Tuesday, October 1, 2013

#31DC2013 Honor/Recreate Nails You Love - Ikat Pattern


Wow, I can't believe it, I made it all the way to the end of the infamous 31 day challenge.  I really had my doubts that I'd make it through - I really thought that I'd fall behind and miss some of the challenges, especially the harder ones toward the end.  I guess you can say that I'm stubborn.  Once I set my mind on a goal, I will do my best to achieve it.  There were nights when LO woke up twice while I was painting away, and I'd have to soothe her without smudging my nails.  Other nights, I'd fall asleep early while putting her to bed, and have my alarm set to wake up at 1am or 2am to do the challenge despite having to wake up the next morning for a full day of work.  I'm proud of myself for finishing, but boy am I glad it's over.  Now I can get some sleep!

The final challenge is to recreate nails that I love, and the most prominent nail design that comes to mind is the Ikat nails that More Nail Polish did for the Inspired By A Pattern challenge.  I really love the combination of colors that she used, and her post made it sound like it was incredibly easy to do.  I decided to recreate the same design but in the reverse color scheme.  I used Bettina Ocean for the blue base, and then use Sinful Colors Shock & Awe and Wet n Wild black cream to draw the ikat pattern with a 00 brush.  This is finished with topcoat.

#31DC2013 Honor/Recreate Nails You Love - Ikat Pattern
#31DC2013 Honor/Recreate Nails You Love - Ikat Pattern

#31DC2013 Honor/Recreate Nails You Love - Ikat Pattern

#31DC2013 Honor/Recreate Nails You Love - Ikat Pattern
#31DC2013 Honor/Recreate Nails You Love - Ikat Pattern

#31DC2013 Honor/Recreate Nails You Love - Ikat Pattern
#31DC2013 Honor/Recreate Nails You Love - Ikat Pattern

#31DC2013 Honor/Recreate Nails You Love - Ikat Pattern
#31DC2013 Honor/Recreate Nails You Love - Ikat Pattern
Hmmm.... I think I forgot to add the white to the pattern to make it officially ikat, and now it's starting to look like cheetah print.  Hopefully you know what I was aspiring to do!

I really learned a lot during this challenge.  It pushed me beyond boundaries that I had unnecessarily set for myself, and now I'm more willing to try new techniques and think outside of the box.  I'm not sure if I'd ever do it again because it's so grueling, but I would definitely consider doing a less intense challenge in the future.  If you haven't done one before, I highly recommend finding a challenge to join.

Thanks for sticking with me through this journey!  <3  Let's see how the other ladies finished the month.



7 comments:

  1. Wow, this looks fantastic, I love your colour combination too.

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  2. I think you've made a great job with this! I saw right away that it was an ikat pattern and not leopard spots. Didn't know that the white was mandatory! :D

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  3. These are great! I cant believe you did this challenge with a baby! I would have possibly gone mad. You get tons of extra kudos for doing that!

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  4. These look fantastic! I've nominated you for a Liebster Award! I hope you accept, and you can view the post here: http://didyoupaintthoseyourself.blogspot.com/2013/10/liebster-award.html

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  5. These are awesome! I think the design is really pretty. Great job!

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  6. awesome! i love the ikat design, it looks amazing!

    x

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    1. Thanks you and everyone!! I'm so glad this challenge is over. Whew!!

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