I am the Pumpkin King!

Happy Halloween!

After so many Halloween manicures I wasn't going to do another one, but you see my favorite movie is Nightmare Before Christmas.   I have seen so many different versions of this manicure.  I just had to do it too.  It seemed like sacrilege if I didn't.  So without further ado, I give you Jack Skellington!

The thumb and ring finger each have a different Jack face, some turned out better than others.  The left hand ring finger is supposed to be embarrassed.  I used Finger Paints Paper Mâchè, Sephora by OPI If You've Got It Haunt It, and China Glaze Liquid Leather.

My thumb on my left hand is supposed to be smiling to the side.

My right ring finger is supposed to screaming.

My right thumb is supposed to be winking, but he looks inebriated in my opinion.  All in all I am very happy with this design.  I feel like I paid the proper homage and we can now end Halloween the right way.  

I hope you all had a frightfully good night and all you boys and ghouls are now tucked in bed while sugar bones dance in your heads.  As for me I will always be fond of that skeleton man.

Tootles!

Fitz

TIHNAC #11

The Final challenge is to recreate another participants art.  There are so many amazing manicures to choose from it was really hard to choose.  I believe I mentioned that I like graveyards, so I decided to recreate Amoki's design. 

I loved the simplicity of it.  I didn't have the exact colors, so I improvised.  I used Finger Paints
Paper Mâchè and Meet Me At The Met.  MYATM is a gorgeous gun metal gray.  Then I used China Glaze First Mate.  The white seemed a bit to stark for me, so I tried to tone it down with Sinful Dare.  I guess that is an old color, but it was given to me.  It doesn't really show up, but hey I tried

First Mate photographed a bit brighter than it is in person.

My thumb all by its lonesome.

This photo was outside, but in the shade.

I really had so much fun doing this.  I think it was a good way to dip my toe into the realm of challenges.  I am also so very inspired by all the other talented participants.  Thank you for letting me join your ranks.

Tootles!
Fitz

TIHNAC #10

Trick-Or-Treat!!

There is only one more challenge after this and then it is finito!  It has been a fun ride.  I have learned a lot and it has pushed me to keep trying.  I will be sad when it is done.  I kind of want to do one for Christmas, but I am not sure if I will have the time.

So today's prompt was Trick-Or-Treat.  I originally thought about doing something candy related.  Candy is usually the reason everyone goes out with common phrase on their lips.  That really wasn't why I did it.  Yeah, what kid doesn't like candy, but I loved dressing up.  I am a theater person at my core and Halloween and being on stage are the only time society doesn't frown on looking like someone else.  Hence this manicure.

I think this design by I Have A Cupcake looks like little kids dressed for Halloween.  So we have a Mummy, a Witch, Dracula, Frankenstein, and a ghost.

I used a lot of different polishes.  The only ones not by China Glaze is the over the ghost to give him an ethereal shimmer, Sally Hansen Teflon Tuff Maui White Frost and the mummy's eyes, OPI Royal Flush Blush.  The others are White On White, Señorita Bonita, Liquid Leather, Trendsetter, Holly-Day, Sunshine Pop, Gaga For Green, and Stone Cold.

A close up of my thumb.

Some photos in the shadow.

 Well I will have one more Halloween manicure.  I am supposed to choose my favorite, but I have no idea what I am going to do. . .

Tootles!

Fitz

TIHNAC #9

For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
In the sepulchre there by the sea,
In her tomb by the sounding sea. 
~Edgar Allen Poe

Spooky, romantic graveyards are the prompt this time.  I have to admit I love graveyards.  I have always been fascinated by the lives long forgotten buried beneath the surface.  My mind tends to wander and fabricate stories about the names etched on the stones.   Maybe I shouldn't be admiting this to you. . . I hope I haven't weirded you out. . .

On to the manicure!

I found this lovely design by I Have a Cupcake and knew I had to try it!  It is completely romantic and spooky and I had to try my hand at the hand!  I am so proud of this!

I used Essie Matte top coat for a change.  I thought it made it look more like fog and more organic.  The polishes are China Glaze Recycle  and Concrete Catwalk.  I did a gradient of Recycle as the background.  I Have a Cupcake showed using your finger to make the gradient effect, so I thought I would try the technique.  I am not sure if I like it.  I think I might have to try it again with a darker color sometime so I can see the effect more clearly.

A close up of my thumb.

 Then the a couple of shots in the shade.

I really did love doing this manicure and I hope you like it too.  Don't foget to to check out all the other talented participants, they really are fabulous!

Tootles!
Fitz

TIHNAC #8

The theme for today is witches.  I was inspired by two different artists and decided to incorporate both ArcadiaNailArt and Nails In Nippon.  Well, mine did not turn out as well.  First of all, it is a lot harder to draw a silhouette then I thought it would be.  (That is what the ring finger is supposed to be, a silhouette of a witch)  Secondly, China Glaze Mummy May I was not the best choice as the background color.  It made everything too dark.  Oh well, you can win the all.  I did learn a few things and I had fun, that is all that matters, right?  Right?

Dotting tools were my friend though all of this, of and a detail brush.  Besides Mummy May I, I used China Glaze Tree Hugger, Electric Beat, Glitter Goblin, Hey Sailor, Liquid Leather, and of course Finger Paints Paper Mâchè.

The other problem was squeezing in time to take the pictures.  Consequently I am losing daylight supper fast.

All in all, it wasn't an epic fail, I just felt I could have done better if I had the time to do it again.  Maybe next year.



Don't forget to check out all the other participants.  Their talent is awe inspiring!

Tootles!
Fitz

Mummy, May I?

I am not sure if I will do swatches.  I don't know if it is really me.  However, I thought I would try.  I wore this polish for a day before I did the nail art on it, so I thought I would snap a few fantastic photos.

Introducing China Glaze Mummy May I.  It is a beautiful dark purple jelly with small, square, pink glitters.  It is from their 2010 Halloween collection entitled Awakening.  I love China Glaze's Halloween collections and this one does not disappoint.  As an added bonus I think it can definitely be worn year around.

 Mmmm. . . Pretty!

Tootles!
Fitz

An Interview Manicure

I had the witch manicure done on Monday and was waiting to post it.  I knew there was a lot of things going on for me this week, so I wanted to get it done before hand.  One of those things was an interview on Wednesday at Macy's.  I could not go to an interview with crazy nails, so I knew it needed to come off.  I now don't really like my nails bare, so I figured I would do a subdued manicure that still looked professional.

Here is what I came up with.  I had bought three of the China Glaze Bohemian collection at Sally's Beauty Supply.  I had waited to purchase them, because even though I liked them, my collection is a bit large and funds are in shortage.  But they were on clearance for half off!  YES!  So I used Swanky Silk.  The duo chrome is very subtle, and so the camera didn't quite capture it.  However it shimmers from gold to pink.  I wanted to do some stamping on it as well, because I don't do enough stamping and I need to get better at it.  So I thought Foie Gras from the Hunger Games collection was a good match.  It is a soft brown with a purple twinge to it.  The stamp was Bundle Monster BM-211.

I think I like it.  I am still learning and that will always take time.  I wasn't uncomforatble at the interview and felt proffesional and that is all that matters.  Wish me luck!

Tootles!

Fitz

TIHNAC #7

The prompt this go around is gradient.  I had no idea what to do!  I didn't want to the "typical" Halloween colors bleeding into the next one.  I also wanted to crank it out relatively quickly.  I had success with my first glitter gradient, so I decided to try it again.

I wanted something a little bloody, but not looking like blood.  This one is also on the classier side, which I like.

I used China Glaze for both colors in Near Dark and Love Marilyn.

I love how glitter gradients turn out.  They look like they take a lot of time and effort and they don't!

Please excuse the pre-clean-up pictures.  I was losing daylight.

Don't forget to check out the other participants.  Their designs are all stunning!

Tootles!
Fitz

TIHNAC #6

Twinkle, twinkle little bat

How I wonder what you're at

Up above the world you fly

Like a tea tray in the sky

Twinkle, twinkle little bat

How I wonder what you're at

~ Lewis Carroll

If you had not guessed the theme today is bats.  Now, a word of warning.  I had WAY too much fun with the camera this go around.  Having my friend Sarah help me last time made me realize how much fun I could have posing and using different backgrounds outside.  Plus I was at my folks' house and there is a plethora (Jefe, what is a plethora?) of fun plants and such.

Tada!  This is a bit more elegant than my previous designs, and I like it.  I used a tutorial by Lady Leyel as inspiration.

 Obviously not as well done as hers, but I look back on my first attempts at nail art and I have grown so much.

I told you that tree would pop up again.  I used my favorite white, Finger Paints Paper Mâchè and I didn't want to use plain black.  I wanted to kick it up a notch, so dusted off China Glaze Haunting.

My right hand wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.

I don't know why, but I really liked how my right pinkie turned out, but the picture doesn't do it justice.

Of course we also have my thumb.

Check out all the other lovely ladies while you have a moment, you are sure to get a scream.

Tootles!
Fitz

TIHNAC #5

Please sir, may I have some more BRRRAAAAAIIIIIINNNNNNSSSSS!

Finding inspiration for this deign was not easy.  I work at a school for emotionally disturbed children, so I can't do anything too gory or graphic.  I have to lean more on the cute side, which can be said for any design in this challenge.  Zombies, proved a bit more difficult until I found a tutorial from ProfesionalDQ.  I fell in love with this design.  It flirts with the gory, but is so cute that I think it will be okay for work, I hope. . .

Sorry, this will be a bit picture heavy.  I am so proud of the way these turned out, plus I had someone lending a hand behind the camera, so there are a few excellent shots.

I even like the way the right hand turned out.

We found a tree in the neighbor's front yard that was the perfect backdrop.  You will probably be seeing it used again.

I used a fine dotting tool mostly.  I used that for all the detail work and then a larger dotting tool for the blood.

The colors were Finger Paints Paper Mâchè (my go to white), China Glaze Liquid Leather, and Hey Sailor for the details.  The background was the sponge technique.  China Glaze Recycle was the main color and then I sponged over it in sequence China Glaze Peechy Keen and Gaga For Green.


I hope you enjoy these.  Don't forget to check out all the other participants lovely frightening designs!

Tootles!
Fitz

Friendly Candy Corn

My best friend came to visit so of course I had to do her nails.  She asked for candy corn this go around and so I did a nice simple stripe.

I used the nail polish brush for the stripes.  The only problem was that since the yellow has to go over the orange it needed two coats before I couldn't see the line.  Hence drying time was a beast.  She loved it and is rather festive.  I appreciate the chance to work on someone else.  It seems to take a bit of transition to do someone else's nails, so I can use all the practice I can get.

I used Finger Paints Paper Mâchè, Orange You In Love?, and China Glaze Sunshine Pop.  I think I would like to try and do a candy corn stripe with dry water marbling.  I wonder how that would turn out. . .

Tootles!
Fitz

TIHNAC #4

I am not happy today!  The design looks really cute, although you can't tell from the blurry pictures!  Plus it is all cloudy and overcast, so there was no light!  Curses!  I guess I will work with what I have.  Here goes nothing.

I had some ideas, but nothing really clicked until I thought that I wished I could do a Halloween cupcake nail art (I still want to figure out how that could fit into the challenge) and then I thought that the strpied would be a good background for the face which could be the accent nails.  So, first I used Finger Paints Paper Mâchè as a base color hoping that I then wouldn't have to use as many coats of Orly Crush On You.  I still needed three coats to get to look right, but it definitely is covered.  I then used China Glaze High Hopes and  Peechy Keen for the stripes.  The faces were done with China Glaze Sunshine Pop.

See totally blury right?  I took a bunch and I these were the best.  I don't know what my deal is.  I have been rather good at taking pictures of my own nails until these past two manicures.  I wonder what I am doing wrong.

My thumb.  I really do like the silly faces.  At first I made them too complicated and realized simplicity was much better.

I hope you like them.  Go have a gander at all the other talented participants.  Inspiration is easy to find!

Tootles!

Fitz