Festive, Glittery Manicure...

Hello, lovelies! Today I have a very random manicure. It was nearly a "playing with polish" post, but it's really just layering. Because I did not know how to share this post, it has sat in my "edited" folder for quite some time, just waiting for the perfect opportunity to be shared.

Today seems like the perfect opportunity to share a glittery manicure. This weekend my husband graduates from medical school, so there is a lot to celebrate! Cue glittery manicure...

Polishes used: Diamond Cosmetics Don't Teal My Heart Away, China Glaze Champagne Bubbles, OPI Spark de Triomphe

Time Warp Challenge--Day 8

This is sadly the final day of the "Let's Do the Time Warp" Challenge.  I think this was my favorite challenge ever.  It was so much fun and everyone participating was so encouraging.  Thank you to all of you for making this so wonderful.  And a special THANK YOU to Lindsay from Neverland Nail Blog for hosting and creating this challenge.

Today's challenge is... 

Let's do the TIME WARP again!

This challenge was basically to recreate a manicure of another participant.  This was such a difficult challenge.  The manicures were all so amazing and well executed that I was intimidated to recreate any of them.  However, when I saw the manicure created for Day 4 (Lights, Camera, Action!) by The Polished Squirrel I new that this was the one I wanted to attempt.  Stephanie was inspired by the classic fairy tale The Twelve Dancing Princesses.  Here is her incredible manicure & a bit of the story if you're unfamiliar with it.

The version I grew up with was slightly different from the one Stephanie recounts.  The book I remember is this one:

I always loved the story, but the illustrations in this particular book were to die for.  They were so stunning.  The story I remember is different from the one Stephanie told in that the soldier in her story was a gardener in the above tale AND in the one above the princesses were under a curse.  To solve the mystery, the gardener was given a magical golden flower to put into his lapel that made him invisible unlike the cloak of the soldier.  Due to these differences, I changed the manicure ever so slightly to include the flower instead of the cloak.  Below are the trees of the silver, gold, and diamond forests with the magical flower on my pinkie.

 I adore this manicure.  Thank you so much Stephanie from the Polished Squirrel for your inspiration and your beautiful manicure.  I could never do it justice!

Polishes used: SinfulColors Black on Black, Barielle Granite Glitter, Barielle Gold Digger, China Glaze Champagne Bubbles, NfuOh 61, Barielle Green Opal, OPI Stranger Tides, and marquis rhinestones

That's all.  Thank you to all of you for your wonderful comments and support throughout this challenge:)  Here's a quick recap: 

Time Warp Challenge--Day 5

Today's challenge is...

We can do it!

This manicure is in honor of an influential woman in history.  As is only natural, names of these women flooded my mind, but I didn't know how to accurately communicate what they had done to change and influence our "today."  In the good old US of A we learn about so many of these women from Betsy Ross, Sacajawea, and Susan B. Anthony to Rosa Parks, Amelia Earhart, and Harriet Tubman.  I looked beyond these history class favorites and chose Irena Sendler.

 Irena Sendler smuggled about 2,500 children out of the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II.  She was even nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007.

I'm pleased with this manicure.  I think it effectively communicates what Irena Sendler did to impact our history and the lives of many children. 

Polishes used: Zoya Purity, SinfulColors Black on Black, Revlon Delicious, SinfulColors Ruby Ruby, China Glaze Champagne Bubbles.

Which woman would you have chosen to showcase in a manicure?

Summer Fun Challenge--Day 3

Lindsey at the Neverland Nail Blog is so incredibly creative.  I love her blog so very much and about 3 weeks ago she announced The Summer Fun Challenge.

Day 3: PooL ParTy!

 While brainstorming for this manicure, all I could only think of beach towels, beach balls, inflatable pool toys, splashing, and sunscreen.  I was not very motivated to go down that road, so I started thinking of swimwear and immediately "Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" by Brian Hyland popped into my head!  This song adequately reflects my feelings about wearing a swimsuit for the first time each year.

Disclaimer: I am actually afraid of yellow nail polish, so this was a more golden polka dot bikini;)  I created this manicure using 3 coats of China Glaze Champagne Bubbles with 3 coats of Zoya Purity as an accent nail.  The golden yellow rhinestones are from an AL Cosmetics Mix Styles Glitter Rhinestone Wheel #5.

For a look at other Pool Party manicures click on the pictures below...

Watercolor Manicure

I recently entered the spring nail art competition by beautystat.  I chose to do a watercolor manicure to showcase some beautiful polishes and this great technique.  Take a look at my entry and what I said on the site: 

"My watercolor manicure was inspired by pastels and light, airy spring and summer fabrics.  Watercolor nails look gorgeous against the spring trends and can be done in various hues of one color or in a variety of colors. I painted all of my nails with Lumos Instant Impact Bottom Coat topped with two coats of Sally Hansen in Pure White.  I applied Lumos High Speed Top Coat and waited for the polish to dry.  I chose a series of colors that I wanted to watercolor with.  My colors of choice were: PritiNYC in California Bluebell (a dark periwinkle), Essie in Barefoot in Blue (a light periwinkle), Diamond Cosmetics in Don’t Teal My Heart Away (a medium teal), Rimmel London in Sunset Orange (a bright, orange-y coral), and China Glaze in Champagne Bubbles (a warm, yellow gold). Starting with the first polish mentioned, I placed a few small drips of polish on a nail, one nail at a time.  With a nail art (or small paint) brush that was dipped in nail polish remover, I smeared the polish around the nail.  I continued this process with each color on every nail.  When completed, I topped my nails with one last coat ofLumos High Speed Top Coat to set the polish."

I made it as a finalist and I am super surprised!  I would LOVE your support/votes.  It's super easy you just have to comment on this post. You're more than welcome to vote for someone else too:) 

Thank you so much! (Mine is the watercolor manicure by Kate).