NPC Challenge: Gifts

Nail Polish Canada's challenge is in week two; this weeks challenge was gifts...presents and stockings to reflect the gifts you may want.  This is what I came up with.

I should explain here that this really isn't what I would like for Christmas...I think Christmas is more about the kids (must be the mother of three in me!) so when it came time to do my mani, I thought more along the lines of kids and Christmas.  The bright colours, the presents and Santa and his sleigh full of gifts!

Started with a base of colourful skittles starting at thumb and going clockwise, OPI Bride's Bouquet, Duri Taming of the Shrew, China Glaze Happy Go Lucky, Sinful Exotic Green and Sation Board Girl Blue, all two coats.

Stamped using fauxnad XL K (sleigh and presents), OB42 (teddy bear), HD9 (stocking) and W215 (tree on pinky) using black, red, royal purple and white Konad special polish and Sally Hansen Inta-dri Jumpin' Jade. I actually had a whole bunch of toy images set aside to add to the mani....unfortunately, only had so many fingers so did a universal bear that both boys and girls would like!

Added some colourful dots using assortment of Konad stamping polishes.

 
Topped with SV.

You can see my entry and others here.....and don't forget to vote for your favourite!

Thanks for looking!

Another Halloween Mani

I recently picked up Different Dimensions Smashing Pumpkins over at Missi Barry's Etsy shop and decided to do a Halloween mani using it....here's what I came up with!

Started with a base of two coats of OPI Guy Meets Gal Veston. 

Added Different Dimensions Smashing Pumpkins.  This is one coat.

While one coat had some interesting glitter, I decided to add a second coat for more glitter interest, then topped with SV.

Stamped using black Konad special polish using images from fauxnad XL K (spider on index), BM209 (hat on middle), T29 (pinky), T23 (web on thumb and cat on ring) and SdP 76 (bats randomly placed).  Please note that I may not have every single image of what I stamped or the exact polish over for this pix or others for the next little while....I kept all this information on the notepad on my iPhone but a resent mishap resulted in having to reset the phone one day last week...and I lost all my notes, contacts, pictures, etc.  So while I'll try to either remember what I used, or try to go back and find the images, I may simply not remember.  Unfortunately, this holds true for about the 30 manis I have in archives.  *sigh* 

Added a few random dots using CND yellow as well as added yellow accent to the hat, cat and ghost dude on the pinky, whatever his name may be. The Grim Reaper, maybe?

Added a few more dots using CND Eclectic Purple.

Topped with SV to finish.

Here's a bottle shot of DD Smashing Pumpkins.  As described on Etsy:

"Smashing Pumpkins is a glow in the dark glitter bomb! It glows orange in the dark (not as intense as some other colors, but still very bright!) It has black hexes in a couple different sizes, orange hexes and iridescent color shifting glitters."

 

After I discovered it glowed in the dark, I took a couple pix to share a day or so later. 

   

And another pix.  Unfortunately, no matter how much I tried, I wasn't able to get a clearer pix than this. 

Want to hear a funny story regarding these glow in the dark pix? When I went to take the pix, I thought, OK, pix for blog, better moisturize my cuticles for the camera so I did....only to think....why?!?...they are glow in the dark pix!! But I hope you can see my cuticles are well moisturized! lol!

Thanks for looking!

Another Year Older

Today's mani.

Started with a base of Jade Holografico Delirio Rosa, two coats, no topcoat. 

Took a few pix...even after I've had holos for a while now, I'm still fascinated by them.  

This was the first time I've wore any of the Jade holographics and I must say, I was impressed!  Application went on like butter and the holo was magnificent even in artificial lighting!  If only the bottle was bigger....!

I was having a brain freeze as to what to actually stamp on my nails.....couldn't decide what  images to use nor what stamping polish but ultimately decided to keep it simple as I was going to a family bbq today.  Used fauxnad XL K (index, ring, pinky and thumb) and W204 for middle using FUN white stamping polish.

Another pix to highlight the holo a little better. Unfortunately, when you can really see the holo....you can't see the stamping as well.

Added a little filler.  The different size stars were from isolating single stars from an image on fauxnad K, as was the Happy Birthday on the ring finger (the image said Happy Birthday to You...I just polished and scraped the Happy Birthday portion and stamped it.  I need to look up which plate this was as I didn't jot it down for some reason!)  The random flowers are from SdP 77.  Even thought I'm holding a SV bottle, the topcoat I used was SH Diamond Strength Diamond Flash Fast Dry topcoat as it doesn't seem to dull the holo's as much as SV, which was a tip I had picked up from a nail board. 

A pix this morning in the sunlight.

All in all, it was a good day.  Busy, but good.  My brother, who lives in Japan, just arrived yesterday and is here visiting for two weeks.  Today, my parents hosted a family bbq and it was nice to see all the relatives.  My bro brought me a few nail polishes from Japan, which I'm sure will be posted here some time.  My family will be spending a few more days with him, along with my parents, later in the week in cottage country and it will be good to visit with him a little longer before he heads back.

Hope you're having a great weekend...thanks for looking!

The Crumpet's Daughter's Birthday

Today, over at FB Adventures in Stamping, we did mani's to celebrate The Crumpet's daughter's 9th birthday....this is what I came up with.

Started with a base of OPI If You Moust You Moust from the OPI Vintage Minnie Mouse collex.  I almost passed on this polish because I thought it seems similar to other pink cremes I already have in my stash....but I couldn't resist!  The pix below was taken outside in overcast skies; it is slightly brighter than this IRL.  This is two coats, no topcoat.

Added a layer of Deborah Lippmann Sweet Dreams.  One coat, no topcoat.  While this may seem uneven and bumpy from the pix/angle, its smooth as glass and so much more beautiful IRL!  I want to add Sweet Dreams to every pink polish! 

Another view.  This pix was indoors at a window; the one above was outside in overcast skies.  The weather was just terrible while I was away for the weekend; I have no great lighting source when I'm not at home other than whatever Mother Nature provides!

Stamped!  I didn't take a pix of this but used fauxnad XL K light pink Konad stamping polish and stamped confetti on the thumb and stars on the middle finger.  Some of this shows up slightly in the pix; just added for some layering interest.  Used Konad white stamping polish for main stampings, using fauxnad XL K (balloons and happy birthday cake), SdP 62 (girl), SdP 66 (comb and perfume), SdP 77 (flowers on middle finger and scattered elsewhere), SdP 32 (present and star), SdP 67 (bow), SdP 71 (castle and butterfly), SdP 65 (sunflower) and Sdp 57 (starfish and shell). 

Added a few yellow dots for flower centres and a few other random dots scattered using yellow Sally Hansen Instadri.

  

Topped with SV.

SdP's can be bought here and I got the fauxnad XL K plate here!

I hope the lil Crumpett enjoyed all the mani's in her honour...it was a lot of fun putting it together!!

Hope you had a great weekend and thanks for looking!