We drove 3 1/2 hours from Las Vegas last night, arriving home at about 10:30 p.m. I was grateful not to have to fly this time. Not that I don’t like to travel — because I do — but TSA has made it a real hassle to get on a plane these days.

Anyways, it was great to visit Vegas and in April too instead of June this year. For anyone who hasn’t been to Vegas in the summer, it can be an absolute furnace at times. But during April it’s pretty nice.

I competed in six competitions this weekend. Five of them were hands-on (sculptured nails, design sculpts, mirror image, salon success and the U.S. Invitational) and one was a turn-in category (3-D nail art).

I’m definitely struggling with expo hangover, which I always do after an event and this one is a doozy. For three days straight you’re starting at 7 a.m.

I took two models with me and every night after competition, we would go to our hotel, have dinner, and return to my room to soak off the nails. It’s always a little heart-breaking to do, because you spend hours putting on these spectacular nails, only to soak them off the same evening. But of course I have a camera, and I am able to preserve the nails digitally forever.

The competition this year was a pretty good size. The JNA (Japanese Nailist Association) came and brought a bunch of competitors. The largest competition had more than 60 people. It was crazy. The biggest one I’ve seen since I was in Japan.

Competitions are always fun for me. I love the environment and I’d really like to see more of my online friends out there. (Hint, hint.)

Here are some photos for you to enjoy. In my next post, I’ll post the winners and some of their work.

These are pictures of my desing sculptured flower nails. How do you think I did? I'll let you know how I placed soon...

— Lynn