Off the Wall

I've been saving this design for a while now, because I have to wait for TODAY to do it. Why today, you ask? Because it's Chris' birthday today, and this design is tailormade for him...he LOVES Vans. LOVES. I mean the guy is a 42-year-old skateboarder for god's sake, it's kind of a natural fit. He even has a size 66  Vans shoe (no, really) that he keeps at the house. This thing is massive, and it is a large-scale version of a normal Vans shoe. Chris even got me hooked on Vans; as someone who suffers from foot pain from most shoes (even sneakers), the surf shoes are some of the most comfortable I've ever worn, and I've actually even worn a few pairs out. :D

Today's design is part of my way to celebrate Chris' birthday - the iconic checkerboard pattern, the "OFF THE WALL" logo, and the pattern from the sole of the shoes (both the waffle pattern as well as the pattern across the ball of the foot where it changes).

Join me in wishing a Happy Birthday to my better half! His age is the answer to the meaning of life, the universe and everything! :-P

I used:

Mustard: Barielle Aura Angora
Medium Brown: China Glaze Mahogany Magic
Dark Brown: Barielle Unraveled Rust
Camel: American Apparel Trenchcoat
White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On
Black: American Apparel Hassid
Red: China Glaze Hey Sailor
Topcoat: Seche Vite topcoat
Basecoat: Seche Vite basecoat  <----I'm adding this because I get asked so much what basecoat I am using.

This BIG shoe!!

The inspiration for part of  this manicure:

Image courtesy of Sneakerpedia.com

Passing the Torch

I'm not sure if you guys know this, but there is a sports competition of OLYMPIC proportions that starts...tonight. Will you be watching the millions of hours of television coverage that they're sure to show? Are you super excited about the opening ceremonies? From rumors I've heard, I'm SO excited. I realllly hope that they're true! I'm one of those people that pretty much only watches the opening and closing ceremonies... I know what you're thinking—She's a communist! Right?! Nah, every once in a while I'll watch the events, it really boils down to what else is on TV, and how lazy I am at that time. Horrible, I know.

Anyway, with all the Olympic fever going around, I felt the pressure to do an Olympic-themed nail design, but I knew it had to be...different. I thought about it, and came up with this:

And the non-animated version:

I love how Big Ben/Clock Tower/Elizabeth Tower turned out!

And to show you my 'registration mark' to help with lining up the animation pictures.

I used:

White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On
Black: American Apparel Hassid
Red: Acrylic paint
Blue: Acrylic paint
Blue (ring): Ultra Pro Blue Blaze
Green: CND Green Scene
Orange: CND Electric Orange
Yellow: American Apparel Manila
Light Blue: American Apparel American Denim
Tan: Finger Paints Catwalk Queen mixed with OPI Suzi Likes Cowboys
Grey: Nubar Stronghold
Topcoat: Seche Vite

Animating on nails is a pain in the ass. I must've repainted them a million times!