Nail Challenge Collaborative: September 2017 - Inspired by a Garment

 

Hey there!  Today I have my first post for September's Nail Challenge Collaborative Inspired by a Garment theme.  I don't love this prompt to be honest.  For some reason whenever I have this theme my mind draws a blank.  However I do love argyle anything - sweaters, socks, shirts, etc. so I decided to do argyle nails for my first look. 

 

 

I found an argyle sweater that I really love on amazon.com and used that as my inspiration.  You can see the sweater here.  I used Zoya August and Jordan as my main colors and did the lines with an L.A. Colors Art Deco white striper.  I thought this mani would like great with a matte topcoat.  I used Butter London Matte Finish as my topcoat and I love how it turned out.  I will show you what this looks like with a glossy topcoat below. 

 

Here you can see this look with a shiny topcoat.  I used Tonic Topper which is my favorite quick dry topcoat.  I rarely use matte topcoats, but do prefer this look matte compared to glossy.  What do you think?

 

This was my first time ever trying argyle nails which is odd because of how much I love argyle.  I was a big preppy in high school!  I think I will do argyle nails again in the future.  There are so many different color combos you can do!

 

Have your done any manis inspired by a garment?  What garments inspired your nail art? 

 

Please check out the other bloggers below.  Thanks for reading!

An InLinkz Link-up

The Nail Challenge Collaborative: July 2017 - Beach/Ocean

Hey there!  Today I have my third post for The Nail Challenge Collaborative July Beach/Ocean theme.  One of the scariest things about going to the ocean are the sharks so I had to shark nails for this one.  I started with a base of Zoya Cecilia.  Cecilia is a gorgeous teal crème and for this look I did two coats even though you can get away with one.  This color is very pigmented and did stain when I removed it even with basecoat. 

For the shark I found a tutorial on YouTube from Jenny Claire Fox or @missjenfabulous as most people in the nail community know her.  Her tutorial was easy to follow so I went with the simple accent nail for my shark design.  I do wish that I followed her idea of using a light blue for the nail with the shark so it stood out more because I feel it blends in too much with the teal base color.

 

I created the shark nail freehand and used Zoya Tao and Red Door Red, and Rica Whiteout and Blackout.  I used dotting tools for the eyes and a nail art brush for the teeth.  I know this look is not perfect, but it's still cute and you get the idea that it's supposed to be a shark I hope.  It worked out perfectly with this week being Shark Week on Discovery Channel as well! 

Do you watch Shark Week?  Have you done shark nail art?

Please check out the other bloggers below.  Thanks for reading!

An InLinkz Link-up

The Nail Challenge Collaborative - July 2016: 80's

*purchased by me*

Hey there!  Today I have my fourth post for July's 80's theme for The Nail Challenge Collaborative. Who doesn't think of big hair when they think of the 80's and what helped to keep our hair so big? Aqua Net hairspray of course! My final post for the 80's theme is based on the Aqua Net can. 

 

I started with a base of three coats of Picture Polish Salt Water.  Salt Water is an aqua jelly with scatter holo. It's such a gorgeous color and has quickly become one of my favorite polishes. 

I used a white Art Deco nail striper by L.A. Colors to create the lines on the can which are supposed to look like a hair net.  I thought I had a stamp that matched the design, but didn't so I ended up doing the lines freehand.  

Growing up in the 80's I had feathered hair and would at times tease it to make it bigger.  Aqua Net was always my go to hairspray to keep my hair big! Although it doesn't look exactly like an Aqua Bet bottle I am happy with how this look turned out. 

I had so much fun with the 80's theme.  August's theme is neons which will be fun too!  I'm looking forward to trying some new things in August! 

What was your favorite of my 80's looks?  What would you like to see me do for neon nail art? 

 

Please check out the other bloggers below.  Thanks for reading! 

An InLinkz Link-up

The Nail Challenge Collaborative - June 2016: Video Games

*purchased by me*

Hey there! Today I have my fourth post for The Nail Challenge Collaborative's Video Games theme.  For my final mani I decided to go with Toad from Super Mario Brothers!  I always thought Toad was super cute and decided it would be a fun mani idea! 

I started with a clear basecoat as I knew there would be negative space in this mani.  I used my go to base coat, Nailtiques Formula 2. 

Then I painted my tips white on three nails using Rica Whiteout.  On the fourth nail I painted a thicker tip with Zoya Avery.  

I used Zoya Red Door Red to paint the stripe on three nails and Toad's head on my ring finger.  I used a black Color Club Art Club striper for the eyes. Using a dotting tool I did Toad's dots on the mushroom cap and the whites of his eyes using Rica Whiteout. I finished it with KBShimmer Clearly On Top topcoat. 

You can see I had a little smearing on my middle and pinky fingers when I applied the topcoat, but besides that I love how this turned out.  Toad is super cute...see what I did there!  

What was your favorite of my four video game looks?  Have you tried any of the looks I did? 

 

Please check out the other bloggers below.  Thanks for reading! 

An InLinkz Link-up

The Nail Challenge Collaborative - June 2016: Video Games

*purchase by me*

 

Hey there! So as I mentioned June's The Nail Challenge Collaborative theme is Video Games.  I already mentioned I'm not a big gamer, but loved the possibilities with this theme.  Well, the only game system I owned, besides Commodore 64 & Atari which I owned as a child and shared with my sister, was a PlayStation. So this post is based on the controller. 

Who doesn't think of the shapes on the controller when they think of PlayStation! I thought this might be a fun idea so decided to try it! 

I started with a base of Rica Blackout which is my favorite black creme.  It's a one coater and just perfection! Rica made this polish for stamping, but I use it for everything! 

To paint the shapes I first used a white Color Club Art Club striper and then painted over the shapes with a striping bush.  I used KBShimmer Radiant Orchid for the square, Zoya Demetria for the circle, China Glaze Four Leaf Clover for the triangle, and Nails Inc Baker Street for the X.  

I can see my flaws, but I think I achieved what I set out to do.  It looks just like the controller so I'm happy with it.  I hope y'all like it!  I'm never perfect on freehand, but do try my best! 

What games do you think would make good nail art?  What games are fun that I'm missing out on? 

 

Please check out the other bloggers below! Thanks for reading! 

An InLinkz Link-up

The Nail Challenge Collaborative - June 2016: Video Games

*purchased by me*

Hey there!  So June's theme for The Nail Challenge Collaborative is Video Games. I'm not a gamer really at all, but voted for this theme cause my nephews love video games, and there are so many options.  I decided to go with a game I have bought not only many different versions of for them, but also many cards.  Pokemon is obviously the one I chose for my first! 

 

For this look I started with a base of Rica Whiteout.  This has become my go to white cause it's a lovely one coater. I honestly have three bottles in my stash right now!  

I then painted half my nail with Zoya Red Door Red which is my favorite one coater red polish. I lucked out finding this color on Amazon and immediately fell in love.  I painted a black line with my Color Club Art Club black striper.  I used Rica Blackout and my dotting tool for the black dot and Rica Whiteout for the white center dot. 

I think my Pokeball look turned out great! I couldn't be happier with this mani! I just hope my nephews love it as much as I do! 

What's your favorite video game?  Have you done video game inspired nail art! 

 

Please check out the other blogger below! Thank for reading! 

An InLinkz Link-up

The Nail Challenge Collaborative - October 2015: Funky French

*purchased by me*

Hey there! Today I have my second Funky French post for The Nail Challenge Collaborative.  I'm sticking with Halloween themed nail art for this one! 

I was inspired by Frankenstein for this look.  I started with a base of one coat of Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Fare The Wind. I love this purple holo.  If I was wearing it alone I would do two coats, but one worked for the look I wanted to achieve.  

I used Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Siren Channels the 80s for the tips.  Then I used a Color Club Art Club black striping polish to create Frankenstein's stitches.  

I think this is a fun and easy look for Halloween, and it's definitely a Funky French mani! 

What do you think of this look? Would you wear this for Halloween?  

 

Please check out the other bloggers below. Thanks for reading! 

An InLinkz Link-up

The Nail Challenge Collaborative - September 2015: Pets

*purchased by me*

Hey there! Today I have my third post for September's The Nail Challenge Collaborative Pets theme.  I do realize it's October, and I was totally on track, but work has been very hectic so this was my first chance to get caught up.  

One of the pets I had was a dog.  Growing up we had Misty who was a mix of Golden Retriever and white German Shepherd. She was beautiful!  This doesn't look like her, but I did want to do a dog mani in her honor. 

I used Zoya Pasha and Jacqueline as well as Rica Blackout to create this look.  For the most part I did the dog freehand, but I used dotting tools for the paw prints.  Overall I'm really happy with how this turned out!  

Did you have a dog growing up? What was his/her name?

 

Please check out the other bloggers below.  Thanks for reading!

An InLinkz Link-up

The Nail Challenge Collaborative- September 2015: Pets

*purchased by me*

Hey there!  Today I have for you my second post in The Nail Challenge Collaborative September Pets theme. One animal I always wanted for a pet was a turtle so I had to do them for one of my posts! 

I used all Zoya polishes to create this look.  For the shells I started with a base of Charli then I freehand painted on the shell spots with Tilda.  On my accent nail I started with a base of Blu and used the same colors as the shells to paint the turtle.  I used a dotting tool and Raven to paint his eyes.  

 

Turtles have always been one of my favorite animals. They're just so cute!, but they're a lot of work so that's why I never had one.  I would still love one as a pet, but I'll have to stick to my stuffed animal turtle! 

I'm so happy with how this turned out.  I'm not the best at freehand nail art so it's a great feeling when something turns out how you envisioned it.  I hope you like it as much as I do! 

What's one animal you always wanted as a pet? Do you think you'll ever own one? 

Please check out the other bloggers below.  Thanks for reading. 

An InLinkz Link-up

The Nail Challenge Collaborative- September 2015: Pets

*purchased by me*

Hey there! September's theme for The Nail Challenge Collaborative is Pets! I did polar bear and penguin nail art last winter and loved doing them so I figured I'd have a lot of fun with this theme.  I don't own any pets so my posts will be based on pets I've had in the past or animals that other people have as pets.
 

The first pet I decided is bunny rabbits.  I knew I wanted them to look like this, but did watch a YouTube tutorial from cutepolish.  I started with my basecoat, and used Rica Whiteout and Essie Raise Awareness and Mink Muffs to create my bunny nails then I finished them with topcoat.  Aren't they so cute! 

Here is a macro shot. You can see it's not perfect, but I'm still happy with how they turned out.   Cute little bunnies make me happy and there are a bunch that live around my apartment complex so they're like pets that I don't have to take care of! Lol! 

Overall I'm happy with how these turned out. I know they're not perfect, but they are cute!  This is also a great use of negative space in a mani.  

What do you think about my bunny nails? Did you or do you have any pets? What kinds? 

Please check out the other bloggers below.  Thanks for reading!  

An InLinkz Link-up

Halloween Manicures

*purchased by me*

Happy Halloween everyone! I hope you're all getting more treats than tricks! This year I did a bunch of Halloween manicures that I want to share with you. 

Vampire Nails

I got this idea from Zoya, and absolutely love it. I used a base of Zoya Sooki than did the gradient with Sooki, Claire, and Raven.  I finished it off with KBShimmer Clearly On Top.  I am so happy with how this turned out! It's the best gradient I've done, and it's my favorite of my Halloween manis!

Blood Splatter Nails

For this blood splatter mani I used a base of Rica Whiteout and then with a straw I blew the blood splatters onto my nails using Zoya Riley.  I had seen this technique used before and had always wanted to try it. It's messy, but I loved how they turned out. 

Ghost Nails

For my ghost nails I used Rica Whiteout, Essie Licorice, Sinful Colors Citrine, and Zoya Purity. The ghost was done freehand with nail art brushes, and the dots/eyes were done with dotting tools. 

Frankenstein Nails

I saw a manicure like this that @mybelovednails did on Instagram, and thought it was a great idea for Halloween nails. I loved the Frankenstein's monster nails with a bride of Frankenstein accent and wanted to recreate it. I used Zoya Mitzi, Dovima & Purity and finished with Butter London Matte Finish topcoat. 

Friday the 13th Nails

Friday the 13th was my favorite horror series growing up so I knew I wanted to do a manicure in its honor.  I decided to do blood drips with a Jason Vorhees accent nail. I know my blood drips need some practice, but I love how Jason tuned out. I used Rica Whiteout, Zoya Sooki, and Essie Licorice to achieve this look. 

Candy Corn Nails

I wanted to do something different for my candy corn nails so I decided to do a gradient using Rica Whiteout, Zoya Pippa and Sinful Colors Citrine. Obviously I had some issues cause the white tops of the candy corn didn't show up in the gradient. For my accent nail I hand painted little candy corns over a base of Zoya Raven. I'm not a fan of candy corns, but I thought the were the perfect Halloween candy to use for a mani idea. 

Jack-o-Lantern Nails

I saw these Jack-o-Lantern nail decals from Lacquer by Lissa and knew I had to have them! I started with a base of Rica The Great Pumpkin, painted on black dots using Essie Licorice, and when the dots were dry I placed the decals on using tweezers. I really love these decals & the polish is absolutely gorgeous, but I think next time I use these decals they'll be over another base. 

Mummy Nail

Finally, I have my mummy nail for you. I wanted to do an entire manicure with mummies, but the only nail I was happy with was my thumb. He was just too cute not to share with you though. I used OPI Skull & Glossbones, Essie Licorice, and Zoya Purity to create this freehand mummy! 

I had a lot of fun doing all these different Halloween manicures. Have you done any Halloween inspired nail art? What are you dressing up as for Halloween?

Thanks for reading!