33 Day Challenge Day 4: Tribal Nails

Tribal nails are something I haven't attempted in the past, so I was a bit nervous about this one.  I opted for just an accent nail but I'm pleased with how it turned out.

Essie: Cute as a Button
China Glaze Aqua Baby
L'Oreal The Perfect Trench
Ulta Celebutante
Sally Hansen Black Heart

Better Late Than Never?

This has once again been a crazy week! I didn't get my Friday mani posted but I did complete it so thought I would go ahead and post it now.

I started with Zoya Lael on my index, middle, and pinky fingers and L'Oreal Rainy Piccadilly on my ring finger.  Once dry, I used striping tape to created lines and applied a coat of Manglaze Fuggen Ugly.

Decisions, Decisions

Today's theme for the 33 day Challenge is "most used color"...that should be easy, right?  Well...I'm sort of ashamed to admit that because I have so many choices, I rarely wear the same color.  I use a lot of black and white for nail art and such but other than that, I have too many choices!!

That said, my "go to" color for now is Zoya Stacy.  This color is beautiful and sort of "classic" without being over the top.  I sort my stash by color and this is one I have a hard time deciding where it belongs.  Sure, it looks like a red...but in some lights it looks purple; Zoya describes it as "A dark raspberry creme with purple and wine or oxblood undertones. A lighter take on a vintage vampy shade". 

Then I cheated a bit and added Julep Oscar to the tips and topped it with Seche.

Let the Challenge Begin! #33DC

The time is finally upon us for the 2013 Crumpet's Nail Tarts 33 Day Challenge!  I am excited about getting back into the swing of things but also a bit apprehensive, hoping I can keep up!  I always love seeing what everyone else comes up with for the themes as well, that is half the fun.  Please don't forget to check out the links below and see what the other participants come up with!  As always, don't hesitate to leave feedback or ask questions!
 Now on to the nails....
Today's theme is Dots.

I had an image in my head of how this would turn out and while it isn't exactly as I had planned, I was satisfied with it nonetheless.  I hoped the two tone dots would "swirl" a bit more (sort of like the middle on the yellow/green finger) but it didn't exactly turn out that way.
I started with a base of Milani White on the Spot, then moved on to the colors.  On my work space, I dropped a drop of Zoya America and Sinful Colors Big Daddy next to each other (touching) and started with one shade, then the other, then dipped my dotting tool in the middle where the two colors met for the middle dots.  on my middle finger is Julep Catrina and China Glaze Starboard, ring finger is Nails Inc Baker Street and OPI Roadhouse Blues.  On my pinkie I had intended to just use a "violet" shade but Zoya Pinta ended up looking almost black so I went back over with dots of L'Oreal Paparazzi Pleaser a bit offset of the others then topped it all off with a coat of Seche.

A Different Kind of Swatch and Compare

Last week at Target I stumbled on the new Maybeline Color Show Vintage Leather colors and thought they looked interesting so I picked one up in Vintage Violet.  I swatched it without base or topcoat with Nails Inc Leather Effect in noho on my ring finger to compare.  Mind you, nothing about the display made me believe they would be textured as well as matte finish but I just wanted to compare the two.

The color is much darker on the nail that I expected it to be.  You can see in the bottle that there are some flakies in there but they don't show up much on the nail either.  I wanted to see what it would look like shiny so I added topcoat to my pinkie finger in the pics below.

What do you guys think?  Is this a polish you would pick up?  Shiny or matte?

Where the Heck have you BEEN?

Ok, I'm sure some of you are wondering what the heck has been going on with this blog (since some of you have e-mailed me); so here is the scoop.  As you know, I started a new job back in April working a different shift for a different company.  I am now working in the field of home health which I love....but, I haven't had time for ANYTHING else!  There have been some ups and downs at work but just to give you an idea on my last check I worked 103 hours...in 2 weeks.  Previously I was working only 72 so this has been quite the transition for me; a bit more than I expected.  I expected there to be a learning curve; what I didn't expect was all the work I do "after work" finishing up things from the day.  Most of the time after I get home, find something to eat and get a shower; then finish up paper work, I'm exhausted and head to bed!  I'm not generally one to complain, in fact part of why I changed jobs is because I was "bored" where I was, that kind of came back and slapped me in the face so to speak.  Why am I telling you all this?  Well, I finally decided this week that, even though I like my job, I need to step back and make some time for me. I actually enjoy painting my nails, coming up with new ideas and participating in challenges.  So, that being said, I'm going to do my best to build back up to posting at least a few days a week.  Some weeks will be better than others I'm sure but at least maybe I can do better than I have been lately.  I'm really looking forward to the Crumpet's Nail Tarts 33 Day Challenge starting up here in a couple of weeks!  I assure you that my stash has continued to grow even in my "absence". :)  Thanks for bearing with me and checking up on me, stay tuned for new stuff!

Here is a simple swatch to get us started, Essie Fear or Desire