Pink Bow Tie Nails

I'm in love with this design :) I was going for something simple, so I use pastel colors (nude and light pink), and it turned out way better than I expected! Classy and simple. I've realized that when I do light colors, I need to start with a white base otherwise the color isn't opaque and you can see my nails through it. Ew! So I did that, painted the nude color on, then made another white base in the shape of the bows. I waited for it to dry then added the light pink on top and outlined it in black. Voila, all done!

Matte Black Zebra Nails

The design itself isn't much, but I really wanted to try something with my new nail polish! It's called matte black and I got it on Amazon by Zoya. You can get it by other brands, too. It has no shine like normal polish, so when you add normal polish on top, it makes it stand out. So adding the same color to it is subtle, but I like it!

Valentine's Day Nails

Everyone's had those heart shaped candies on Valentine's Day... So why not paint them? I had to buy all new pastel colors (except the purple--I borrowed that from a friend) in order to do this design, but I'm glad I did because they're adorable colors! On the ring finger it says QT pie, but I messed up the Q and the little line is on the wrong side. But that's okay, it's really hard to write words upside down, and that's the only mistake I made ;) Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

Fish Scale Nails

I am on my high school swim team, and varsity districts are coming up so I figured I would do a themed nail design! I decided to do intricate fish scales. I was going to do a blue M on my ring finger, but I spaced out and started doing the wrong colors. So this is what the outcome is! I faded light blue and light green together (which was really hard for some reason, I kept messing up), then I used a toothpick to draw the scales on. That's it! Good luck at districts, Celts :)

Epilepsy Awareness Nails

In case you can't tell, the ribbons on my nails are purple, and purple represents epilepsy. Today my nails have a very special meaning, and I'd like to tell the story of my personal journey with epilepsy. So here we go...

I was diagnosed with Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy in April of last year after I had a grand-mal (big) seizure for the first time. What I didn't know was that I'd been having seizures for years before that. I was scared to find out that there are over 40 different types of seizures, and I have three different kinds.

The main type that I have are myoclonic, which means 'jerking' and they effect the top part of my body. I used to have them every morning in sixth grade, and they continued all the way up until my diagnosis. Each individual seizure lasts a couple seconds, but I was having them for up to a half an hour everyday. I had always thought they were normal; everyone has those jerks when they're tired, right? I guess not.

The worst part about the myoclonic episodes are that I'm conscious and I know what's going on. I can feel them coming because I have 'auras' (something that warns me when a seizure is about to happen), but by the time the aura comes it's too late to do anything. Part of my seizures are that I feel extreme fear throughout the episode, and it makes me scream, whimper, and cry sometimes when they happen. I've never seen myself have one, but when I have a serious one I can feel my eyes roll back and my arms and chin come into my chest and twitch. It's painful and scary, but once it's over, it's over, and I can go on with the rest of my day.

Something that surprises people is that I am not triggered by flashing lights. In fact, flashing lights are one of the least common triggers for people with epilepsy. I am triggered by sleep deprivation, air deprivation, and strong emotions.

I am now on medication and the seizures are much more controlled, but I still feel handicapped by the stereotypes that society has given me. There are days that I feel like it's holding me back, but I've learned that this disorder is a gift. Who's to tell me that I can't be the next da Vinci of nail art? Or that I can't light the world on fire like Alfred Noble? Who knows, maybe I'll rule the world like Caesar and they'll make a statue of me like Alexander the Great. There's no reason that I can't because all of the people above have made history and done incredible things, even though they all had epilepsy, too. Over the course of the year, I've learned that I am Hailey, and I have epilepsy. But epilepsy does not have me. I am living day by day, seizing each one as I go.

Japanese Inspired Nails

These nails were surprisingly simple--all I did was pick a light base coat then use my tiny paintbrush to do the rest! To find the japanese characters, I just looked online. There were some pretty cool ones, but I only wanted to do two so that they would stand out on my nails rather than just all be the same thing. The thumb one means "love" and the middle one means "God." Not only are they beautiful characters, they have beautiful meanings. The cherry blossoms are simple and they make the black letters really pop. For the base coat--I chose this adorable light green, which I love, but I'm sure it would good with light pink, too! To finish off the job I added a sparkly/shimmery top coat.

Make A Wish Nails

These nails are so easy and so adorable! They seriously took me like two minutes (not including drying time). All I needed was a light base color, black, white, a tiny paintbrush, and a bobby pin. For the black stem and white lines I used my paintbrush. No need for it to be perfect; I just made little random slashes. For the little black dot on top of the stem I used a bobby pin, but you could probably do that with the paintbrush as well! Super fast, super easy, and super cute!