Sunset, Stamping, & Studs

I have a thing about the sky. I love nature, in general, but I really love the sky. Whenever I tote my camera around you'll probably see me snapping photos of the sun, moon, clouds, anything sky related. If I see some remarkable clouds or a sunset or a sunrise, I'll probably snap some with my phone. Well, the other day hubby called me to come outside and check out the sky. There was a storm rolling in and the storm clouds were covering up a sunset sky. The clouds had turned a brilliant red color. It was stunning.

This manicure is inspired by that sunset. Well, it started that way, anyhow. I sat down intending to do a stormy sunset gradient. But I couldn't get the colors to blend the way I wanted them to. So I changed the colors. It snowballed from there but the end result is pretty great.

So, the colors I ended up sponging the gradient with are Wet n Wild D'oh!, Wet n Wild Sunny Side Up, and Essie Sunset Sneaks. I love the way the gradients turned out. Still like a sunset but more...tropical? And here's when my idea went in another direction completely. Suddenly, I wanted to add some stamping. I perused my stamping plate collection and gravitated toward animal prints. I chose a zebra print from BM-223 and a leopard print from BM-221. I used Sally Hansen Rapid Red. Then, I decided to add some rhinestones. I found some pretty red heart rhinestones and popped those on. Lastly, I slapped on a coat of China Glaze Fairy Dust just because!

I LOVE THESE! I wore them for days and could not stop staring at them!