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Monday 27 May 2013

Cheeky Stamping Extravaganza

Hey all,
Last week I had the pleasure of going to Dagadelic's university graduation ceremony. 
We made an event of it, dinner with friends and a concert.
In honour of her day I told her to inspire my manicure.
So she says...
"Purple, sparkle, stamping"
The first 2 are D to a T.
And stamping?
Hallelujah girlfriend!
Perfect time to use my new Cheeky Stamping Plate "Viva Mexico"

"Don't walk behind me; I may not lead
Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow.
Walk beside me and be my friend"
Albert Camus

This one's for you D!


A holographic/creme gradient with skull stamps!
I know it's kinda strange, skulls for a graduation. 
But the large sugar skull reminded me of one of D's old Halloween costumes. 
And I just went with it. 
Graduation. Movement. Growth. Change. Mortality.
There. Now it makes sense.


Unfortunately I was being lazy and didn't snap pictures until 3 days after painting.
But it held up incredibly well, with minor filing. 
I'm really happy with it. The colours are great together.
Everything pops :)


I had to do some of the smaller stamps on my thumbs. 
They're too cute to pass up! I love that little mariachi! 


I used Color Club - Eternal Beauty & Sally Hansen - Lively Lilac for the gradient
And stamped with A-England - Tristam 

I'm really happy with my Cheeky Viva Mexico plate. 
The images are etched quiet deeply and transfer amazingly. 
This plate especially is like none other I've seen before.
This is right up my alley, I'm a sucker for Mexicana.
If you like stamping, check out Cheeky
Great prices, fast shipping, tons of selection.

Here's the first manicure I created using the plate.


The images are larger than Bundle Monster so you don't have to worry about being so precise. 


I love the guy on my thumb. It looked absolutely amazing.
So bold and crisp.


I used Color Club - Over the Moon
& Zoya - Reagan


That's it folks.
Time for hotdogs with my little brother. 
Going to load up on hotdog relish (my favourite) and sauerkraut! Om nom!
 Have a great Monday and an awesome rest of the week.
jeebjeeb

Friday 24 May 2013

7 Deadly Sins Challenge - Wrath


Hey all,
Today I bring you WRATH! :D

"Get mad trying, again, that technique you know will be a fail"

Whenever I've tried french manicures in the past, I've failed.
It should be so easy! But it never looked right to me.
So I gave up on the whole look.

Thankfully this challenge forced me to realize...


I can do it!!! 
Now I know the secret to success... Striping tape!
Using regular tape leaves the line too flat. But with striping tape 
you can create just the perfect little bit of curve.
I'm so happy with this.


And I didn't use any base colour! (That's all me baby)
I've been dying to use "bare" nail for a long time now. It's so sophisticated and chic. 
But I was also wanted something fun and summery, so I opted for red tips.
I really love the little flash of colour. 


I used Nubar - On the Radar
and Seche Vite Base & Topcoat

I've been falling behind on my blogging lately, bad girl.
It's been a bit of a busy week. But after tonight I should be catching up.
Although I just got a tablet computer, and there are so many fun games on it, it's hard to tear myself away. :)
Damn you Tiny Tower!!!

Well I hope everyone has a great Friday.
I got up super bright and early this morning for a very special event.
(But more on the next post :P)
And the festivities continue all day, concluding with a very awesome concert!
THE SUPERSUCKERS!!!!!!
The Greatest Rock n' Roll band in the World.
No lies.
Enjoy this ditty, I'll be hard core rocking out to it later :)


And be sure to check out the other Wrath manis!
Have a great Friday and an awesome manicure!
jeebjeeb

Saturday 18 May 2013

7 Deadly Sins Challenge - Sloth


Hey All,
We are now half way through the 7 Deadly Sins Challenge!
Bring on Sloth. Let's get lazy!

"Create a manicure inspired by your laziness... or whatever... I'm so tired..."

When I'm feeling lethargic I don't do any art. I pick something spectacular and let the colour do the talking.
What a perfect time to break out a brand new Zoya PixieDust!
I give you my quickest, laziest manicure possible. 


What's lazier than a polish that requires no base or topcoat?
This took a total of 10 minutes.


I added the apple because I've been dying to use it, it's so fricken cute.
 I applied topcoat to keep it in place. It's the first time I've used topcoat on PixieDust. 
It's super pretty but not quite obvious in the photos.


This is Destiny. A lovely coral with golden shimmer.
Other than it's cheeseball name it is a gorgeous polish.
What do you think?

This bottle shot isn't right. It's really a deep coral. :P

Lisa from The Polish Playground was nice enough to nominate me for the Best Blog award.
It's pretty much the same as The Liebster. Answering and asking of questions.
In the spirit of my laziness I'll answer her questions but I won't be nominating anyone. :P

1. Do you have any siblings?
   I have a younger brother. Much younger, 14 year difference. And I have adopted my boyfriend's little brother and his girlfriend as my siblings. So 3 younger siblings in total. 
2. What's your guilty pleasure?
   I don't have any pleasures I feel guilty about :P
3. What's your zodiac sign?
   Sagittarius.
4. What's your favorite color?
   Green. Especially dusty sage.
5. Your favorite genre of music to listen to?
   Rock n' Roll.
6. What's your one favorite nail polish at the moment?
    That's a hard one! But I'll go with color Club - Beyond. Such a fantastic black holo.
7. What was your first ever nail polish you bought?
    The polish that got me back into doing my nails was Essie - A Cut Above. It changed everything.
8. What colors do you have the most of in your collection?
    Greens and blues.
9. What's your favorite nail polish finish to wear?
    Creme. It's just so smooth and sophisticated.
10. What's your most expensive nail polish that you own?
     My $15 polishes. Enchated Polish & piCture pOlish.
11. Do you prefer short or long nails?
     Medium? Not too long, not too short. If they're too long they're a problem at work and they chip faster.

Muse-ic
In honour of this weeks theme I've got Lazy by The Heartless Bastards.
I don't know what she's saying half the time, but I still love this song.
Enjoy!



I hope everyone has a good weekend, and an awesome long weekend if you're in Canada.
Not looking too nice here on the west coast. It's grey and windy.
That's why I've planned a movie night. Cosy inside fun :) I can't wait.
If you're also having inside time you should check out the other Sloth manicures! There's some pretty fantastic art.
Have a great day and an awesome manicure.
jeebjeeb

Monday 13 May 2013

Jamaican Mon-icure

Hey all,
Happy Monday :|
How was your weekend?
I didn't finish my crochet project as I'd hoped. I spent too much time zoned out on the net :P
But it was worth it and not a complete waste of time. So new goal, finish project by end of the week.
I'm pretty leisurely when the projects are only for me. I actually started this one in June of last year. :S

Thankfully I was able to complete a manicure.


I did a lovely tape job using the other Nubar polishes from the same collection as My New Obsession
And I couldn't resist topping it with Northern Lights topcoat.
I have a feeling this is going to happen quite often :)


But after all that I didn't feel that the manicure was done yet.
3 colours and glitter, but just not satisfied.
So I decided I had to try water spotted nails


But I was in one of those incredibly ambitious AND lazy moods.
I re-watched some tutorials and was totally ready for a new challenge.
Except I didn't have any spray hand sanitiser (as most tutorials call for) and I was too lazy to go to the store.


Instead I searched my bathroom for anything in a spray container with alcohol as the main ingredient.
And viola! Lucas' old and unused hair spray! I was saved!


Well... maybe not. 
Here's a warning for you. If you are going to attempt the water spotted technique do not use an aerosol can.
I either sprayed too little or waaaaay too much, obliterating the polish. 
I should have known better. But I was determined to see it through.


 Despite my frustrations, I like it. I'm satisfied. manicure complete. 
What do you think? Did I ruin a perfectly good tape up?



 I'd have to say my favourite finger is the thumb on the right.
That was the first one I did and it looks the most like a true water spotted.
I used Sally Hansen - Blackout, Nubar - On the Radar, Resort Yellow & Into the Wild and Northern Lights.


Everyone at work commented on how Jamaican my colours were.
So that's why I named it my Jamaican Mon-icure.
And to continue with that theme...

Muse-ic

Of course I have to pick a Bob Marley tune.
But I never pick the obvious, no matter how much I love Jamming or I Shot the Sheriff.
Did you know before Bob was the king of rasta he was a teen hearthrob?
I didn't learn this till I recently watched Marley a documentary from 2012.
That's why I love documentaries. You learn so much!
Like Bob Marley and the Wailers covering American teen songs and infusing them with ska flavour in 1963!
Enjoy!


Have a great week and an awesome manicure!
jeebjeeb

Saturday 11 May 2013

Nubar - My New Obsession with accent

Hey all,
Happy Saturday! What have you got going on? I stayed up late last night watching Law & Order: SVU and trying to crochet. I love SVU. It's one of my top 5 all time best tv shows. So many great guest stars and incredibly disturbed plot twists. But this morning I realize, I shouldn't watch it just before bed. I dreamt that I was trying to convince a woman to press charges against her rapist. Pretty intense. And then I wake up kind of stunned, trying to piece it all together. I often have dark and complex dreams. My albatross.

So I finally decided to break out My New Obsession from Nubar's My Sweet Escape collection.
I had previously used it in this saran manicure and was left anxious to see it on its own.


To jazz things up I did a jelly sandwich accent
with Models Own - Dancing Queen & then Zoya - Frida
Frida toned down the glitter just a bit, giving it the perfect tint to match the blue.


Dancing Queen is chalk full of blue, green and gold hexes, holographic diamonds
and random shaped blue iridescent glitter.
Super interesting and fun, this baby was a gift from Dagadelic <3


I really like this shade of blue. Vibrant and bold.
The only way I can think to define it would be "hot blue", blue's equivalent to hot pink.
The formula was great, a little on the thin side but still easy to work with.
This is a very juicy creme. I liked it so much I bought 2 more from this collection. :)
Hopefully I'll have some fun art with them coming up soon.


I hope everyone has a good Mother's Day tomorrow. 
Have a great weekend and an awesome manicure!
jeebjeeb

Thursday 9 May 2013

7 Deadly Sins Challenge - Greed

Hey all,
It's that time again!


7 Deadly Sins Challenge! This week - Greed
Inspirations - Use your most expensive and precious polish & more is more.

On the top of my precious list is Enchanted Polish.
So I knew I had to do a Greed Gradient


I sponged the gradient over black, Zoya Raven, to make the polish pop


And since more is more, I topped it of with Northern Lights holographic topcoat to give it a little extra somethin-somethin
These polishes already contain this type of sparkle, so the topcoat is indistinguishable from the polish.
But my lord how it amps it up! 


I used Enchanted Polish - Mean Mr. Mustard & Magical Mystery Tour.
They are some of the priciest in my collection, but it's their uniqueness that makes them the most precious.
That and their Beatles song names :) 

Nothing more beautiful than polishes in sunset
I love these two together. When MMT is flashing purple it's like I have Hulk nails! 
And when it's flashing Teal, Mr. Mustard looks much more gold.


What do you think?

I hope everyone has a good Friday tomorrow. Any weekend plans?
I'm so close to finishing my crochet project, I'm so excited!
My goal is to get it done this weekend, but I'll have to do some serious stitching.
Be sure to checkout the other awesome Greed manicures below!
Have an awesome weekend and an amazing manicure.
jeebjeeb

Monday 6 May 2013

7 Deadly Sins Challenge - Gluttony

Hey all,
Hope you had a great weekend. What did you get up to? It's been amazingly beautiful here on the west coast. Like full on summer, I'm so happy. I want to get out and run around. Literally. I have this urge to sprint, which is pretty bizarre for me. I'm going to try to act on this impulse. It can't hurt. Well yes, it definitely can. Maybe that's what I want. To be happily hurting.

The 7 Deadly Sins theme of the week is Gluttony. 
I decided to combine both options for this week and do both a sugar spun and food inspired mani.
This is my ode to the donut.


This was my first time trying sugar spun and honestly, I hated it. 
The pink was so-so. I wasn't thrilled with the look but hoped the purple would liven it up. 
Nope. The purple was having none of it. Maybe it was the jelly polish, maybe it was me. But it just wasn't working out. 
Despite my frustrations I carried on. It wasn't quite sugar spun, but it did look like donut jelly.
On my index finger and thumb I stamped a couple of donuts and painted on some jelly with a dotter.

Thumb
After I stamped I was feeling a lot better about the manicure.
I love the little donuts. So fricken cute! And the icing is just perfect.
Not a total failure. Two out of five fingers ain't bad I guess. 
 I used all Zoyas. Jacqueline as my base. Nina to stamp.
And Paloma & Katherine as my sugar.


More Lieb - scheisse
As promised, here are Dagadelic's Liebster questions.
I decided to answer them because I think it's fun, so why not.
And in fun colours!

1. Do you consider yourself an introvert or an extrovert? Why?
Introvert. Why? Because I feel incredibly uncomfortable meeting new people. I have a hard time with social situations unless it involves people I have known for a long time. I don't know how to act, what to do. I'm never quite sure of what's expected of me. I spend my life in my head, my inner world. It is more satisfying and fulfilling.
2. Do you dance when you’re alone?
Most every time. :)
3. Favourite article of clothing and why.
I can't pick just one, but I would have to say my button up shirts. In essence,they are mens shirts. They make me feel powerful and strong. Yet they accentuate my waste and hips and make me feel attractive. I love their duality. 
4. Do you have a favourite photo of yourself? If so, Describe it.
Sure. I'll pick a photo of me at 3 years old, camping with my parents. I'm standing between two trees with my incredibly blonde curly hair, my little t-shirt emblazoned with Johnny Rotten, and one yellow plastic sandal on my little foot. Looking at this photo the course of my life makes sense to me. I am exactly who I'm supposed to be.
5. Can you speak any other languages? If you don’t, what language would you like to learn to speak?
Yo hablo un poco espanol. I wish I spoke more spanish, and I've always wanted to learn German. Guess I should work on that. 
6. Name a board/card/puzzle game you excel at. 
I used to be a Yahtzee fiend.
7. What’s your favourite feature about yourself and why? It can be a physical characteristic or a personality characteristic. 
My ability to be silent. I have been an incredibly quiet person my whole life. (See 1st question :P) And I've taken quite a bit of flack for it. Apparently nothing is more threatening than someone who doesn't say much. To others it's a "problem". I'm deficient. I need to work on it. Time and time again people have told me to change. But I don't want to. There is nothing wrong with thinking more than you talk. There is nothing wrong with being an observer. Silence is my power.
8. Name something you’re afraid of. 
Heights. 
9. What’s an outfit/hairstyle you regret having done?
When I was in grade 8 pants with built in skirts became popular. It was pretty dumb. A mini shirt over pants of the same fabric. Why? My pants weren't super ugly, but it was just ridiculous a fad. Anyone remember those? 
10. Do you have a favourite song? Name it and describe why it’s your favourite.
I have a million favourite songs. But lets go with Rebel Girl by Bikini Kill. I heard it for the first time a few years ago. It struck a major chord. It's exactly what I needed to hear when I was a teenage girl. Had I known about Bikini Kill I think I may have had an easier go of it. Or at least felt a lot less alone. Every weirdo rebel girl should listen to them.
11. What’s your guilty pleasure?
What if I don't feel guilt about the things that give me pleasure? 


Muse-ic
I honour of how amazing the weather has been I've decided on Heatwave for tonight's audible delight.
I really really REALLY love this song. Especially when she wails a bit at the end. Fierce.
Enjoy this gem from 1963.

Have a great night and an awesome manicure!
jeebjeeb

Saturday 4 May 2013

Jawbreaker and the Liebster.

Hey all,
How's your weekend going? It was a crazy beautiful day today. I got out and played frisbee for the first time this year. And then did my nails on the balcony. I love warm weather. It just makes you feel good.

I've had this idea for a manicure rattling around in my brain for a while.


A black and white gradient with multi coloured splatter.


I call it Jawbreaker.


I used Zoya Raven & Purity for the gradient
Quo by Orly - Red Hot, Sally Hansen - Mint Sprint & Nubar - Resort Yellow as splatter



The Liebster 

Lisa from The Polish Playground was nice enough to nominate me for a Liebster Award. If you don't know what that is, well, it's not really an award. It's more of a share the love kind of thing. Bloggers recognizing and supporting fellow bloggers. 
This is how it works ...

When you get nominated:
1. Write up 11 random facts about yourself.
2. Answer 11 questions from the person who nominated you.
3. Create 11 new questions for your nominees. 
4. Nominate 11 other bloggers who have under 200 followers.


I think it's a really interesting idea. But I wont be following every rule to this chain letter. We'll come to that later. 
First up, 11 random facts about me.

1. When I was born my parents lived in Chinatown, which greatly influenced my life. I feel the most at ease when I'm surrounded by Asians. Like at Dim Sum on Sunday mornings :)
2. I didn't learned how to use chopsticks till I was 17. My boyfriend forced me to learn using noodles and  a lot of patience. Praise him! Certain food just taste better with sticks.
3. I'm absolutely terrible at recalling quotes. I even screw up my long time favourites. But I can remember obscure lyrics and sing songs word for word that I haven't heard for years. 
4. I am 100% naturally blonde. 
5. Both my parents hated their middle names so they didn't give me one.
6. I cannot drive a car. And I don't bike. I walk.
7. In real life I swear ALOT. Swears give flavour to your sentiments. I can't help it. I like it. But I have tried to keep it off the blog. Reading it off the page is a lot different than seeing & hearing it come out of my mouth. It's all in the delivery.
8. I have four piercings, all in my ears, and no tattoos. I could never be content with the same image on my skin for the rest of my life. I'm too changeable. Freckles are good enough for me.
9. Before I was born my father had two dreams that I would be born a cat. I have had a dream that I gave birth to a cat. :| What would Freud say?
10. I fantasize about doing drag performances. Lipsynching songs while dressed as a man.
11. My best girlfriend is also my sister (in-law) and fellow blogger D from Dagadelic. Despite our 5 year age difference we see eye to eye on most everything. (Love you girl!)

Here are the questions from Lisa:
1. What are some of the first blogs you started following?
- Scrangie, Nailasaurus, Chalkboard Nails
2. What made you start a blog?
- I had been posting nail photos on facebook but it just didn't feel like the proper venue to showcase my art. I wanted to create some form of art journal, since I hadn't been photographing every manicure. I was inspired by Dagadelic and decided to try my hand at a blogs. A public journal of sorts. My year on my nails. 
3. Who inspires you in life?
- Insanely passionate artists like Marina Abramovic and Yayoi  Kusama. But everyone in my life inspires me in some way. Without those people, I wouldn't be able to create art. 
4. Do you own any pets?
- A beautiful brown tabby cat named Kit-Kat. 
5. Fondest childhood memory?
- I can't remember anything specific, but any time I was at a lake or camping I was happy as a clam. I'd spend all day hanging out in the water, riding my bike, going for little hikes and climbing rocks. Being in nature made me happy.
6. Sun, rain or snow?
-Sun for sure. Although sometimes I like a nice rainy inside day. 
7. How much nail polish do you own in your collection?
- I just made my little brother count :P and he said 93! Woah. That sounds like a ton but I swear I often think that I don't have enough.
8. What's your biggest nail polish lemming right now?
- Half of the Zoya Summer PixieDust collection and INM Northern Lights.
9. What's your top 5 favourite nail polish colours?
Orly - Space Cadet
Enchanted Polish - Magical Mystery Tour
Color Club - Beyond
Zoya - Frida
Pretty & Polished - Tomboyish
10. Does anyone else you know in real life have a nail polish addiction like you?
- Yes, my close friend D at Dagadelic. She's been an addict long before I. Thankfully she's been able to guide me in my polish adventures. I had known her for 4 years before I started doing my nails. So it's very cool that we have now have this shared passion. It's like speaking a secret language or being in a club.
11. What one item will you always recommend everyone to try?
Common courtesy. Every day it seems people are getting ruder and ruder.

So here comes the part where you have to nominate 11 bloggers with under 200 followers who haven't already been nominated. I've also heard of versions where you pick 5 bloggers with under 3000 followers. Sounds like a game of Telephone to me. And considering the award isn't real... I'm going to break the rules. I gave all my eligible nomination candidates to Dagadelic. Instead I propose that if you are interested, answer my questions in the comments. Or if you have a blog, post them. I nominate anyone reading this. Make your own rules. Answer any questions you want. Go for it.

1. Do you remember your dreams? And if so, are they usually positive or negative?
2. If you could time travel, what era would you like to visit most?
3. Are there any hobbies or crafts you are interested in taking up?
4. Name one thing you hated as a child that you now enjoy.
5. What was the first album you ever bought?
6. What's your favourite ride at an amusement park?
7. Who is your favourite artist?
8. Name a movie you've watched a million times and never get sick of.
9. When you were in kindergarten, what did you want to be when you grew up?
10. Name a celebrity that irritates you.
11. What's your favourite kind of candy?


Next post I'll be answering Dagadelic's questions because I thought she had some really good ones.
Tonight I'm going to attempt to make some non-nail related art. Wish me luck!
Have a great night and an awesome manicure!
jeebjeeb
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