Adventures in Stamping: Inspired by Something You Love = Owls and Mustachios!

Well, hello there Adventures in Stamping! It's been a month and a bit since I participated! Whoops! But I could not pass up this theme: Inspired by something you love! And, um, hello, what do I love? Owls and mustachios! Grr with the crooked mustachios.......I mean I meant that and he is doing the little mustache twitching! ;) It's so hard to line it up just right. I need a see-through stamper! :)

Now, this mani is all full of stuff I love. My base color is Orly Nite Owl. This is my favorite polish! (hence it being in the middle in my header photo!) Love love love it! Applies wonderfully! Then I stamped the owls using Barry M Silver Foil and Bundle Monster BM 309. This is the best silver ever to stamp with! Love it too! And then I stamped the mustachios using Konad Black and QA28. And this black is ah-mazing! Love it!

That's a whole lotta love going on huh! Yep it is! I hope you don't mind the mustachios and that you aren't sick of seeing them.......tomorrow is one more chance to see them! Shhh! ;)

Here is Orly Nite Owl is all it's splendor! This is two thin coats! Lurve it! A nude with a silvery shimmer, um yes please! :)

Adventures in Stamping: The Sky's the Limit

This week the challenges was the sky is the limit, which meant anything you would find in the sky. I immediately thought of my Konad plate Q1. And so that is what I used. All of these images are from the Q1 plate. My base is Essence You Belong to Me. The polishes I used to stamp with are: Konad Special White, Konad Special Black, KleanColor Metallic Yellow, Metallic Fuschia, and Metallic Green.

Here is Essence You Belong to Me on it's own. Isn't it the perfect sky blue!? This is two coats with one coat of Seche Vite.

Adventures in Stamping: Plate Ending in a 5

So this week for our stamping challenge we needed to use a plate ending in a 5. Well this my dear readers is a plate ending in a 5. It is Chez-Delaney D25. And yes, this is a repeat picture (shhh! don't tell!) But it is such an awesome plate of geekery goodness! LOST, Thundercats, Ghostbusters, and Batman! Genius!!!!!!

On my pointer finger (top) is Essie Marshmallow (three coats and SV) with Konad Special Black.

My middle finger is Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Black Out (two coats ans SV) with Konad Special Red.

Ring finger is Essie Marshmallow (three coats and SV) with Konad Special Red.

And finally on my pinky is Sinful Colors Unicorn (two coats and SV) with Konad Special Black. (yes vintage Batman colors but newest Batman trailer!)

Here is a different angle and different lighting. Trying to get the red of the Thundercats to pop more.

Don't you just love geeky things!? I sure do!

Adventures in Stamping: Unnatural Animals

This week for our Sunday Stamping Challenge in Adventures in Stamping the theme of unnatural animals was chosen. And I promise that the image I chose is an animal print. It's a cheetah but an unnaturally! It just isn't as clear over my base polish. But I think it looks awesome! :)

Here is a little clearer image. The base polish is OPI Suzi Skis in the Pyrenees Suede. Love this polish! I then used Kleancolors Metallic Aqua and Metallic Fuschia to stamp with. I used Cheeky plates image CH2.

I love how subtle but then not that this mani turned out to be! So much fun!

Here is a picture of my base color on its own: OPI Suzi Skis in the Pyrenees Suede. Isn't she loverly!? :)

Adventures in Stamping - Inspired by Music

So this week's challenge in Adventures in Stamping is Inspired by Music. I knew right away what I was going to do. Now, some of it didn't stamp all the greatest but I think it still works. Do you know the song or the band? To me it's obvious! I'll let you wait a bit while I give you the technicals! :)

I used China Glaze Stone Cold, from the Hunger Games Collection as the base. It is a lovely matte that looks like a suede. So is it a suede then? It lovely whatever it is. The application was normal for a matte/suede. Make sure you get enough on the brush and apply quickly because they dry fast! I used Konad Special Red on three nails with the image from an Essence Plate (why you know number your plates Essence!). I then used BarryM Gold Foil for the girl, image plate B37 of one of my fakey fauxnad plates that I got at my beauty supply store (I have two of these plates, one I got in a giveaway and this one, but they aren't the exact same! yes!).

Have you guessed the song and title? How about a video to help you!

 

The Cranberries Zombie! My most favorite band ever! And notice how I made the little zombie girl in gold like Dolores O'Riordan like in the video! :) Yep! And those red images are suppose to be cranberries! Hahaha! Look more like olives but they work! I loved this challenge a lot! :)

  

 Here is one coat of Stone Cold before I stamped. See more suede-like appearance than a matte. But I like it what ever type a finish it is. :)

Adventures in Stamping: Using more than 1 stamp

Please excuse the cuticles and uneven polish line (had an angle brush in my cart at Target but the lady never rung it up! Grrr!)

This week for Adventures in Stamping was a tie for using more than 1 stamp and gradient. Since I stink and gradient and I voted for using more than 1 stamp this is what I chose to do! :) I love how it turned out (except the polish line...grrr Target cashier!).

The technicals: Base is OPI Skull & Glossbones with OPI Its Totally Fort Worth It with OPI Pirouette My Whistle. I stamped using KleanColors Metallic Black and Metallic Fuschia. Plates are QA12 (Hello Kitty, bought on ebay) and Cheeky CH24 (the bow). I also added a little hex glitter into her bow from Pirouette My Whistle. :)

I like how she turned out, all perched on the bow. My other hand? Not so perfect, thank goodness this hand worked!

This is the base with OPI Skull & Glossbones and OPI Its Totally Fort Worth It. Tried to capture the pink shimmer/flash of Fort Worth, but failed. Looks more like a pearl in this picture. But the shimmer/flash is there and wanted it to match Hello Kitty!

Ugh, I dislike my thumbs, they are always way more dried, hence why they are never shown. But I thought I would show you what I did. Her bow tie is a bit off center :( but you still get the picture. Both images are from the ebay QA12 plate. Again used a little hex glitter on her bow. Also used Pirouette on the tip of this nail and my ring finger.

Pirouette My Whistle by OPI is a really awesome and easy to use glitter! I totally recommend getting it! :)

Adventures in Stamping: Easter Mani

So, I realized I only have one real-legitimate Easter themed stamp. Chez-Delaney plate H6. A teeny tiny chick popping out of an egg. Easter! Huh? It's the best I could do in the amount of time I didn't have. But I think it still turned out cute, not the best I've ever done, but we are all allowed these types of days (some more than others).

So I started with Models Own Lemon Meringue. And can I tell you what calming peaceful beautiful creamy yellow this is? I love it! I used two coats because the first coat didn't not go on very smooth and had some rough patches, but the second coat filled them in with no problems!

I added a coat of Seche Vite before topping it off with Essence Nail Art Twin Edward (yep he sparkles!). This is a lovely easy to use teal glitter with clear base. The glitter is green/teal squares with small teal glitter and micro holo glitter. Love!

I used Konad Special White for the eggshell of the stamp and Kleancolors Metallic Yellow for the chick! This is a slightly different look than I'm used to but I like it nonetheless! :)

Here is a shot of the Lemon Meringue, two coats and a coat of Seche Vite. Isn't it purdy! This is one of three Models Own polishes that I own and the first that I have used. This one wasn't the best polish I had ever used but not the worst either, just always a two coat to make it even. No big deal at all! At with that color as a result, I'm smitten! :)

So, I've had this Etsy shop for awhile now but I have revamped it and renamed it to Geeky Owl (coincidence? I think not!) Right now it just carries the bookmarks that I make but I hope to add different items to it eventually, hopefully when school is over I can get back to it all! :)

http://www.etsy.com/shop/geekyowl

Hope you all have a safe weekend full of fun manis and exciting new polishes! :)

Adventures in Stamping: April Fool's Day Mani

Today's challenge was for anything BUT stamping. No stamping allowed for the Adventures in Stamping April Fool's Day mani! So I decided to try something a bit different! :)

Flocking! Can I just say it's flocking fantastic! ;) We were talking about this in PAA and I've seen other blogs do it and I thought to myself, self, you have a lot of flocking for scrapbooking why don't you finally use it. And I agreed with myself, because I'm usually right. :)

My base coat is Finger Paints Pretty as a Portrait, but you really can't see it except for a few edges on my ring finger and pinkie (which I tried to edit out but cropping the photo). But the polish went on nicely with a great formula like the rest of the Finger Paints polishes. :)

I used Cupcake's Clothes Flocked Nails Tutorial as my guide. But I changed up how I applied the flocking because mine came in a tiny container that I got from Michaels a few years ago.

See! Tiny container. Didn't really want to be pouring this over my nail because there isn't a ton in it! But it was big enough for me to dip/pad my wet nail into the container making sure I covered the entire nail. And it worked without as much mess! :)

Ready for a full on flash close up!?

Look at that furry goodness! Kinda looks like velcro huh! And surprising enough, it isn't all that soft! But it was very interesting to have on! I really love this shot! :)

Oh and guess what. I tried getting it wet and it held up! Crazy huh! I though for sure it would melt off, nope. I didn't wash my hands like a crazy person though so who knows. Also taking it off was easier than glitter but more than just polish.

What do you think? A cool trend or just plain weird? :)

Adventures in Stamping: Black & White Mani

 

Some of you may have seen this one before. Shhh! Don't tell anyone!

This is Color Club French Tip (two coats) as a base with one coat of Essie Tennis Corset to add a bit of shimmer. And I used Konad m63 with Konad Special Black to stamp with. This is my favorite pattern. So this picture was actually used in my 31 Day challenge for Inspired by a Pattern. :)

I had big plans, really I did. This week's challenge being black and white mani. So many ideas! But I got sick. Some allergic reaction/virus. My arms and hands were swollen and aching and it was creeping up into my neck at times. I was exhausted and couldn't catch my breath. But I went to urgent care and was told it was an allergic reaction or virus but they couldn't tell which one. But I am doing somewhat better now. So with me being sick, I had to push back to school work. So this weekend I had to catch up on my school work and ran out of time to do a new mani. Sorry!

But I have some awesome ideas brewing in my head for some manis! I'm excited! And all the new polishes to choose from! I also have some haul pictures coming up too from my trip to Canada!

Adventures in Stamping Week 8: Stamp ending in a 4

Ok, so I didn't do a whole lot of stamping but this plate (QA4 from ebay) qualifies! :) Transformers! Woot! I chose to use the Decepticons image because it is generally shown purple which is my base color! :) This is China Glaze Magnetix Drawn to You! It is two coats (one normal and second used magnet) and a coat of Seche Vite. It is so pretty! It isn't a super flat polish either! It has shimmer! I stamped using Sally Hansen Silver Sweep. And both the Silver Sweep and the QA4 plate worked wonderfully! Halleluiah!

The Magnetix polish was a bit picky on when it wanted to work. My pointer finger (reason why the stamp is there and on my thumb) didn't want to work all that great. But I think that is because they are much more curved than my other nails! But it is still a fun polish and I am glad I got it! :)

Oh my gosh what is that!!! Oh wait, it's my thumb! See, I have one! ;) This is the Transformer wordage off the plate. It is cut off like that on the plate I promise, thought the "o" should be complete...oops!

Well, off to enjoy some festivities...it's my birthday! And it is the best birthday a marching band geek like me could have! March 4. Get it? :)

Adventures in Stamping Week 7: 3 Colors

This week for Adventure in Stamping we had to use no less than 3 colors and no more than 3 colors. And I LOVE how mine turned out! The base is OPI Dutch 'Ya Just Love OPI (one coat) and a coat of SV. I then used Chez-Delaney H6 plate using Kleancolor Metallic Green and Metallic Aqua. I can't stop staring at my nails! They are gorgeous, if I don't say so myself! ;)

First time my stamping has ever turned out as good or better than planned! Yippee!!! :)

Here is Dutch 'Ya Just Love OPI (from the Holland collection) by itself and one coat with Seche Vite. It has a red shimmer to it, but it is hard to capture! You can see if faintly on the nail and a bit on in the bottle. But it is gorgeous in the sun, but my camera couldn't capture it.

Adventures in Stamping Week 6 - Plate ending in a 3

So this week in Adventures in Stamping we are to use a plate ending in a 3. Now, this picture might look a little familiar because I have posted it before. It was actually my first post. This past week has been a crazy stressful one so I allowed myself to reuse a photo for this challenge. I think we are all allowed this option! ;)

So here is what I used:

Base Polish: Orly Nite Owl (2 coats)

Stamp Polish: Orly Rococo A-Go-Go

Konad Stamp M63

Seche Vite

Love this stamp, looks like water marbling! :)

Adventures in Stamping Week 5 - Valentines Day Mani

This week's challenge is Valentine's Day mani! Shocker! :) I wanted to do something simple and sweet. SO I decided to use to of my untrieds: OPI Sparrow Me the Drama is the base and OPI Steady as She Rose is the tips. I free-handed those tips and did a fantabulous job if I say so myself! ;)
I used Konad plate M59 and stamped using Konad Special White.

Adventures in Stamping Week 4 - Blue

Today's challenge is using blue and only blue! So I started out with Essie Borrowed & Blue. Went on fabulously! Wish I could say the same about my stamping! I really need to practice more with stamping, especially multiple stamps. But I don't really thing my nails are big enough for multiple stamps. Case in point check out the next picture.

I used Orly Stone Cold to stamp and Konad S9. It's a cute stamp though I am not sure that the weird animal creature is on my ring finger! :)

I don't really like it, but oh well. I always have great plans form my stamping challenges but they never turn out. I guess I just need to practice more?!

31 Day Challenge: Day 29, Inspired by the Supernatural/ Adventures in Stamping Week 3 - Plate ending in a 7

Don't you love it when you can combine two challenges with one mani!!! Love! So this is my inspired by the supernatural mani. It's a zombie girl with blood rain and skulls? Um, yep, this is called stamp sneezing! When you just randomly stamp a whole bunch! :) See, even the skulls have blood rain! BUT this plate also ends with a 7! Score! I bought this plate at my local beauty supply store and it is the only plate ending in a 7 I have, it is B37.

I used Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Grey Area with Konad White and Red for the stamping.

Don't forget to check out the other supernatural inspired manis with with Bec at Lacquer Dreams, Julia at Julia Loves Nails, Emma at Manicurity, Linda at Nail Polish Enthusiast, Alyssa at Fancy Phalanges, and Jenna at The Key to Jennasis and April at Munia's Nails

Adventures in Stamping Week 3 - Stars

So, this week's theme was stars. I didn't have that many choices. So I decided to use a Salon Express plate for the first time. This is SE22. It's actually a full design, but it looked to small so I attempted to use it as a tip design. FAIL. Many reasons behind this fail. My base is Essence Where is the Party? Layered with all 5 Finger Paints Special Effects (Twisted, Asylum, Flecked, Motley, and Flashy) and then topped with China Glaze Matte Magic. I then used Konad special black to stamp the stars. Well, I don't think those many, many layers were completely dry. Stamped my thumb and lost the whole thing! All my polish just slipped off. So I waited and waited, and waited and waited. Tried my other nails and they were all smooshy too! This one nail was the only survivor! I also used China Glaze Matte Magic over the stamp to make it match the base.

Adventures in Stamping Week 2 - Under the Sea

Why did I help choose this theme! This one was tough for me. I have a few plates with under the sea themed stamps, but nothing inspired me. So I decided to do a frolicking dolphin and a take on under the sea. I used Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Deep Blue Sea (seemed appropriate) and layered Sally Hansen HD Laser over it. I used Konad Black for the dolphin and Color Club French Tip and Pure Ice Strapless for the splash.

There is a visible nail line but oh well! It kind of makes it look like the surface of the ocean? I'm trying, I really am. I'm not totally in love with this one. I look at the other ladies in the Adventures in Stamping group and their stamping is awesome! Multi-colors, multi-stamps, awesome free handing, sponging effects. But it takes time and practice to get there. And you get to see it through with me the whole way! Muwahahahahaha! :)

edit: I never mentioned that I used the Born Pretty Hello Kitty plate M71 for the dolphins.

Adventures in Stamping - Week 1 - Green

So I belong to this Facebook group, Adventures in Stamping, we do stamping challenges and help/encourage each other with stamping! Well, today was the first challenge! We decided to stamp with green. So here is mine! I used Groovy Green by Finger Paints as the base. The stamp color is Date with the Night by Essence, and the stamp is Konad m51. I thought it needed more so I added the little flowers that I got from Sally's Beauty Supply.