Halloween Nail Ideas 2014

"We can live like Jack and Sally if we want..." 

– Blink-182

Trick or treat?! Halloween is my favourite holiday. I love it. If I had to choose between Christmas and Halloween then it would be sayonara to Santa Claus. 

I haven't decided on my nails for this year yet, but I thought I'd show you some previous nail art I've done in case you're looking for some inspiration.

These nails are from 2011 -- when I first started trying out designs.

Here's my offerings from 2013. From left to right there's a scene from The Nightmare Before Christmas, an autumn tree, a pumpkin, spider webs, Jason's hockey mask, dripping blood, Frankenstein's creation, a vampire, a spider, and Jack Skellington. 

Have a frightful Halloween my ickle pumpkins. 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

"COWABUNGA!"

With the new film out, Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Leonardo – aka the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – hopped straight out of the big screen and onto my nails.

I'd love to claim this as an original idea, but I spotted the design being shared on Facebook and simply had to try it for a cinema trip. 

I spotted a pair of very apt pants in Topshop. Rather than buy them I decided to arrange an impromptu photo shoot in store – I'm certain the staff loved me for it, ahem… 

Picking the right green was a tricky decision – neon turtles anyone? Megan Fox has green nails throughout the film so I chose a very similar shade. 

As for the film, I enjoyed it more than I probably should have. The turtles are extremely personable and I think it would be wonderful to have them roaming around the city – as long as they were willing to share all the pizza. I'm a big (HUGE) Megan Fox fan and the Transformers franchise hasn't been the same without her, so I thoroughly enjoyed her kick-ass, or should I say kick-Shredder's-ass, performance. And, just for a giggle, here's me showing off my nails with the lads… 

For now, I shall leave you with a tune from the soundtrack. Here's Shellshocked, best played LOUD.

Jamie Crawford Music

“The guitar is a miniature orchestra in itself.” 

- Ludwig van Beethoven

When it comes to music, my Achilles heel is boys with guitars. Stick a man on stage with a decent voice and a stringed instrument (ukeleles don't count, fellas) and I'll buy the gig tickets, CD, and overpriced T-Shirt – sound the groupie klaxon.

Paolo Nutini, Ben Howard, Nick Mulvey, Vance Joy, Jamie Crawford, Hozier... Hold on a sec, did you say 'who's Jamie Crawford?' Well my darlings, he's a talented musician from London who I had the pleasure of going to university with. He'd play at acoustic gigs across our university town – big up Reading – and it was a great change from the usual pre-drink / club / crawl home kind of combination that became the norm – not that there's anything wrong with that. Anyway, I've been a fan ever since and even used some of the old student loan to buy him some recordable CDs. If you like bluesy pop then you'll love the sound.

Jamie and his band – hey, Charlie and Craig! – played at The Bedford in Balham this week, in a really cool Globe-style venue. I thought I'd dress my nails up for the occasion, to match the band's latest EP…

They've also got a new music video - if you haven't caught it on MTV yet, watch it here…

You may think I'm bias, but I'm not. The music is genuinely cracking and if you want confirmation just check them out for yourself:

Head to iTunes and download the first EP, You're a Lion Next to Me, here; or the second, Wish Me Luck, here.

Check Facebook for the latest events, follow the adventure on Twitter, or have a listen on Soundcloud.

Got a new band you love? Let me know. Maybe I can become an independent version of BBC Introducing. 

Lupus Awareness Month 2014

As you may have noticed from the increase of pink products in shops recently, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. What you may not have noticed is that it's Lupus Awareness Month too. 

Unless you're a Lady Gaga fan, have watched House, or saw cycle two of America's Next Top Model (circa 2004), then lupus may not be on your radar.

In a very simple nutshell, lupus is an incurable autoimmune condition that mainly effects young women -- lucky us, eh? Basically, the immune system enjoys attacking the healthy cells, tissues, and organs in the body, which can cause inflammation and lead to a variety of complications.

The illness is difficult to diagnose because the symptoms are almost identical to other problems such as rheumatoid arthritis, and the symptoms vary in type and severity across individuals. I won't go into further details here, I'm aware this is a nail blog and not the NHS Direct, but Lupus UK (or lupus.org for US readers) is a really useful resource for anyone looking for more information.

How have I linked this to nails? Purple is the colour adopted by the lupus campaign, so I followed suit. Using a striping brush to layer white nail polish with different shades of purple, I created a marble effect and then added some polka dots -- I solemnly swear to avoid polka dots in my next blog post, I'm sure you're tired of them by now. 

Follow @LupusUK for daily updates. 

Amsterdam

Amsterdam has stolen my heart, ladies and gents. A combination of stunning scenery and lax laws makes for an unforgettable city break.

The simplest way to reflect Holland through nails would be to paint them red (to pay homage to the Red Light District), green (to reflect the 'coffee shops') or orange - it's because of the Dutch royal family that the country loves the colour so much, just in case you were wondering where the obsession originated from. I opted for orange and added the Netherlands flag too. 

What a beautiful place.