Liebster Award

Well, this is pretty nifty. After finishing the 30 day challenge Kerry from Painted Fingertips nominated me for the Liebster Award, which recognizes new bloggers.




Here's how it goes:

1) Link back to the blogger who nominated you

2) Answer the 11 questions given to you by the blogger who nominated you

3) Nominate 11 other bloggers with less than 200 followers

4) Go to the blogs you nominated and notify them of your nomination

5) Give your nominees 11 questions to answer.

I've discovered a few smaller blogs during the challenge, and I'm always looking for new blogs to follow, so I really love the idea of this award. And I'm super honored, by the way! Alright, let's get to it!




1) What made you decide to start blogging?

Well, I had been doing nail art for about 6 or 7 years and started to find some cool nail blogs via Pinterest. I didn't realize that there were so many people like me (aka not a pro) out there blogging about their nail art, nor did I realize how popular a trend it was becoming, since I am pretty much the only person in my social circle that rocks nail art on a regular basis. Since I was doing cooler designs and have blogged about other topics in the past, I thought it would be fun to start this blog and document my work, as well as connect with other nail art enthusiasts.

2) What’s your ‘day job’?

Uh, that's actually a bit tricky to answer at the moment. After working for a non-profit doing video production and then operational work for a large conference, I moved back to my hometown and began looking for permanent work, which I have unfortunately not found yet (yay recession!). But, I spent the last few months volunteering and have recently starting babysitting an adorable 3 month old during the week part-time. She really likes looking at the pictures on this blog. I'm hoping to find work using my office assistant skills and eventually work in the arts full time.

3) What is your favourite nail polish brand?

Hmm, I actually haven't tried very many because I'm an incredibly cheap person and can't afford it right now. But, I really love China Glaze. I'm a big fan of the consistency and find that their polish is generally perfect for nail art. I also love Essie because it goes on really smoothly.

4) What is your favourite polish colour? (It can be a single polish or a colour family!)

Definitely blues. About 1/5 of my collection is made up of blues. I think I use my First Mate (navy) most often.

5) Which is your favourite blog to follow?

Another tough one, but I think I'd have to go with http://1yearofnailart.blogspot.com/. Margriet posts a new manicure every day for an entire year! Considering how tiring it was to do this challenge, I give her major props! Plus her work is beautiful and she's incredibly talented.

6) What is your favourite type of nail art?

I don't know if this really counts as a type, but I'd say pop culture nail art. I really like designs that are based off tv shows and movies and memes, etc. I think they're fun and a great way to mix up typical designs and give yourself a challenge.

7) Do you have any other hobbies besides nails/blogging?

A few! I suppose you could call me a singer/songwriter. I write music under the name Laura Lee and a Ukulele, and while I've been on a long songwriting hiatus this past year, I've been working on a few things and hope to get back to posting more regularly. I'm actually terrified of people hearing me sing/play, especially original songs (hard to get more vulnerable with the public than that), but after a lot of encouragement from friends and surprisingly positive responses online, I'm getting more comfortable with sharing my music.

As I mentioned earlier, I'm interesting in working with film, and love to write sketches and parodies and direct and edit. And act! I love acting.

I'm a big lover of photoshop and like to touch up photos for fun. I've worked on a few senior pictures and engagement photos in the past, but mostly stick to my own photography now.

I'm a nerd in general, so I'm interested in a great many things, but my geek comes out in spades when it comes to tv. I really love television and watch far too many shows. I'm actually thinking of starting a tv blog, since I already review shows for fun on my own and think it would be pretty much a dream to be a well established television blogger.

I have more hobbies, but I'll be surprised if you've read this much (at least of this question), so I'll spare you and move on to the next question.

8) Which is your favourite season?

Easy! Autumn. I love it when it's between 50-70 degrees, and the trees start to change color, and here in Wisconsin those nice, cool, comfortable days last about 4-6 weeks before going back to completely bipolar weather.

9) What is your favourite finish for nail polish?

I'm a simple gloss girl. Matte is cool every now and then, but I prefer to stick with the classic.

10) What are your future blogging goals?

Part of the reason I love blogging is because it helps you connect with a larger community. I hope to become more engaged with the nail art community at large, but also to establish relationships with bloggers where we're able to learn and grow from each other. I always appreciate getting feedback.

11) Which manicure are you most proud of?

Hmm, well, since we're talking about manicures I guess it's a bit easier to choose. For my own nails I think I would pick my Urbana manicure, since they really did look like the logo and I worked with the Urbana conference for almost a year. On someone else's nails, I would pick my pumpkin manicure I did for my roommate. I just really like the detail I was able to achieve.

Okay, if you've made it this far I applaud you. I can be a bit wordy at times, but hey- I'm a blogger. That's sort of the point. Anyhow, let's move on to the bloggers I've nominated for the Liebster Award:

1) Pretty Tough Nails

2) Blingfinger

3) Nail Polish In My Eyes

4) Amey's Nails

5) Nail Polish Sleuth

6) Aisuru Nails

7) Bnasty Nails

8) She Who Does Nails

9) POW Nails

10) Oh No, Not Another Nail Art Blog!

11) Fanning The Fumes

And here are my 11 questions:

1) When and why did you start doing nail art?

2) What inspired you to start your blog?

3) What is your most frequently used polish?

4) What is your favourite polish brand?

5) What technique would you like to master?

6) What is your favorite nail blog to follow?

7) Which design are you most proud of?

8) What are your future blogging goals?

9) Do you have any other hobbies?

10) What are the top 5 polishes on your wishlist?

11) And for fun, if you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?




Happy Painting!