Friday, November 22, 2013

The Day of the Doctor - a fandom nail art post

WARNING - YOU ARE ABOUT TO ENTER A FANDOM POST. 

WHILE READING THIS POST, YOU MAY BE EXPOSED TO OR EXPERIENCE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING: DOCTOR WHO JARGON, GIRLISH SQUEALING, EXTERMINATION, TORCHWOOD REFERENCES, A STRONG DESIRE OR IMPULSE TO TRAVEL AND EXPLORE THE WORLD/UNIVERSE, MORE GIRLISH SQUEALING, SUDDEN DESIRE TO RUN AWAY WITH THE DOCTOR, THE NEED TO BE CALLED STORMAGEDDON DARK LORD OF ALL, INTENSE CRAVINGS FOR FISH FINGERS AND CUSTARD, FEAR OF BLINKING, EXTREME HAPPINESS AND THE URGE TO SAY ALLONSY, BRILLIANT, I'M SORRY...I'M SO SORRY, GERONIMO, AND/OR TIMEY WIMEY.


YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

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 Hi all! So for those of us dorks, geeks, fan girls/guys, BBC lovers and scifi followers, tomorrow is an extremely important day. Specifically, it is the day of the doctor.

What does this mean you ask? Well if you have been following the British TV series, Doctor Who, you know that tomorrow is the 50th anniversary episode of our favorite T.V. show. The series began in 1963 with William Hartnell as the very first doctor. The show ran from 1963-1989, stopped, started again in 1996, stopped again and relaunched in 2005. Doctor Who has been consistently shown since then and has introduced us to Doctor's 9, 10, and 11, respectively Christopher Eccleston, David Tenant, and Matt Smith. This scifi series, which originally began as a black and white 30 minute show, has truly evolved over the years. This show has led to the creation of Doctor Who related movies, books, comics, action figures, toy sonic screw drivers and even toy plush Dalek's that shout "Exterminate!!!" when you squeeze them. 
All thanks to the good doctor. 

And in honor of the 50th anniversary, I came up with this nail design, inspired by the Varnished Valkyrie


But before we get to the art.

So I don't want to bore you with too much history and chances are those of us who follow the show, already know most of what I have just mentioned. But in writing this post, I kept thinking, how am I supposed to describe the awesomeness of this show? I mean, technically it's about an alien called a Time Lord who has two hearts and looks like a human who travels around in time and space with a companion in a box called the Tardis which makes a whooshing noise.

But really, it's so much more than that. Why is The Doctor so important (even as a fictional character) to so many people? Well for me, its this. 

By all means, The Doctor is an ordinary man. Yes, he can regenerate (almost never die) and yes he has the Tardis to help  him travel. But ignoring all that, he is an ordinary man. He has no job,  no money, and no famous friends. He doesn't have a million dollar mansion, a Lamborghini, fancy suits...actually he wears the same clothes everyday. He isn't a talented singer (not like John Barrowman *girlish squeal*) and his dancing abilities are questionable. He isn't a businessman, a lawyer, or even a real doctor. I mean really, for a scifi show, he doesn't even have supernatural powers (levitation, orbing, telekinesis). The truth is he doesn't seem to have much, except for a sonic screwdriver...which might I add doesn't even work on wood. He doesn't have many of the things we tend to hold to high esteem or strive for in our current society. So what is it that has so many people hooked on this show?

Well for me, what's so beautiful about the idea of The Doctor is that even as someone who is pretty ordinary, he still manages to do extraordinary things and inspires those around him to do the same. He takes regular, ordinary people and shows them they have much more in them than they may have believed. He doesn't need weapons, money, or power, to beat the Daleks, Sontarans, or Cybermen.  Rather, when a situation seems impossible, he relies on his friends, knowledge, and ultimately his faith to fight his way to the next episode. He has a tireless stock pile of faith in humanity and a frightening determination.  Ultimately, he represents never ending hope.

Of course, as a TV show, The Doctor is always going to win.We wouldn't love The Doctor if he lost every battle. And to be fair, the level of optimism in the T.V. series (just try your hardest and never give up) doesn't always translate to real life. But perhaps, in some situations, we can learn a lesson from The Doctor and his companions. Think outside the box, attempt the impossible, and persevere despite the difficulty of your situation...and see what happens. You never know. And of course, don't forget your sonic screwdriver...even though it doesn't work on wood....

And despite the shows optimism (everything always turns out alright in the end), the show is not without it's loses...Rose, Amy and Rory, the woman The Doctor fell in love with when he was a human,  the blonde woman from the titanic, and the teenager who worked with the Santorans, just to name a few. The message behind this? In every war we fight, in every battle we win, we sometimes lose something along the way.  If you really want to achieve something, sometimes sacrifices (time, effort, etc.) have to be made. Sounds like real life to me.

But that's just me. I am in no way affiliated with BBC or Doctor Who except as a huge fan, so that's just my opinion. But anyway.

That's enough talking. Now onto the nail art! Allons-y!

What else is special about this mani? The color I used for this mani is actually my very first indie polish purchase! I purchased this polish a few weeks ago from LynBDesigns which can be found on Etsy. I tend to stay away from indies (even though I love them) because they tend to be super expensive. However, this little beauty was on sale, so I thought, why not? Also, can we talk about the name of the polish...Time and Relative Dimension in Space aka Tardis? How perfect for the 50th anniversary!

Time and Relative Dimension in Space is a stunning navy blue jelly polish with tiny silver and blue square sparkles. The picture directly below comes from LynBDesigns Etsy website. As you can see with two coats, this color is is not completely opaque, but has a Jelly like quality to it.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/98486163/time-and-relative-dimension-in-space?ref=shop_home_active
For my design, I first did one coat of Essie's Midnight Cami, which is a shimmery navy blue polish (basically the same color as Time and Relative Dimension in Space, just without the sparkles). Then I did one coat of Time and Relative Dimension in Space, to make my mani completely opaque. Look at those sparkles! Love it! <3


And because the T.V. series would be incomplete without the Daleks (those suckers always manage to worm their way back through a rift or alternate universe), I had to add a Dalek on my ring finger, which I affectionately named Dalek Bob (after Angel Bob in The Time of Angels episode). Dalek Bob was painted using Revlon's Star, which is a smoky black/gray polish with a bit of shimmer to it. I used some nail striping tape to separate the Dalek's head from it's body. Then, I added some Swarovski crystals (purchased from the born pretty store) to make the Dalek's eye and to recreate the hemispheres (bumps) on their bodies. 


And here is my trusty sonic screwdriver (belonging to the 11th Doctor, Matt Smith) which  my boyfriend bought me for my birthday. I like to bring it to work with me and point it at people when they are getting on my nerves. It lights up and makes the whirring noise and everything! Thankfully, my boss is also a HUGE Doctor Who fan, so I don't get in too much trouble....but I do get weird looks from the rest of my coworkers : )

So that's the end of this ridiculously long post! But if you made your way through the entire thing, congrats and thanks for reading!

And now I want to hear from you! 
What's your favorite Doctor Who episode?
Whose your favorite villain? 
Who would you like to see the doctor fight next?

Pick a question and leave me a comment!

Like what you see? Check out my other designs on pinterest and tumblr!


Awesome Doctor Who Art <3
Adipose Nail Art
Dalek Nail Art
The 11th Doctor
Bad Wolf
The Silence


“The universe is big. It’s vast and complicated and ridiculous. And sometimes, very rarely, impossible things just happen and we call them miracles.”
                          - The Doctor, Season 5, Episode 12

LynBDesigns - Time and Relative Dimension in Space
Essie -  Midnight Cami
Revlon - Black Star
Swarovskri Crystals - Born Pretty Store

6 comments:

  1. This is really cute! Love everything about it!

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  2. This is rad!

    Now it's on me, huh?

    What's your favorite Doctor Who episode?
    Well... like... all of them :D But I really love the empty child. And now "The day of the doctor" of course :D

    Whose your favorite villain?
    You guess :D EXTERMINATE!!

    Who would you like to see the doctor fight next?
    I would totally want the Master to return. Simm was sexy as the master >_<

    BTW: New follower ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! And the empty child is definitely one of my favorites! Although I have to say I really like the episodes with Craig...but really its way too hard to pick an absolute favorite! And favorite villain? I would have to say, the weeping angels...they freak me out so much...and I'm thinking they should find a way to bring back the master...I agree, he was pretty hot!

      And yay! new follower! Thanks for stopping by : )

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  3. Bob is so cute!
    And I ABSOLUTELY, wholeheartedly agree with you on the description of why the Doctor is so special and important. Beautifully put!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I'm glad to have a whovian who agrees with me : )

      Delete