AIS and TCP challenges: very very late!

Hello peardrops!

As I mentioned in my last post my old camera went the way of the dodo with about five manicures on it. At the weekend I got my new camera and managed to salvage some of my photos. One set is for the tri-colour polish challenge for May and one set is for the Adventure In Stamping challenge for 19th May. So I thought I'd combine them in one post so there's double challenge goodness.

First up is the AIS challenge. It was to stamp over a skittles base. My reading of that was to use two different colours in five different designs and then stamp over them with one stamp design. (I know that differed from many other interpretations where each fingernail was a different colour.) I used OPI Don't Talk Bach to Me and Barry M's Bright Purple as my base colours.  I used Barry M's silver foil for stamping with plate CH50. And then the Model's Own silver art pen for additional details.

And I ended up with the below. The thumb is just freehand argyle print.  The forefinger is a scalloped edge half nail design. I used my trusty dotting tools on my middle finger. Striping tape for my ring finger and finally I freehanded the chevron design on my pinkie finger.

I quite liked this design.  I hadn't really thought I would use that colour green but it worked wonders with the deep pink. Of course, as with every other manicure I have it chipped in a day (sadface) but i did enjoy it whilst it lasted.

Up next was my entry for TCP day 2 but I'm so late for that I should probably wait until those colours roll 'round again! But I wanted to show you this one in contrast to my first one. As per the challenge rules I used the same blue (Barry M's Blueberry) and red (Raspberry) as I did for the first one but this time I used them in a gradient with a gold polish OPI's Oy, Another Polish Joke. And look how different they are! (ignore the pink fingers haven't yet figured out the white balance and I took these on the fly)

I only have one more photo of that particular mani but it's a close up and I just fell in love with the shading.  I thought the blue one looked like an opulent lagoon as you could see the shimmer slowly fading away underneath it.

So those are my two challenges that I manage to do but couldn't get uploaded in time.  And now my nails are in such a state I've had to cut them right back and baby them.  Fingers crossed Duri Rejuvacote works!

What have you lovely ladies been up to?

N

May Tri-Colour Challenge

Hello bonbons!

It's the first day of the tri-colour challenge and I had every intention of seeing this one through but disaster has struck and my camera has given up the ghost with pictures from my last five manicures on them (including a mani I did for the AIS weekly challenge this week). I have one set of pictures for the first day of the The Crumpet's tri-colour challenge so I'll crack on with that for now but it may be radio silence for a bit whilst I sort myself out.

As usual the challenge is to do four manicures using three colours selected on a monthly basis. For May the colours were red, blue and grey.  You must use two of the three in every mani. You can use black, white, gold, silver and glitter in your manicures.

Based on my hideous selection last month I deliberated a bit more this month and decided to make my life easier by selecting colours that were similar in depth and opacity.  I've gone for OPI's French Quarter for your Thoughts, Barry M's Blackberry from the Gelly range and Barry M's Raspberry for my colours.

At the same time as preparing for this manicure I received my dotting tools in the nail mail and went a bit dot happy.  The base coat is French Quarter for your thoughts and then I've dotted randomly in different sizes in Raspberry and Blackberry and Barry M's silver foil.

That's it for today! Hopefully I'm not gone too long otherwise you may eventually be subjected to dodgy pictures from my mobile :D

Please check out what the other Crumpet's Nail Tarts got up to for day one of this challenge (links below)

N

Nail Art: Interlocking dots

Hello my little battenburgs!

As I mentioned in my last post I got some new dotting tools in the post so for the last couple of manis I've gone a bit dot!happy and with the gorgeous shades from Barry M in their Gelly shine range a scheme came to me that I had to do immediately. I used these polishes (only 308 is from the regular range)

and my trusty dotting tools to get this:

As always if you haven't seen a tecnique on this blog before it's because it's my first time doing it and it's very new to me.  Even given that I quite liked this manicure.  It was coloured without being as in-your-face as the neon one and I liked the that I managed to get my dots on the accent nail better than the neon one.

Now I'm just scouring the internet for more inspiration for dotting tool madness!

Have a butchers below at what the other lovely British Bloggers are up to this week.

N

Neon-Geometric-Tastic!

Hello butterflies!

Before I started reading nail blogs and started my own there is quite literally no way I would have worn neon colours especially not the two that I've worn together for this mani.

I have some new dotting tools and that along with the colours gave me a mani that I can't quit staring at and that I've got a few compliments on.  I used two LA Colours: Mint Green and Electra and a trusty white from the Bazmeister.

So with no more ado:

Check out what the other talented British Nail Bloggers have been getting up to this week!

N

We stamp on Sundays, and the other days too: Rimmel, Barry M and Gals plates

Hello cupcakes!

I orginally meant to post this in response to the weekly Adventures in Stamping challenge for Sunday (stamping over lilac). But life in the form of a nasty chest infection for my 10 month old intervened and I just couldn't get it done.

So two days late and hopefully not a dollar short here's my answer to the challenge.  I used Ultra Violet from the Rimmel Salon Pro Range (goes on like a dream and super shiney <3)and stamped with the trusty gold foil from Barry M.  As always a basecoat of GOSH matte topcoate and a two topcoats of SV.  I used a plate from the Gals' Fairies set and just left it as is with no embellishment because I really liked it.

With no further ado!

I orignally did this mani about a five weeks or so ago and looking back on these photos I'm actually really pleased with my progress in photographing my nails, clean up and general presentability.  My photos now are cleaner and better lit.  And I think my clean up is much better now because I can spend 15 minutes doing the one hand now as I get little bit OCD about it.

Even if I don't get any comments or any more followers the one thing to come out of this is my nails are looking more professional with each manicure.

See you next time.

N

Just a Quickie! Barry M & stamping

Hello Sweetpeas,

Just a quick one today.

This was one I tried out when my nails were criminally short and I'd just received my Gals stamping plates. I used Barry M's Green Berry as the base colour and stamped with Barry M's gold foil. On the accent nails I used two coats of China Glaze's Angel wings and dotted over it with Barry M's Green Berry.

As always a base coat of a matte top coat and SV's fast dry top coat.

N