31 Day Challenge Round Up:

So I completed my very first 31 Day Challenge, it was a lot of fun & not half as scary as I've been thinking it would be. I'm happy I finally decided to try it out & really enjoyed pushing my creative limits by trying some techniques I had never tried before. Some didn't turn out how I wanted them to, but oh well, I guess everything can't be perfect all the time, I will just have to practice some more!

Here they all are with links to the original posts. 

If I had to pick I'd say my fav's of the bunch were Flowers, Half Moon, Secret Garden (book), Crosses (Pattern) & the No water marble (tutorial). I'd love to hear which were your favorite in the bunch!

31DC2013 Day 31: Honor Nails You Love!

Oh my goodness, it's the last day of the 31 day nail challenge, WHOHOO!!! I can't believe I made it, didn't miss a day & really challenged the heck out of my right brain cells.

Today we honor nails that we love. It's a little bit cryptic, so I took it to mean literally a lovely lady's nails that I love. There is one blog that I follow, it's in french, called Pshiiit. I don't know her real name, but this girl has the most beautiful hands & nails I've ever seen & I would like to honer her by using one of her nail art designs as my inspiration. I have huge nail envy, being that I have small nails & short fingers, plus my hands are a little pudgy so it doesn't look half as elegant as I would like. I have resigned that this design won't ever look as pretty as hers, I can only hope it does her justice & that she might be flattered.

I did a little bit of a twist though & used some color changing polishes. So you will see in the indoor pictures it's silver with pink just like hers, but outdoors they're burgundy, it was really cool seeing the color change!

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indoors

outdoor sunlight

indoors

outdoor sunlight

31DC2013 Day 30: Inspired by a Tutorial

Coming close to the end of this challenge our prompt for today is "inspired by a tutorial". I picked a tutorial from one of the YouTube channels I follow, MadeByAdriana, she has some very pretty designs & makes it all look so easy. The design is a pin marble design, which I discovered I liked creating & it's a wonderful alternative to water marbling which is such a pain.

31DC2013 Day 29: Inspired by the Supernatural

Today we create a design inspired by the supernatural & I'm super excited. I am a HUGE fantasy/syfy/supernatural fan & so picking something actually became something of a task as I just have too many favorites to choose from. But my choice came down to that of a literal translation & picking the show "SUPERNATURAL" as my inspiration. If you have not watched this show here is a synopsis: Sam & Dean Winchester are brothers & they, along with some friends, fight monsters such as demons, werewolves, vampires, wendigo,  leviathan, etc... It's a great series & the fact that the guys are freakin' hot is an added bonus. My BFF is going to completely die over these nails, lol!

These are the Winchester boys...Yowza!

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These are the symbols they use to protect themselves:

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This is the Intro Song:

                                       

And here are the nails:

31DC2013 Day 28: Inspired by a Flag

I've been on a streak of British TV shows lately so it's fresh in my mind. I've caught up on "Dr. Who", "Sherlock Holmes", "Merlin" & even watched the old mini series "Brideshead Revisited", that & my enduring love of Harry Potter movies as well as pretty much any British film. I could list a slew of reasons for picking this flag today, one being the utterly enjoyable time I had visiting there whilst on my honeymoon in 2007 (And yes, I am talking out loud in my best British accent while typing this out) Allons-y!

31DC2013 Day 27: Inspired by Artwork

My artwork choice today is one painted by the very talented artist Leonid Afremov called "Late Stroll". I love how he layers paint on top of paint in multi color swipes creating a unique visual effect.  

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So, I commence what I think is going to be a very liberating painting experience in which I will be able to throw colors around in reckless abandonment & create something gorgeous! Well, after "swooshing" several layers I realize the paint wasn't really coming out as planned & I had to add quite a few layers to capture the depth I was looking for. It was somewhat frustrating that I couldn't get it just exactly as I wanted, but overall a very enjoyable experience. Having gone through all that makes me appreciate even more the great talent that is Leonid Afremov.

Without further ado, here are my very artsy nails:

31DC2013 Day 26: Inspired by a Pattern

Crosses is my pattern choice of the day, like the challenge prompt from yesterday, I also drew this inspiration from fashion. Crosses are everywhere, it's even on nails these days, so it was one of the first idea's that came to mind & after mulling over a couple of other choices I went ahead & stuck with my initial idea.

Inspiration Source Forever 21

31DC2013 Day 25: Inspired by Fashion

There's a trend that's been around a lot this year & that's feathers. Birds & feathers seem to be on everything these days & I think it's beautiful! My design is inspired by a shirt I found with a pretty feather pattern. I couldn't find the source to the picture so I'll put in the Pinterest link.

Pinterest link

31DC2013 Day 24: Inspired by a Book

Like all good mothers do, when my sisters & I were little, she would read us bedtime stories. My favorite was "The Secret Garden". I loved the idea of having my own secret garden, a place of solace, where I could escape to when life gets too stressful. Truth be told, Dad also read to me about another person who had a secret place of solace, Batman, who I envy for his secret bat cave as well. In conclusion it is safe to say that the idea of having my own secret hideaway is one that I find very intriguing. But since I've already done Batman nails I will stick with the "romantic" choice today, lol!

31DC2013 Day 23: Inspired by at Movie

I have so many favorites, but I chose "Under the Tuscan Sun". I adore this movie, I can watch it over & over & never tire of it. They did such a great job of capturing the spirit of that place. I had the wonderful experience of getting to drive through it on my honeymoon & felt like I was in a dream!

Here are some pictures from which I got my inspiration:

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Quote inspiration: "Ladybugs, lots & lots of ladybugs!"