One Leaf, Two Leaf, and an Acorn

Challenge Your Nail Art has a Thanksgiving Nail Art Challenge, and guess what I may be late on doing the first design, but I know have three of the four designs done!  I actually may finish a challenge!  Wahoo!

I love the colors and the concept of this design, I just wish the gold stamping popped a bit more.

I used Orly Decades of Dysfunction, OPI Schnapps Out Of It,  Nicole by OPI On A Gilt Trip, and Julep Gianna.  The stamping plates used are Bundle Monster BM-H12 and BM-H11.

I know the design are a bit hard to see, but they are leaves on pumpkins and an acorn.

Until next time I post (which will be very soon)

Tootles!
Fitz

An InLinkz Link-up

Movember

I am sure you all know I love mustaches.  So how could I pass up a chance to do mustaches the way the trend started, as a way to bring awareness to Prostate Cancer and Men's Health.

Orly Decades of Dysfunction is one of my absolute favorite polishes.  I have used it before with gold stamping and I am still a fan.

I used Nicole by O.P.I. On a Gilt Trip for the stamping.  I got the polish in a Ipsy bag.  The polish nice, but nothing overly astounding.  The designs are MASH M60 and Winstonia W109.

I hope you all like it.

Tootles!
Fitz

52 Week Challenge: 3 color Gradient

I was going to use a design from the vault for this, but decide I wanted to do something new.  I had an idea in my head and wanted to see if I could execute it.  I know for Halloween time and being a three color gradient this isn't that original, but I still wanted to do.  I mean it is candy corn, what is more Halloween than that?

While trying to find the right polishes for this design I found I don't have a lot of orange polishes.  It is not that I don't like orange, I just don't seem to have a lot of them.  My favorite orange polish, Orly Crush On You, is a jelly. . . but it was the only "true orange" without any shimmer I own.  I need to fix that.  So started sponging the colors over white, but that was just a disaster!  So I removed everything and started again with COY as the base color and that worked much better!

The other colors are Nina Ultra Pro French White,  Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Butter-fly Stroke, and China Glaze Glitter Goblin.

I wasn't sure how I felt about the manicure until I put GG over everything as I had intended.  It seemed to soften the gradient and make it much more wearable.

I really like this design.  Of course the pictures don't do it justice, because it doesn't capture the sparklyness of GG.  I hope you like it anyways!  Don't forget to check out the other participants!

Tootles!
Fitz

An InLinkz Link-up

Pastel Galaxy Nails

I decide to begin another challenge.  I kind of missed being given a direction for my nail art.  Don't worry though, this challenge is much less intense.  Erica's Nails and More is the host and she has provided nine themes for the month of February.

The first challenge is galaxy nails.  I wanted to do something different again and I remembered seeing a someone do a pastel galaxy manicure.  This was a while back and I tried so hard to find my inspiration, but to no avail.  It just reminded me that if I like it I really should pin it. . .  (Edit:  I finally found it!  Natalie from Nail Craze!)

My base color is Orly Decades of Dysfunction.  I then sponged OPI Sparrow Me The Drama, China Glaze No Plain Jane, Re-Fresh Mint, Lemon Fizz, Kinetic Candy, and Medallion.  Lastly I used Nina Ultra Pro French White for the "stars."

I am really proud of how this came out.  Next time I need to remember to use a nail art brush rather than a fine dotting tool for the stars. I think I would get a finer "star" that way.

I couldn't forget the thumb!

Check out the other artists too! 


Tootles!
Fitz

31 Nail Art Challenge Take Two Day 28: Education

Today's them is education.  I thought about doing pencils or paper (I had done that one before and thought I could do it better. . .).  I saw some cute chalkboard nails. . . but honestly I wasn't excited about anything, until I saw someone do a design that was specific to their education.  I don't remember who it was or even what they did, but they did inspire me to my education.  I was a theater major in college and did a lot of musical theater.  I have been in choirs since I was in 4th grade and have been taking voice lessons since I was a sophomore in high school.  Music has been my eduction for a long time.

I thought I had a sheet music stamp, but I didn't.  I did have Cheeky plate CH31 which I stamped with  Orly Mysterious Curse.  The background color is China Glaze Sweet Hook with Snow Globe over the top to give it all some sparkle.  Then I did the stamp.

My thumb all alone.  I had fun using the sheet music as a prop and background.  Heehee, it was easy to pull from my collection.

All the other designers are sure to teach you a trick or two.

Tootles!
Fitz

12 Days of Christmas: Snowmen

Today is about snow men.  I wish I gotten this done earlier, at least I am not late.  I was inspired by Wacky Laki's design.  I hope you like my interpretation.

There isn't a whole lot to say.  I used a Bundle Monster stamp for the background snowflakes BM-323.  I do love the background color Sinful Colors Cinderella.  It took several coats to get this opacity, but it was worth it.  It dried quickly and is really lovely.

The other colors were Nina Ultra Pro French White, Orly Crush On You, China Glaze Red Satin, Lorelei's Tiara, and Liquid Leather.

I also managed the right hand.  Not as good as the left, but still pretty good if I do say so myself.

Take a peek at the other designers, the are fabulous!

Tootles!
Fitz

31 Nail Art Challenge Take Two Day 4: Flowers

For today we have flowers.  What can I say?  I did sunflowers.  They are pretty, until I added some flourish.  I should have said no to flourish.  However, I still I am really proud of them.  I even did them on my right hand.  Would you like to see them. . .?  Okay!

So the colors.  I used a few, okay, a lot.  The base color is Orly Decades of Dysfunction, which I love!  It is this grey, pink, neutral cream.  So lovely.  The "flourishes" are China Glaze Winter Holly.  The flowers are made with  Orly Crush On You, China Glaze Happy Go Lucky, Chocodisiac, Unplugged, and  Liquid Leather.

This design was a bit difficult to photograph due to the angle of the flowers versus my angel with the camera.  Yeah, you get it right?

If you haven't noticed I tend to try and take a thumb solo.  Usually my thumb looks best.  This time I think they all look equally good.  I am sorry, I will strive to be more humble.  Heehee.

I told you I did the right hand too.  That takes so much practice, and I am slowly but surly getting there.

Some shots indoors.  I actually just finished the design when I took this.  I wanted to make sure I could photograph it.

Well, until tomorrow.  Don't forget to check out the other talented ladies their designs seem to bloom before your eyes!

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

In between manicure. . .

I hated having those ghosts on my nails.  It weirded me out when I would see them out of the corner of my eye.  No, they didn't scare me, but because there was such a contrast between the light and dark colors I thought my nails were chipping.  I HATE it when my polish starts to chip and so I always take it off when even one starts to go.  So I took it off and decided to just do this lovely orange I got on clearance from Sally's.  Orly Crush On You is really pretty, but ever so very sheer.  I only paid two bucks for it, whatcha gonna do?  It took three coats and I could still see a visible nail line.  At the same time as had bought COY I also bought China Glaze Glitter Goblin.

I thought I would just cover the nail and then I had the brilliant idea to do a glitter gradient.  I LOVE IT!  It looks so classy and yet still very festive.  The problem is I could get my camera to focus on it.  I lucked out with ONE decent shot, but all the others were completely blurry.  My guess is the glitter wigged it out.  So here is one good shot and two not too bad shots (really they are better than the rest).

 Not in the sun, just for a reference.  I also thought I would get a better focus, alas that didn't work.  Isn't that a gorgeous orange though!

Tootles!
Fitz