Fancy Phalanges: Summer Challenge: Ladybugs...or Ladybirds

Friday, June 15, 2012

Summer Challenge: Ladybugs...or Ladybirds

This week had been absolutely crazy! But now that it's over I can post a little more regularly :) Today's challenge is ladybugs! Or as the UK girls call them, ladybirds. I jokingly asked what ladybirds were to make sure I didn't have to make Ladybird Johnson nails, much to the amusement of The Crumpet haha :) Have you heard the legend of the ladybug? I found it here.

"Legends vary about how the Ladybug came to be named, but the most common (and enduring) is this: In Europe, during the Middle Ages, swarms of insects were destroying the crops. The farmers prayed to the Virgin Mary for help. Soon thereafter the Ladybugs came, devouring the plant-destroying pests and saving the crops! The farmers called these beautiful insects "The Beetles of Our Lady", and - over time - they eventually became popularly known as "Lady Beetles". The red wings were said to represent the Virgin's cloak and the black spots were symbolic of both her joys and her sorrows."

At my parents' store we have a rosary that has beads shaped like ladybugs because of the legend of how they got their names. It's kinda perfect because the rosary is a series of prayers asking Mary to pray for us and ladybugs are named after her. Anyways, enough of the Catholic nerdery. On to the polish!

I started with two coats of OPI Color So Hot it Berns. Then I freehanded some ladybugs with a striper brush and L.A. Colors Circuits :) I kinda accidentally did a few different versions, but not all ladybugs are alike. Or maybe some are ladybugs and some are ladybirds haha. This mani kinda went through the ringer at work, so it's not my neatest work, but I still like it :)