10-day challenge Day 1: Rainbows

I am THRILLED to be participating in my first nail art challenge!  This is being sponsored by Erica's Nails and More (go follow her blog!), and should be a total blast for those of us participating.  Here's the challenge in total:

I was so excited for this first day...until my first attempt FAILED.  Miserably.  I was going for a Rainbow Brite inspired manicure, but the blue I chose was horrible.  It was all manky and globby and thick, so out it went, along with my idea.  Then I tried vertical stripes with a black and white glitter, but the enthusiasm for that lasted about two seconds.  Today I was about to go nuts, because I LOVE rainbows and wanted an awesome manicure.  I grabbed my polishes and three eyeshadow applicators, and wound up with a rainbow French manicure. I loved it, but it was missing something...so then I added black lines with a striper, and a pretty little holographic star.

Of COURSE I had to add my little Nyan Cat pin to the photo.  I think I almost drove my husband crazy watching the video over and over, ad nauseum, but it's so cute!

And one last one, sans Nyan Cat:

I am happy with these nails.  I usually like to do something more intricate, but if I added anything more to this it would have ruined it.  Because I was in a rush after I had done the colors only, I didn't have a chance to take a photo in natural light.  I have China Glaze Whitecap over the colors, because besides rainbows, I have a massive sparkle addiction.  The pink is CG Purple Panic, orange is Sally Hansen Sun Kissed, yellow is CG Celtic Sun (which I used the last of, boo!), green is a watermelon-scented polish from Claire's, blue is CG Frostbite, purple is CG Flying Dragon.   I used Stripe Rite It's So Easy! striper in black, and the holographic stars came from a package I got from Sally Beauty.

Go check out the designs from the other participants in the contest and have a terrific weekend!

Lord of the Rings manicure

So I'm really not that great at nail art, and when I found out that this AMAZING "One Ring" manicure I had seen wasn't freehanded, but was made into a decal...I was a bit disillusioned.  I love the idea of doing freehand work now, as opposed to being a 14-year-old water decal addict.  I couldn't freehand to save my butt back then, but decals gave me the opportunity to have some sweet nail art without the mess and frustration of freehand art.  I think I'm coming along well in my freehand work, and so I decided to challenge myself with a "One Ring" manicure, done completely by freehand.  I did...but I'm TERRIBLE with my left hand, so I did an Eye of Sauron mani on my right hand instead.  I was blown away...not trying to brag at all, but I really surprised myself with this.  I will shush now and show off my accomplishment.  I can truthfully say that yes, this was ALL done freehand.

I am SO excited about this!  I am going to be participating in an upcoming nail art challenge, so these will not be on for too long, next Saturday they will be replaced.  I think this is the first time I have wanted to wear a manicure for months, because this would be AWESOME to wear to The Hobbit!

Everyone have a wonderful night and, for my East Coast peeps, stay safe out there!

Phantom of the Opera

I finally did it.  Three hours and three attempts at the mask later, I have my long-awaited Phantom of the Opera manicure.  Now, I don't know about the rest of you, but I feel sorry for the Phantom.  He just wants to be loved, and instead is rejected.  The book had me in tears and yelling at Christine.  I love the musical and the book, so much so that I have a Phantom of the Opera tattoo.  The ring finger on my left hand represents Christine, it's patterned after the dress Emmy Rossum wore in the movie.  Of course there have to be music notes and a piano.  My left thumb represents the Phantom who, though living in a world shrouded in darkness, only wants love, hence the red glitter.  My right thumb is for the song Point of No Return, there is the mask the Phantom wore, the rose in Christine's hair, and the flames from the number.  My right middle finger represents the Music of the Night.  I miss my piano and the sheet music I had for Phantom; I spent many hours playing every song and singing along.  My dream is to one day see this fantastic production on Broadway!  Without further ado, here is the Phantom of the Manicure!  *Note:  The top photo was taken before I put top coat on the mask art*

Breast cancer awareness

This is dedicated to all the survivors of this terrible disease.

Pinkie Pie Mani

I really need to keep up with this blog.  I started it, then got into my nail tech classes very heavily, and forgot allll about sharing my fun via this blog.
I've been into nail art and makeup since 1994, when I was 14 (crap, I'm showing my age!).  Back then it was rhinestones, water decals, and anything else I could get my grabby hands on.  Last year I started to really get back into doing nail art and decided to do as much freehand work as I can.  Since then, I have gone gung-ho in doing my nail art.  As I upload photos from my phone and my camera, I will share what I started with and where I am now.

This manicure was done this past July.  I used Rainbow Honey Cosmetics' "Pinkie Promise", a polish with a sheer pink base, wonderful golden shimmer and is packed with gold, pink, and blue bar and hex glitters; Sally Hansen "Twisted Pink", a very pretty almost-hot-pink with a subtle gold-ish shimmer, and Lush Lacquers' "Birthday Cake", a milky-white polish jam-packed with medium holographic hex glitter, as well as purple, pink, orange, and blue small hex glitters and blue bar glitters.  The accent nail is a random nameless pink, and I used China Glaze "Celtic Sun" for the yellow, and a cotton-candy scented polish from Claire's for the blue.  Hope you enjoy this sweet-as-pie nail creation!

Mermaid Tale manicure

This manicure is currently residing on my nails, and I'm not sure that I want it to leave.  I saw a similar manicure last year and tried, unsuccessfully, to duplicate it.  As I browsed my folder of nail art ideas, I saw the manicure and decided to give it another go:

The black is Finger Paints "Black Expressionism", glitter tips courtesy of Orly "Mermaid Tale" from the Glam FX collection.  Orly Bond was used as base coat, with one coat of Out The Door top coat.  I think this turned out rather well, and it's sparkly, which is instant win in my eyes.

Have a good evening :-)

First manicure post - Rainbow Dash inspired nails

When I was growing up in the 80's, My Little Pony was exploding in popularity along with She-Ra and Jem and the Holograms (anyone remember them?).  I absolutely loved MLP and so, when the ponies started getting popular again, I was ecstatic.  Rainbow Dash was my favorite because I have always adored rainbows.  I decided to do a My Little Pony series of manicures, but only have done two so far.  I'm in classes training to become a nail tech, so the next MLP-themed manicures will be done in acrylic, with 3-D acrylic art.  I think that will be more fun to do, especially with their cutie marks.  Hope you like!