vacation countdown...

So soon we are going on vacation to Key West... I won't have the time or supplies to do nail craziness... So I figured I'd start doing some theme nails and see if I could come up with one winner to do for the actual trip... I wanted to incorporate some sort of Key west icons... So I used the vodka print transfer method... it actually took quite a bit of trial and error but finally got the hang of it... so I put the print over SH lightening, and on the other nails I used SC "Why Not" stamped with the SH and my cheeky tropical holiday plate (which I actually purchased with this in mind :) )  I was actually really happy with the overall look!

another 4th a bit late... and since then...

So well I haven't been on to post in a few days, and I even already had pictures ready so no good excuse... other than you know... life :)

Ok here is a second 4th of July mani I did... I got inspiration from some of the other ladies at Adventures in Stamping...

So I used Revlon "spirit" for the white and it bubbled :(  I liked the 3d star effect using a pueen star plate and SC "hottie". The red was SC "under 18" stamped with Cheeky CH4 stars and wavy lines with sc "snow me white"

Sundays at AIS is challenge day, and the challenge for Sunday the 6th was lacy... So I'd seen some nails on pinterest using a sheer black with a matte top coat which is just gorgeous... So I made up a frankenpolish out of some clear coat and w&w black... the picture wasn't all I'd hoped but still all in all they were pretty good... 

Then after my lacy nails self destructed on Monday I came home and had to throw on something... it was one of those seriously indecisive can't decide on a color nights... I finally did SH "Peachy Breeze" stamped with Cheeky  Jumbo "home sweet home" keys over china glaze "Pelican Gray" with the accent nail in the Peachy Breeze and stamped with SH "grease Lightning" in the home sweet home design... Kind of random but they were ok and actually held up pretty well for 3 days.

This post has everything...

Ok so today's mani had me cracking up, and I could just hear Stephan saying "this mani has everything, water-marble, stamping, glitter, confetti and more glitter..."  But wait I'll get to that momentarily.

Since the last post I did 3 different designs so I need to go back and share those too... SO the first one was kind of interesting... let me tell you why... I have been reading about jellies and I've seen a few over black (at least as I understand it?), so that was kind of my intent to add that into this design, then I decided to alternate with pink having already used finger paints "pride" along with Revlon's "Celestial Fix" over "Black Magic" , of course I couldn't decide on a pink so had to redo the alternate fingers 4 times while I tried to settle on a specific shade, I finally settled on Essie "Jamaica me crazy" which matched pretty well to the Pride glitter... So then because I sometimes just keep adding and adding, I decided to stamp with my Konad special polish a design on the pink (magenta?) , anyway, I did really like the overall effect. The problem I had was that after a few hours the top coat seemed to sink into the glitter or something and it started to seem more gaudy than it had at first... this reminded me of a prom dress that you just LOVE and think is so glamorous and fancy at 16 only to look back ten years later and think "omg that was awful and gaudy!!"  so these got named "Gaudy Prom Dress Nails" ;)

I just can't stop adding a layer of china glaze "fairy dust" to everything! 

So those didn't last too long because the love was gone... :)  I have really been wanting to use my Orly "glowstick" but it seems every time I try I end up disliking the result and killing the design. So I thought I would try it with a turquoise and see how it worked out.. I thought they were cute... and BRIGHT :) the stamp was a rounded chevron on one of my Cheeky plates, (which I just don't have handy and no way my memory is good enough to remember something like that from a few days ago ;) ) I ended up using Milani "Aqua Brisk" and SC "Why Not"  for the stamping, the why not was darker but I didn't want to have to start that whole layer again so I just alternate the darker and lighter... The first go round I added a small heart with wings to the accent nail, but after about 10 minutes I didn't like it so I went over it and added SC "call you later" a green glitter. However the best picture was of the heart stamp design so that's what you get to see! (lucky~~ ;) )

So that brings us to today's design... it was one of my more frustrating attempts tonight. I just couldn't decide on a color, maybe that's because I'd been polish shopping and came home with a few new colors to add to my already overwhelming choices.  I could list all the ones I put on and took off but that might take all night... sufficed to say that by the time I decided to scrap the stamp design I had done several of and finally try water marble I was a wee bit frustrated. Probably in retrospect starting on something you've never attempted when you are already frustrated and indecisive may not have been the best move.... anyway moving on, I tried probably about 6 different color combinations in the marbling having varying degrees of success. Finally I decided just to do a swirl and dunk 3 fingers in simultaneously, and also decided to go ahead and use red white and blue, a bit early for the 4th since I'll likely destroy this design by Tuesday if it lasts that long... I'd like to say it went smoothly from there, but that's not really accurate... ;)  I did however settle on the designs I felt I could handle for a little while at least. then I had one random accent nail, and I decided to stamp blue stars using my Cheeky CH4 plate, but that wasn't enough so I added a coat of Revlon "Graffiti" and a coat of SH "beach ball".  By the time I got around to taking pictures, I've found that I don't dislike them as much as I initially thought... So maybe they'll live a day... :) 

OK well....

These nails are not my favorite... I like somewhat of the effect so I'll still post but with several caveats, this is the 2nd day with these and yesterday I was in paint & craft overdrive... so that they made it intact is fairly impressive... these were done with Cheeky Jumbo plate N , I was in a hurry so just grabbed the first plate my hand landed on so that I could get them done quickly... also wanted to try out my new SH Grease Lightning dark gray, so I paired it with CG Pelican Gray and SH Insta-Dri Silver Sweep and my almost always present CG fairy dust. Anyway it's usually the day I do new mani, so I should have something new soon... :)

bit of a gray mess :)

Whoooo wants more nails?

Owls that's who!  So the other day I was doing my friends daughter's nails for their vacation to the city... Alas I didn't take pictures :( but she was happy with them so I was happy (navy blue with silver chevrons, and one with a city outline) But while showing her my stamps I came across this cute little owl on the Head of the class cheeky jumbo and we both agreed he was pretty cute. So after the first iteration of the owls done with SH "Pronto purple" stamps over Maybelline "Chiffon chic", just went too far into not working land... I switched the whole thing up and decal'ed them using konad special black over a finger paints "where art my love" base and filled in with the "Chiffon chic" on the owl pattern and a few insta dri's for added individual owl color... I was pretty happy with these even with a few smear and painting outside the line issues... :) the owls just made me smile :)

It's summer... it's hot... it burrrrrrns....

Ok well it doesn't ignite really, it's just an icky hot humid mess that we lovingly know as summer in Texas... I've been here long enough, I should really be used to it... but for this nail "do" I decided to pay homage to the heat... I actually really was feeling orange and then started with an orange yellow red ombre sort of look, but it just wasn't working, so I looked at my newest Cheeky full plate and it had a fire tip... the young dude (my boy) suggested black, but when I tried it, it looked like Frankenstein hair... not what I was going for. not.at.all.  So I started over with 2 base coats of Sally Hanson Insta-Dry in "Lightening"  a fingerpaints orange (that I have the bottle packed away to do a friends nails tomorrow - I'll update the name when I open the box back up) all sponged and then stamped with Wet and Wild Megalast in "Red a good book"  - after stamping I went back and added highlights with Covergirl outlast glosstini "rogue red" and "Flamed out" was happy enough that these have been on since Sunday and since I didn't redo them today will be on till Thursday at this point... And yet alas not one really decent picture...

my kingdom for a decent picture...
I took quite a few in different lighting,
but just never got it right this time...

Some more recent history...PT II

Ok so it took a few days but back again to get some of the history pictures up so I can start with new fresh postings... YAY~ ;)  Of course I've done 2 new designs which are quickly becoming history... arrrgggh... but I digress...  Ok let me see where we were...

ah yes... nails...

these were a super fast -
I just can't make a decision just
have to put something ON~ kind of nail

Ok so just looking at my fingers, you can probably tell I'm not much of an outdoor enthusiast... and well I live in Texas and it's HOT and HUMID, there is a reason we have A/C everywhere!! BUT if there is one thing I LOVE more than being not hot, or dirty, or bit by bugs... it's my boy... So this fru fru mama went camping! BUT if I had to camp I was darn well gonna do it in style... :) I did have some smearing issues when I did my top coat on the pointer finger... but hey it's supposed to look organic right?

camouflage 

I mentioned in one of the photos in the pt 1 recent history that I bought a new black stamping polish, I am still having issues with it and the smear factor, perhaps I'm just not waiting long enough? I'll continue to investigate... with the below I had trouble with the new "gelous nail gel" by ACI - I put it in between final stamp and SV and in many cases it seems to help lessen shrinking and keeps me a bit more chip free, however, it does tend to smear the stamps... boo

smeared a bit... :( -  "love letter"

I really want to get better at photographing these things, it really does bum me out when I can't get an accurate photo after all the work that goes into these things... but I'll keep trying! :)

shadowy picture :( but I did love
these colors!!

And I actually think that brings us to the present! YAY!! So excited!! See ya then!