Layniefingers

Shout Trigger- a well-loved staple for my family.

2012-05-24T01:23:00.001-05:00

This post brought to you by Triad Retail Media. All opinions are 100% mine. If you've read this blog for very long, then you probably know that I'm fairly frugal. I try to save money every place I can, and I have no problem buying store brands for almost everything. Still, there are a few products that I always reach for the brand name, regardless of what else is cheaper. For whatever reason,

Fibromyalgia and pain management through art

2012-05-14T23:18:00.003-05:00

I love experimenting with lettering, and I was really sleepy... You may have noticed the recent lack of posts here. There is a reason, and it's not because I've lost interest in my blog. Instead, it's the usual reason- my fibromyalgia is causing me quite a few problems. For the past few months, I've been having more and more issues with pain control, and I've been able to do less and less.

Jessica Cosmetics - Desire

2012-05-11T03:53:00.000-05:00

Hi! I have some wonderful goodies to share with you over the next few days. I recently got a box full of nail polishes from Jessica Cosmetics, and I fell in love with one of them right away. Let me show you Desire... Ok, that was cheesy, but I couldn't resist. Still, Desire is a gorgeous raspberry red that waved to me from the box, shouting pick me, pick ME! What could I do? How could I leave

Wow. I'm all sorts of weird.

2012-05-05T16:49:00.001-05:00

Do you ever have one of those experiences that just defies explanation? Yea, I just had one of those. Let me see if I can explain... Right now, I'm reading Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson. It's funny and thought-provoking and bizarre, which really isn't a surprise if you've read her blog. Be warned- that last link is probably not at all kid safe or work safe. She's the type of

OMG, seriously?!

2012-05-04T23:11:00.000-05:00

I suppose I should be used to this. Just when I think I've about got the computer stuff resolved, then comes a camera issue. And a software issue. And a Laynie issue... It's insane. Somehow, the battery charger and spare battery we have for our camera disappeared. Not sure if it fell out of our camera bag last weekend or if it's somewhere in the house, but without it I'm dead in the water- no

Wheee, I've finally figured it out!

2012-05-02T15:45:00.000-05:00

Ok, I've been working on this for a couple of weeks now, and I finally got it to work the way I wanted it to! I've got a video filmed, and am working on editing it. Until then, here's a teaser for what you'll learn to do soon! The good news is this technique is quick, easy, and fun! It's also wonderful for you creative types, because you can do just about anything you like- greyscale images,

It's a monster flashback!

2012-04-29T00:15:00.000-05:00

Here's another flashback, this time one of my favorite manicures of all time! I still get tempted to do another manicure like this, although I get sidetracked with all the other designs I want to do. Sometimes it's frustrating being creative! Anyway, I hope you enjoy these monsters, because I know I did! -*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*- I have just finished the silliest set of nail tips

Flashback: More splatters, on black!

2012-04-25T05:30:00.000-05:00

Ugh. Still dealing with computer issues. I'm typing this from my husband's computer. *sighs* It will get fixed, I promise... but til then, look at this gorgeous set of nails I did way back in July of 2010! -*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*- You know, I admit it. I am totally a child of the 80s. I love neon, I love wild prints, and I love paint splats. This set of nails reminds me of a sweatshirt I

It's a work in progress...

2012-04-24T11:27:00.000-05:00

I know, it's been entirely too long without new content. I'd love to blame it on something interesting (like all the craziness that's been going on at my house...) but one of the main reasons is because I'm sort of obsessing over a new technique. I'd read about it online, and wasn't quite sure how it would work. So, for the past week I've been experimenting lots, trying to figure out why it

Blast from the past: The one where I got glitter up my nose.

2012-04-23T19:08:00.000-05:00

Still fussing with computer problems here, so I'll share another old post that makes me smile. The nail art in this one is a bit of a fail, but the story I share is... ... well, I'll let you decide. -*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*- I'm taking a break from the batch of nail tips I decorated, but don't worry. You're still getting the holiday nail art, but today it's more of a cautionary tale,

Blast from the past: my fake-nail-painting setup!

2012-04-22T05:30:00.000-05:00

Here's another flashback for ya... years ago I was asked about the setup I used to create the sets of artificial nails I would make. I wrote this post in 2010 to demonstrate it. Oddly enough, it hasn't changed much since then! -*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*-*~*- First off, let me say hello to all the new people following and visiting the blog. It makes me so happy to see new followers! I feel

There will be a brief break in normal posting...

2012-04-20T00:19:00.004-05:00

Ugh. I'm having computer problems, so until I can resolve things new content may be a bit spotty. That's not a bad thing, though... I figure this is a great time to look back at some of my favorite posts from the past. Since I have so many new readers, maybe this will expose them to some fun posts they hadn't seen yet! Bear with me guys, this should be resolved soon. Until then, let's take the

Another quick tip- how to remove stubborn polishes

2012-04-17T04:21:00.000-05:00

Whew- this video took AGES to edit! I shot this over the weekend and have been editing it ever since. But finally I got it all neat and watchable, and it's under three minutes! I wanted to share how I remove stubborn polishes, like glitter-heavy polishes, or nail decals or stones. I used to dread using those because removal left my nail beds sore and irritated. Once I found this method, it's

Princess P-Nut's Zebra Nails

2012-04-15T21:23:00.000-05:00

Ahh, weekends! We went to our friend's house again yesterday and this time I brought my nail polishes with me! I'd planned to do nails for more than just her daughter, but the fibro monster reared its head and said, "Nope, you're done!" At least I was able to get hers done! We decided to call her Princess P'nut, courtesy of her mom. They'd seen my video on making sponged ombre nails and P'nut

How to clean up your manicure to make it look fantastic

2012-04-14T08:27:00.000-05:00

Hiya! Today I've got a tutorial that I've had lots of questions about- how I make my nails look like they're "perfectly polished." Friends have told me that I must have incredibly steady hands to polish my nails so neatly, and yet nothing could be farther from the truth! Instead, I've got a pretty noticeable tremor. My hands shake most of the time, and there's not really anything I can do

It's a gradient day at the Zoya beach!

2012-04-11T22:07:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry, that title is just puntastic. Anyway, I've been wearing this for a few days and I really like it! Not a whole lot of art to it, but it's sparklelicious and you should know by now how much I like the sparkles! I started with my base coat, then did one coat of Zoya Arizona from their Beach and Surf collection. I knew I was going to be doing a gradient, so I did a base coat of my

Some of my favorite YouTube nail artists

2012-04-09T04:56:00.000-05:00

Ok, this weekend was filled with much whining and sleeping, but practically no nail art. That's ok, though... I'm finally starting to feel better, so I expect to get some fun stuff done today. I figured I'd share some of my favorite YouTube nail artists for today, since I get so much joy and inspiration from them! If you like me, you'll LOVE them! These are in no real order, by the way.

I am currently spoonless, so have some flowers.

2012-04-07T05:16:00.003-05:00

An in-progress shot... For whatever reason, I feel like Hurricane Fibro has blown through and seriously wreaked havoc on me. This might have something to do with trying to play Just Dance 3... Not that I'm complaining. I had so much fun and laughed lots. But still, the poor blog suffers when I have no spoons! I definitely need to stretch more, and sleep more. Come to think of it, I should

Rainbow Zebra- how to do the zebra print

2012-04-06T13:30:00.001-05:00

Whew, I finally got this one edited and uploaded! Here's the second half of the rainbow zebra tutorial... Hopefully it makes sense! I love the metallic sparkle of the left nail. It's sponged over silver, as opposed to the right which is over white. I love zebras. They're cute! See my disclosure statement for more information.

Another Fail...

2012-04-05T22:05:00.000-05:00

Once again, I've got a total failed manicure to share with you today. I was experimenting with the Jessica Heavy Petal collection polishes again, this time going for a pink look. Unfortunately, it was a complete disaster. I'm not sure what I was going for, but this clearly isn't it. I started with a base coat of Dazed Dahlia, which is such a beautiful deep hot pink. It's vibrant, but not too

KITTY! CHICKENS! MADNESS!!

2012-04-04T23:52:00.000-05:00

This is Dusty. She is a gorgeous, long-haired lump of love! I had the most awesome time last night. We went to visit a friend and her daughter, and stayed through lunch, all through the afternoon and til around 7pm! Craziness, but it was lots of fun. We played on the xBox Kinect (loads of fun, although my fibro disagreed!), told silly stories and laughed entirely too much. Best of all were

Sketchbook update!

2012-04-03T21:11:00.001-05:00

Join me again for a walk through my sketchbooks, looking at the various things that have wandered through my mind and found an exit into the world through my pens. What can I say, it's crowded in there, and kinda weird. Ok, very weird. I'm going to start out with my current favorite piece. I started doodling it without intending for it to get bigger, but... well, see for yourself. This

A video tutorial on doing a sponged gradient nail!

2012-04-02T06:48:00.000-05:00

I got such a great response to the sponged gradient tutorial I did. Unfortunately, quite a few people posted that they didn't quite follow my steps, so I decided the best thing to do was to do a video tutorial! That way, it's clear what I'm doing and when. Recording the video didn't take all that long, but holy cow did editing it take a long time! Thankfully it didn't make me want to scream or

No April Fools Jokes Here.

2012-04-01T05:00:00.000-05:00

Just a quick post to say I won't be doing any April Fools jokes here. I'm really not that fond of them, because I don't like trying to make my friends feel foolish. Call me crazy!! :D That's all... there will be more fun stuff tomorrow though. Later! No fools here, just love! See my disclosure statement for more information.

It's Giveaway Time! Sponsored by Verve 360 hair salons in Pittsburgh.

2012-03-30T16:35:00.000-05:00

EDIT: I knew I'd forget something! I added two more ways to enter to the Rafflecopter widget. Also, this giveaway is open til April 10, 2012. Sorry, I'm a goofball. Life is good! Not only have I had an awesome bump in readers lately, I've also had some really great emails. One email was from Verve 360, a fantastic group of hair salons in Pittsburgh, PA. They'd seen my recent post on making