (such as myself!), stamping can be a huge success! There are, of course, a few tricks that make things easier, but for the most part, there aren't any secrets. Drop your polish on the plate, pick it up with the stamper, plop it on your nail and you're good to go! I splurged for Christmas and bought myself some new stamping plates. I've already shown a few of the Red Angel plates in this challenge, but the other one I've been saving for today!

I started off by following the Splodgerama Tutorial by our lovely host, the Crumpet :) I wanted something rather more muted than the colors that she showed off, so that the stamping popped. I began with a base of Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Golden-I, then used a cut up cosmetic sponge to randomly splodge on patches of Essie Penny Talk and Pure Ice Iced Copper. I LOVE the look of just the base, and wish I could have gotten some wear out of it! I see a repeat in the future.

I was soo excited to use my brand new, first ever Cheeky plate! I got the jumbo C plate, which is chock full of gorgeous, amazingly intricate paisley patterns! I stamped using two different sets of mirror images using Sinful Colors Inkwell. I had to repaint my index, and apparently it wasn't quite dry when I stamped. I didn't notice until I was editing photos :( Still- I am AMAZED at how well this plate stamped! I tend to have some transfer issues, especially with very detailed designs, but each of these nails was one attempt at picking up the image!

How do you feel about stamping? Are you a die hard, or would you rather do it freehand (in which case I'm so jealous of you!)?

Check out the rest of the gorgeous stamping in the links below!

NEW 31DC: Pink

Hello, dearies! I was super excited about today, as I LOVE pink! As if you couldn't tell, with it being the only real color in my blog design :) I also got to try out a brand new technique, and I'm quite proud of it.

My very first fishtail braid! I did this all freehand, as I couldn't be bothered with the amount of time it would take to tape it! It's a bit wonky, but with some practice, I think I can nail this one! I started with a base of Wet N Wild Wild Shine Tickled Pink, then did my braid in Tickled Pink, Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure I Pink I Can and Sally Hansen Insta Dri Presto Pink. 

Check out the rest of the pink-ness in the links below!

12 Days of Christmas: Tinsel

Merry Christmas Eve, ladies (and gentleman!)- I hope it's lovely, and that you get to spend time with your loved ones, and that you get some great polish-y gifts from someone out there who understands your obsession :)

I almost wanted to skip out of this prompt, as the post I have is a fail on so many levels. But in the spirit of completeness, here is what I have for you.

I could not come up with a Single. Idea. that was actual nail art, and related to tinsel. So I resorted to polish. I used a base of Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Golden-I, then topped it with Paparazzi by Custom Nail Art (an amazing gold holo bar glitter dotted with pinky-lilac hexes). My accent nail is topped with Sally Hansen Gem Crush Big Money. I loved the mani itself, and it was blingy to the point of distraction! But, alas, my camera batteries gave out on my after two photos, and it slipped my mind to take any more before switching my polish :(

Closeup to show the amazing bling of Paparazzi.

Be sure to check out the other tinsel manis in the links below- and have a very Merry Christmas!

12 Days of Christmas: Elves!

So today's prompt is Elves, and I wasn't too excited about this one. I knew I couldn't pull off little elf faces, so I was at a loss. Then inspiration struck, and I decided to go abstract again!

I started with a base of Sinful Colors Last Chance with an accent nail in Sinful Colors Ruby Ruby. I taped off my middle finger to do the "elf tights" in Ruby Ruby, then added the dots in Sally Hansen Extreme Wear Golden-I. The dots on my index are Ruby Ruby, pinkie are Golden-I, both done with dotting tools.

There is a much better view of my accent nail here, and I kind of love it! I used French tip guides at a cockeyed angle to create my elf shoe in Last Chance, then dotted on the jingle bell tip in Golden-I. I was worried about how this would turn out, but I wish I had done the shoes on all my fingers! 

To fulfill my indie requirement, I used Slippery When Wet (unscented) top coat by Wonder Beauty Products.

Be sure to check out the other elves below, and come back tomorrow for tinsel!

12 Days of Christmas: Ornaments

Hello, dah-lings! Time for a Christmas nail art post again! Only 4 left, after today? And how am I going to put elves on my nails!?

Today's prompt, ornaments, is inspired by my favorite tree at my mother's house (she literally has one in every downstairs room in her home, including the bathroom!)

This is the tree in the parlor/computer/sitting room. The whole thing is decorated in gold and bronze with white lights, and I love the cohesive feel to it. It's so beautiful, and while it's not the tree that we put gifts under, it is my favorite tree in the house! This photo is taken with flash, to get the best idea of the colors . . .

 . . . while THIS photo was taken without flash, to give you the feel of sitting in a dark room, lit only by the Christmas tree lights, and just looking at the beauty of the tree, feeling the holiday spirit.

And here it is on my nails. I used a base of Sinful Colors Exotic Green topped with 365 Days of Color's Trimming the Tree, which even SMELLS like a Christmas tree! (But not mine, as mine is artificial.) The ornaments were stamped on with Sally Hansen Insta Dri Lightening, then gone over with Sinful Colors This Is It and a liner brush to give it some twinkle. The stamps are all from the Salon Express stamping kit. 

And here's a blurry, flash photo to show the glitz on the ornaments.

How is your tree decorated? Do you prefer a monochromatic, elegant look or a hodge-podge mess of heirloom ornaments? 

Be sure to check out the other challengers below!