Line Drawings Inspired by Zach Bootz

Today's prompt is "inspired by artwork" and I've done some nails inspired by the artwork of my pal Zach Bootz. He does these really awesome black and white line drawings that combine surreal patterns, geometric lines, architecture and more. While my manicure isn't as intricately crafted as his pieces are, I've tried to draw inspiration from his style and general "feel."

Though Zach's signature style includes black and white, I knew I wanted mine to be in color. I chose LVX Viola and LVX Mineral. Mineral is a light grey, but when I topcoated the design, the blue base seeped through and turned it pale purple. It looks cool, like blueprints, but this is the second time I've had trouble with an LVX polish bleeding through. I'm wondering if maybe it's the combination of their formula with my topcoat?

Afterwards, I finished with matte topcoat as a kind of nod to ink on paper. Be sure to stop by Zach's website and check out more of his work! It's really compelling stuff.

Not too many challenge days left! I can't lie and say I'll be sad when it's over.

Previous nail art inspired by artwork:

• Jackson Pollock's One: Number 31
• Warhol drip nail art
• Kaws' Kawsbob
• Barbara Kruger - Nail Art Is Dead

Modern Romance Nail Art

Modern Romance Nail Art || Today's challenge prompt is "inspired by a book." Unfortunately I'm not reading as much as I'd like, so my options were pretty limited, but I ended up finding inspiration in a book that I just started reading: comedian Aziz Ansari's Modern Romance. The book is all about dating in the modern age, and while I don't have much personal experience with that (longterm relationship and all, ya know?), I've certainly seen how it has affected my friends and peers!

With their experiences in mind, I decided to paint an ode to modern romance and, more specifically, the booty call.

In my manicure, I included an Instagram "like" heart, the Tinder app icon, and (my favorite part), an iMessage booty call -- with someone in the middle of responding, of course. They are all handpainted and finished with matte topcoat.

I'm not very far into the book yet, but I've especially been enjoying all of the actual data they collected to back up the anecdotes. It's a super interesting read and funny, to boot.

Previous literary manicures include:

• Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk
• The Missing Piece by Shel Silverstein
• 1984 by George Orwell
• The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

You've Got a Friend In Me! - Toy Story Nail Art

Is there a better trilogy than Toy Story? Ok, there probably is (there are a lot of awesome trilogies!), but it's definitely an amazing one and probably the best animated trilogy at least. Today's 31DC prompt is "inspired by a movie" and in case it wasn't clear, I've done some nail art inspired by Woody and Buzz, the bestest friends ever!

These are handpainted using the following nail polishes...

Woody:
Formula X White Matter
Salon Perfect Oil Slick
Color Club Je Ne Sais Quoi
Deborah Lippmann Respect

Buzz:
Formula X White Matter

China Glaze Looking Bootiful

Formula X Pyrotechnic

Girly Bits It's Hoop to Be Square

Clouds:

Formula X Provocative
Formula X White Matter
Salon Perfect Oil Slick

I have done quite a few movie manicures in the past! Check out what I've done previously for the challenge:

• Star Wars inspired nail art
• Eye of Sauron nail art from the Lord of the Rings trilogy
• Titan nail art from the movie Hercules
• Anna-inspired Frozen nail art

All #HailTheNail With a Twitter Party For the Premiere of Nail'd It!

As I'm sure you guys know, there's a new TV show on the horizon and it's all about nail art. Nail'd It! is premiering at 9pm EST, Tuesday October 7th, on Oxygen, and you KNOW I'm gonna be all over that.

But that's not all!

To celebrate the premiere, I'll be joining a fabulous group of influencers to host a Twitter party leading up to the first episode! Join the conversation by following and tweeting with #HailTheNail, Tuesday October 7th, beginning at 8pm EST.

I'll be cohosting alongside All Lacquered Up, Julie G. Beauty, From Head to Toe, and Wet Paint. Judges Jan Arnold, Elaine Watson, and Tom Bachik will be joining in as well! We'll have tutorials, Q&As, and giveaways.

Giveaways? Oh yeah.

Throughout the hourlong chat, you'll have opportunities to win a prize package that contains:

• The 5 Borough Package from Fingertip Fetish by Adrienne Bailon
• A CND hand care set including Almond Hydrating Lotion and Citrus Nail Soothing Creme
• Oxygen goodies like a nail mat, mirrored nail files, pens, and a noteboook

When the chat comes to an end, I invite you to stick around and live tweet the first episode with me! I hope we'll see you there for the party, don't forget to mark your calendars! And if you haven't watched it yet, be sure to check out an exclusive first look at one of the Quick Dry Challenges from the show.

Disclosure: This post and my participation as a cohost of #HailTheNail has been sponsored by reps for Oxygen.

Raava and Vaatu - The Legend of Korra Nail Art

Raava and Vaatu - The Legend of Korra Nail Art || It's day two of my Avatar double feature! Yesterday I shared my flag nail art inspired by the nations in the Avatar universe, today I have some supernatural nail art inspired by Raava and Vaatu, the spirits of good and evil, from The Legend of Korra. I painted their markings on my middle nails, and then added their matching tail ribbons on the outer nails.

Nail polishes used:
Polish My Life Stripped
China Glaze Too Yacht to Handle
Michael Kors Impulse
American Apparel Hassid
Polish My Life Don't Snap My Dragon
Misa Peach Passion

These nails were painted freehand. The pattern was pretty fun to paint, actually! I'm not sure what it was, but I just really liked assembling the pieces of their markings.

When the story first introduces these ancient spirits, they are entangled in a battle of good vs. evil. I tangled their ribbons on my thumb to represent that.

On a related note, if you are a Korra fan and haven't seen the trailer for the final season yet -- WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!? It's epic. Check it out! (Spoilers, obviously.)

Not (yet) a Legend of Korra fan? All of the episodes are available for watching on Nick.com!

See more of my supernatural nail art:

• Glow in the dark ghosties
• Glittering Edward nail art
• Phoenix feather nail art

National Flags of Avatar: The Last Airbender

Today's 31 Day Challenge prompt is "inspired by a flag," a prompt that no one seems to really care for. It's not my favorite either, but it does often get me thinking outside of the box!

I chose to do nail art inspired by one of my favorite cartoons, Avatar: The Last Airbender. For those of you unfamiliar with the show, there are four nations in the Avatar world: the Water Tribes, the Earth Kingdom, the Fire Nation, and the Air Nomads. I represented each nation's flag on my nails, and put the flag of the Order of the White Lotus on my thumb.

Nail polishes used:
Misa Blueberry Blast
JINsoon Cool Blue
OPI Jade is the New Black
LVX Midori
OPI All I Want for Christmas (Is OPI)
American Apparel Hassid
Misa Great Grape
Polish My Life Stripped

All elements of this manicure were painted freehand. I have the Water Tribes symbol on my pointer, the Earth Kingdom symbol on my middle finger, the Fire Nation flag on my ring, and the Air Nomad insignia on my pinky.

I needed a fifth finger design, and the Order of the White Lotus seemed like a perfect choice! They transcend the four nations, and are good guys in the series. And um, hello, who doesn't love Iroh?

If you are a fan of the Avatar universe, be sure to check back in tomorrow! I've done some Legend of Korra nail art for "inspired by the supernatural." Consider it a double feature!

Previous "inspired by a flag" manicures:

• Racing checkered flag
• Arizona state flag nail art
• Textured American flag nail art

Nail Art Is Dead - Barbara Kruger Inspired Nail Art

This year, for "inspired by artwork" day of the 31 Day Challenge, I tackled an idea that I've contemplated in the past. My nails are inspired by the work of Barbara Kruger, a conceptual artist who often addresses how words and images, particularly in the media, can affect our identities and assumptions about truth.

Her signature style features black and white photographs overlaid with declarative text, often accentuated inside red rectangles. Notable Kruger pieces include "I shop therefore I am," "Your body is a battleground," and "No." I got a little cheeky with my interpretation and chose "Nail art is dead," a sensationalist idea that I occasionally see pop up on my feeds. Clearly I disagree!

Nail polishes used:
Polish My Life Storm Clouds
Polish My Life Saint
American Apparel 7th and Alameda
American Apparel Hassid
INM White Porcelain
OPI Coca Cola Red

I'll tell you what, this was horrifyingly time consuming. The letters are freaking tiny and I needed them to look a certain way to match the font that Kruger uses. The base was easy -- I used a square nail art brush to paint on some brushy marks in the style of the Nailasaurus streaky watercolor nail art.

Then I freehanded the red rectangles and text, which took me a good hour and a half to two hours. I was constantly refining the shape of the letters and had to re-do one of the nails once. Still, I think it is a huge success! Except now I'm blind from the tininess of the letters.

Previous nail art inspired by artwork:

• Jackson Pollock's One: Number 31
• Warhol drip nail art
• Kaws' Kawsbob

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Nail Art Blocking

In the 31 Day Challenge, some days you win, some days you lose. And you probably won't have the time or the energy to scrap a mani that you may not be crazy about! So here we are.

It's inspired by a book day, and I decided to get creative and try doing three distinct segments of nail art, all related to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. From top to bottom, we've got the Emerald City, the yellow brick road, and the poppy fields. I love the idea in theory, but my execution leaves a bit to be desired.

Nail polishes and products used:
China Glaze Happy Go Lucky
Dermelect Belle Epoque
Polish My Life Birthday Suit
OPI Coca Cola Red
Sally Hansen Going Green
Formula X Dark Matter
China Glaze Running In Circles
Painter's tape

So I'm calling this one "nail art blocking" vs. "blocking nail art" because I am actually making blocks of different nail art looks. Blocking nail art, to me, is when the blocking is the essence of the nail art. How's that for logic?

I started by painting my nails yellow and adding the yellow brick road detailing. Then, I added a coat of quick dry topcoat and waited for it to dry completely. I taped off the triangles with painters tape, and then added the Emerald City and poppy fields blocks. A final swipe of topcoat and the mani was done!

If I were to do this again, I think I'd try freehanding the sections instead of taping them. I'd also use a lighter color for the brick outlining.

Previous literary manicures include:

• Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk
• The Missing Piece by Shel Silverstein
• 1984 by George Orwell

Anna Inspired Frozen Nail Art

It's "inspired by a movie" day in the 31 Day Challenge and I've done some nail art inspired by a movie that is sure to be a popular choice among other participants this year: Frozen! These tips are inspired by Anna's dress, which itself drew inspiration from a traditional piece of Norwegian clothing called a bunad. Her look features a black bodice, gold lacings, and flower details.

Nail polishes used:
Formula X Dark Matter (black)
Deborah Lippmann Autumn In New York (gold)
Essie Mojito Madness (green)
China Glaze Happy Go Lucky (yellow)
Misa Loveliest of Lilacs (purple)
Misa Lovely Lychee (pink)

I painted my nails black and then added the gold tips using the fishtail technique. The flowers and stems were painted freehand using my Edinburgh Realism #4 brush, and I used a pinpoint and small dotting tool to add the decorative dots. Everything is sealed in with two coats of Glisten and Glow HK Girl.

I have done quite a few movie manicures in the past! Check out what I've done previously for the challenge:

• Star Wars inspired nail art
• Eye of Sauron nail art from the Lord of the Rings trilogy
• Titan nail art from the movie Hercules

Stylized Goldfish Scales Nail Art

It's animal print day of the 31 Day Challenge! This is always one of my favorite days. I do a lot of animal print in my regular nail art work, so I like to take the challenge as an opportunity to get inspired by some unusual animals. This year, I've gone with a freehand stylized goldfish scale print, inspired by Queen Otohime from the One Piece anime. Does anyone else watch?

Nail polishes used:
OPI My Paprika Is Hotter Than Yours
China Glaze Happy Go Lucky
American Apparel Hassid

Without giving too much about the story away, Otohime wears a kimono with this stylized fish scale print on it. I tried to directly mimic the way it looks in the anime, and I think I did a nice job! I painted my nails with the red-orange first, then added the yellow detailing, and finally finished it off with the black lines.

I'm pretty enamored with this pattern. It definitely looks like fish scales, though I can also see phoenix feathers or dragon scales. Very bold and cool.

Animal print from years past:

• Blue poison dart frog nail art
• Manta ray patterned nail art
• Nudibranch sea slug nail art