Santa's Little Helpers

First off, thank you to my friend Jenny for the idea for this manicure. It is now officially in my "Totally Awesome" category and IMHO even better than the first time I thought of this concept. Check the original two finger manicure HERE if you are interested. I am leaving this year's Christmas manicures with a BANG by giving you one of my best manicures, I think, ever! This was a crazy process that took me about 3.5 hours in design/painting time. But don't worry, I was watching a lot of TV and eating dinner and taking random breaks. But totally worth it! Merry Christmas to all of my readers and I hope you have a safe holiday and enjoy yourselves!

Manicure deets: My elves are modeled after the elves found on THIS website.

I'll start with the general and colors used throughout the manicure. The base color is two coats of China Glaze Re-Fresh Mint. Skin for the elves was done by mixing equal parts China Glaze Classic Camel and OPI Skinny Dip'n In Lake Michigan and White (see link for white detail). The brown straps for the elves clothing is China Glaze Ingrid and the brown body/overalls/hair is Evening Seduction. White detail is Ulta Angel Baby and black detail and outlining is Ulta Black Diamond. The "Merry Christmas" was made with Zoya Sarah and the star is filled in with Orly Luxe. The finished look was coated first with Seche Vite (to prevent bleeding with the matte top coat) and then mattified with Essie Matte About You.

Red Elf Colors: Zoya Sarah for hat, shirt and legs. Rosy cheeks in China Glaze Something Sweet.

Orange/Yellow Elf Colors: Yellow is a mix of China Glaze Solar Power and Essie Hello Yellow (no link, sorry), orange in China Glaze Breakin', Purple shoes and balls China Glaze Spontaneous. (this color was also mixed with white to make the light purple rosy cheeks).

Yellow/Green Striped Elf Colors: Red shoes, hat, pants are Zoya Sarah. Yellow is China Glaze Solar Power and green is a mix of China Glaze Paper Chasing and Emerald Sparkle. Rosy cheeks are Zoya Jolene.

Blue Elf Colors: Light blue color is China Glaze Bahamian Escape, Darker blue is China Glaze Shower Together, socks are China Glaze Entourage with stripes in Emerald Sparkle. Rosy Cheeks are China Glaze Peachy Keen.

And For Your Interest, Here's My Christmas Workshop: