My Favorite Things Nail Art Challenge Day 10: Your Favorite Mani!

My favorite manicure. I could go twenty different directions with this last post for My Favorite Things Nail Challenge. I am a huge fan of holographic polishes, I am getting more and more into nail art, but what manicure is my favorite?? Well, I decided to do a "funky french" manicure that I first saw on Chloe's Nails. I was instantly star struck. This manicure exudes sex appeal, elegance, and funk! I bet you didn't realize a simple manicure could do that, did you? My husband even saw it on Pinterest before I ever tried it and thought it looked really cool. So, my favorite manicure isn't something original or outlandish, it is just one that makes me happy! I think that is only fitting. I used OPI DS Extravagance for my base color with two coats and Konad Black Pearl for the tips. Of course, one of my manicures wouldn't be complete without a topping of Seche Vite to bring it all together.

 So pretty!!

My Favorite Things Nail Art Challenge Day 9: Flowers

So the challenge is coming towards the end, and I have my flower manicure to show and tell. I miss show and tell. Remember in kindergarten, when it was finally your turn to bring in your most prized possessions, and you just knew you were the coolest ever? I miss those days of play, nap time, and snacks.  I never thought I would reminisce over my elementary school days. Well, lets get back on topic. I thought about hand painting flowers or doing one accent flower on one nail, but I have been wanting to use one of my stamping plates for a while and settled on this one from my Bundle Monster set, plate # BM 221. Once I had it on my nails, it seemed rather reminiscent of a Hawaiian print shirt. All I need is a Mai Tai, a hula skirt, and my husband throwing flaming torches to set the scene. Aloha `oe, aloha `oe,E ke onaona noho i ka lipo,One fond embrace, Until we meet again (do you hear the ukulele playing in the background?) How did I go from kindergarten to a luau? Really need to focus here. So, for the base color, I used butter LONDON Slapper. I just got this during Ulta's buy one get one free sale on Monday, and I am in love. This beauty went on in two breezy coats! I also used Konad White for stamping. I did notice something a little weird after putting Sech Vite top coat on after stamping. The flowers turned a yellowish color and the beautiful teal of Slapper had a yellow/green tinge to it. Hmmmm ... it still looks pretty to me! So, what do you think of my Luau manicure? Are you in Maui with me yet or are you still in the hotel with jet lag? (I think I need a vacation!)

My Favorite Things Nail Art Challenge Day 8: Hearts/Love

Sorry for the posting delay. My little man was really sick yesterday, so I had to wait on doing the manicure. We are now at day 8 of the nail art challenge by Ooh La La Polish. Wow, we are almost done. I must say I am glad I chose this as my first challenge. I have had so much fun doing this, and I am going to hate to see it end. Today's focus is on hearts and/or love. I decided to do a fun and bright combination of the two themes. I am just not in a "pink love" mood right now. I need fun and playful and I think this was just what the doctor ordered! I used China Glaze Lemon Fizz as the base color. It took three careful coats to obtain a streak free and full covered nail.  As much as I love that color, it is a bit of a pain in the arse to apply! For the word and hearts I used my acrylic paints. I topped it with my beloved Seche Vite for a beautiful shine! What do you think?

My Favorite Things Nail Art Challenge Day 7: Glitter

Glitter is the theme of today's nail art challenge by Ooh La La Polish. I have a lot of glitter, so it made my selection a little complicated. I decided to go simple with a glitter "french manicure." I used Piggy Polish Going Places In This Oasis, which is a stunning teal glitter in a teal base. It took two coats for full opacity. As with most blue/green polishes, be careful of staining, use a good base coat. ManGlaze Matte Is Murder was used for the tips. I thought that once the top coat was added, the shimmer would compliment the glitter in the base color of the nail. I topped it off with Gelous top coat. This manicure is really fun, and looked amazing in the sun. It reminded me of those sequined dresses pageant girls wear (I was never one of those girls, no crown for me). So, what is your favorite glitter manicure?

Stunning in the sunlight!

Still shining in the shade.

My Favorite Things Nail Art Challenge Day 6: Stripes

Today's post is featuring Day 6 of the challenge by Ooh La La Polish, stripes. I wanted to go for a kind of "sun ray" stripe. I really liked how this turned out. It was a little tricky cutting scotch tape thin enough to do the design, but it was well worth it. I now plan on buying some striping tape offline to do this more often. I used Color Club Worth the Risque and Wild at Heart for the colors. I love those colors. Nothing better than silver and purple holographic nail polish to make me happy! Of course, it was raining here all day so no outdoor pictures but it is still pretty indoors. I had two coats of Worth the Risque and one coat of Wild at Heart all topped with my beloved Seche Vite topcoat. Hope you have a great day.

My Favorite Things Nail Art Challenge Day 5: Polka Dots

Just a quick post with my manicure from the challenge by Ooh La La Polish. I did my first gradient manicure the other day and I absolutely love it (will give more detail in later post). So instead of taking it off, I decided to go for some polka dot tips!! Enjoy!

I used Ma.nish.ma Bolts of Blue and Rocket Green  for the gradient. I used Konad plate m45 and Konad White for the stamp.

My Favorite Things Nail Art Challenge Day 4 : Favorite Food

Day 4 of the challenge by Ooh La La Polish asks what is your favorite food. This was a ver easy answer to me. Sure I love chocolate, you can't go wrong with breakfast, but what really takes the cake for me ... SUSHI!!!!! Now, if you knew me when I was in school, this would be a complete surprise. I only ate chicken tenders, mac n cheese, grilled cheese, and any other combination of chicken, bread, and cheese with few exceptions. I now eat raw fish, vegetables, things I can't quite identify, without hesitation. My mommy  sure is proud. :) I am not going to list all of the polishes I used in the nail art because it is a lot, and I blended most of the colors to the results I wanted. Without further adieu, I give you NAIL SUSHI!!!

Are you hungry yet?? Mmmmm...yumm!!

My poor sushi "sign" got smeared on my thumb, but I will now decide it was on purpose to add a rugged effect. Ha!

 I had so much fun coming up with this manicure! Have you ever tried sushi?? Does this mani make you want to eat it more or less? LOL!!!

My Favorite Things Nail Art Challenge Day 3: My Favorite Animal

Day 3 of the challenge by Ooh La La Polish asks what is your favorite animal. I don't really have a favorite animal (Are we noticing an indecisive trend yet?), but growing up, I always wanted to be an elephant trainer. Why you ask? Well not because I was in love with the elephants, I wanted to wear the trainers pretty/sparkly costumes!! Now of course, I really do love elephants. I think they are amazing creatures, but to a five year old, the sequined costume looks better. Apparently I have always had a love for the more sparkly things in life! I used  China Glaze Elephant Walk for my base color. Appropriate name for the polish, right?  I used Wet n Wild Black Creme for the black detailing, White On by Sally Hansen for the toe nails and tusks, and I Believe in Amour by Color Club for the pink nose. Then, I topped the whole shebang off with Seche Vite. I must say, I really love Elephant Walk, It is a medium grey with a very subtle shimmer to it. I can see a full manicure with this color alone in my future! I had full coverage with two coats with normal drying time. I really like how this turned out. I might redo this one day before going to the zoo!

Do you like my elephant feet?

I was scared to paint anything else and ruin it.

My Favorite Things Nail Art Challenge Day 2: My Favorite Polish

Day 2 of the challenge by Ooh La La Polish asks what is your favorite polish. Do you realize how hard it is to pick one polish out of over 400?? That is like asking me which child do I love more? I really didn't want to hurt the others feelings, so please don't tell them. It is a secret. The polish that truly created an obsession was Nfu Oh 61. I saw a swatch online and instantly fell in love. I felt the same way when I started dating my husband. It is pure silver holographic nail porn!! I think it should be XXX rated with its awesomeness! Sorry, about that outburst. My husband is currently looking over my shoulder saying, "I can't believe you are writing that." I have myself under control now. This notorious polish is a bit of a pain in the a$$ to apply. You have to have either their Aqua Base for smooth application, or some other brand of holographic base coat for it to apply well. That being said, it is a breeze to apply with the Aqua Base. I do a sandwich method of application with one coat of base, then a coat of 61, then another coat of base, and then a final coat of 61. You can do one more "lasagna layer" if you want, but you don't have to. This method helps make your holo-cure last longer. Even with this method, I get only 2-3 days of wear out of it. I do not wear a topcoat with Nfu Ohs holographic polish because it will dull, if not eliminate, the holographic effect. There are some people out there who might have found the golden ticket of top coat that won't ruin it, but I haven't found it yet. Wow, this turned into a long rant. Well enjoy the pictures! (Sorry about all of the pics. You didn't think you could ask me what was my favorite polish and expect me not to go crazy, did you?)

The Pictures Begin

Ooohhhh!

Aaaaahhhhhh!!!

Crap, I just drooled.

I just couldn't decide on a picture.

Look at it in all of its holo-gloryness!

Shazaam!

Almost done, I promise.

Now inside. It still has a slight holo effect to it, but you really have to be in just the right lighting. 

Just love this silver.

Well, I'm spent, how about you? :) I think I need to do a comparison post of all of my silver holographics!

My Favorite Things Nail Art Challenge Day 1: My Favorite Color

My first challenge. I am doing the My Favorite Things Challenge by Ooh La La Polish. Nothing gets the creative juices flowing like a little challenge. Now, I debated on this a lot. I love three main colors: green, blue, and purple and any variation in between. It was harder than I thought to pick just one color. I decided to blend two of them for my favorite and make a call, teal. Call it what you will turquoise, teal, blue-green, green-blue, aquamarine, it has so many variations that exude cool, calm, and serene feelings. Wow, I really didn't mean to go there. Back on topic, I swear I have this color is shirts, make up , polish, jewelry, and even a bag or two. You just can't go wrong with teal. I decided to use Zoya Zuza for my picture and am glad I did. This wonderful shade went on in two splendid coats for full coverage. It has an amazing silver shimmer that seemed to freak out my camera a bit outside, but just beautiful in person. As with most polishes in this shade, Be careful of staining. You definitely need to use a good base coat with this. No top coat was used in these pictures!

Here is what the challenge entails.

Hmmm.. what will be my favorite nail polish? You know, this challenge seemed easy on the surface, but now that I am having to make decisions, not so much!