A Dream Deferred

expression…

good for the soul??

concept better than reality:

Nicole Miller “French Vanilla” (base)
OPI “Green-wich Village” & dark pink acrylic paint (applied w/nail art brush")
Color Club Nail Art Striper “Crème de Razzery” & “Glitter Hologram”

Reality better than expected:
OPI “Sparrow Me The Drama”
green acrylic paint & Color Club white nail art striper

inspired by:
TopCoatIt’s "argyle nails”

new attempts:

OPI “You Don’t Know Jacques!”
Color Club Nail Art Striper “Crème De Razerry”
Stripe Right green nail art striper

i love it.

Essie “Chastity” (base)
Color Club – Nail Art Stripers “Mint” & “White”

Sally Hansen–“Gray by Gray”

Dec11 by Cheryl Cheryl

Blue. I thought it was blue. But the name is “Gray”. so, ok: Blue-Gray. Or maybe Dark Gray with a very blue base?

Very creamy. Opacity on “10”. The formulation and applicator brush (wide and flat) is similar to the Sally Hansen Insta-Dri colors. And it dried fairly quickly, so that’s a #win.

I added a few light blue dots just to set off the color. I think the light blue dots made the gray look even more blue. lol. I just can’t give up on the idea that this is blue – not gray!

BLAH!

Dec8 by Cheryl Cheryl

I just didn’t really like ANYTHING today. Everything is going awry right now. I can’t focus, can’t make well thought-through decisions, can’t figure out what to eat, what to wear, what to do next…. so not having a solitary clue what color to paint my nails shouldn’t have surprised me.

My nails are already back to their high-maintenance length. The tips of the nails will be an extension of my fingertip and therefore, polish will undoubtedly chip…. every day. So, they’re definitely getting new polish each time…. However, I’m exhausted and have way too much to do. my brain is on overload. Good thing polishing my nails is a soothing activity.

I removed the contact lenses that were completely irritating my eyes and tossed them.
SO WHY DID I PULL OUT MY GLASSES TO FIND THE FRAMES BROKEN IN TWO?!?!?! wth?!

I taped the frames back together so I could finish working.

After that, I gave up.
I was frustrated, sleepy, irritable and overall BLAH!! So, I just put it on my nails.

My muted and autumn neutral OPI spread

Separately these colors are stunning. Together….. they are just BLAH! Perfect expression of my feeling. Enjoy. – __-

OPI
“Jade Is the New Black” (Hong Kong Collection)
“Stranger Tides” (Pirates of the Caribbean Collection)
“You Don’t Know Jacques!” (La Collection De France)
“Suzi Takes the Wheel” (Touring America Collection)
“A-Taupe the Space Needle” (Touring America Collection)

Thank you….from Diedra

Dec7 by Cheryl Cheryl

Contributor Dee Dee gave me the nicest thank you card last week. That isn’t really surprising… she’s thoughtful like that.

The card was so pretty I couldn’t get the envelope print out of my mind.

And then it kinda ended up on my nails. Smile

I tried to keep it simple, so I only tested out the hologram top coat on the nail of my ring finger. It’s SOOO pretty. It took all kinds of self-control to keep from slathering that beautiful topcoat across the other nine nails…well (I did slip. I put it on the pinky nail of my other hand. I couldn’t resist.)

The base color is OPI - “Malaysian Mist”… dark pink, brown and orange acrylic paint applied with a dotting tool.

Top Coat – INM’s Out the Door – “Northern Lights” (Hologram Top Coat ‘Gold’”)

Smiley

Dec6 by Cheryl Cheryl

When I started, my plan was just some basic cheerful nails…. because I really need a mood lift. .

As the task progressed….. do you realize how many ways there are to make a flickin’ smiley face these days??!!

Emoticons are taking over…. except ones with botox -__- LOL!

it did improve my mood… and is teaching me steadiness with a nail brush.

Sexy Silhouette

Dec5 by Cheryl Cheryl

China Glaze. Pretty deep vibrant shimmery pink. Magenta-ish. Definitely in the red family, but more pink than red.

This color made my hand feel very sexy. *wink wink*

China Glaze “Sexy Silhouette”

Snow!

Dec4 by Cheryl Cheryl

When I saw the snowflakes “falling” on the main page of the blog site (yay!), I immediately got excited. I LOVE snow. Love is an understatement.

Now mind you, I’ve been practicing good snowflake designs for like two weeks. And still no presentable snowflakes in sight for my nailbeds. 😦

Now this one from cutepolish vids is adorable….

…. and though I love her designs, and I love using my dotting tool – it seemed too simplified for my lofty expectation of my artistic ATTEMPTS… As I still haven’t mastered even a “neat” snowflake.

then I found this snowflake tutorial. I liked. More dots, but it was a tiny bit more complicated.

I ended up with a sort of in-between snowflake from the two… and I could only withstand the painstaking task on the fingernails of my ring fingers…. this nail art is work! Smile I used the appropriately named “Avalanche” for the base color, and white polish with a very skinny nail striping art brush for the snowflake. I used a glitter polish with a dotting tool for some sparkly spots. When it actually snows here in Chicago [I wish it would hurry up and snow!!], I’m doing a snowflake design – again. (does this one count?)

China Glaze “Avalanche”

The Ohio State University

Dec2 by Cheryl Cheryl

I am from Ohio. First from Dayton, and then we moved to Columbus.

My Dad is a Buckeye fan…. so, of course, SO AM I!!!!

Contributor Dee Dee and I will have a “forever feud” about her wack Michigan team versus those auspicious Buckeyes!! Winking smile

With Monday’s announcement of the new head football coach at The Ohio State University, I felt it was a wonderfully appropriate time to show some Scarlet & Gray love.

Maybelline Express Finish “Racy Red”
OPI “Suzi Takes the Wheel”
white acrylic paint (dots)
Color Club black & white nail art stripers

I took inspiration from Urban Meyer’s press conference tie & mic cover. I may have to practice writing out “Ohio State” with my nail art tools. lol

GO BUCKEYES!

The Ohio State University Nail

The "Française"

Dec1 by Cheryl Cheryl

The French Manicure….

This has got to be the most classic “design” ever. Works for various nail lengths and types (acrylic, gel, natural). Matches everything…and is, weirdly, LOVED by so many men. (I would love for men to explain to me why they love it so.)

It’s refined and, when done well, “finishes” any hand beautifully.

Even, I, with my extreme love of color, can’t deny that the French….. is the crème de la crème.

It will never get old.

Not sure when or by whom it was created… but it’s incredible.

my nails at the beginning of growing back out

Mommie’s nails… she allows a french manicure, but no other color whatsoever
NYC Quick Color “Little Italy” & Sally Hansen Insta-Dri “Petal Pusher”

Angela’s gorgeous (and practical) American Shellac (CND)

Angela is a very successful and busy dentist (Healthy Smiles), and one of my dearest and closest friends. She washes her hands probably a billion times a day.

She introduced me to paraffin dips nearly 20 years ago. (Is there any question that she’s a REAL friend?! Smile ) Those things are amazing for moisturizing and soothing!

Shellac is a wise decision for her to maintain a finished look on her hands despite her total “manicure-hazardous” career. lol.

Though this is called an “American”…. it still looks really French to me. haha And is still so very classic and works well for any fashion look.

my nails growing out
NYC Nail Color “French Tip White” & “Love Letters”

I used to paint my white tips freehand, after a basecoat.
Now I take a page from the nail shop. I skip the basecoat, and I straighten the lines of my white tips with an acetone-dipped art brush. Mistake free every time. woo hoo!

The French Manicure will always be in my manicure rotation. Its beauty is timeless.