Sea Turtle

I just wanted to share my entry for the It's So Easy Summer Fun Nail Art Contest.  It is painted using only nail polish.  The rules prohibit acrylic paints.  This is the most detailed nail art I've ever painted!  I feel inspired to paint something elaborate for August 2nd...International Nail Art Day. 

Dry Brush

This strategically messy mani is easy and really fast to create.  It uses the dry brush technique, where a brush with very little polish is dragged across the nail to give a feathered effect.

San Francisco Giants

Take me out to the ball game :)  Here are some San Francisco Giants nail art!  My uncle recently gave me this MLB Promotional nail polish set, so I wanted to paint my nails while the games are going on.

Game of Thrones

Winter is Coming.  Any Game of Thrones fans?  I love that show.  I created these nails for the premiere of the fourth season that recently ended.

The Lacquer Legion: Fandom

"Spiderman, Spiderman. Does whatever a spider can. Spins a web, any size. Catches thieves just like flies. Look Out! Here comes the Spiderman."  :)  This month's Lacquer Legion challenge is "Fandom."  The challenge is to create nails inspired by your favorite TV shows, movies, books, music, and more.  "Fandom" automatically makes me think of comic books, so I created a tutorial for my Spider-Man nails. 

Bow Tie Affair - Part Two

As always, I paint both hands differently.  I had another set of rhinestone bow charms that I wanted to use on my other hand, so I kept the color scheme the same, but I switched the black and silver from the Bow Tie Affair - Part One.

Bow Tie Affair - Part One

Last night I attended a friend's wedding, so I wanted to do something flashy with my nails.  I've had these bow nail charms for a while, but I've never gone anywhere fancy enough to wear them.  As you can see, they are rather large, so they definitely require a special occasion.

Godzilla!

Another movie mani.  I painted these for the release of the new Godzilla movie earlier in the summer.  I love movies, so I wanted to combine that with my love of nail art.  For Godzilla, I based the design off of the movie posters and paraphilia I saw online.  The spines on his back are supposed to spell out "Godzilla," but it got a little smudgey so it only kind of looks like that in an abstract way.

Cats

Cat nails!  This is a really quick design using water transfer nail decals and a nail stamp.  Originally I was going to do black nails with red cats, but I discovered that while the cat bodies are opaque enough to show up on the black, their tails were not.  The cats just didn't look the same without their tails, so I had to switch to white. 

Last month I won a prize pack from the Bundle Monster 30-day challenge.  The prize pack included stamping polishes, nail decals, nail tip decals, crystals, and some metal nail charms.  This is my first creating using my nail art supply winnings.  I can't wait to try the rest!

Neutral Studs

This mani is a quick and easy one.  Just a neutral nail, jazzed up with some metal studs and a glittery feature nail.

Don't Be Koi

I created these nails a while ago, but was recently asked by Nail It! Magazine to make a tutorial for their website.  I submitted the picture to them for the fish theme nails that appear in the current issue of the magazine.  This design didn't get picked, although my sushi nails did.  But having a tutorial featured on their website is pretty cool too. 

Inkblot

What do you see? Did you ever create inkblots when you were little by dabbing paint on a piece of paper and folding it in half?  Well I did, and I wanted to try and re-create the look with nail polish.  It took a few tries for the inkblots to look right, but it turned out nicely.

Jaclyn's Bachelorette Party

As I mentioned in my Vegas Vacation post, I'm off to celebrate my best friend, Jaclyn's, bachelorette party.  Since I always paint both hands with different designs, this design is dedicated to the bachelorette party.  It is just a fun, wild, summery mix of designs, but the color scheme is a take on my friend's wedding colors.

Vegas Vacation

Tomorrow I'm off to Vegas for my best friend's bachelorette party!  I rarely get to see my BFF since she lives in Arizona and I live in California, so this is definitely going to be one crazy fun weekend.  To help bring me some luck, I painted Vegas nails!  I saw this mani by +madamluck and fell in love, so I decided to try and re-create it.  My nails are a bit shorter so I didn't have as much nail space for the design, but I still made it work.

Tropical Delight

Another tropical/pineapple nail.  I just can't help myself in the summer.  This one was inspired by a design I saw on Instragram by +elleandish // Janelle.  I changed it up a little, but I liked her color scheme and the pineapple nail and the blue and while stripe with the metal shell stud.

Finding Nemo Nails

My little niece and nephew are having their first birthday party today, and the theme is Finding Nemo.  So, of course I had to paint my nails to match the theme :)  I kept it "simple" with just Nemo as the feature nail, and some ocean waves on the others. #nailart

She Sells Sea Shells

Pink sea shell nails!  Bright and beachy and perfect for summer.  I wanted the focus to be on the feature nail, so I kept the rest of the nails simple since I used such a bright color.  With sea shells, pearls, and jewels, the feature nail is the perfect treasure chest. #nailart

LV Love

 
Today's mani is inspired by Louis Vuitton.  I saw these metal nail confetti sold by Bundle Monster, and the shapes reminded me of the shapes of the LV monogram.  Bundle Monster had a sale going on, so that was reason enough for me to buy them :)  Metal confetti looks fancy and really upgrades a look.#nailart

Triumphantly Teal Nails

You are probably wondering why these nails are "triumphantly" teal.  Well, that's because these nails won a contest with InStyle Magazine!  For InStyle's April 2014 issue, they had a #sayitwithcolor contest where readers could submit pictures on Instagram showing how color inspires their wardrobe, look, and life.  Each week had a different color theme, and the senior marketing editor chose five winners for each color.  I entered this mani and won for the green week! #nailart

Neon Palm Trees

As I promised in my tropical summer palm trees post, I've done another palm tree nail, but with neon colors.  This month's #iHeartNailArt contest theme by Sally Hansen is "Electric Summer."  If you haven't noticed, I'm a huge fan of tropical nails for the summer.  So, for my take on the theme, I did a neon gradient nail with palm trees, another bright feature nail, and then slightly more neutral embellished nails, so the neon really stands out. #nailart

Grab A Diet Coke

Diet Coke is my go to soda.  I probably drink it the most since I always find myself on a diet, but I do love the flavor of it.  On these hot summer days, a cool refreshing Diet Coke does wonders.  To commemorate my love, I decided to paint Diet Coke nails. #nailart

Tropical Summer Palm Trees

Summer needs lots of tropical nails.  With warm colors, palm trees, and a touch of gold, this mani makes me want to drink mai tais and go to the beach.  #nailart

June Nail Art Society - Red Glitter

If you are lost when it comes to nail art, Nail Art Society is here to rescue you.  With a membership, each month they'll send a box with nail polish, tools, and nail art accessories.  I saw a promo to get your first box free, so I decided to sign up.  The first box I received was for the month of June. 

Pineapple Paradise

Summer calls for a tropical paradise.  My mom is from Maui, so growing up, every summer we would go to Hawaii to visit my grandma.  We'd eat fresh pineapple, shave ice, and Maui hotdogs.  I didn't go to Maui this summer, so I painted a pineapple inspired mani instead.  It's definitely not the same as actually going to Hawaii, but the summery feel still brings a smile to my face. #nailart

Follow Me

 

Social media is critical in today's world.  Everyone is connected...figuratively through online connections, as well as literally connected to their phones that are in hand at all times.  No matter where you look, you can see someone looking at their phone - perusing Instagram, reading tweets, checking status updates on Facebook, etc.  We can't get enough!  So, I give you my social media nails :) #nailart

Happy Fourth of July

Happy 4th of July!  Today always calls for lots of red, white, and blue.  Originally, I was just going to paint my nails with red glitter polish and call it a day.  But a nail art blog requires some art.  Adding the blue to create the stars definitely takes this patriotic mani to the next level. #nailart

Office Upgrade

Just a quick post...  I had an interview today so I had to have plain conservative nails.  While a pale pink is nice, I like a little more flashiness to my nails.  In less than 5 minutes, you can upgrade any plain nail to take you from the office, to a night out on the town.  Here, I just added a few strips of gold nail tape, some glitter, and sealed with a quick dry top coat.

That's How I Roll

Sushi Nails!!!  I originally created these nails for my "fish theme" entry for Nail It! Magazine.  For each issue, they post three themes and ask readers to submit designs.  If you love nail art, I highly suggest subscribing to this magazine.  It is full of inspiring designs, and great tips and tricks. #nailart

I decided to do sushi as my version of "fish" because I LOVE sushi and it's made with fish.  I figured it would be different, making my mani stand out and giving me a better chance at getting in the magazine.  It worked!  In the July/August 2014 issue out now, my sushi nail art can be seen on page 63. 

If you want to submit designs for future issues, check out their website for more information.  Currently, they are accepting submissions with "Holiday," "Autumn," and "Feathers," themes for the November/December 2014 issue.