THE GETTING READY FOR CHRISTMAS CHALLENGE

Hi there,

It has been a while since I did a challenge because keeping up was so hard for me... But this one, I just couldn't pass it!

It is a challenge created by Elsa from the Like A Candy Shop blog! She is a super cute Italian lady with gorgeous nails and awsome make up posts... Anyway, the thing about this challenge is, you go at your own pace... No pressures at all, and the themes are super cute...

Visit Elsa's blog if you want to join in and wait for my first post on 28th of November!!!

RETO 2013 - Week 12 - Inspired by make up

We are on the last day of RETO 2013... I feel kind of sad when I'm about to finish a challenge... And this one was fun to participate with really fun themes...

Anyway, for the last week, we are inspired by make up. I'm not that talented in the make up area. I usually wear some blush and black eye pencil. Most of the time I don't wear lipstick! But I always wear my polish!!!! So, I decided to make a nail polish mani, which gave me an excuse to use my Cheeky CH40 plate... :)

For my base color I used Flormar Neon pink and I stamped my images with Konad Special Black and CH40 plate...

What a great mani for a nailart lover!!! :)

Check out what other ladies did!!!

RETO 2013 - Week 11 - Inspired by a cartoon

Well, we are getting to the end of RETO 2013 and this weeks theme is cartoons... As always, I am late!!!

After seing all the beutiful manis my fellow bloggers did, I decided to go with my favorite chilhood cartoon, Smurfs... Confession; I still watch it when it is on TV and still mumble the theme song!!!

Anyway, for this mani, I used one coat of Flormar 430, a highly pigmented blue... I like the color sooo much and I'm thinking of buying a new bottle... :)

For stamping, I used my FUN1 plate with Konad Special Black. Then taking my Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White polish and my Born Pretty Store brush (the smallest one), I filled in the Smurf's hat and pants. Then with the tiniest dotting tool, I made some polka dots on the remaining nails...

Wow, that was hard work, I'm telling you... It was the first time I'm filling out an image and it is soooo tiny, and my hands were shaking... So please be gentle... LOL

Check out what other ladies did!!!

RETO 2013 - Week 10 - Inspired by your immagination

My immagination is bigger than my nails!!!! Literally!

For this weeks RETO Challenge, I decided to make a unicorn mani using my Nailz Craze NC02 plate... For my base, I used 17 holographic polish. And then I stamped my designs using Konad Special Black, which is a mess at clean up but still, the best stamping polish ever... :)

Anyway, for my accent nail, I wanted to place the unicorn, but the image was bigger than my trying-to-grow nubbins, so my poor animal lost its horn!!! It looks like a regular horse now! :) Or, the Ferrari logo... LOL!!!

Check out what other ladies did this week!!!!

RETO 2013 - Week 9 - Inspired by water

I know, I know, I'm late!!! But I have my excuses!!! This week was a hectic one with all the housework that needed to be done and homeworks needed to be made (for my daughter of course)... And I hardly had time to wear polish! I know, shocking!!!

Anyway, this week for Reto 2013 Challenge we are making a mani inspired by water... When the theme is water, it is inevitable to use blue as a base color...

So I used two coats of A-England Order of the Garter, a gorgeous blue with glass flecks... On top of that, I used a coat of China Glaze Bling it on from the Glitz and Blitz collection. I am no fan of bar glitter but this time, this polish made my mani look like deep underwater, so I don't hate it that much today... :)

Check out what other talented ladies did!!!!

RETO 2013 - Week 8 - Inspired by a color

We are getting closer to the end in the RETO 2013 Challenge and this week, the theme is colors....

I usually prefer wearing black in my daily routine. But I spice the black with colorful manis and a vivid makeup.

So for this challenge, I decided to use a bright pink, Essie Bermuda Shorts, which was a gift from the lovely April. I stamped the leopard print using Konad special black and Konad m57. And I added some glitter that Marianne sent me, Bonita glitter...

Well, that is my color inspired mani... :)

Check out what other ladies did...

The Tri-Polish Challenge - March - Day 4

Hi all! Today is the last day of the Tri-Polish Challenge... Well, the last day of March, to be exact... The first month was all about understanding the challenge for me. I used only the selected colors this month. God knows why... But with April, I'll set myself free and use glitters, black, gold... All the permitted colors... LOL BTW, the colors for April are; pink, turquoise (NOT blue) and orange... Hmmm, I should start picking colors...

Anyway, for today, I did what I've never done before.... Halfmoons... Well, I've seen many good examples of halfmoon manicures but did not have that urge to try it. Well, apparently, today was the day...
I painted my nails one coat of the coral (because it is highly pigmented and one coat was enough). Then using round stickers I got from the stationary store, I made the halfmoons. Again, I used a thick coat of purple... Then I decided to add some dots, because dots are fun, aren't they? And I added mint green and coral dots with my dotting tool... And voila!!!

Check out what other ladies did!!!

The Tri-Polish Challenge - March - Day 3

Heyyyyy, it is day 3 on the Crumpet's Nail Tart's Tri-Polish Challenge!!!! This time, I chose to use my mint green and purple together...

Here's what I came up with!!!

I started with two coats of green. On top of them, I painted vertical (well, I TRIED vertical) lines with the purple. I did not use any tape, I freehanded them... :) And I grabbed my dotting tool and started placing contrast dots on etiher side of the nail...

I liked how these two colors blended. I will surely use them again... :)

Check out what other ladies did!!!

RETO 2013 - Week 7 - Inspired by a brand

I know I know, I'm late for this weeks challenge... But trust me, this was was totally hectic!!!!

Anyway, better late then never, here's this weeks mani...

BRANDS!!!!

Well, aren't we all slaves to brands? I know I am... From supermarket shopping to clothes, from restaurants to polish!!! And the most recognisable brand of all, LV... :)

I do own a few LV bags, and I love them dearly. So I want to dedicate this mani to my beloved bags... :)

I used 2 coats of Essence Wanna Say Hello with Essie Penny Talk stamped with the LV logo from the Fun2 plate... Simple but elegant mani... :)

Thanks for looking.

Check out what other ladies did this week.... :)

The Tri-Polish Challenge - March - Day 2

Hello there... Today is the second mani of the Tri-Polish Challenge... Well, for today I decided to use only two of my polishes and try the dripping design I always liked.... (Remember, we are sticking to the three polishes we choose...)

Well, honestly, everything looked soooo simple in the tutorials and mine turned out to be a huge mess... I'll definetly try this again, with other colors, but for now, accept this as my day 2 entry... LOL

Check out what other talented ladies did...

The Tri-Polish Challenge - March - Day 1

One thing for sure, Crumpet's Nail Tarts surely know how to make a challenge!!!

Starting this month, Debbie from The Crumpet and Ashley from Smashley Sparkles have started a new challenge that lasts only 4 days, each month... 

THE TRI-POLISH CHALLENGE!!!

Well, the name itself causes some excitement!!!

Wanna learn what it is all about?

Here are the rules taken from The Crumpet;

The Tri Polish Challenge is a way to have creative fun with the polishes you already own, with no set themes. 

* each month Crumpet's Nail Tarts will set 3 colours for the challenge. You then choose 1 polish to represent each of those 3 colours. You must stick to those same 3 polishes throughout the entire challenge.

* example - if the colours are red, blue and green, you might pick Zoya Dakota, Models Own Beth's Blue and China Glaze Starboard. You must stick to those polishes and cannot change which polish represents which colour.

* each Challenge Day, you must use at least 2 of these 3 polishes in your mani. You must also use all 3 polishes at least once.

* you also have free use of white, black, silver, gold and glitter toppers

* there is no theme - what you do is up to you - let the colours inspire you!

* there are 4 posts in the challenge, on the Tuesday and Thursday of the 3rd and 4th week of the month


So, the colors for March are coral, green and purple... Wow, what a combination... Honestly, I never have thought of wearing them together... :)

Anyway, here are my picks for this month... And remember, once you pick your colors, you are not supposed to change them!!!

They are PASTEL 309, 56 and 100...

You have to use the 3 colors together al least once, so today I decided to do it...

I painted my nails with 2 coats of Pastel 309. Then with a dotting tool, I made some dots on the tips using 56 and 100... I really loved how these colors turned out together... :)

Oh, and in case you're wondering, the brown thing on my index finger is Turkish Coffee. I was just making myself Turkish Coffee before taking the pictures and I somehow dipped my fingers in it. I washed my hands but apperantly, these sticky coffee particles wanted to make a show on my blog... LOL

Check out what other ladies did with these colors!!!

RETO 2013 - Week 6 - Inspired by a fruit

Today is a sunny day in Istanbul... Spring is coming! And what a lovely day to celebrate with my new holos!!!

I recently ordered some holos from Catherine Arley. These were new colors I guess. Well, at least they are new to me.... So, with today being the 6th week of the RETO Challenge, aka the Fruit Week, I decided to play with my new toys...

I used 2 coats of Catherine Arley 801, a chartreuse gold for my nails and 803, lime green for the index nail. Then I sponged the 803 on the tips of other nails to make a gradient.

BTW, 803 is gorgeous on its own, I should wear it alone soon! And 801 is not my color, but it will be useful for gradients like these...

Anyhoo, I stamped the cutest pear image from the GALS 41 with Konad Special Black and left the accent nail alone... LOL!!!

So, what do you say?

Don't forget to check out what other talented ladies did!!!

RETO 2013 - Week 5 - Inspired by a videogame

Hey, is this the hardest week or what? Inspired by a videogame!!! Well, I'm not a big fan of videogames now but I played my share when I was a kid. And at that time, we had Atari games... My favorite of all was Pacman!

Kids these theys are extremely lucky. I mean I see the games my daughter is playing and some graphics are sooo realistic... Think about it, Pacman was the most detailed character! LOL!

Anyway, for my mani, I used Flormar True Colors in Black and stamped it with Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Mellow Yellow using the Pacman image fromthe FUN2 plate... I added the dots with a dotting tool and we're done!!!!

Oh sweet childhood... :)

RETO 2013 - Week 4 Inspired by Disney

Hi there...

Finally my nails got a little better so I celebrated this with the new Challenge of RETO 2013... This time we are inspired by Disney!!!!

Like most of the people, my favorite Disney characters are Mickey and Minnie... So I did a mani inspired by them today...

I used Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Cherry Red for the accent nail and Black Out for the rest. I made the polka dots of Minnie's dress with Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in White Out. I stamped the Mickey heads and the glove using the same polish and the image from the FUN1 plate.

Check out what other ladies did!

RETO 2013 - Week 3 - Inspired by flags

Ok! I should probably explain my absence lately... Well, the thing is, I've been going around with naked nail lately!!!

Yes, guilty as charged! But I had a lot going on, and polish was the last thing on my mind...

You know, in the last post how I told you that I broke my nails... Well, we have been decorating my daughters room, and things got worse... I broke ALL my nails during the cleaning and decorating process... They are back to nubbins now. In fact, they are shorter than nubbins... Well, word fail the state of their shortness.... :)

Anyway, with those short nails and the peelies, plus the decorations, we also had my daughter's birthday yesterday, which required 3 parties, lots of guests and many many cooking...

Long story short, I realised that I missed my RETO 2013 Challenge.... This weeks, well, last weeks challenge was Inspired by Flags... Given that I did the Turkish flag last month, I thought I should come up with something new... So I did a Pirate Flaggggg!!!!

I started with 2 coats of Avon Liqorice and stamped the skull on MASH 29 with Konad Special White... I tried to make the crossbones with my dotting tool and really messed it... I wish I had used a brush instead...

Oh, and I have Essence false nails on... So you don't get to see my ugly ugly nails... :(

RETO 2013 - Week 2 - Inspired by love

Hi there...

I know I'm not around this month... And I miss blogging... In fact, I miss wearing polish!!! But somehow, I managed to break both thumbs and index finger nails. And I have some nasty peelings on the others... So I filed them all to nubbins... In fact, the word nubbins fail to describe their ugliness... :(

Anyway, I keep them moistured and take my vitamins and hope that they heal soon... In the mean time, I don't want to miss my challenges. So after a long time (well, it was a long time for me) I wore nail polish for the second week of the RETO 2013 Challenge...

The theme was love, as it is Valentine's day tomorrow... I don't know about you, but for me, those special days lose meaning with age... :(

Anyyyyway, for this mani, I used OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls as my base color. 2 coats over Orly Bonder... Then I stamped the images from  Cheeky CH53 and Bundle Monster BM317 with Zoya Jacey. I never thought Jacey would stamp this good... :)

Thanks for reading... :)

Check out what other ladies did!!!

RETO 2013 - Week 1 - Inspired by a candy

For the first week of the RETO 2013 challenge, we were supposed to make a mani inspired by a candy. I'm more like a choclate lover, but I've always liked the appearance of candy canes, so I chose to to a candy cane mani...

FYI, I've had a massive break on my thumb and index finger nails, so you'll only be seeing 3-fingered manis for a few days... :) Sorry for that...

Anyway, I used two coats of Flromar Pretty in White, my favorite white nowadays... Then I stamped with Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Red using plates Mash40 and BM306...

See you next week with love themed nails... :)

Don't forget to check out what other ladies did... :)

Flip/Flop February Challenge - Day 1

Hey, I'm here again with another challenge... This time it is hosted by Jillian from Jilltastic Nail Design. This looked like a super fun challenge, so I couldn't let it go... :)

I asked Jillian to post a few manicures weekly, because it was really hard for me to complete the 31 day challenge. She is such a nice lady, and she said yes...So I guess I'll be posting every other day and keep up with this challenge...

Anyway, this challenge is called Flip/Flop February Challenge and you have to pick one of the two "missions" each time... Hmm, maybe on some days, it would be nice to use them all... :)

Anyway, for the first day, I chose gradient... Because it is my new favorite nail art technique... After stamping, of course... LOL

For this mani, I used Flormar Pretty in white, Pastel 95 and Essence Ultimate Pink... For the first time, I used a make up sponge for the gradient. I usually use a kitchen sponge, or a soft sponge like that. The make up sponge (the triangular ones) suck up more polish but give a flawless gradient, while the other sponge had a lot porous view... I addes the Flormar Glitter on top and I was ready for the first day...

Comments needed!!! How do you find this frame? I see similar things on other blogs and love it but not sure if it fits to my blog! Please comment! :)

Don't forget to check out what other ladies did!!!