The Digit-al Dozen Does Nail Heroes: Day One The Crumpet

***

The Digit-al Dozen Does Nail Heroes

The Crumpet

Hi everyone! Time once again for The Digital Dozen week and for February it's Nail Heroes! I'd need more than 5 days to really cover all of them, but for now we will be showing you 5 of them.

For Day 1, it's Debbie over at The Crumpet. If you follow her blog, or her other blog, you may know that she will be stepping WAY back from blogging and nails soon to focus on her own life and we will miss her terribly. But you can't really begrudge someone doing what they need to do for themselves - their own lives. Debbie I hope you are able to find all the happiness in life that you deserve and I hope you stay in touch and don't forget us!

I chose one of my Crumpet favorites to recreate, but I did it in a different color scheme. For this mani I used KBShimmer Eyes White Open and Eclipse (both purchased by me because yes I'm on my 2nd bottles of each already) and acrylic paint for the red and pink.

This was Debbie's original mani - be sure to check out her post...

As always, please be sure to check the links below for the other great Day 1 Manis!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen: New and Improved and 40 Great Nail Art Ideas Fly the Flag!

Nothing to Disclose

The Digit-al Dozen: New and Improved 

and 40 Great Nail Art Ideas 

Fly the Flag!

So I'm a cheater. A big, fat CHEATER! I own it. Today I have Day 5 for The Digit-al Dozen AND the Things that Fly prompt for the 40 Great Nail Art Ideas challenge. So I did what any self-respecting lazy procrastinator would do. I combined them into ONE mani! You say cheater, I say genius.

So this one isn't "new" but I tried to make it "improved." I've done a Union Jack (yes, it's a Union Flag unless flown at sea. I know. I watch Doctor Who) mani a few times before here and with a photo tutorial here. But I keep thinking there must be an easier way. I didn't find the easier way, but I did add the smaller red stripes that were missing from the first one and I started with a red base and freehanded the blue and white around it, which was a different method.

And since flags FLY, I snuck this one in to the 40 Great Nail Art Ideas prompt too!

I used Zoya Livingston (sent for review) for the red and then Nails Inc. Tudor Way (purchased by me) for the blue. The white is acrylic paint.

***

Be sure to check out ALL the links below in both sections for all the other great manis from the talented crews of The Digit-al Dozen and Crumpet's Nail Tarts.

An InLinkz Link-up

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen: New and Improved - Double Stamping

Press Sample 

The Ditigal Dozen New and Improved

Double Stamping

Day 4! Today I'm doing something I rarely do. Stamping. I'm not very good at stamping so of course I decided to try double stamping. Go figure! However, this was the easiest stamping mani I've done so far and it really doesn't look half bad. I still can't really call myself a stamper, but these polishes and the plate I used made it so much easier.

I started with a base of KBShimmer Eclipse (purchased by me - I did a review of one previously that was sent for review.) I stamped over it first with Girly Bits Stamping Polish in Fire Engine Red using their new stamping plate. The silver splatters are using Girly Bits Stamping Polish Silver Bells (all sent for review.)

Sure you can see the mistakes, but this is honestly the best I've ever done, try as I might and I'm very happy with it! I didn't have to re-do even one nail. The only issue I had was before I got started. I tried to use the super squishy (somewhat sticky) stamping head and I could get the image picked up but I couldn't get it to transfer. I switched to the harder one and it worked fine!

Stay tuned for a full review of the plate and all of the new Girly Bits stamping polishes!


Be sure to check out the other great New and Improved manis in the links below.

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen: New and Improved - Fishtail Braid

Nothing to Disclose

The Digital Dozen New and Improved

Fishtail Braid Accent

I've done a fishtail braids before here, here, here and here. I haven't loved any of them. So I thought I'd try to improve.

But I think it got worse! I said I'd show you successes AND fails so...

The redeeming thing about this manicure though is that I used stunning polishes. Spirit of the Moors, Let Me In and Cathy from a-England's Wuthering Heights Collection. (All purchased by me.) They really are amazing and Let Me In even made my Best 15 of 2015 End-of-Year post!


Check out all the other DD gang New and Improved manis in the links below!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen: New and Improved - Spiral Toothpick Marble

Nothing to Disclose

The Digital Dozen: New and Improved

Spiral Toothpick Marble

Yes I called it a toothpick marble. LOL! I've called them that since I started doing them with a toothpick back in 2011. Of course mine have always been the basic side to side kind. So this is both new and improved...new because it's not the design I've always done and improved because I did try this once before with mediocre results.

Black and white again LOL!

For this one I used Salon Perfect Sugar Cube and KBShimmer Eclipse (purchased by me - I did a review of one previously that was sent for review.) And of course a toothpick. I don't remember where I first saw the spiral design but I have since seen Sveta Sanders do a tutorial on her IG I think?

Check out what the other DD gang is doing for New and Improved in the links below!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen: New and Improved - Paint Drip

Nothing to Disclose

The Digital Dozen

New & Improved

It's time for another Digital dozen week! This week, the prompt is New and Improved. Well goodness knows I need improvement! So We can either do a new-to-us technique or improve upon one we've done before.

So for my first mani, I've chosen a paint drip mani. I've done one before but honestly I'm not even sure it made it onto the blog. Yes, it wasn't great. Although, I do tend to show my fails, so it might have. Sometimes I just forget I have one I haven't shown you though.

I'm still not thrilled with this one, but if we do this prompt again next year maybe I'll try again!

I used a base of Salon Perfect Sugar Cube with acrylic paints for the rest. Rather cartoony, which makes it passable I think. It's certainly not what I'd call realistic.


So there day one in the books, bay-bee!

Check out the other great New and Improved manis from the DD gang in the links below!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen Traditions: Doctor Who Christmas Special

*** 

The tradition to out-tradition ALL traditions for me is the Doctor Who Christmas Special. This year I'm particularly excited because RIVER SONG with Peter Capaldi!

This is quite possibly the worst TARDIS I've done so far, but hey, you can tell what it is so there ya go!

For this mani I used the new Crowstoes for the January A Box Indied (not available until January - sent for review) called Revise Your Demise as my base - the rest is acrylic paints.

Get it? wHO wHO wHO? hehe

Are you a Whovian? Excited to see Alex Kingston and Peter Capaldi together? I'm practically doing a drunk monkey dance over here.

If I could've drawn his eyebrows or her hair, I totally would have.


Be sure to check out all the other great Traditions manis in the links below!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen Does Traditions: Christmas Wreath

***

Back again! It's still hard for me to try to think of Traditions because we didn't really "do" holidays. But every year since I've been grown, whether or not I put up a tree, I always put out a wreath.

For this mani, I used a base of Salon Perfect Sugar Cube (purchased by me)  - the rest is all acrylic paints.

Be sure to check all of the other great Traditions manis in the links below!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

Digit-al Dozen Does Traditions: Jingle Bells

*** 

Hello everyone! I'm jumping in mid-week to this week's Digital Dozen - Traditions. Thankfully I didn't have the traditional flu, but I did have a migraine which delayed my participation.

It also interrupted my "creative juices" and diminished my ability to do decent nail art, but I've always said you get the nail art fails along with the successes, so...

For this mani, I did an "Extend-a-Mani" because I just didn't have it in me to start from scratch. I was going on day 3 of Chanel Vamp, so I used Pure Ice Silver Mercedes for the bells and acrylic paints for the ribbons. (All purchased by me.)

It's not exactly a "fail" but all I see when I look at it cropped closely are the mistakes and polish wear LOL! We're always hardest on ourselves I think.

Growing up, the only "traditions" I had were watching old Christmas movies like It's a Wonderful Life, Christmas in Connecticut and Remember the Night (both with Barbara Stanwyck, the best actress EVER), Holiday Inn and Young at Heart - possibly not considered a "classic" Christmas movie, but it was on every year and was set during Christmas - Doris Day and Frank Sinatra. We were pretty poor and I didn't have a family really "into" holidays. So I'd sit and dream about what sort of Christmases I'd have when I grew up. Best laid plans...HA!

Please be sure to check out the other great Digital Dozen creations of their special traditions in the links below.

***

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen: Inspired by Pinterest - Abstract Floral and Plaid

***

Another Digital Dozen week comes to an end *sadness* - so of course I have my final mani and a "fail" for you.

Once I stopped thinking about looking for manicures on Pinterest and just looked for other things that inspired me, I wasn't "stuck" anymore! So I ended up with 3 manis for today but my favorite one I'm saving for Christmas!

This was inspired by a Vasilj Godzh photograph.

I used KBShimmer Eclipse (sent for review) and white acrylic paint.

And this was my inspiration...

As for the "fail" well it's not really a total fail. It was actually really pretty at arm's length and I wore it for a few days. The problem was twofold though. When you crop for the closeup, it looks messy and I just couldn't stop adding lines! Unfortunately it's not like getting dressed and looking in the mirror one last time and then taking one thing off before leaving.  LOL!

I used Zoya Dove and Salon Perfect Sugar Cube (both purchased by me) and black acrylic paint.

This was my inspiration photo...

Such a cute dress!

Be sure to check the links below for all the other great Pinterest-inspired manis!

***

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen: Inspired by Pinterest: Jonqal Pattern

***

Hi everyone! Day 4 brings more black and white pattern. I don't know why I'm so drawn to it lately. This is a jonqal pattern (sort of a slanted checkered flag)...

Of course it looked perfect at arm's length and the zoom in and crop for the "close-up" shows all of the little mistakes LOL! But that's okay - you can definitely tell it's freehanded.

I used a base of Salon Perfect Sugar Cube and black acrylic paint.

This was the pin/inspiration...

Be sure to check the other pinterest-inspired manis in the link below!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

THE DIGIT-AL DOZEN: Inspired by Pinterest: Black and White Swirl

***

The Digit-al Dozen

Inspired by Pinterest

Today I have a mani that was inspired by a pin of a Brian Wu photograph. Abstract black and white swirls.

Not sure why I'm so into black and white lately! My entire week is black and white for some reason. I saw a pin of a black and white swirl photograph by Brian Vu and thought it was cool.

I used KBShimmer Eclipse for the black (press sample) and Salon Perfect Sugar Cube for the white...and a toothpick.

Obviously such a random design can't be "copied" but it did inspire me.

Be sure and check the links below for the other pinterest-inspired manis from the DD gang today!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen: Inspired by Pinterest - Surrealist Umbrella/City Scape

***

Hi everyone! It's time for another Digit-al Dozen week of nail art - this time inspired by Pinterest! I purposely did not look for any nail art or manicure-related pins, just images that inspired me.

This surrealist art really inspired me - it's by R. Gegen Noviara and of course it doesn't translate quite as well on the nail as on canvas (or on a t-shirt.) 

The super shiny black creme is KBShimmer Eclipse (sent to me for review) and the grey is Zoya Dove (purchased by me).

This was the pin that inspired me...

Be sure to check the links below for all of the other pinterest-inspired Digital Dozen manis!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen Does Autumn: Day 5 and Another Easy Drybrush

***

The Digital Dozen Does Autumn

Day 5 Drybrush and a Bonus Toothpick Marble

It's FRIDAY! So happy to see my old friend Friday, except that it means another Digital Dozen week is coming to an end - and one of my favorite themes - Autumn. So I'm happy and sad.

I have another quick and easy drybrush for you for day 5 and, as usual, I have an extra. Not sure it's necessarily a "fail" this time but it doesn't get its own blog post either.

For this mani I used Elevation Polish The Arches 2 as a base and Zhenjin and a plain black creme for the drybrush. Followed with a coat of Zoya Matte Velvet top coat.

And a full sun shot with top coat...

And here is the toothpick marble I did with Elevation Polish The Arches 2 and a green Zoya. I don't hate it because it sort of reminds me of caramel apples in an abstract sort of way.

What do you think?

Please check out all the other day 5 Autumn manis from the rest of the Digital Dozen crew below! See you back here next month when our manis will all be inspired by Pinterest!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen Does Autumn Day 4: Falling Leaves

***

The Digital Dozen Does Autumn

Falling Leaves

Hi guys! Day 4 already? We just started! Today I have a sort of "abstracted" version of falling leaves done with simple dots.

I started with a simple gradient and as has been the issue all week, I really don't remember what I used. "Oh I don't need to write this down, I'll remember!" Um...yeah maybe when I was in my 20s. The base for sure is Elevation Polish Mount Ventoux and the tips are Zoya. Then I used acrylic paints to create the rest - just simple dots for the falling "leaves."

Be sure to check the links below for the other great Autumn manis!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen Does Autumn: Autumnal Drybrush

***

The Digital Dozen

Autumnal Drybrush

Happy Wednesday! It's day three of the Digit-al Dozen Autumn week and I have a really easy dry brush anyone can do!

Just pic 3 shades that say AUTUMN to you and have fun!

I honestly wish I hadn't gotten suddenly all cleany and organizy and stuff and, you know, put things back where they belonged. *faint* I'm not sure what got into me. But I honestly have no idea which polishes I used for this mani. I know the base and the green were both Zoyas and the black was Wet n Wild Wildshine Black Creme. Really though, this technique is so easy and will work with any shades you pick out.



A better look...

And you know I had to matte it. Because MATTE!

Be sure to check out what the other Digital Dozen members have for you today in the links below!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.

The Digit-al Dozen Does Autumn: Autumn Pine Cone

***

The Digit-al Dozen Does Autumn

Autumn Pine Cone

Good morning! Back for Day 2 of Autumn Week and I'm loving it...today I have a simple autumn look with a pine cone. I missed TREES so much for the last 32 years in South Texas - not many pine trees around. Not much except palms and scrub oaks actually. So I thought I'd give a pine cone a shot since I'm HOME and practically IN Hoosier National Forest.

I have it shiny and matte...

For this mani, I started with a base of OPI My Vampire is Buff and did a quick gradient with one of the Zoyas from last year I believe, but I've put away all the polishes since then - without writing anything down, of course.  The rest is done with acrylic paints.

Check out the other Autumn manis from the rest of the Digit-al Dozen gang in the links below!

An InLinkz Link-up

If you enjoyed this post, please take a second to "like" it! Thanks!

.