Saturday, September 4, 2010

Red Queen, black heart

Hello ladies,

I was thinking a bit about this quote from the Red Queen from Through the Looking Glass, And What Alice Found There:

It takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!

There is no running in the garden, unless you are a rabbit. The Queen will have to find some other form of amusement. This she did, as you will see.

I began the Red Queen manicure with Color Club's Red Velvet from the Untamed Luxury Collection. Using Art of Seduction, I created a red glitter gradient. I placed a hollow black heart from the Boudoir Collection on each tip. I really loved how the black polish with red glitter enhanced the look of the gradient.








Let us give the sun a queenly farewell...

We will need to wait for about a half hour for this cloud mass to move across the sun. I hope you brought a book to pass the time.
The sun has returned! Let's toss the Queen a rose. There is your whimsy for the day.






I painted three coats of Red Velvet for opacity. This black jelly polish with red glitter is a good standard. When working with thin coats, it applies easily and dries quickly.

Color Club Art of Seduction is from the Glitter Vixen Collection. All of the polishes in this line are fantastic for gradient manicures. You can read a tutorial about doing glitter gradients using Orly Smudge Fixer in an earlier post. If you decide to apply a gem or heart to the tip, I would recommend going over the upper edge with glitter after doing the gradation. This will create a more opaque backdrop.

I hope you enjoyed the visit with The Red Queen.

Color Club Red Velvet was sent to me for review. The Untamed Luxury Collection can be purchased at victoriasnailsupply.com. The Boudoir Collection was provided for my consideration. It is available for purchase at enailsupply.com. Would you like a chance to win both the Boudoir Collection and Technicolor Doll nail art kits? Stop by the Art Club: Black, White and Bold Giveaway to enter.

Happy painting, ladies!

30 comments:

  1. Evil Angel: Yay! I thought of you when I saw the finished manicure. <3

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  2. That is such a lovely manicure, I love how the colours worked together, it looks fabulous :D

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  3. Cel: Thanks so much! I love pairing red and black. <3

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  4. nice!!! I did something similar a year ago, and I liked so much!

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  5. This would suit the red queen perfectly >:D

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  6. Love anything with Alice in Wonderland. A perfect manicure for the Red Queen. Love, love this look. Your nails look beautiful. I also thought of Andrea when looking at your nails. She'll have to try something like this. Beautiful picture of the sky. It was so beautiful today. A wonderful day to sit in a garden surrounded with flowers and fauna.

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  7. gorgeous as usual.. :) looks very pretty and sexy..

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  8. Yay for AiW! I love this tale. Do you know the game based on it, but much more on an evil side or something like that?
    The mani is BEAUTIFUL! Red&black combination is sure amazing.

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  9. Alice: Thanks! If you have a link to your manicure, please send it to me or post it in the comments here. I would love to see your version. :)

    Biba: Thanks, sweetie! <3

    Silhouette Screams: That's awesome! Thank you! xoxo!

    Lucy: Thanks so much! Today is gorgeous. It has been a tremendous joy to take photos this weekend! Andrea would wear the
    Red Queen manicure well. xoxo!

    ART OF NAIL: Thank you! It would be a good date manicure. :)

    Branca de Neve: Thanks so much! *curtseys*

    Daria: I don't really play video games, mainly because of time. I love the graphics and the ideas behind them though. They are like their own worlds. I could ask my philosopher friend about the Alice in Wonderland game. I'm glad you like today's look. :)

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  10. red and black never fail
    I love your design,
    you have some very beautiful nails

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  11. Very pretty! I can't wait till my nails get longer so I can do these styles:)

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  12. Okay, I know I say this all the time, but Diana, this one is my favorite of yours. I LOVE THIS SO MUCH. From the Alice in Wonderland inspiration to the black and red combination to the cute little heart accents. This is so, so awesome!

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  13. I love gradient manis and this one is no exception. Love the heart, it brings it all together. I've tried doing gradient manis on my own nails but they never look right.

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  14. so cute!!! you make me miss my long nails!

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  15. aoana: Red and black is a classic combination. Thanks so much for your kind words! :)

    Budget Beauty Goddess: I think you could pull off the look now easily. Another way to go is to start the gradient at your cuticle area and work up. It's a little messier but you end up needing less nail surface for the gradation. You would end up with the equivalent of a French tip area glitter free. Here is an example: http://paintedladyfingers.blogspot.com/2010/04/gold-dust.html.

    Nicole: Your comment made me laugh. I am so happy you enjoy what I do. I am glad I can continue to create new favorites, given you commented on my very first post. Love you! xoxo!

    Brenda: Thanks so much! Hmmm. If you want to e-mail me and tell me your technique, maybe I can help. If you are using Orly Smudge Fixer as a gradient liquid, then I can probably trouble shoot for you. I follow the same steps each time. :)

    Serena: Thank you, sweetie! <3

    Enamel Girl: Thanks so much! Your nails are really well cared for and it shows. <3

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  16. Yet another lovely manicure. Thanx for adding some whimsy to my Monday morning :-)

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  17. Looking at this makes me realise exactly how much I dislike the pairing of red and black together. :( It just looks so...EMO! For want of a better word. :( But your np skills and photography whimsical skills still shine through. :)

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  18. avroys: Thanks so much! Monday mornings could use a bit of whimsy, almost as a rule. ;)

    Joan: Your comment made me laugh! I knew this look wouldn't be a favorite of yours! I am glad I could entertain you with other details. :)

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  19. I love the way you tied the mani in with the Red Queen. I had that quote running through my head all day after I saw this,and then I remembered my favorite part of Alice in Wonderland

    " Will you walk a little faster?' said a whiting to a snail,
    'There's a porpoise close behind us and he's treading on my tail.
    See how eagerly the lobsters and the turtles all advance!
    They are waiting on the shingle -- will you come and join the dance?
    Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join the dance?"

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  20. Diana, just had to pop back in because of your reply! I remember those things too - I have such fond memories of the "early days" of my blogging and I remain as fascinated by the atmosphere you create here as when I first came across your lovely blog. Love you too, sweet girl. ♥

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  21. I did a variation on your mani yesterday... once my desktop is able to post picks I will give you a link to the blog entry I will be posting. Thanks for the idea hun!

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  22. Just posted my mani from the other day... zombieclaws.bolgspot.com

    Have a fantastic day.

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  23. Thats gorgeous! If my nails get long enough I'm going to try it! Stunning.

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  24. The gradient effect is gorgeous! Love this new style! I hope you get to try it on other colors so we could see the effect. Lovely! ^^

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