Day 31: Last Day!

 

 Woohoo, made it through all 31 days on schedule! Since this happened to be the repeat theme, I decided to something kind of sporty since everyone's all excited about football.

 I started with a base of Spoiled Correction Tape, then let that dry. I used striping tape to block off my tips and a thin chevron. I used a small sponge and a small amount of Sinful Colors Cool Grey to add a dusting of grey above the first chevron. I then colored the small band in Wet n Wild Black Lace Creme. Lastly, I used two coats of Salon Perfect He's With Me on my tips.

I rather enjoyed the result after all that striping tape! I'm not a huge football fan, but it was pretty fun to make a sporty design!

Can't believe a whole month has gone by! I almost feel at a loss now that I don't have a daily theme to guide my creativity, but I know my fingers need a bit of a rest after all this polish on-polish off nonsense!

Colors Used:

Spoiled Correction Tape

 Sinful Colors Cool Grey

 Wet n Wild Black Lace Creme

 Salon Perfect He's With Me

Day 30: Inspired by SCIENCE! - Circuit Board

 

Circuit boards are science-y, right? Heh! These came out...okay. My lines need work! 

  

 I started with a base of Revlon Emerald City, which is possibly my favorite dark green polish ever. It's a matte suede polish, so it dries fast and always looks so purty. I did use topcoat on these, so the semi-matte look isn't present.

 After that dried, I used a small brush and Color Club Twiggie to add the circuit board details. For the teeny details, I used NYC Black Lace Creme (black), Wet n Wild Metallica (silver), Spoiled Correction Tape (White), and L'Oreal Because You're Worth It (Antique gold?).

Colors Used:

Revlon Emerald City

 Color Club Twiggie

 NYC Black Lace Creme

 Wet n Wild Metallica 

Spoiled Correction Tape

L'Oreal Because You're Worth It

Day 29: Inspired by the Sky - Auroras!

 

 Originally I had planned to do some clouds for this theme, but after doing a light blue and white design yesterday I figured I needed to switch things up for this one. The auroras in this one are very vibrant in person!

 

 I started with a base of Sinful Colors Cinderella, which is a light blue with a pink shimmer. It took three coats to build to opacity, but it's a very nice polish! I then sponged on some Finger Paints Where Art Renoir? at the base of each nail. I worked up a gradient by then adding some SpaRitual Undercurrent, followed by Sinful Colors Fly Away. Lastly, I added China Glaze White on White to my tips.

 Once my sky gradient was developed, I used China Glaze I'm With the Lifeguard and a small brush to add in the aurora itself. I built up the aurora with some Sinful Colors High Strung and more White on White. To make the sky look even more vibrant, I added touches of Milani Totally Cool, a purple shimmer, to patches of sky near the base of each nail. I also added hints of Sinful Colors Beverly Hills, a pastel purple, and China Glaze Flying Dragon, a fuchsia, around the auroras.

I then added the horizon and some trees with Sinful Colors Black on Black. On my thumb I defined a shoreline and put some reflections in the water. I then speckled the sky with a few stars!

 Colors Used:

Sinful Colors Cinderella

Finger Paints Where Art Renoir?

SpaRitual Undercurrent

 Sinful Colors Fly Away

 China Glaze White on White

 China Glaze I'm With the Lifeguard

Sinful Colors High Strung

 Milani Totally Cool

Sinful Colors Beverly Hills

China Glaze Flying Dragon

Sinful Colors Black on Black

Day 28: Inspired by Water - Bubbling Waves

 I tried to make this look like those super-lighted slow motion water captures they show in things like bottled water commercials. I like 'em, but then again, it's an excuse to use BLUE!

 

I started with a base of two coats of China Glaze White on White. I then sponged on a light layer of Essie Bikini So Teeny over the lower half of each nail. I used my small brush to paint a stripe of Bikini So Teeny on top of that, to act as the surface of the water . On my thumb and ring nails, I added a loose wave shape.

 Next, I took my tiny brush and Sinful Colors Rain Storm and added touches of dark blue to the water. Then, with my smallest dotting tool, I scattered tiny dots of Rain Storm below the waves on my thumb and ring fingers. I lightly touched more Bikini So Teeny in the centers of those dots, then used a toothpick to add a tiny amount of White on White for more sparkle.

Colors Used:

China Glaze White on White

Essie Bikini So Teeny

Sinful Colors Rain Storm

Day 27: Inspired by Nature

 

Okay, so I was lazy today! I was originally going to do a forest scene, but I played some video games and ran out of time. So, I decided to try a feather manicure!  I'd snagged some cheap dyed feathers at a craft store a while back, and I'd been meaning to play with them.

 I started with a base of Ciaté Loop the Loop. After that was dry, I worked finger by finger. First, I added another coat of Loop the Loop, then I placed the feather on the nail and pressed it on. Once it was secure, I trimmed everything back to my nail shape. I used green and yellow dyed feathers for this.

 I then dotted on green (Wet n Wild SaGreena the Teenage Witch) and gold (OPI Oy-Another Polish Joke) near each feather spot, because everything needs glitter. Heh!

Colors Used:

Ciaté Loop the Loop

 Wet n Wild SaGreena the Teenage Witch

OPI Oy-Another Polish Joke

Day 26: Inspired by a Book - Leatherbound Books!

 I do know the original intention of this prompt was to make nails inspired by the CONTENTS of a book, but I snagged some lovely matte polishes yesterday and just had to try 'em out! Plus, I absolutely love leather-bound books.

 I started out with a base of Sinful Colors Whipped, which I really like. There's something awesome about matte blacks. Anywho, after that had dried (which took only a few moments) I used a small brush to add columns of color to be the book spines. Book colors were done in Maybelline High Style Sienna (mid-brown), Maybelline Classic Camel (Shimmery orange), Maybelline Antique Teal (blue-teal), and Sinful Colors Strapped (green-teal), all of which are lovely matte polishes.

 I decided to do my thumb as the front of a book, mostly so I could have an excuse to look at the leather effect of Antique Teal. I really love the subtle flakies in that polish! Details were added with some acrylic paint, since it was thin enough to make the itsy details.

Colors Used:

Sinful Colors Whipped

Maybelline High Style Sienna

Maybelline Classic Camel

 Maybelline Antique Teal

Sinful Colors Strapped

Day 25: Inspired by Fashion

 I contemplated doing some crazy pattern for the fashion theme, but decided that I should try something more clean and simple after all the crazy paintings I did last week. I chose to model after this dress by Vionnet:

 I used striping tape to block off a v-shape on my nails, then painted the outside in two coats of China Glaze White on White. I removed the striping tape and let that dry for a little while.

 Once that was dry, I used my Milani Black Sketch, which is a thin-brushed nail art polish, to draw in the angled tips. For something that's relatively simple, I like the look! It was a nice excuse to play with bare nail showing.

 Colors Used;

China Glaze White on White

Milani Black Sketch

Day 24: Inspired by Art - The Persistence of Memory

 

So for the Art theme, I contemplated doing something sane like abstract art, which translates spectacularly to nails and always looks amazing. However, I am less than sane apparently, as I tossed that idea out in favor of trying to recreate Salvador Dalí's The Persistence of Memory on my nails.

 I started with a base of Sinful Colors Snow Me White. Once that was dry, I painted roughly 3/4th of each nail brown with Revlon Espresso. The sky was created with diluted Color Club Almost Famous and a touch of Sinful Colors Jolt.

 I then started at my thumb. The box was done with Sinful Colors Anchors Away and touches of Sinful Colors Gogo Girl. Ciaté Cream Soda was used for the tree and silver clock, and additional touches of Almost Famous were added to the gold clock to make it shine. The red clock was done with diluted Gogo Girl. I shaded each clockface with a tiny touch of Sinful Colors Jolt.

 

I used Nicole by OPI Kim Konfidential and more Revlon Espresso to make the melted face. The far rock was done with more Anchors Away, with shadows added with Revlon Espresso. Eyelashes and clock hands were done in acrylic paint, since I could make those details a little finer.

Colors Used:

Sinful Colors Snow Me White

Revlon Espresso

Color Club Almost Famous

 Sinful Colors Jolt

 Sinful Colors Anchors Away

Sinful Colors Gogo Girl

 Ciaté Cream Soda

 Nicole by OPI Kim Konfidential

Day 23: Mythology - Here there be Dragons!

 Mythology themes give me an excuse to paint dragons, yay! Frustratingly, this was one of those that looks good on nails but is hard to photograph. I decided to mattify to try to reduce the glare!

 I started with a base of Sinful Colors Ardoise, which is a lovely dark gray. I then sponged on a cloudy layer of Sinful Colors Snow Me White at my tips. Over the top of that, I sponged on Sinful Colors Calypso (dark teal). I added touches of Ciaté Cream Soda (light gray) to the sky, then added more depth by adding touches of Sinful Colors Black on Black. I rather like how the stormy sky effect turned out!

I outlined the shape of the dragon with more Black on Black. The red underbelly and scales were done with a mix of Sinful Colors Gogo Girl, China Glaze Love Letters, OPI A Woman's Prague-ative, and OPI Oy-Another Polish Joke. Highlights across the top of the dragon were done with Sinful Colors Rain Storm, Sinful Colors Sweet Nothing, and some Snow Me White.

 The fire effect was done with Sinful Colors Gogo Girl, Sinful Colors Anchors Away, Color Club Almost Famous, and Sinful Colors Snow Me White.

Colors Used:

Sinful Colors Ardoise

Sinful Colors Snow Me White

 Sinful Colors Calypso

 Ciaté Cream Soda

  Sinful Colors Black on Black

Sinful Colors Gogo Girl

 China Glaze Love Letters

 OPI A Woman's Prague-ative

OPI Oy-Another Polish Joke

 Sinful Colors Rain Storm

 Sinful Colors Sweet Nothing

 Sinful Colors Anchors Away

Color Club Almost Famous

 

Day 22: Inspired by a Pet - Sam's Shenanigans

 

You know, I need to stop doing nail art inspired by my cat Sam. But he keeps sneaking onto my nails again and again and again! Maybe it's because he's always trying to interrupt my nail painting. I only painted Sam on my left hand due to time, but I still had fun stringing up my right hand!

 I started out with a base of Barielle A Bouquet for Ava, which is a smidge more teal than my camera shows. It also apaprently stains nails slightly even through a basecoat, which I only discovered after the fact. I still love the color!

 I then painted Sam on my nails first in CQ Honey, followed by shading in Sinful Colors Anchors Away. His white muzzle and belly were done in Sinful Colors Snow Me White. Tabby markings were added with ColorMates Mudd.

 To add the thread, I first put on a coat of a slightly slower drying topcoat (Sally Hansen Ultimate Shield), and waited a few moments until it was only slightly tacky - just enough to stick and hold onto the thread. I didn't worry to much about fingerprints. Once that was mostly in place, I added a generous amount of Seche Vite.

Colors Used:

Barielle A Bouquet for Ava

 CQ Honey

 Sinful Colors Anchors Away

 Sinful Colors Snow Me White

 ColorMates Mudd