Halloween Blood Spatter! I say it's an A+ (bah ha ha ha)

Happy Halloween!!!! I just had a great Halloween with my family. Good food, fun watching my four year old get thrilled every time he got candy just by saying trick-or-treat, and having one of the goriest/creepiest/most awesome manicures I have had yet! I have been seeing the blood spatter manicures going around and I could not help myself. First, since I am a nurse at a hospital, I knew I could freak out a few co-workers with my "bloody nails." Second, It just looks BAD A$$! This was so much fun to do. I see myself using this technique over and over again. A quick tip that I should have followed, but I was hasty last night trying to get it done. Tape around your nails before spattering! It will help with clean up immensely. You can see in the pictures that I still have red all around my nails despite diligent clean up. Oh well, I think it adds to the effect. I used Sally Hansen White Out for my base, and Essie Blood Curdling, Orly Ma Cherie, and China Glaze Prey Tell for the blood. The "spatter effect" was created by using a coffee stirrer "straw" dipped in polish, then blown onto the nail. All of that bloody goodness was topped off with on coat of Out The Door. What do you think of this crime scene of a manicure? Have you tried spattering/splattering yet?

 Oh yeah, the mysteriously absent right hand makes an appearance!

 I was going for a Psycho pose here.

All I can think of is CSI when I look at this.

Girly Girl Nail Art Challenge: Gotta Love Chick Flicks

Tons of movies come to mind when the term "Chick Flick" comes up. I had a really hard time deciding what to choose. I finally settled on The Devil Wears Prada. One reason, I just so happened to have watched it this week. Second, it screams FASHION!!! I must admit, the results of my manicure were not exactly what I had pictured. I wanted to do so much more, but I ran out of time. I am a renowned procrastinator that likes to paint her nails late at night, the night before she needs to wake up at 5 am. I do this to myself every week. It's like an addiction. I can't seem to help myself. Well, I kind of gave up on my original idea, and modified it for times sake. I used three coats of Essie Bone Chilling for the white bases. Two coats of Zoya Sookie was used for the red nail and the shoe stamping. Finally, Orly Liquid Vinyl was used for my black pointer finger. I also used Konad polishes in Black Pearl for the Zebra print, and White for the Coco Chanel logo. Everything was stamped except for the Chanel logo. I used Konad plate m57 for the zebra print and Bundle Monster BM 213 for the pumps. I definitely think I could have done better but it is what it is. Oh well. Moving on.

 I think the black background gave the picture more of an edgy feel.

Forgive the poor clean up job. I was a little sleepy.

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!)

Hello Kitty Stamping

My daughter just turned one the other day and the theme for her birthday was ... Hello Kitty! Of course, since the theme of her party was Hello Kitty my nails had to match. I decided to go with a red bowed version of the cute feline accompanied by polka dots. I am really happy with how it turned out. The only thing frustrating me is the smearing. I have tried different topcoats, waiting longer periods of time, and different stamping polishes all-together, but I can't get the stamp to quit smearing. So, if any of you have found the magical trick please share, because I am at my wits end. Anyways, I used Zoya Sooki (2 coats), Wet n' Wild  French White Creme (2 coats), Konad White, Konad Black Pearl, Seche Vite top coat, and HOT stamping plate QA12. If you get this brand of plate, please be very careful. The edges are very sharp. It is cut into an octagon so it even has sharpened corners!  I used the medium sized Hello Kitty image and the polka dots from this plate for my manicure. I had a lot of fun coming up with this and will hopefully be doing many more!

I think this is my favorite manicure yet!

I think the overall effect is very cute and fun. What do you think?

Hello Kitty! Ahhh, fond memories of my childhood. I used to spend hours in the Sanrio Store. Too bad it isn't still open.

Konad Black Pearl, Zoya Sooki, Konad White, HOT plate QA12

Look at those edges. You will definitely have to keep this somewhere safe away from little kids. Shoot, I have to be careful not to drop it on my own foot!