31 Day Challenge: Day 13 - Animal Print

So I'm sitting around the table at lunch today with this manicure, and the topic goes to my nails.  One girl grabbed my hand and said, "You changed your polish AGAIN.  What did you do this time?  Is that a sticker?"  I said no, it's a stamp/stencil technique.  Another girl said "Oh my God, where do you find the time for that" (hear the disdain in her voice).

I know that this hobby is seen as flippant, indulgent, and even vain.  I have struggled with this a little bit as of late, because during this challenge I am doing new nails every day, and I like to wear them to work.  But I did not realize how many judgments I would get because of it.  What's with the comments I wonder?

I have a daughter who is 4 and I usually do my nails after I tuck her in at night.  Does this make me lazy or inattentive to her?  Do people think that I am a bad mother because they assume that I am ignoring her whilst I polish my nails?  Or perhaps they believe I should be the sacrificial mother, who does not take care of herself because she gives everything to her children.  Should I neglect to get my hair cut, or put on makeup, or any of the other things I do to take care of myself because I will draw attention to myself and thereby, others will make a judgment on my parenting?

I am the first to admit, I am no happy housewife.  I work full time in a very physical job and I come home to a house that is not in the least bit clean, but is certainly not dangerous or disgusting (pleasantly cluttered, as I call it).  I do not like cleaning or cooking so once I get home, I am all about my daughter until she goes to bed, then I fold clothes, or wash the dishes, or do my nails (more of the last one lately)

I don't know why this has me so upset. I guess I just realized this little hobby of  mine is not seen as such a positive thing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Breathe!

Now, here are my fabulous, amazing, semi-chipped nails that are supposed to look like snake scales.  I used Sephora Completely Fern-ished (3 coats, this stuff was runny!) and Sally Hansen Golden-I for the stencil.  The plate is BM 208.  For extra weirdness, I painted some eyes on my accent nail with Finger Paints Art Nouv-Yellow and Essie Licorice

Before nail art

31 Day Challenge: Day 12 - Stripes

Day 12 is stripes, and just in time for my new stamper! I bought a basic stamp kit from the beauty shop, but I also ordered Bundle Monster #200 plates - yessssss. Of course I had to play with it right away. I picked BM 201 and polished my nails up with Sephora Call Your Mother.  For the stamp pattern I used China Glaze Platinum Silver.  The entire stamp did not transfer to the nail, but I think that is more user error.  Also, I don't feel like this particular combo works very well.  I tried so hard to use Essie Penny Talk work, but it just wouldn't transfer on the stamp very well, so I had to do with the silver (which doesn't look as rich to me).

31 Day Challenge: Day 11 - Polka Dots

Polka dots!  Hurray for fun-ness!  I enjoyed this challenge and I got A LOT of compliments on it at work.  Everyone asked me if they were decals, and I said nope, look at my right hand and see how messy it is in comparison to my left HAH! Anyway, nothing fantastically flashy but I think my dotting technique has gotten a lot more consistent and for that I'm pretty proud!  I used China Glaze For Audrey and Sally Hansen White Out for this look.

 Check out the lovely ladies of Challenge 2012

31 Day Challenge: Day 10 - Gradient Nails (Nail Fail)

Day 10 challenge is to try your hand at a gradient nail, and luckily there are lots of these tutorials online. So, choosing one, I set to work to make a 2-polish gradient using Essie Bikini So Teeny and OPI Road House Blues. Well, it turned into a bit of a nail fail, and I was left with what my husband described as "kind of like acid wash jeans but more goopy." Thanks hon. So a removed the first attempt and started again with a white nail (Salley Hansen Xtreme Wear White Out).  I then placed a couple drops of my two blues on tin foil and mixed a spectrum in between.  I added a couple of drops of polish thinner and got out my dotting tool.  This was slightly less of a nail fail, but I still don't love it.  Anyway, here are my pictures.

So messy!

Sidenote: What do you use during clean up?  I used pure acetone and a lip brush and I could not get the polish off of my cuticles.  It was almost like my skin had absorbed it?  Do you guys think vasoline would work as a barrier when doing this type of nail?

31 Day Challenge: Day 9 - Rainbow Nails

This challenge was to create rainbow nails.  As much as I would like to create little rainbows on my fingernails, I don't have a brush small enough for what I had in my head.  Instead, I tried something I haven't done before, half moon nails.  I did not like this look when I first started seeing it on blogs, but the trend is beginning to grow on me.  It was very easy to do, although I thought it looked a lot better before I took my camera to the manicure.  Have you ever thought, "Wow, my nails look fantastic!" and then load the pictures on to your computer and see all the little places you missed?  Well that is what happened today, and I've lost the sunlight to reshoot them, so this is unfortunately what I have.  I will say that since I stopped biting my nails, the cuticles are looking better, but not great.  Baby steps, baby steps.

I used so many colors/brands that I will not list them here.  I also used a tape-off method with scrapbooking scissors which made it easy, but the polish did bleed a little through when I lifted it (lifting too early perhaps?)   I can't wait to see what everyone else comes up with!

31 Day Challenge: Day 8 - Metallic Nails

Black Gold! Texas T!

Day 8 means metallic nails.  I couldn't think of what to do, until I spotted scrapbooking scissors that I use to create borders for pictures.  I cut either side of a strip of tape to create a wave strip.  Then I placed it on each nail at different wave crests on Essie Licorice and topped over tape with Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Golden-I.  If I were to do this again, I would try to be more uniform, but I wanted to experiment!   It kind of looks like the magnetic polish patterns, doesn't it?

Some day I will learn to paint the left side of my nail *sigh*

If I get a little better at these, I think they might make a good tutorial.  What do you guys think?

31 Day Challenge - Black and White nails

Fun fact: I was about 20 before I got the "black and white and read all over" joke. I didn't understand why it was red, newspapers aren't red!  Anyway, OPI apparently posted a tutorial on these nails, which I did not see until after I had done them! Oh well, they are a little messier but I like the result! Mah MUSTACHE nails are 1 coat Sally Hensen Xtreme Wear White On or Black Out with one coat Different Dimension Selene then topped with a free hand mustache.

How very mustach-y

My favorites thus far!  I need to clean them up with some practice but I'll be doing this again!  MUSTACHE NAILS (try saying it without smiling!)

31 Day Challenge: Day 6 - Violet Nails

"You're turning violet, Violet!"

For the violet challenge, I wanted to use my new (untried) Orly Fowl Play in some sort of stamping art; however, when I applied it, I discovered that I loved it on its own!  It looks so much better on the nail than in the bottle (I almost didn't buy it, actually, but I digress).  This polish has copper and blue shimmers inside the plum pigment.  It went on a little thin and is a bit of a polish eater, but I think this is a dynamite polish!  2 coats here with 2 coats Seche Vite.

Isn't it beautiful!?

After wearing this all day, I decide at the last minute that purple and nude look really fantastic together, so why not try a tape off technique?  Well, in concept, yes absolutely!  Great idea.  Buuut, I have a thing or two to learn about neatness, fo sho.  Below is 2 coats Essie Sand Tropez for the nude base and Maybelline Ice Queen for the purple. Seche Vite topcoat.

Ah, the one good nail out of 10

Intentionally blurry so you can't see how horribly messy it is

Sidenote - Am I the only one that thinks of this guy when you say Orly???

Here are the other ladies (or men? Do I know for sure there are no men?) participating in the challenge.  They are awesome!

Day 5: 31 Day Challenge - Blue Nails

Day 5 challenge for the 31-day challenge is blue nails, my personal favorite color for nails!  I wanted to use OPI Road House Blues with a little something extra.  I went by the beauty supply store and saw these little balls and immediately thought of Sammy at Nailasaurus and her lovely fashion nails.  This is my poor first attempt at the look and my first real attempt at placing anything on my nail other than polish.

Notes: This is my favorite blue, possibly second only to China Glaze For Audrey.  I love the intense pigmentation of the polish.  I love how it looks black in some light and a beautiful navy in other light.  I love how it looks with gold (couldn't find gold studs, I'll keep looking!)  This actually could have probably been a one coater, but here I used 2 with Seche Vite topcoat.

I'm kind of proud of myself.  I mean, this isn't fancy by other people's standards, but for me, this is CRAY-CRAY.  And my cuticles are looking semi-decent.  Just gotta stop biting them!

So far I'm keeping up with the challenge.  I love seeing people of all skill levels participating, even those of us just trying to figure out our cameras and how not to have chubby looking fingers in our shots! Wait that's just me.

Day 4: Green Nails

Another 31-day challenge.  There are so many amazing people participating that I feel kind of like the weird stepbrother that got dragged to the party because his sister had to babysit him.  I'm just beginning with my skills and frankly I have a long way to go, but these girls are definitely an inspiration to me!

I used Zoya Yara and Sinful Colors All About You

Base: Essie All in One
2 coats: Zoya Yara
Art: Dab technique with Sinful Colors All About You
Topcoat: Seche Vite (1) coat quick dry

Notes:  This is my first time using Zoya, and I enjoyed this polish a great deal.  I found it on clearance at Ulta, and I thought, why not?  I'll definately be picking up more of these.  Yara has a beautiful gold shimmer to it that I think you can see in the first picture of the bottle.  I thought that the beautiful gold glitter from Sinful Colors would make an excellent top-down effect.  This is my remedial attempt at nail art - woowoo!

Sidenote - I have no professional equipment at all to even attempt some of these neat stamping and delicate brushwork that I see on a lot of other blogs, so I'm going to the beauty supply store tonight to grab some!  Money is tight, but guuuurl I've been wanting these things forever.  yay stamps!

Day 3: 31 Day Challenge - Yellow Nails Swatched Ulta Cream of the Crop

Base: Essie All in One

3 coats: Ulta Cream of the Crop

Top: Seche Vite

Notes: Went on a little streaky and needed 3 coats for full coverage.  Not crazy about the color on me, but I think it's a lovely shade of yellow for a darker skin tone.  

Ulta nail polishes sold here

Day 2: 31 Day Nail Challenge - Orange Nails

Base: Essie All in One
2 coats: China Glaze Riveting
Accent nail: 2 coats Riveting, 1 coat Electrify
Top coat: Seche Vite Quick Dry

Notes: I'm trying to figure out how to photography properly, so forgive the lighting.  This was my first experience ever with China Glaze (I know, right?)  I absolutely love the brand now - everything was smooth (formula, wearability, etc).  The orange Riveting is amazing to look at it then bottle with its metallic shimmers of gold.  Riveting is a stunner as well, and although I don't think they "go" together here, I enjoyed the combo.

Day 1: 31 day nail challenge

Red Nails - Alabama Crimson Tide Nails

Base coat: Essie All in One Base

2 coats: Spoiled I Tripped on the Red Carpet

1 coat: Different Dimension Selene

1 coat: Spoiled

1 coat: DD

Topcoat: Seche Vite Dry Fast Topcoat 

Notes - I love the brush in the Spoiled bottle.  It is wide and flat and applies the polish evenly and smoothly. I disliked the stain that it left on my nails, even with a quality base coat.  Also, the polish pealed at the end of 24-hours.  However, I love this combo for game day.