I Miss My Grammy.

Day 110

Hey all, Grammys tonight!!! In honor, thought I'd do Grammy-themed nails. :-D



I used OPI Alpine Snow Matte as a base for all nails with OPI for Sephora What's a Tire Jack? Matte for the musical notes. For the grammy, I used a mix of Zoya Angelina and Nubar Milk Chocolate Creme for the base, China Glaze 2030 from Khrome Collection for the metal part of the grammy, with Zoya Angelina and China Glaze White on White to shade and highlight the metal.Two coats of Seche Vite top coat to top everything off.

Who do you want to win tonight?

The Results Are In...

I was seriously surprised with the amount of entries I got- so many of you did the limit of 5!! I absolutely loved seeing everyone's interpretations of the designs from this site, and plan on updating this post with some of the entries when I'm not in a rush like I am today... :-/ (check back tomorrow probably!!)

Ok, on to the winners, which were picked by a random number generator from all the submissions!

Prize #1 goes to: Krista, this was the design that she submitted:



Prize #2 goes to Susan Holak, this is the design that she submitted:



Prize #3 goes to Bonnie Yang, this is her submission:



So, a big fat thank you to all of you that entered the contest- your designs were charming, fun, and well-executed!! I'm so glad to have such awesome readers!!!

And to those that entered, but didn't win, not to worry- I'll come up with another giveaway soon! :)

-Melissa


All the entries- alphabetically (CLICK TO ENLARGE):

It's in My Jeans...

Day 109

Ok, so in theory, these nails are fun and cool and shit, in practice, and let me tell you I PRACTICED, they didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped. The process was to paint the nail the dark blue and when it was almost dry, press a piece of jean material onto the paint to leave an indentation that I would later paint with a lighter blue... like jeans? Not so much. lol every time I pressed the jean into the paint, it smeared, and I'd have to repaint the nail and start the process over. ARGH! :-P Anyway, I wasn't about to give up... and finally managed to get all 10 nails done, and mind you, they're not perfect, but I tried...thats what counts, right?!



I used Charlotte Russe nail polish in Rocker as a base, with the jeans pressed into it, and Essie Sag Harbor brushed with dry brush against the grooves from the jean. For the copper rivets, I used Urban Vibe nail polish in Charged from Wet Seal, for the seams, I used China Glaze Liquid Leather, and Diamond Cosmetics #319 Lemon Yellow Zest
for the stitching. For the Levi's tag, I used China Glaze Salsa with China Glaze White on White for the lettering.

Hope you like? :-P

Crimi-Nails.

Day 108

Something tells me I need to lay off the NCIS marathons... and CSI... and Criminal Minds... and... well you get the idea. I'm a crime show junkie. Today's nails are my simplest yet I think, but they're definitely one of my favorites. :-P



I used Sally Hansen All the White Stuff as a base, with a mix of Zoya Dakota, Zoya Angelina, and China Glaze Salsa to get a blood color.

All I did to get this look is dab my fingertip in the red paints, blot on paper til I saw clear prints, then press my fingertip on the white nail. :-P Easy crime scene. :-D

Below the Waves Their Voice is Song, Above the Waves It Sounds So Wrong!

Day 107

No more nerd nails!! (at least for a while) I'm sure some of you are relieved!! :-P I guess this post COULD be considered nerdy, if not only the title, since it's a Harry Potter reference to the merpeople. Anyway... Ever since I bought Hard Candy Break Up, I've totally thought it looked like fish scales, so naturally, last night, when I decided to do a mermaid theme, I HAD to use it, and I have to say, even though there's only a bit here and there, it looks like the light is reflecting off of the scales!



I used:

Thumb:

Sally Hansen Envy Frost (got at Dollar Tree- can't find a link to purchase any online!!) :( as a base, with Hard Candy Break Up over it, http://www.artofbeauty.com/scrpt/scr.dll/Item?Item=1869&brand=2&d=Zoya_Nail_Polish_|_Suvi applied with Konad Plate m57 for the scale lines, Urban Outfitters Matte Nude 3 for the belly, and Zoya Dea for the belly button. Zoya Envy was used for the waist. :)

Index:

Sally Hansen Funky Frost (another Dollar Tree purchase- and no online link to be found) as a base, Hard Candy Break Up over it, then with Sinful Colors What's Your Name sponged on the tips and a bit on the sides. For the scales, I used China Glaze DV8 applied with Konad Plate m57. Next, I used Urban Outfitters Matte Nude 3 for the belly, Zoya Dea for the belly button, and China Glaze Metallic Muse for the waist, which was also outlined with China Glaze Liquid Leather.

Middle:

Zoya Juno as a base with Zoya Savita matte sponged on the tip and sides, and Hard Candy Break Up on top of that. For the scales, I applied Zoya Pippa with Konad Plate m57. Next, I used Urban Outfitters Matte Nude 3 for the belly, Zoya Dea for the belly button, and OPI Parlez Vous OPI? for the waist, outlined in China Glaze Liquid Leather.

Ring:

MAC Phosphor as a base, with Urban Outfitters Orange 2 sponged on the tip and sides, and Hard Candy Break Up over that. For the scales, I mixed China Glaze Salsa and Urban Outfitters Orange 2 on Konad Plate m57. Next, I used Urban Outfitters Matte Nude 3 for the belly, Zoya Dea for the belly button, and Urban Outfitters Orange 2 outlined in China Glaze Salsa for the waist.

Pinky:

Zoya Jo as a base, with American Apparel Mount Royal sponged on the tip and sides, and Hard Candy Break Up over that. Next, I used Urban Outfitters Matte Nude 3 for the belly, Zoya Dea for the belly button, for the scales, I used China Glaze Millennium applied with Konad Plate m57, then used American Apparel Mount Royal for the waist, with China Glaze Liquid Leather for the lines.

Everything was topped off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat. :)

All Systems Go!

Day 106

Another Apple-inspired mani today- this one is for you old school Mac enthusiasts! (Yes, I know that it's the Finder icon, too, but it was originally the MAC OS logo... 8.1 baby!!) Yay for iPad!! :)



I used Essie Sag Harbor as a base, which I got on clearance at Ulta for $3, and I'm loving it, I think it'll get used lots in the future, it's just such a pretty color!!! For the other half of the logo, I used China Glaze Secret Peri-wink-le, for the black lines, I used China Glaze Liquid Leather and for the dark blue lines, I used American Apparel Mount Royal, which is a perfect darker version of China Glaze Secret Peri-wink-le. :-P I topped it off with two coats of Seche Vite top coat to get that new computer shine? :-P

Are you excited about the new iPad? Awesometacular.

American Apparel Polish UPDATE FROM AMERICAN APPAREL REP!!

This letter was received in response to my email to Nichole Williams of American Apparel setting the record straight:

"The reason for the recall is because after receiving a few reports of bottles breaking, we made the internal decision to do a voluntary recall of the bottles on both a retail and public level.

We chose this small US manufacturer to produce our nail polish because we support their business model and have a fondness for family who runs it. However, one of the realities of all manufacturing is first-run glitches. We worked all last week with the manufacturer to make the improvements necessary for the second run. Another reason we sought out a US-based company is so we would be able make changes and now, we can investigate what went wrong as quickly as possible. We still believe in the factory we're working with and the new polish will be in stores within the next two weeks.

We will offer an exchange of two new bottles or a $10 giftcard for anyone who brings in a unit from the original run or a receipt."

Hope this clears up any questions or concerns you've had!