The Digit-al Dozen Does Love and Heartbreak PLUS 31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 12: Recreate a Manicure

Wow! Today is the final day of the 31 Day Challenge 2013 (relaxed version). I cannot believe it's already over! I had so much fun (and stress!), saw many fabulous manis, and got to do a lot of nail art! One fabulous mani really stuck out to me and so I decided to recreate Emma, from Manicurity, Purple Rain. This is a dry brush purple loveliness that you all need to check out!

Just want to say thank you to Emma from Manicurity for putting the 31 Day Challenge together, creating the image, and breaking down the days to make it longer! Thanks! :)

As it is also The Digit-al Dozen Does Love and Heartbreak I decided to put a spin on it by adding some hearts! (in the colors of conversation heart candies!)

Here are my hearts all dry and waiting to be applied. I told you I abuse this technique of creating the extras on a sheet protector and then applying them to the nail. It's genius! The colors I used are: China Glaze Electric Beat, Color Club He Loves Me, Finger Paints Choco Mint, and Models Own Lemon Meringue. I also used HK Girl as a top coat to apply the hearts.

Here is my recreation of Emma's Purple Rain before I applied the hearts and love! :) I used OPI Funky Dunkey (dark) and OPI Planks A Lot. I alternated the colors for the base and then dry brushed the opposite color. I used China Glaze Material Girl as the glitter.

Don't forget to check out the others in The Digit-al Dozen and see what Love and Heartbreak has visited!

Also, don't forget to check out the other fabulous ladies doing their final day in the 31 Day Challenge 2013 (relaxed version)!

The Digit-al Dozen Does Love and Heartbreak PLUS 31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 11: Tutorial

Today is another multi challenge day! We have Day 11 of the 31 Day Challenge (relaxed version) (also the second to last day in this challenge) Inspired by a Tutorial. We also have The Digit-al Dozen Does Love and Heartbreak!

I decided to add a little love and heartbreak to Missy's Gnarly Gnails Split Splatter Tutorial. This is a fabulous, easy to follow tutorial that I recommend you doing! :) The black heart is my cynicism (no, not really) lost in a sea of romantic colors!

Here are my polish strips after they had dried and been removed from the page protector (it was the only plastic I had on hand!) She also gave a really useful tip (at least for me) for splatters. Did your straw into the bottle of polish! Duh! Why didn't I ever think of that!? I have been putting some on a plate, dipping my straw into that and trying to splatter! No wonder it never really worked! Really, sometimes I wonder about myself! >_<

I also made my hearts a head of time on the plastic page protector. You can see some splatter carnage on the plastic! This whole technique of created polish decals on plastic, having them dry then applying them is just utter genius (and one that I totally abused this week!). I also used HK Girl as a top coat to apply the heart.

Here is another shot of my Split Splatter mani. Ok, the mani was a bit hard to photograph. For some reason my camera refused to fully focus, it kept wiggin' out! Maybe because it was blown away by awesomeness? Hmmm......could be! :)

The polishes I used were: Milani White on the Spot, China Glaze Ruby Slippers, Sally Hansen Presto Pink, and Finger Paints Black Expressionism.

Don't forget to check out the rest of The Digit-al Dozen (with some new ladies! Hi!)!

 

And don't forget to check out the other tutorials being featured today!

TGIF: 31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 8: Supernatural

31 Day Challenge 2013 (relaxed version) Day 8: Inspired by the Supernatural. Ugh, this one is always hard for me for some reason. And to include and Indie because it is also Friday so it is TGIF: Thank Goodness, Indy Indie Friday! But I managed to do it!

I used two coats of Finger Paints Black Expressionism as my base. I then used Daring Digits Girls Night Out as my ominous figure in the dark. and look, he has a glowing sphere-thingy friend with him! Dun dun duuuuun!

I know, I tried! :) And I had fun too!

My previous review of Daring Digits' Girls Night Out can be found here. You can find out more about Daring Digits:
Store
Facebook Page

Don't forget to check out Emma's TGIF mani over at Manicurity!

Don't forget to check out the other ladies and their supernatural nails!

31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 7: Flag

Day 7 of the 31 Day Challenge (relaxed version) is Inspired by a Flag. I chose a racing flag as my inspiration! Simple and yet so graphically fun that I love it!

I used Milani White on the Spot as my base (two coats) and stamped using Konad Black and Cheeky CH3 plate.

Ok, so yesterday I should you how I had the idea to use masking tape when I stamp. Well, I did that mani after this one (shh! sometimes I don't do them in order!). And you can see where I got the black polish on my cuticles. I used acetone and a brush to try and clean it up but it is horrible to clean up! Lesson learned! Only took a year but whatever! :)

Don't forget to check out the other ladies and their flags!

31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 6: Artwork

31 Day Challenge 2013 (relaxed version) Day 6: Inspired by Artwork! Yes! Art! Love love love art! So many choices! But I decided to use a stamp, that to me reminded me of Mondrian's Composition with Yellow, Blue, and Red.

Though mine is buildings, to be it has the same style and therefore inspired by Mondrian! :)

So I had the idea. I hate stamping with black because it is a pain in the butt to clean up off your cuticles (see tomorrow's post!). Well, I tape my cuticles when I watermarble (correction attempt to watermarble) so why not with stamping? Here you see all my base colors (two coats each) l-r: Zoya Sooki, China Glaze First Mate, Milani White on the Spot, and Finger Paints Art Nouv-Yellow (appropriate!). I have used masking tape to surround my nail.

Here it is stamped. I purposely wanted this image to be off centered like this. Can you image the clean up if I hadn't taped off my cuticles! Nightmare! I'm sure I'm not the only one to do this, but it was sort of a duh! Why have I never thought of this before moment! :)

Remove the tape and voila! So purdy! This is no clean up for my stamped nail. The plate is A48. I got mine from Messy Mansions.

Decided to fill in a few rooftops to add more of the Mondrian vibe. Please excuse the bumpies on my pinkie. Oops!

Don't forget to check out the other ladies and see what art inspired them!

31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 5: Pattern

Day 5 of the 31 Day Challenge 2013 (relaxed version) is Inspired by a Pattern. I was inspired by this peacock pattern on Vivid Lacquer's VL006 plate.

I used OPI Dutch 'Ya Just Love OPI as my base (probably one of my favorite purples because of the shimmer!). I stamped using KleanColor Metallic Aqua and Metallic Green. I then used a dotting tool to fill in the peacock eyes using KleanColor Metallic Purple. I love how it turned out!

I thought I would show you how I stamp using more than one color. For the pattern I made random dots over the image and then used the scraper to push it and fully cover the image. For the single feather (not pictured with color) I put Metallic Blue over the eye of the feather and then surrounded it with the Metallic Green. I love using multiple colors when stamping!

Does this mani look some what familiar? This is my take on a mani I did last year in February. The peacock mani from last year is my most "pinned" mani ever! So I thought I would try doing one like it again, using the same colors but different stamp! And I love them both! :)

This is my older peacock mani. Original post can be found here.

New one! Love them! :)

Don't forget to check out the other ladies and their patterns!

31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 4: Fashion

Welcome to day 4 of the 31 Day Challenge 2013 (relaxed version). Now remember, this isn't actually day 4, more like day 25, but in our relaxed version we do no weekends and we have the dates starting over because it is now February. Alright, in hindsight I shouldn't have used the day number because it is all confusing and junk, but oh well! :)

Today is inspired by fashion. I decided to use glequins to resemble sequins that are all over clothing nowadays! What's a glequin? Check out The Nailasauraus: What's a Glequin? But pretty much it's a too big for glitter but too small to be a sequin! :)

I bought these because I thought I could use them in a polish. Hmm, maybe too big? But doesn't matter, they bled in polish base. But! They are perfect for nail art! :)  My base color is Catrice ACid/DC and lovely shimmery pea-green that I love! This is two coats, but it probably really only needed one!

Oh and check out my new lighting! Bah! I love it! So bright! I got me a new Ott Lite Lamp, from Walmart for $19. Thank you Missy from Gnarly Gnails for sharing!

Oh again! Did see what I've done with my watermark? A little owl! Isn't is cute! It's a dingbat from a font by Miss Tiina. You can find the font here or with the badge located on my sidebar.

Don't forget to check out the other fashionable ladies! See what I did there? ;)

TGIF: 31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 1: A Book

Day 1 of the 31 Day Challenge 2013(relaxed version). Now remember this is not starting over this is day 1 of February but not day one of the challenge. We are over half done! Today's challenge is inspired by a book. Oh this one was tough! What to do what to do! As I was looking over my plates I saw this one and new what book. Memories of a Geisha by Arthur Golden.

To be honest I have not finished this book yet. But I love the movie! :)

But I love how this turned out. My base is OPI Thanks a Windmillion (two coats). I used Konad s9 for all the images. I used Konad Black for her head. For her body I used Sally Hansen Speedy Sunburst. The flowers are different combos (light on inside or dark on inside) of Sally Hansen Speedy Sunburst (dark) and Sally Hansen Presto Pink (light). Presto Pink is the on it's own on my pinkie. I love how these Sally Hansen Insta-Dry's stamp!

And of course since this is also TGIF: Thank Goodness, Indy Indie Friday! I had to show it with an Indie polish. This is Different Dimension's Space Camp. This sparkly goodness is so much fun! (to see more of my review on it click here).

Don't forget to visit:

Different Dimension etsy shop
Different Dimension facebook page

Don't forget to check out Emma's TGIF post over at Manicurity!

And don't forget to check out the other ladies and their book manis!

31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 31: A Movie

Day 31 of the 31 Day Challenge 2013 (relaxed version). Remember that this is the relaxed version of the challenge and therefore today is not the last day and this challenge extends until February 12th! :) Today is inspired by a movie. My movie? Singing in the Rain! :) Oh this mani had great potential in my mind. I'm kind of new to layering stamps so I didn't really think this totally through I guess. But I still love it! :) I think it is fabulous!

For my base I used Essence Romeo (shocker, I know, a grey!) I stamped the rain and clouds using Kleancolor Metallic Aqua and Konad White. The stamp plate is Vivid Lacquer VL006. Next I used Konad Black for the music notes with plate A48 (I got it from Messy Mansions). I then followed it up using Konad Red and Konad Black for the the umbrella with Vivid Lacquer VL 003 plate.

And even though this isn't the song mani, I can't leave without playing you this one! :) During this musical number, Gene Kelly was very ill (some say with a fever up to 101 degrees). Most of this scene is made up on the spot! Ah, such great fabulous old Hollywood! :)

Don't forget to check out the other ladies and their movie manis!

31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 30: A Song

Day 30 of the 31 Day Challenge 2013 (relaxed version). And today is inspired by a song. Do you know what it is yet? Hint--big hit of the '90s.

Ah-yeah. Kiss From A Rose by Seal!

Get it now? :) Oh and in the lyrics it says "kiss from a rose on the gray". So uh, that is why I had to use Essence Romeo as my base! (win!) I then stamped using Konad red (which was a bit goopy for some reason and oozed a bit which made my stamping smear some) and plates Bundle Monster BM 303 (for the kisses) and BM 323 (roses).

Don't forget to check out the other ladies and see what songs get stuck in your head!

31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 29: A Color

Day 29 of the 31 Day Challenge 2013 (relaxed version). Today is inspired by a color. Guess what color I chose! Yep grey! Shocking isn't it. :) Hahaha! Oh and to be honest, there's a lot more grey going on this week as well! :)

I am super in love with this grey ombre mani! But my camera decided to revolt and the pictures aren't the best. But started on the left we have: China Glaze Pelican Gray, which is a dove grey with micro shimmer. Next we have...wait for it...Essence Romeo! My favorite grey creme! :) Third in line we have Catrice London's Weather Forecast, a medium to darker shade with micro shimmer. And finally we have China Glaze Concrete Catwalk, a dark grey creme.

All are two coats with a coat of HK Girl Top Coat. I was going to add more to this mani, but stopped as I love the simplicity of it.

Don't forget to check out the other ladies and see what colors inspired them!

31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 28: Watermarble

Welcome to day 28 in the 31 Day Challenge 2013 (relaxed version). Remember this is a longer version of the 31 Day Challenge and will not end until February 12th. Today's challenge (and it really is a HUGE challenge) is watermarble. This is such a cool concept and look.....if you can do it! It has it's tricks that you gotta know in order for it to work just right. And you know what? I forgot to look them up before attempting it today! >_< I tried to watermarble from what I remember doing a year ago with my last watermarble! Yikes! But I don't think I did too bad. But there's a good story here, I promise! :)

Granted, this time I used only one color and a top coat. Well, at least it was suppose to only be one color. Let me explain.

For my base I used Orly Buried Alive. I love the depth of this polish. For my watermarble accent nail (because honestly, I wasn't going to do a full set again. Too much work!) I used Milani White on the Spot with a cleat top coat. But wait a minute..........

In none of these pictures is that a white polish (hear it is with extra sparkles caused by a coat of Orly Shining Star). Look how yellow/green the white looks here. This is not because of Shining Star, it is because of my first attempts of watermarbling that day.

I had this gorgeous watermarble all planned out in my head. The base would be Orly Buried Alive (check) with a watermarble of China Glaze Trendsetter, OPI Don't Talk Back to Me, and China Glaze Kalahari Kiss. Well this was a massive FAIL! They did not work. I'm not sure if shimmers work well in watermarbling. But it was horrendous. So I scraped up all the polish and try it again but this time not Trendsetter. Another FAIL! Fine. I give up. White it is! I empty my cup completely and put in new water. I created the bullseye and dip my finger and pull it out......what the crap? It's not white! Hahahaha! I believe there was still residue in the cup.

So, I cannot truthfully tell you what the color is on my accent nail. But I still love it, it's not a full on watermarble but that's alright! And I love it even more with Orly Shining Star layered over it!

 

Don't forget to check out the other ladies and their watermarbles!

31 Day Challenge 2013 Day 24: Half Moons

31 Day Challenge 2013! (relaxed version) Day 24: Half Moons. Another ugh nail for me. I really don't like this style either. Not going to lie, but I really only put in half the effort for these because I was on my death bed doing them. This is when I had the really bad cold/flu that is going around. I blame Mucinex for my lack of centering and getting the angles right! :)

What I do love though are the polishes I chose to use. Here is two coats of Catrice San Francisco (from the Big City Life collection), a gorgeous green/teal shimmer! And Catrice Dirty Berry, a gorgeous purple holo!

Don't forget to check out the other ladies and their half moons!