You may have heard of Patrick through various polish groups online, but I’ll tell you a little about him anyway. Patrick is a 6 year old little boy in Ohio who likes to wear nail polish. He says that it makes him feel good. I can certainly relate to that! Sadly, Patrick has been bullied by his classmates for his love of polish. He has been teased and called names. The teasing and bullying escalated to the point that the school administration stepped in. I wish I could tell you that his school addressed the bullies, but the administrators instead decided to take a different approach. They told Patrick he can no longer wear polish to school.
In chatting with Patrick’s mother, I was shocked! The notion that polish is only for girls and the fact that school would side with the bullies just blows my mind. I know quite a few strong men who enjoy nail polish. Heck, it's not uncommon to see painted nails and toes in the Mixed Martial Arts community. The guy who first came to mind is a local MMA fighter and coach from The Hardcore Gym in Athens GA. I first met Shane McNew while I was working a fight night event a few years back. I was signing in the fighters, and in walks this fellow in a pink shirt with pink hair and pink nails. As a nail polish lover, Shane definitely caught my attention (he’s a heck of a nice guy to boot). He went on to win his match that night with a rear naked choke in the first round. I dare any bully to tell Shane that nail polish is just for girls! Check Shane out on facebook for more photos of his rocking pink nails.
Patrick’s parents started a facebook group called Polish for Patrick with the goal of showing their young son that ANYONE can wear polish, not just girls! I have joined the group and have been absolutely moved by the outpouring of support Patrick has received. If you agree that no child should ever be made to feel inadequate for enjoying a little polish on his nails, please join the group and show your support.
I have also created a linkup here (see the end of this post). Please feel free to add your links and share your photos with Patrick! He enjoys seeing polish creations of all colors and types. If you’re not a blogger, you can still join in. More on that in a moment.
Onto the nails. First, my oldest son wanted to show his support and chose the color of his favorite Ninja Turtle. Bryant is wearing Crayola Blueberry Myrtille. He loves that it smells like blueberries. I apologize for the blurry photos. It is extremely difficult to get a 4 year old boy to stay still for longer than 2.5 seconds.
My husband also joined in. Keith is wearing Couture Gel Polish Aloe Very and Turning Heads. His middle finger has a message for Patrick that is freehanded in Mundo de Unas black.
So, what am I wearing? I started out the week with a simple black and white mani of Gelaze White on White stamped with Mundo de Unas black and the paisley pattern from Bundle Monster BM315.
After learning about Polish for Patrick and chatting with this mother, I updated my mani with some of Patrick’s favorite polish colors – pink and orange – using the LeadLight technique from Messy Mansion. The pink is Couture Mardi Gras and the orange is Couture Stealing the Scene. I love how these jelly finishes work with this technique! I don't think I've swatched Stealing the Scene yet, but I'll be sure to share a swatch pic later on.
Finally, here’s the linkup/blog hop! First, a few details:
- Anyone is welcome to join! If your mani photo has a URL, you can link it!
- Remember, the purpose of this linkup is to show support for Patrick and his love of polish. Please keep all entries suitable for viewing by a young child.
- Link as many entries as you like! Even older designs that you feel Patrick might enjoy seeing :) After all, this is for Patrick!
- Have fun!
- If you have a blog and would like to share the linkup on your post, click here for the InLinkz code!
Here are the instructions for linking up. Thank you to Alessandra of The Sparkle Queen for these awesome instructions, for permission to use the graphic, and for helping me set up this Blog Hop/Linkup!
Thank you to everyone who joins the linkup or swings by Polish for Patrick on Facebook to show your support!
~Michelle
That's absolutely shocking - a massive example of a school failing a child. I couldn't imagine them asking a child to stop wearing a symbol of their religious faith because they were getting bullied over it.
ReplyDeletep.s. I love your paisley mani.