Crumpet's 31DC: Recreate One of Your Own Old Manis

This was a tough one for me!  I originally started this blog for 2 reasons: to earn extra entries in giveaways by sharing the information and remembering/documenting polish looks I tried and liked.  I've felt a lot of pressure NOT to recreate old looks. which is really why I liked this--silly, huh?
There were plenty of designs or color combos that I LOVED and thought about wearing again, as well as looks I...butchered, for lack of a kinder word...that I'd like a second chance on.
With so much to think over, I went simple and obvious.  This is the first mani I ever posted:

*1 coat Gelous base
*2 coats Zoya Zuza
*2 coats Icing Lemme See Your Peacock (accent)
*1 coat Out the Door

This was actually a combo I loved then and love now.  The glitters work well with Zuza, which I never get tired of wearing.  (The whole Surf collection was gorgeous and remain some of my favorite polishes).  Zuza is 2 easy, thin, perfect coats, just as it was then.  Lemme See Your Peacock got super thick, so I dumped polish thinner in.  While it revives, it's still a little difficult, so I had to dab a bit.  No biggie!
So there it is--where this blog, though DEFINITELY not my love of polish and nail art, started.

What have you revisited that you love better/improved upon?  What do you think I should give another try?

New 31DC: Inspired by a fabric

I was a little panicked trying to think of how I can make a mani around "fabric."  I am not very into fashion, so I don't see a lot of inspiring looks.  Then I remembered my duvet.  In my first 31 day challenge, I used my current duvet as my pattern inspiration.  This one is based on the one that I have stored right now that I love.  It's packed up right now, so I didn't pull it out to photograph.  Here's a link to it, though, that I found.

*1 coat Yello-Out
*1 coat China Glaze Mahogany Magic
*Zoya Zuza, Meg, Kimber, Carly and Myrta
*1 coat Out The Door

This look also let me use my 2 favorite collections from last year.  I keep coming back to colors from China Glaze Capitol Colors and the Zoya Surf collection.  A-mazing!  Because I knew I was going to be using a lot of dots, I just used ONE coat of Mahogany Magic.  I love any time I can get away with just one coat of a polish!

 

 

The Surf colors were actually really close to the colors of my duvet, a bit dusty or jewel-toned.  These are just gorgeous on the nail and, I think because of their shimmery/foil finish (just look at it out of focus there!), are great coverage.  IF I were a stamper, I think that these would probably be really great to use.  I was just about to remove this to do a little catch-up for yesterday (things are a little messy in my family right now, so I didn't get to a challenge) but I think that will have to wait until tomorrow so that I can wear these for a full day...you understand, right?  Some polish is just too pretty to let go of!

 

Even stop lights...

Tonight I had to give Christmas light nails a try!  I was not loving my Santa bellies, mostly because I was lazy.  When I decided to scrap the original candy cane mani after I painted my left hand, I left my right hand white and just layered Ruby Pumps over it.  The effect was not nearly as deep and awesome as it is on its own, and I just got tired of looking at it with regret.  So, here is a little string of lights!

*1 coat Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Hardener
*2 coats Sinful Colors Snow Me White
*1 coat Wet 'n Wild Kaleidoscope
*OPI Skip the Gift Wrap
*Zoya Myrta, Zuza, Kimber and Rory
*1 coat Out the Door top coat

 

I knew I wanted to give this look a try and agonized over what color base to use.  I wanted to do green, for the tree, but I also wanted to use green for the cord.  I finally went with white, but added Kaleidoscope to soften it a bit and to add some sparkle.  I love this glitter so much!  It is a silver holo with micro particles and scattered larger hex pieces.  It is sparse enough to not overtake a mani but can easily build.

I used OPI Skip the Gift Wrap for my green cord.  It is a shimmery deep green that dries to a foil finish, almost frosty.  It's really pretty and pretty perfect for Christmas.  Again, I debated colors for the dotted lights for a while and chose to go with the 4 from the Zoya Surf collection.  I NEVER get tired of using these beauties.  They shimmer like no other and have proven perfect for dotting.  The shimmer makes them glow in the sun, which is why I chose them for the bulbs.

I didn't get too particular about the shape of the lights or where they were placed.  I think that I like some shapes better than others, like my index finger and thumb.  Overall these aren't necessarily my best art, but they are so fun!  It's late, so I'm excited to see them in some good sunlight tomorrow!  Have you done lights this year?  Did you find some really good color combos?  Do tell!

Diving in!

Welcome!
It is with a little trepidation that I start this blog.  I know that I am new to the world of nail art.  I am not nearly as talented as most of the girls out there who are doing this.  I am not especially artistic or creative and will never freehand art like the blogs I swoon over.
But I love nail polish!  I have always done my own nails and have loved polish since I was in junior high school.  I've loved bright, funky colors, loved glitter, loved layering and shimmer.  I like the way that polish makes me feel a little girly and a little artsy, even when I am not particularly either!  I'm at home in jeans and a tee shirt, but feel naked without some sparkle on my hands!
More than anything, this is a scrapbook of sorts for me.  I try combinations that I love, and then later forget what they were.  This way, I will have a running list of what works (and maybe doesn't!).  This will also let me support and connect with other polish-addicts out there who do awesome work--I'm excited to have a way to show some love for your art!
So here goes nothing!
I'm working two jobs and sleeping whenever I can, so my nails don't usually get more than one mani a week, but I still want to give this a go.  Here's what's going on today:

(Another reservation I have is my lack of photography skill.  My little camera cannot do what many can, and my unsteady hand cannot get pictures too sharp, so be kind and use a little imagination when looking at the pictures!)
I've been thinking about a peacock colored manicure for a while now.  I recently nabbed some of the gorgeous Zoya Surf line in their Pinterest giveaway, so Zuza is taking center stage here.
 
*1 coat Sally Hansen Hard as Nails (my go-to base)
*2 coats Zuza
*2 coats Icing Lemme See Your Peacock
*1 coat Healthy Hoof Lacquer (awesome top coat--shinny and thick to even out glitter)
*1 coat Seche Vite for a quick dry

I keep my nails down short because something is bound to break them working in retail.  I LOVE this glitter!  Zuza is the perfect base for it and I can't stop staring at it when I'm outside.  I'd love to put it on all 10, but chunky glitter can be such a beast to pry off, so I restrained myself to an accent nail.
Zuza covered so much better than I expected from such a shimmery blue, that I almost could have eked by with one coat. 
Lemme See Your Peacock is a beautiful mix of medium-sized hex glitters in a teal, kelly green and magenta.  It's decent coverage for one coat, but I wanted a little more sparkle so I went with two.  It lays relatively flat for a chunky glitter. 

So there it is: my first nail post!  I hope to get better at this--both the painting and the blogging.  Until then, this is a nice little record of my "me-time!"  If you enjoy it too, or feel like talking polish, well then, that's an added bonus!