Happy To Be Here

So, lets get this out of the way.  It has been awhile...over a week.  Between Family in town, power outages and ongoing computer problems, I haven't been able to blog.  Then, once out of the habit, it was hard to get back into it.  But now I am here and happy to be.

To get back into the swing of things, I am starting with Adventures in Stamping.  The theme for this week is....of course....Independence day.  Bria begged to be the model for this, so how could I say no.  As usual, we collaborated on it with me picking the colors and Bria picking the stamps.  Here is what she/we came up with.

Waving flags and fireworks....what could be more patriotic?  Here is what was used in this stamptastic mani.


  
















Thumb and pinkie:  Barry M Blackberry Stamped with Orly Sparkle, China Glaze Gold Fusion and MJ XIX,  Again with Sally Hansen Cobalt Blue, China Glaze Positively In Love and SH24.
Index finger:  Sinful Colors Endless Blue stamped with Konad Special White and SH214.

 





Middle and ring finger:  Sally Hansen Rapid Red stamped with Konad Special White and BM-210

  
Want to see something "funny".  I painted both fingers the same, thumb to pinkie and didn't realize until after that it made the flag backwards on one hand.  Duh!  Had to photograph upside down to show it properly.

Tee Hee, cracks me up!  By the time I realized, Bria was done with the the sitting and said she did not want it changed.  Oh well.

See you again tomorrow with a long overdue Monkey See Monkey Do.  Thanks for looking!

Tina

My Guest Post at Dizzy Little Digits

I am proud to be doing a guest post over at Dizzy Little Digits today.  Denise is a nail art challengaholic and creates some great nail art.  Hop on over HERE to see how I created this look.

 

My First Dotticure

It is that time of the month, Tri-Polish time!  Three polishes, four manicures.  No bottle shot today.  The colors are red, pink and purple.  As always, this is not a combo I would ever come up with myself.  Since I am already doing bright colors for the neon challenge, I decided to go muted.  Here is what I chose.

• Red - Julep Nan
• Pink - Essie A Crewed Interest
• Purple - Contrary Polish Desert Fruit

 
This is my first ever dotticure.  Why?  I am a bit of a perfectionist and therefore don't do randomness very well.  I finally gave up my trepidation and decided to try one.  I like how it turned out, but you should have seen me.  Equal amounts of each color and size.  I'm a bit crazy.

 
This started with two coats of Julep Nan.  This came in my May Maven box and I have to say it is one unique red.  It is muted and leans coral.  Julep calls it a Nantucket red, whatever that is.  The formula on this was spectacular.  It is one of those lovely crellies, opaque in two coats, like a creme, but still has that squishy and translucent quality of a jellie.  Easy to apply, however it was a bit of a cuticle flooder, but I think that is because I have a tendency to to use thicker coats.  Once I went thinner with the coats, I had no problem.

Next I dotted, as randomly as I can, with A Crewed Interest, Desert Fruit and China Glaze Angel Wings.  That was it!  Simple yet pretty.  Don't know why I never tried it before.  Definitely will try it again!

As always, thanks for looking!
Tina

 

A Subtle Monkey

Quick, quick post as there is so much to do and so little time.

Today is Monday, which means Monkey See Monkey Do.  This was inspired by Cazzy over at SpecialGirl Nails.  Check the inspiration HERE.  
 

The idea behind this is simple, but I had not seen it done before.  It is a stamping jellie sandwich.  Oh how I love saying that (tee hee).  Although the concept is simple, finding the right polish was not.  I wanted something that was sheer without being streaky yet one that was opaque in three coats (only because I have a thing about visible nail lines).  Because of the aforementioned "thing", I don't have many nude tones.  I think I ended experimenting with two of the three that I own.  I could not find one polish that fit all three requirements, so I ended up using two, one completely opaque for the base and a very sheer jellie for the top.  Even after all the hunting and swatching, I still am not completely satisfied with the results, so I expect to revisit this again in the near future.

I started with two coats of Essie Demure Vixen.  This is a pink with a lilac lean, sheer in one coat and opaque in two.  If you like the "mannequin hands" look, this is perfect.  I would have used this for the whole thing, but one coat was not quite sheer enough for me.  This is before the sandwich was added. 

Next I stamped with Sally Hansen Snow White and DRK-B.

Finally I added two coats of Julep Marie.  I love this polish and hate it.  It is a gorgeous pale lilac jelly, but it is soooo sheer.  I mean this is two coats and you can hardly tell it is there.  If I use this again I will layer it over white.

What do you think?  I love the concept of the stamped jellie sandwich but I will need to add a better selection of jellies if I want to pull them off.  See you next time!

 

Literary Fashion

Its Friday again!  Time for a little fashion.

Source: modaoperandi.com via Tina on Pinterest

Today is inspired by this gorgeous Bibhu Mohapatra gown.  In addition, I want to do a comparison, so this post is going to be a little bit long.  Ready?  Here goes!

I love holos.  I know I am not the only one, so I'm going to do some "dupe" posts, because I love them almost as much as I love holos.  I thought I would start with one of my favorite colors, purple, partly because my all time favorite holo (so far) is purple, but also because I actually have two dark purple holos to compare.

   
This is China Glaze When Stars Collide (index/ring) and Literary Lacquers If It Pleases You (middle/pinky).

Without Flash

With Flash

 Let's talk about formula.  This is one coat of each.  As you can see, When Stars Collide is more pigmented, but applies patchy.  If It Pleases You is a dark purple jelly packed with holo glittery goodness.  Even with one coat you can begin to see the amazing linear rainbow going on here.  When Stars Collide, on the other hand (or finger as it were.  Tee hee!) is showing very little holo, even with a flash.

Without Flash

With Flash

Here is two coats.  You may have heard me complain about how the China Glaze holos show EVERY SINGLE flaw in your nails yet still have a very "flat" apperance.  If It Pleases You has that delightful "squishy" appearance that all jellies have.  With a second coat, When Stars Collide is fully opaque, no need for anymore coats.  If It Pleases You still seems a little sheer, but look at that rainbow spark!  Without a flash, When Stars Collide exhibits little to no holo flare and even with a flash, it is still a bit dull.

Without Flash

With Flash

 And finally, three coats.  These are DEFINITELY not dupes!  When Stars Collide cannot hold a dull flickering candle to If It Pleases You's roaring flame.  Lets look at this thrilling beauty on her own.

If It Pleases You is so complex, I have a hard time even beginning to describe it, so I will let the pics do (some of ) the talking.

 












.....Words fail me, but I will do my darnedest because I just can't shut up about Literary Lacquers If It Pleases You.  What a contradiction, just like the polish.  It is purple, but in some lights it looks brown.  Then there is the brilliant blurple flash at the center of the rainbow.  Purlple....blue....brown.....rainbow!  It definitely pleases me!  Debbie, from The Crumpet described it best when she said it looks like a bruise, a wounded plum, decaying fruit and dying splendor.  How can I top that?  Maybe with a gif showing this esoteric charmer in action.

What you really want to know is WHERE CAN I GET IT!  You can purchase it on Amy's Facebook store HERE or at Etsy HERE.  At the time of this post, If It Pleases You is available at both locations.

Oh yeah, this was about Fashion Friday, wasn't it?

To be truthful, it killed me to cover this up, but it had to be done.  I used OPI Every Month Is Octoberfest (another favorite polish) to create the horizontal triangle.

 

So what do you think?  Another successful Fashion Friday?  One more gif and I will let you go.

As always, thanks for looking and all the wonderful comments!  See you next time.
Tina




  

Butter London Sale!

Remember when I said I would let you know about any sales I came across?  Well Butter London Canada is having a sale!  Check it HERE!

My Unnatural Snake

Just a quick post for The Nail Challenge Collaborative.  This is the second neon mani and is totally unnatural.  I mean really, what would you do if you came across this in your back yard?

Run like hell, that's what I would do!  Although this is crazy bright and not at all my cup of tea, I was totally fascinated by it.  I just couldn't stop admiring my zany snake skins.

This started with two coats of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Lightening.  This quick dry yellow was not exactly neon, but it was the brightest yellow I own.  I would have loved to do this with a "highlighter" yellow, but I just can't justify adding one to my stash as I would probably only use it for this.

Next I stamped with Shany SH225 and Finger Paints Iconic Orange.  Finally I stamped with Shany SH225 and Finger Paints Black Expressionism.

 

So simple, yet so bewitching.  Here she is, slithering across my tips.  I think I will name her Lola (tee hee).

As always, thanks for looking and commenting!  Check the other neons.

Such a Simple Monkey

Hey all!  So sorry I have been MIA the last few days.  Was having some computer issues, but I think I now have it under control.  Makes me realize that I should back up my mani photos.  I have all my nail stuff on one computer and if it crashed....well lets just say I wouldn't be happy.  Backup, here I come!

Today is Monkey See Monkey Do Monday.  You know what that means?  Yep, time to hop over to another blog to see my inspiration.  This was inspired by Mandy over at Chameleon Stampede.  Check her HERE .

MSMD does not always have to be complicate or intricate.  Sometimes it is just a gorgeous combination.  As soon as I saw Mandy's mani, I knew I wanted to recreate it on my own nails, only with flakies instead of glitter.

Without Flash

With Flash

This started with China Glaze Strap on Your Moonboots.  I'm sure you have heard everything about the China Glaze holos, from "Love it" to "Hate it".  I am somewhere inbetween.  The holo is not as strong as the Laylas I own, but I really like this dusty denim color as a holo.  The biggest problem, in my humble opinion, is that there is absolutely no self leveling to this polish.  It is one of those that show EVERY ridge, dent and flaw in your nails.  I don't like buffing my nails because they have a tendency to peel, but it was tempting with this polish.  Instead I used Nfu-Oh Aqua Base, although I am sure you can use any ridge filler.  After one coat of the Aqua Base, I thought I would add a second coat to make sure all my ridges were leveled....Wrong!  Seems that the Aqua Base should not be layered on itself.  I allowed it to dry for 15 minutes before adding another coat and it dragged some of the bottom coat to my tips.  You can see the lumps, especially on my middle finger.

Finally I added 1 coat of Color Club Snow Flakes.  In my opinion this is miss named as the flakies flash red, yellow and green.  I added one coat to my ring finger and a gradient on all the others.  Subtle but interesting!

So what do you think?  Like my gif?  Don't ever want to see one again?  Tee hee.  Check out :all" the other MSMD manis (tee hee).

Taste the Rainbow

June's theme for The Nail Challenge Collaborative is neon!  Now I have to be honest, I am not a neon person.  Not work appropriate...I tend towards the more vampy stuff....difficult to photograph....the list goes on.  When I saw the theme I thought about sitting this month out.  However, the whole reason I participate in challenges is to get myself out of my comfort zone and try new things, so I decided to jump in with both feet...or hands in this case.  You know what that meant?  Yep, new polishes added to my stash!

I happened to "have" to go to Sally Beauty shortly after the theme was announced and Finger Paints were on sale.  I don't own a whole lot of this brand, but at $3.75 a bottle, I figured I couldn't miss.

When Bria saw all the bright bottles lined up in a row I knew my first mani would have to be on her nails.  We did some searching through my Pin files.  As soon as she saw Crumpet's Barry M Gelly rainbow gradient, it was all over, the decision was Made with a capital M.  Want to see the original post that inspired this mani?  Sure ya do!  Check it HERE.  

I have to warn you...there are going to be a lot of pics!  Why?  Not only was Bria "oooh"ing and "ahhh"ing over this for the rest of the day, I actually ended up liking them myself.  Not something that I would wear on my nails, but that is what I have a teenage daughter for, right?!?!

I started with one coat of Sally Hansen White Out to get a nice pop of color from the neons.  Next I painted each nail halfway with two different colors.  After that was dry I went back and sponged with both colors striped on my sponge.  I sponged it a couple of times, drying in between, until I got the look I wanted.  I never quite got the gradient to work on that pinky, but I think that is because the blue was the only non neon, non Finger Paint that I used.  Gotta go back to Sally's and see if I can find a neon blue.

Here are the colors I used:

• Thumb:  Finger Paints Iconic Orange - Finger Paints Warhol Wannabe
• Index:  Finger Paints Warhol Wannabe - Sally Hansen Lightening
• Middle:  Sally Hansen Lightening - Finger Paints Sunscreen Green
• Ring:  Finger Paints Sunscreen Green - Orly Shockwave
• Pinky:  Orly Shockwave - Finger Paints Pop Art Purple

Next I stamped with Konad Special White and DRK-B.  This is a new plate for me and I have to say I was very happy with the quality of this stamp.  Thought I would show you the whole plate so you could get a sense of all the lovely and fun images.

 

Although Crumpet's mani was stamped with black, I showed Bria a sample on my polish pebbles with black AND white and she chose white.

Whenever I do a new mani for Bria, I always ask what her friends think.  With this one she just looked at me, smiled and said, "Taste the rainbow".  Guess they looked like Skittles (tee hee).  One last photo and I'm done.

I was playing around in Photoshop and created this.  Kinda proud of this image :)  Should I make it my new header image?  As always, thanks for looking!

Tina