It's Electrifyin'!

This weekend we had a MONSTER thunderstorm. I'm talkin' purple lightning that lights up dark rooms and thunderclaps that make you jump they're so loud. Oddly enough though, I managed to sleep through the majority of it, showcasing a talent of mine. (I can sleep pretty much anywhere, blaring sound, burning lights, name it---> except squeaking squirrel, and really, that just wakes me up, I'm sure I could fall asleep to it.) The storm was SO bad, the house next door to ours suffered to MAJOR tree casualties, one in the front yard and one in the back. The tree in the front actually fell across the road, blocking traffic through the neighborhood and there were guys with handsaws cutting the thing apart. In the back yard, the guy was using a MACHETE to cut down a tree not much smaller than the one in the pictures at the end of the post. Poor little Homer was trembling all night (or so Chris tells me, I was asleep- I'd be a shitty mom lol)

A while back, I saw a photo Fleury Rose Nails  posted on tumblr of some lightning nails. After banging myself on the head for not thinking of it first, I had to add it to my 'to do' list. I figured what better time than now, with it being scary lightning and thunder monsoon season here in India. :-P

I used:

Dark Blue: Cult Nails Time Traveler
Dark Purple: Cult Nails Vicious
Medium Purple: China Glaze Grape Pop
Light Purple: Jesse's Girl Spring Break
Even Lighter Purple :) : American Apparel Esprit
Pinky Purple: American Apparel Neon Violet
Medium Blue: China Glaze First Mate
Light Blue: Zoya Robyn
White: acrylic paint

Topcoat: Seche Vite topcoat
Basecoat: Seche Vite basecoat

The tree pics!

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Talkin' About Blah, Blah, Blah

Ever have one of those days where you're super tired, and no ideas come to mind? Today was one of those days for me, but I turned it around– I found inspiration in NOT being inspired!

Here in India there are these little bastards called Indian Palm Squirrels. They squeak– incessantly. They also have little to no concept of time, because they squeak at night, during the day, and my personal favorite: at 6:00 in the morning. Now imagine that you have a dog that just LOVES his squeaky toy (I have one of those too-one who, much like the squirrel, also has little to no concept of time), and chooses to squeak the damn thing non-stop for hours on end. That's how it feels to endure the Indian Palm Squirrels, except there is no puppy-like cuteness to counteract the obnoxiousness of the squeaking. Never in my life have I ever wanted a slingshot more– I get precious little sleep, and if it's brutally stolen from me, I get mean. Damn squirrels.

Anyway, I digress. Today's nail art is literally kind of BLAH. (several kinds of blah, to be precise) I actually really like how this turned out, and I hope you do too!!

I used:

Light Grey: Nubar Marble Tower

Medium Grey: FingerPaints Stunning Stilettos

Dark Grey: Nubar Stronghold

Black: American Apparel Hassid

Topcoat: Seche Vite topcoat
Basecoat: Seche Vite basecoat

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Feeling Boxed In?

How was your Labor Day weekend? Mine was only 2 days, but I managed to get a lot done. I swatched a collection of polishes, watched all eight Harry Potter movies, crocheted about 2/3 of a sweater, and started a new book. Unfortunately, that stuff took up most of my weekend, so there has (obviously) been no post since Friday! But don't fret, my pets– there's a post today!! :D

I love optical illusions, tessellations, and all things nerd-arty. This simple optical illusion/tessellation was inspired by the fabric of a dress I saw on Pinterest. (Pinterest is the devil, but a great source of inspiration- nail art or otherwise!)

My apologies for the less-than-stellar photos, something is acting weird on my camera, and my in-house camera guru (Chris) can't look at it until after work. If I can, I'll post better pictures later. :)

I used:

Tan: Essie Brooch the Subject
Coral: Lotus Herbals Orange Alert (Indian brand)
Grey: Nubar Stronghold

Topcoat: Seche Vite topcoat
Basecoat: Seche Vite basecoat

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Off the Wall

I've been saving this design for a while now, because I have to wait for TODAY to do it. Why today, you ask? Because it's Chris' birthday today, and this design is tailormade for him...he LOVES Vans. LOVES. I mean the guy is a 42-year-old skateboarder for god's sake, it's kind of a natural fit. He even has a size 66  Vans shoe (no, really) that he keeps at the house. This thing is massive, and it is a large-scale version of a normal Vans shoe. Chris even got me hooked on Vans; as someone who suffers from foot pain from most shoes (even sneakers), the surf shoes are some of the most comfortable I've ever worn, and I've actually even worn a few pairs out. :D

Today's design is part of my way to celebrate Chris' birthday - the iconic checkerboard pattern, the "OFF THE WALL" logo, and the pattern from the sole of the shoes (both the waffle pattern as well as the pattern across the ball of the foot where it changes).

Join me in wishing a Happy Birthday to my better half! His age is the answer to the meaning of life, the universe and everything! :-P

I used:

Mustard: Barielle Aura Angora
Medium Brown: China Glaze Mahogany Magic
Dark Brown: Barielle Unraveled Rust
Camel: American Apparel Trenchcoat
White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On
Black: American Apparel Hassid
Red: China Glaze Hey Sailor
Topcoat: Seche Vite topcoat
Basecoat: Seche Vite basecoat  <----I'm adding this because I get asked so much what basecoat I am using.

This BIG shoe!!

The inspiration for part of  this manicure:

Image courtesy of Sneakerpedia.com

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Get to the Point

Uh-oh. One of those nail doodles happened. This started out being inspired by a F*(King awesome pencil skirt that Divya wore on the show 'Royal Pains' (If I can ever find a photo of it, I'll post it!), but evolved after it looked too bland. I'm actually loving how it turned out. The colors were bottles I already had on my nail table from previous designs (save for the yellow), and it seemed like a natural path to get to the picture(s) below. :)

Are you ever nail art inspired by fashion you see on TV shows or movies?

I used:

White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On
Yellow: China Glaze Happy Go Lucky
Grey: Nubar Stronghold
Teal: American Apparel Peacock
Turquoise: Zoya Robyn
Topcoat: Seche Vite

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Fly Me to the Moon

I've been wanting to do this Galaxy manicure fad since I first saw it forever ago—it's awesome, right? You know me though, I like to put my spin on things, so I've been thinking about how I go do just that.  I figured why not make a LITERAL half-moon mani?! I actually think I'm a little obsessed with this galaxy manicure thing, it's a wonder I held out until now. It's the best of both worlds- nerdy and pretty, with a bit of awesome thrown in for good measure! :D

So what do you think, did I up the nerd factor on this one, or should this design get lost in a black hole?

I used:

Black: American Apparel Hassid
Light Grey: butter LONDON Billy No Mates
Medium Grey: ORLY Mirror, Mirror
Dark Grey: Nubar Stronghold
Dark Teal: American Apparel Peacock
Turquoise: Zoya Robyn
Yellow: American Apparel Manila
Coral: China Glaze Life Preserver
White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On
Topcoat: Seche Vite

If you hate it, think of the bright side: instead of the moon, I could've painted Uranus. :-P

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All Things Being Equal

A while back after seeing some super awesome nail striping tape manicures, I decided to order some striping tape from eBay (the easiest place to order nail art things here in India). This design kinda hit me today, and I have absolutely NO IDEA where it came from, but it DOES use striping tape! The only other tool required is a cosmetic sponge! The thumb nail turned out to be my favorite, since it was the easiest to apply the tape to. I sponged the gradient first (over my yellow base color), then after that dried I applied a zillion strips of striping tape and painted the exposed nail black. Fairly easy, right?!  The hardest part is making sure the stripes are evenly spaced...or dare I say 'equal'? Get it—because its an equalizer?! *groan*

I used:

Green: CND Green Scene

Light Green: Sally Hansen Grass Slipper

Yellow: CND Bicycle Yellow

Orange: Zoya Arizona

Red: China Glaze Hey Sailor

Black: American Apparel Hassid

Clear topcoat: Seche Vite

striping tape

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Pirate Flag Nail Art Tutorial! YARRRR!

Yarrrrr!! As ye might be havin' noticed, I`ve been postin' nail art tutorials fer Jolly rogers o' th' World... thanks t' a fun suggestion (I think she be joking) from Chalkboard Nails, I decided t' do th' real Jolly Roger!

Hope ye enjoy 't! :)

Ok, that's about all the pirate talk I can handle... unless Johnny Depp is involved, savvy?

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Mexican Flag Nail Art Tutorial!

I would kill for a cemita right now. I curse the day that my friend Patrick introduced this amazing treat to my mouth. If you're in Vegas, or in the vicinity of Vegas and willing to travel, please hit up Takeria Puebla just off the Ann St. exit, and have a carnitas cemita for me. You won't regret it...promise.

That semi off-topic comment was because of today's flag nail art tutorial! I had a few requests to A. FILM the Mexican flag tutorial, and B. Show it before the other 12 I have filmed!

Great, now I'm starving.

In any event, I hope you enjoy my Spanish 'lesson'.

El queso está viejo y pútrido. ¿Dónde está el sanitario? (I hope someone is as nerdy as me, and gets this?)

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Australian Flag Nail Art Tutorial!

G'Day mates! Shrimp on the barbie! Kangaroos! The Plastic Diaries! Sheila! Bloke! Koalas! The Dingo Ate My Baby! Thunder from Down Under! (my personal fave... sorry Kimmi)

Of course you know where this next flag is from—AUSTRALIA!!

What's your favorite Aussie export? 

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Canadian Flag Nail Art Tutorial...eh?!

Growing up in Michigan, Canada was our fun (and cold) neighbor to the North and East! Trips to Canada weren't super often, but we did visit Sault St. Marie (pronounced Soo Saint Marie, and otherwise known as 'The Soo'), Sarnia, and Windsor on occasion! :) Heck, my sister and I even took a roadtrip to Toronto once. :) (I love that city!) Everyone knows the stereotypes of Canada; eh, aboot (about), hockey, BEER, just to name a few! I'll admit, I couldn't help but add an 'Eh' in the intro...don't hate me!

I know that we say it in Michigan- the UP (Upper Peninsula) especially! Heck- lots of Yoopers (people that live in the UP) have bumper stickers that say Say Yah to da U.P., eh!, which is a parody of the Say YES to Michigan! state slogan. That makes it OK, right? Kind of like the excuse 'My best friend is...' preceding whatever offensive term/race/sexual preference, etc. was used. :)

Anyway, to our cold and friendly neighbors to the north with the CN tower and Labatt's (gag), I salute you! (and make you this flag tutorial) 

By the way- the maple leaf on the Canadian flag is a pain to paint and have look like a leaf. I redid this video THREE times to get it right!

Did you hear the one about how they named Canada by drawing letters from a hat? The first guy pulled out the letter C, eh!!, the second guy pulled out the letter N, eh!!, the third guy pulled out the letter D, ehhh!, and that was how Canada was named. :)  (I love you Canada, I swear!)

I'm gonna get killed for this. If you don't hear from me soon, check your local ice-fishing hole.

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Brazilian/Brasilian Flag Nail Art Tutorial!

A lot of you lovely (and handsome) readers are Brazilian/Brasilian, so how could I NOT do a Brazilian flag tutorial during my Flags of the World nail art tutorial series? My apologies for almost certainly murdering the Portuguese language in the intro!! (I tried!)

The Bandeira do Brasil!

 Espero que os guste!

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American Flag Nail Art Tutorial!

TOOT! TOOT!  Next stop on the Flags of the World Nail Art Tutorial Express (hot damn that's a long name for an express train) is none other than Old Glory, the flag of the good ol' U S of A!

Though I'm sure that the majority of you lovely readers have seen the American flag nail art a zillion times, a 'Flags of the World' nail art tutorial series wouldn't really be the same without it, right?

Well here you go:

Triangle.

Oh, and can someone turn off the dawnzer? (please someone get this reference)

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HP BDay!

To further cement my status in the nerd community, I've chosen to do nail art to celebrate a very important birthday today. SUPER Important. Like kill-Voldemort-and-save-the-world important. Yes, really. It's that time of year again, July 31 (or 31 July, if you're anywhere but America), which means that it's the birthday of a beloved magical character...Harry James Potter.

If you've been reading the blog for a while, you know that I'm a bit of a fan. By bit, I mean HUGE, wait in line at midnight screenings, midnight book releases, and know the stupid books practically by heart huge. No, as I've stated before, I don't dress up. (I did screen print my own Harry-themed t-shirts for the 8th movie though) I'm not embarrassed of my Harry Potter devotion, because HP is awesome, and I think most of you will say the same.

So what would you give Harry as a birthday present? Some chocolate frogs? A broomstick maintenance kit? Socks? I'd make him a levitating cake...to say, I'd make him a cake and have Hermione levitate it. *Wingardium Leviosa!* BAM!

Anyway, my HP Bday nails...

I used:

Gold: China Glaze 2030
Maroon: CND Bloodline
Flesh: Zoya Avery
Black: American Apparel Hassid
Brown: OPI Suzi Likes Cowboys & some American Apparel Hassid
Pink: Zoya Avery and CND Bloodline combined
Light Blue: American Apparel American Denim
Darker Blue (For Frosting Shading): Aldo Sea You in Ibiza
White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On
Orange: CND Electric Orange
Yellow: American Apparel Manila
Red: China Glaze Hey Sailor
Topcoat: Seche Vite

Nox.

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British Flag Nail Art Tutorial!

So, because I get requests for flags quite a bit, I decided what better time to do flag tutorials than for the OLYMPICS?! First flag tutorial—the British flag! I mean, the Olympics are in London this year...

 

In the comments below, post what flags you'd like to have tutorials for, and I'll do my best to make them! :)

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With Her Head in the Clouds

Did you know that today is Amelia Earhart's 115th birthday? If you've been to Google today you did! :-D  In honor of this inspiration of a lady, I did flying nails!

I apologize this post is super short in the ways of words, but my head hurts so bad right now I feel nauseous, and I really want to go get some sleep. However, I really wanted to get this post up on her birthday! :)

I used:

Blue: American Apparel American Denim
Red: China Glaze Hey Sailor
Red Highlight: CND Electric Orange
White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On
Black: American Apparel Hassid
Topcoat: Seche Vite

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Instant Gratification

I decided to something simple today- just a plain silver, satin-finish manicure. Im not sure how well it turned out- maybe this is why I do crazy nail art- I mean- look at it...it's horrible. Bumpy, uneven, and I mean, look at those brushstrokes. UGH. 

HA! Just kidding. While today's design/technique didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped, I still thought it was a fun enough idea to share. 

I dunno about you folks, but I can't resist a good instant lottery ticket—my weakness? BINGO or crossword scratch-offs. :-D (I feel like I'm getting more entertainment for my money) Since they don't have lottery in Nevada, and obviously not in India, I only get to buy them when I'm visiting my home in Michigan, and I totally have to set a limit for myself. :-D They say that lottery is a tax on the poor, but I don't really play with the expectation of winning, it's more like a slot machine handle pull or a hand of blackjack for me... purely entertainment. When I was reminded the other day on Pinterest of a tutorial I saw a few years back about making your own scratch-off tickets, I knew that I had to do a scratch-off manicure! :)  To make the scratch-off finish- all you need is 1 part dish soap and 2 parts silver (or any metallic) acrylic paint. 

Granted, this is kind of a single-use and VERY impractical manicure, but you know me....

I used:

White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On

Blue: American Apparel American Denim

Dark Grey: Nubar Stronghold

Topcoat:  Seche Vite

Scratch off 3 nail polish symbols and you're a winner!! 

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We Can't Stop Here...This is Batman Country!

Holy mix of pop culture, Batman!  For those of you wondering WTF I'm talking about... yesterday was Hunter S. Thompson's birthday (if he were still alive), and I'm sure anyone with a pulse and TV knows that tomorrow is the release of the latest and greatest Batman flick–The Dark Knight Rises. To understand why these two events work so beautifully together, one must read (or at least WATCH) Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. From the book:

The car suddenly veered off the road, and we came to a sliding halt in the gravel. I was hurled against the dashboard. My attorney was slumped over the wheel. "What's wrong?" I yelled. "We can't stop here. This is bat country!"

–Raoul Duke, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, by Hunter S. Thompson

You NEED to read the book.

Anyway, I've had this Ralph Steadman (the artist who illustrated Fear & Loathing)—slash—Fear and Loathing idea on my list forevvvvver (Chris is a major major major fan), and I figured what better way to do it than a Bat Country/Batman mashup, much like my Dexter/Dexter mani named He's Got a Way With Murder. In that manicure I took the Dexter (the beloved serial killer) logo, and an illustration of him in the style of Dexter's Laboratory (the cartoon) and combined them to celebrate the beginning of a new season of Dexter. (Speaking of Dexter, could you believe the Season 6 cliffhanger?! Season 7 premiere can't come soon enough!)

If you're not familiar with the art of Ralph Steadman, it's messy and well... slightly psychotic. (and creepy awesome) The best way to understand it is by seeing this:



I did the Ralph Steadman bats on all the fingers except the middle finger, where I did the batman logo in the style of Steadman, with splatters/drips.

So there you have it. An explanation of WhyTF I  did this manicure. And now, without further ado, the manicure you've all been waiting for...

And who could resist doing a Fear and Loathing manicure without taking a picture of it WITH the book. This is a First Edition of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and the first gift I ever gave to Chris!

I used:

White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On

Black: American Apparel Hassid

Topcoat: Seche Vite

We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold...

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