Misc Nails 2012 - Part 1

Hello, again!  I went through some of my manis from 2012 and I thought I'd share some of them with you now. 

Ready for lots of pictures?  I'm splitting this up in to two parts because there were quite a few pictures and I didn't want to overload you all in one sitting.

Part 1

Orly Snowcone with KleanColor Blue Holo as an accent.  I waited a long time to get Snowcone and I have no idea why.  It's super pigmented and *bonus*, it doesn't stain!  A big thank you to Nailstah for the KleanColor way back in 2011.

Zoya Evvy (dark green-grey creme) and Zoya Quinn (deep berry).  The contrast of these colors was really great IRL...couldn't exactly capture it in pictures.

Zoya Bevin (mint) and Zoya Kristen (blue-based grey) with a little NYC Love Letters for some sparkle. 

Color Club Revvvolution (black holo), Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Orange Crush, black striping polish and a bit of silver holo glitter to give it some pow.  Obviously, this was a Halloween mani.  I was feeling kind of uninspired for Halloween this year.

Milani Violet Dash (purple creme) and Milani Jewel FX Lavender as a glitter gradient.  I wore this for the first annual Southwest SparkleCon 2012 as organized by Makeup Zombie.  SO much fun meeting some new sparkle friends!!

A plastic wrap mani using a pale pink (I haven't a clue what it was) and China Glaze Designer Satin.  Super easy mani with maximum bang for your buck.  I loved this one!

And last, but definitely not least, a really pretty water marble using Zoya Anja (purple) and Zoya Midori (green).  This is the first marble I'd done in a while and I was happy how it turned out.  I really like how some of the green faded in to the purple.

I don't usually post makeup pictures but I wanted to share this one.  I did this as my look for a derby bout in October.  This is Fyrinnae Velvet Vampire (red) and Raven's Prophecy (black).  This look took me FOREVER but it turned out just like I wanted it and it was so pretty with gorgeous sparkle (that I couldn't capture). 

Stay tuned for Part 2 - coming soon!

Primary Colors

Happy September, Kitschies!  How is it possibly already September?  Before you know it, it's going to be Halloween.  And then Turkey Day.  And then Christmas.  *sigh*  Time is moving impossibly fast.  And because of that, I haven't been posting much.  In fact, I didn't post at all during the entire month of August.  Shame on me!!

The highlights of August: Nate started 1st grade, I had my birthday, and the hubs and I got to go camping!

I know most of you aren't here to see pics of my handsome little boy or of my adventures around the state, so I'll get to why you're really here: the nails!

I'm going to start by saying that I have NO idea when I did this mani.  But, it's pretty and I like it, so I'm going to share it with you.

I believe I started with a base of white, but since it's been such a long time, I can't remember exactly.  It was either white or the yellow.

Anyway...

I liked the idea of this one more in my head than it looked on my nails.  I think I should've used a brighter blue rather than a navy.

This is my right hand.  I liked the pinky nail on this hand a lot.  And the thumb was good, too, until I knocked it on something and ended up with a big bald spot.  But, you know when you've finished a full water marble mani, you really don't feel like redoing one if it gets messed up.  Yeah.  That's what happened there.

See...if all the nails came out like this one, with the blue really bold, I would've liked it better.  Either way, it was a water marble and really...you can't completely go wrong with that.

And here's what I used.  I have yet to find a yellow that I really like.  A real, primary-type yellow.  Any suggestions?

So, there ya go.  I won't promise to post more but I can tell you that I have lots of pictures prepped and just sitting there, waiting to be shared with the blogverse!!

Happy September!

Blue Skies Ahead

Happy weekend, Kitschies!  I hope you're busy doing things that make you happy and you have nothing but blue skies ahead.  Here in the Kitschy household, I'm keeping down the fort while the hubs is on a camping trip.  On today's agenda?  I hope to get some cleaning done and I need to run a few errands - tomorrow is Father's Day and ideally, I'd like to get out while the hubs isn't home but that's not really looking like it's going to happen.

So...in the meantime, I have a mani to share with you.  I haven't a clue when I did this mani - you all know how seriously behind I am in posting.

This is 2-3 coats of a powder blue creme from Color Club (Blue Light, maybe?  It probably came in a set - those don't usually names on the bottles).  As with most pastels, application was horrible.  You can see drag marks on my index and ring fingers.  With a dotting tool, I started with SH Thinking of Blue (navy), then combined it with white to make the cornflower blue dots.  I finished off the gradient dots with SH White On.

All in all, I was happy with this mani.  I have a question, though...how hard is it to make a pastel without it being super streaky and a pain in the butt to apply??  Do you have any tricks when it comes to applying pastel polish?  I'd really love to hear them.

Happy weekend!  See you soon. :)

Motley Blue

Good morning, Kitschies!  We're running in to the end of the week again.  Anything exciting planned for this weekend?  I get to spend the day with Nate tomorrow (school is out today and tomorrow for parent-teacher conferences) but I don't know what we're doing quite yet.  We have a birthday party on Saturday, but other than that, I imagine we're looking forward to the usual 'round the house chores that we usually do.  Then Monday, school is closed AGAIN for Presidents' Day, so the hubs gets to have *his* day with Nate.  I know they're planning on going skating - lucky!

I've been so bad about posting consistently lately and I'm sorry.  Things are still in a somewhat chaotic state in my life and I have a hard time fitting everything in.  However, the last few days have been a bit slower at the clinic, so I'm trying to take advantage and get a few posts in.

I'm sure you've seen a lot of the Finger Paints Special Effects (flakies) around the blogs over the last couple weeks and you know I have to jump on that train.  I was lucky enough to pick up these great flakies prior to their official release (because I bug my Sally's girls like that) but I haven't had a chance to wear all of them yet.  I know this isn't the first mani I've used them for, but this is the first one I took pics of.

I started with a base of SH Complete Salon Manicure in Thinking of Blue, a pretty navy blue creme.  Then I added two coats of FP Motley, an awesome combo of blue (or purple, depending on who you talk to) and green flakies.  The blue flakies don't show up so much because of the blue base, but you could see them in certain lights. 

I apologize for lack of good pics of this one - we went through a cloudy stretch and this was impossible to capture with a flash. 

Were you lucky enough to pick up the FP Special Effects collection?  Funny thing: the SA tried to sell me the black polish that was "released" with this set because "they (the flakies) won't work without it."  I asked her to see the bottle, opened it and immediately handed it back to her.  Sorry.  I don't need yet another black creme.  LOL

Disco Smurf

Good morning, Kitschies!  I apologize for the decreased postings as of late.  Things at the clinic have been a little more hectic and I haven't had as much down time as I usually do.  But, know that I'm still here and I love you all and I think about blogging often. 

And since I have a quick couple of minutes, I thought I'd share a recent mani with you.

In December, I got an awesome ROAK package from one of my favorite nail bloggers: Nailstah.  I was itching to try one of the beauties she gifted me and this was the first one I tried.

This is SH Xtreme Wear in Blue Me Away and Kleancolor Blue Holo.  Blue Holo looks *so* pretty in the bottle but it's super, super sheer.  I matched the blue base as close as I could and I think the match with Blue Me Away was pretty spot on.

Serious bling, ladies!  I wore this back in early January and it took me a few days before I could get some decent sun shots, hence the tip wear visible on the first pic.  I loved this mani - it reminded me of a disco Smurf.  LOL

source

Well, it's time to get my butt off my chair and get some stuffs done...even though my butt is sore and I'd rather just sit here.  LOL  Yay, roller derby!  I'll post as often as I can but it won't be near as consistent as it was a few weeks ago.  Yay for being busy with work.  Boo for not having as much time for my blog!

Marble Madness

Happy Monday, Kitschies!  I hope you had a good weekend.  I started my weekend a few hours early as the hubs had his office holiday party Friday afternoon/evening.  I also had derby practice that night.  It was such a small group that night, but we had FUN!  We played games the whole "practice" but we still got a good workout.  Then Saturday and Sunday were spent getting caught up on chores and stuff around the house.  Nate got to go to one of his schoolmate's birthday parties.  OH!  And I made some caramel corn (maybe, if you're lucky, I'll post about that one later)...and it was goooood.

I have a water marble to share with you today that I can't decide whether I like it or not.  I don't hate it, it's just not one of my favorites.

I *love* the colors, but the execution wasn't as great as I wanted it to be.  The black seemed to bleed a little in to the pink.  The colors?  Zoya Elke and SH Black Out.  Elke looks more red than this in the bottle, but it's a really pretty red-toned pink with a really pretty gold shimmer.

This is my right hand.  I had a hard time getting good pics of this marble for some reason.  Seeing these pics makes me want to give this one another shot.

My index finger was my favorite out of all my fingers.  I like this pic because of the lighting - even though it doesn't show the water marble all that much.

They can't all be winners and it's not a complete failure because it *is* a water marble.  I haven't used Elke for a mani since this - maybe I'll give her a chance to be beautiful on her own.  Have a great Monday!

New Year - New Mani

Happy New Year, Kitschies!  It's been a while since I was 'round these parts.  I've been so bad about posting and reading blogs over the last few weeks.  Hopefully things will return to normal now that the holidays are over.  Speaking of the holidays...how were yours?  Was Santa good to you?  My boys had a great haul from Santa - Nate got his first bike (complete with training wheels) and Mason got a construction site play set with a remote controlled car.  It's been so much fun watching them play with their new toys...they really are spoiled.  Over the last few days, the boys have been trading stomach viruses...definitely not a good thing.  Today I'm home with them both and Nate's been up since 3:30 this morning with a yucky tummy and Mason's mad because I cut the tip off all his binkies.  It's going to be a long day.

ANYway...

I did my first new mani of the year last night AND I decided to trim all my nails so I could start fresh for the new year.  I knew right away I was going to use Zoya Alegra on my toes, but I couldn't decide what to use on my fingers.  I knew if I asked Nate for his input, he'd pick the most sparkly polish I had, so I asked the hubs to pick.  I reorganized my Helmer and other storage drawers yesterday so all he had to do was open one drawer to browse my untrieds (I have a lot more untrieds than I realized).  He decided on SH Xtreme Wear Gunmetal.  I was a little surprised at that choice, but I went with it.

Once I applied it, I wasn't all that excited about it.  It's a pretty color (reminds me of a black pearl), but it's a little too frosty for my taste.  So, I went digging through my BM plates and found a design I thought would work and I am *very* happy with my result!

SH Xtreme Wear in Gunmetal - 3 coats.  I used BM-210 and Orly Luxe for the stamping. 

I impressed myself with this combo.  LOL  It's pretty subtle but it's really classy.  It's best viewed in low light and that's why this picture didn't so up as good - it was taken in bright, direct sunlight.

The longer I see this color, the more it grows on me.  I doubt I would wear Gunmetal on its own, but as a base for stamping, it worked really well.  I love it when an idea comes together when you don't think it will.

Happy 2012!  I wish you all a great year and thanks for hanging with me for so long.  I'll be around more in the coming weeks.  Promise.

Winter Wonderland

Good morning, Kitschies!  It was a busy weekend here in the Harmeyer house.  I can happily say that the house is now decorated for Christmas!  Now the shopping?  That's a different story.  The docs took the day off so I'm spending some of my day "off" waiting for my new stove to be delivered (yay!) and then the rest of it will be spent cleaning around the house and shopping for Christmas.  I avoid to the mall area like the plague this time of year - especially on the weekends - but it's not so bad on a Monday morning.

In case you missed it, I did a guest post over at one of my favorite blogs, Housewife Eclectic, this weekend about Christmas traditions.  Go check it out HERE - there's some great pictures to see!

I'm a member of Polish-aholics Anonymous (big surprise, right?) on FB and every Monday they have a new challenge.  I've participated before, but this is the first time I've linked it to a blog post.  This week's theme was snow.  I could've done something out of the box, but I decided to play it safe and I'm glad I did because I really like this one.

I started with 2-3 coats of ChG Frostbite, a really bright, icy blue as a base.

Then I sponged Finger Paints Easel Come, Easel Go (silver metallic) to soften the bright blue.

The silver showed up a little too bright so I sponged a little more Frostbite over the silver.

And with SH White On, I stamped little snowflakes using BM14.  This is much prettier IRL - the silver sparkles like snow.

Speaking of snow...it's supposed to snow here again today.  We haven't gotten rid of all the snow and ice left over from the storm early last week!  I usually really like winter, but I'm already ready for spring already.  LOL

Do you have any Christmas/Winter manis in the works?

Fade to Black

Good morning, Kitschies.  It's a dreary, cold Thursday over here in my neck of the woods.  You know the kind of day...a day where all you want to do is hide under the covers with a good book or a warm body and lay there...all...day.  I'm flying solo today here at work, so it's probably going to be a short post.

To sort of reflect that dreariness outside today, I have an equally dreary (color-wise) mani to share with you today.  But first, a little explanation as to the inspiration for this one.  I was in a mood to do a sponge gradient so I sat down with a bunch of colors and turned on Douche Bagans and the crew of Ghost Adventures.  Say what you will about ghost hunting shows (yes, I know, most of that shite can be disproved, but whatev), but they're good to have playing in the background when I'm doing stuff like doing my nails and want to have background noise.  Anyway...they were doing a lot of work with black and white video and then it came to me.  Black to white gradient!

After getting the bugs out with my You're Fired! sponging gradient, I had a better idea of what to do with this one.  I started at the tips with Zoya Raven then sponged ChG Recycle and finished with SH White On.

To finish it off and maybe make it a bit more mystical (yeah, right), I added a layer of ChG Fairy Dust for a little sparkle.

The faded effect didn't turn out as strong as I'd have liked, but I still like the end result.  Have you tried a sponge gradient before?  What colors do you go to first?  Any tips for a beginner sponger like myself?

Alright.  I must get to gettin'.  It's shaping up to be a busy-ish day here at the clinic - but nothing that I can't handle.  Me strong like bull.

Inspiration

Good day, Kitschies!  I hope your week is flying by and you're as productive as you want to be.  I did not want to come in to work today.  Not at all.  And for good reason.  It's super-de-duper slow today.  Like, we had six patients between two doctors this morning.  *yawn*  Luckily the afternoon has filled in a bit and it looks like I'll actually have something to do.  In the meantime, I decided to give you a post.

I finally sat down last night and prepped pictures.  I now have enough pics for 10 posts.  10 posts!  And I'm still not caught up!  ANYWAY...I have had this mani sitting in my pending folder for months.  I was inspired by a (ex)coworker's scrub top.  I find inspiration in the strangest places sometimes. 

I started with a base coat of ChG For Audrey then I water marbled that with ChG Goin' My Way (brown) and SH White On.

Wow.  I'm horrible at taking pics of my right hand.  LOL  I like how this marble came out pretty consistent - with the exception of my right thumb.

My left thumb pattern was my fave out of the group.

And, in contrast, the right thumb was my least favorite.  You can't win them all, right?  LOL

Here's a little better pic of my right hand.  Good thing I don't have to take pics of that on a regular basis!

And a pretty sunlight pic for you.

I know I say it every time, but I think this is my favorite marble to date.  I have another marble hanging out in the pending folder - I'll get to it eventually. 

I want to do another marble (maybe for Halloween?) but I'm horrible at pairing/matching colors.  So, here's your homework: give me color combos to try!!  Please!

I'm off to eat lunch.  Hope you have a fantabulous day.  I'll be back soon with some Friday Confessionals.  It's been a while!

I'm a Rock Star!

Good morning, Kitschies! I hope you had a fantabulous weekend. Mine started off swimmingly - the bestie and I went out for a girls night out and let me tell you...we worked it! We hit 3 different bars, got drinks bought for us and got home around 2 in the morning. Now, that may not be a big deal to you youngins, but to this old lady, that's a BIG deal. LOL We had so much fun! Thank you, Mz Zombie for a great night out! The rest of the weekend was spent doing things around the house (chores - joy) and I did a little baking for the peeps at the office. They got THIS and I don't mean to toot my own horn, but WOW! This stuff is awesome.

Anyway...I have another mani for you today that I wore back in mid August (yes, I'm *that* far behind - I told you!).  This mani reminds me of a rock star for some reason, hence the title of the post.

I started with a couple coats of SH Complete Manicure in Midnight in NY.  I drew two diagonal lines creating almost a triangle with a red glitter striping polish.  I closed out the triangle with a red star rhinestone.

It was cute like that, but I added a bit of sparkle with some black glitter acrylic paint between the two red lines.  I liked how this turned out but I was kinda disappointed how long the rhinestones last.  Or, rather, didn't last.  I applied them like usual (push them in to the still-tacky polish then cover with top coat) but they fell off within a day!

And it's not like the stars were pointy - they were rather rounded at the tips.  So I don't know what made them come off so fast!!

So, what do you think?  Are these rock star worthy?

OH!  And another thing...I used Revlon Grape Fizz this morning as an accent nail and oh em gee.  It's really pretty but that shite STINKS!!  It is so sweet smelling - it made me nauseous.  They lasted about 2 hours on my nails and thank jeebus I had acetone at the office because there was NO way I was going to last the whole day with that stuff on my nails. 

Awesomeness *pic heavy*

Good morning, Kitschies!!!  I'm baaaaaack...for reals this time.  LOL  My bestie's hubs un-exploded (read: fixed) my computer and now I have access to the internets at home again!  And now I can get back to blogging.  Yay!  I can't believe it's been so long since I actually posted - my, how time flies.  I have sooo many manis and recipes to share with you - it was hard to pick what I'd come back with!

I have a gorgeous polish to share with you today.  I picked this beauty up at Dollar Tree a YEAR ago and it sat in my Helmer until about August.  After wearing it, I do NOT know how I let it sit there that long.  It. is. awesomeness.  And though I wore it in the dog days of Summer, it really reminds me of Fall.

It looks like your basic red shimmer in this flash pic, but let me assure you, it is nowhere near basic.

This, my friends, is SH Nail Prisms in Amber Ruby.  It is a duochrome (multichrome?) that starts off red, then flashes amber.

Just an FYI: I did not manipulate the colors in these pics at all.  The only thing I did was crop them a bit and slapped on the blog name.  This is just how full of awesomeness this polish truly is.  This (and the previous pic) was taken in indirect sunlight.

In bright sunlight, the red comes through more than the gold, but you can still see a hint of the amber shining through.

At the right angle, you can get the amber to just glow when it's in bright, direct sunlight.  No matter what color you see, it's awesomeness.  I'm sorry...did I just say that again?

 Clouded sunlight.  LOVE this polish.  I seriously don't know why I waited so long.  I can tell you that the bottle has not been shoved back in to my Helmer - it's been sitting on my computer desk to remind me of it's awesomeness.

I know this pic is a little blurry, but I liked how it shows both the amber and a touch of the ruby, more of a bronzed ruby, really.

This is easily the best find I've made at Dollar Tree.  AND...it came in a pack with another polish, so really, this only cost me 50-cents!  SCORE!!!  Have you had any great finds like this at Dollar Tree?

Like I said, I'm WAY behind in prepping pics and posting.  If there's a color you'd like to see next, please, let me know.  I think I have a bit of everything waiting patiently for me.