Girly Grit

I am departing from the norm, or the expected for my New Year's Eve Nails, by doing something that best describes me, instead of over the top sparkle and confetti.

On top of brand new skates, which I just loved yesterday, I placed some zen flower stickers, that add an element of hippy and natural girl to the glam and grit of BNS. The combination wowed me.

I L-O-V-E it, and I cannot thank my friend Nakesha enough for sharing the stickers. I got a fun 10 minutes of play, and I fell in love with the results. I am all for switching my nails up every day, but if this would stay on a month I would keep it.

I placed the stickers randomly over top, waited for them to adhere and become polish-like and then went over it with about three top coats just to make sure.

The result was a textured and pretty mani that makes me happy, and because that is the whole point, I am keeping it.

And just for fun, here is what Nakesha brilliantly did with her share. She placed a mix of colors over a french, and it created a classic, flowery and fun look that perfectly fits her as well. Great Job and Great Find!!


I wish you all a Happy New Year, I know mine will be filled with tons of excitement, including th best Halloween wedding ever and lots of time with the ones who matter, less worrying about the ones who do not, and more time making myself pleased.

New Book, New Nails

After finishing the last book, I reached for something a little more gritty. Street Magic by Caitlin Kittredge, "A Black London Novel," which takes place on the gritty, grey streets of London, and in the seedy supernatural Black.

To match the dreary, yet magical cover, I reached for another of my new OPI shade: Brand New Skates. I actually first reached for this to do a metallic medley nail for NYE, but when I saw how gorgeously grey and gunmetal it turned out, I decided I wouldn't dare cover it up.

I expected this to be a shiny, glittery silver, but instead it was very grey and sheer. It took four coats to get opaque, and I can still see some nail leaking out.

Application, though was beautiful, I didn't clean up and you can see I didn't do half bad.

In short, though, I would say don't shrug this color of as Christmas or girly even. This is gritty, gunmetal pewter, and I'm lovin' it.

What do you think?

Book-Inspired Mani

I just got done reading a great book about selkies, kelpies, vampires and all kinds of fun stuff. But I was so inspired by the cover, I though I would try my new OPI INK to celebrate.

This is a shade I think would look great matte, but it's meant to be shiny. It looks just like the ink in a ballpoint pin if it leaks or explodes. It's a beautiful mixture of blue, black, and purple. Everyone at work said it looks just like the real thing.


What do you think? I know it's hard to photograph, but trust me it's beautiful just like the book, which is called Tempest Rising if anyone is interested.

Football nails

So Christmas is over, and tomorrow means back to work, and next week means fun New Year's manis, but for today, I wanted to show off a little Bengals pride, as the team I grew up with won out the AFC North division. Go Bengals!

For this I used On the Same Paige from OPI and my trusty Rimmel Lycra Wear Black Satin, which I love more everytime I use it even though it started out rough. The OPI applied beautifully. Two coats to opaque. I could have gone with one, but used the second to even it out.

I first tried to do something akin to tiger stripes, FAIL, and then I tried a single stripe effect, FAIL and decided on this. I used Orly In a snap over top, and it was amazing. It dried every thing fast, and more importantly made it all even, so I couldn't tell the black was an additional layer. It's not my best work, but at least I tried something new, and I wanted to show it off, before tomorrow.

I have soooooooooo many new nail polishes with Christmas hauls, I will have enough to keep me going. (at least until Absolutely Alice comes out next month!)

Amazzzing

So I stopped by Sally's and picked up Ruby Pumps and Emerald Sparkle to do a Christmas mani. And here it is.

It's everything you've heard it was if you don't have it. It's the perfect Christmas green for the perfect Christmas red, and the formula hides a multitude of sins.

I still cannot do a lot of the amazing things I see on the other blogs, so I alternated nails again, and I am happy with the Christmas cheer that I got.


Thank you all for being so supportive as I started this journey. This blog, family and friends have made this year bearable. I appreciate everything.

Update: I just saw Brooke has an alternating nail mani for Christmas too on Getcha Nails Did. Hers is amazinger than mine, and now I am convinced this was the way to go

Mint Candy Christmas

So... many of you know I won Mint Candy Apple from a giveaway at Naive Nails. Here are the results.

There was just something about this polish I loved. I think a lot of it had to do with the cream composition. I think I love creams because a lot of the nail polishes I had when I was young were not creams, and I find them fascinating.

I found that I loved the color, but it really reminded me of Easter, or Wint O Green Tic Tacs. The BF hated this one. He said it looked like green Pepto Bismol, so remind me not to wear a pink creme polish in his presence.

MCA applied like a dream, smooth controlled and ample coverage. The first time I put it on, I attempted to make it more Christmasy with Ulta Gold Digger, and the results were nice but not durable. I only have this one pic, so sorry for the messy nails, but it all gooped off soon after this.



So, I redid it in the morning with just two coats of MCA alone, and loved it throughout the day, I even opted for two days of wear, even though I have tons of other polishes yearning to be played with.

On top of that, I made a trip to Sally Beauty for my first two China Glazes, Ruby Pumps and Emerald Sparkle for Christmas, and it is well worth it. More on those tomorrow....

For now, here's one final shot (low light) of how I wore MCA for the past two days, very cute with my Winter white Anne Klein coat!

O Holy Night

These were my nails Sunday for the first of many many family Christmases.

I started with Yoga-ta get this blue, which came out deep, rich and soulful and much darker than I thought, but beautiful. When I put it on, I said the only way I could possibly review it is to tell everyone they need to get it, if they don't already.

And then I added my Utal Gold Digger, in two coats on top-- I love the combination, it looks like a night sky.



It immediately went to my love list, and I would have kept it on if 1. I hadn't chipped my polish on my index finger (not the polishes fault) and 2. I didn't have so many more amazing colors to try. Case and point: I put Mint Candy Apple on yesterday, and I fought my self so much to take it off today, that I decided to leave it on. (pictures of that later)

Fun With Color

I am loving all my new toys, and the polishes are totally working as therapy. I love it.

This weekend I played with my bright OPIs, including GreenWich, Teal the Cows come Home and On the Same Paige. I alternated on my toes, and now everytime I look down, they make me happy-- I cannot wait til brighter days to try this on my fingers!Sorry for the ultra blurriness, I got a bit of vertigo looking down from 5'3"

I also played around this weekend with Yoga To Get this Blue, which I love, and today I got my winner's package from Naive Nails and immediately tried on Mint Candy Apple, which I have to admit is awesome. I also have been using my Utla Gold Digger to holidify everything.

I have swatched some, but I am trying to let it build up some, so for now all you get are my ugly toes! ha!

Holiday Haul

It seems like just a month ago that I had just three nail polishes, and they were boring. Really, it was a month ago, so that is likely why. Now, I am amzingly up to 40! Largely thanks to my wonderful friends, boyfriend and mother, with a little help of my own from Sally Hansen Grab Bags.

It's been so fun to see what colors have made them think of me, and they were right on!

Here's what's come in in the last two days:

First haul was an early gift from the BF via Sally Hansen Grab Bags that worked out great this time! Just one double!

Spicy Scarlet, Azalea, Violet Kiss

Beet Stain, Gloss Peach, Pink Twice

Liberated Lilac, Pale Pink Opal, Iris

Then, on Friday night we had Christmas with my bestest bestest friends from my days as a waitress and now many years beyond. From my two best friends, I hauled 7 OPI colors and an OPI start to finish clear, along with some OPI remover, lots of nail tools and Bath and Body Works! Best Present EVA!

Green-wich Village, On the Same Paige, Teal the Cows Come Home


Brand New Skates, Catherine the Grape, Yoga-ta Get this Blue!, OPI Ink


And then the clears: I got two more Double Duty polishes, and two of Natural Shine Instant Nail Finish and OPI from Start to finish.



What do you think?

Silver and Gold

Well, the 10-day challenge is over. Finally! It really only lasted a few days, but the 10-day color was amazing, it just bonded to my nails. I am the one who ruined it, and I got bored. And, I had four straight Christmas parties and couldn't quite go with Wineberry for the festivities.

So first, I tried this Creative Nail Design Silver Anniversary, which I got at Ulta for $2 on clearance. I thought it would give me a chance to keep the wineberry, but nah!


Just in case though, I bought Ulta Gold Digger for $5, and did this silver and gold mani, alternating nails in silver and gold.


It only took two coats of the silver for complete opaque, and it came out nice and shimmery. The funny thing is, after sleeping the night I put this on, the sheet wear made it look like tin foil, and it was really cool and looked like silverleaf nails, but stayed super glittery.


The gold digger surprised me. It took four coats for opaque, and I realized as I was appyling it that it would be great for layering, but not so much on its own. After sleep however, it looked amazing. It held up to the sheets despite the number of layers and showed no markage whatsoever.

It feels so good to blog again. The Christmas season is taking its toll, and work is getting worse. I know I am not happy, but I can feel that this helps, so I am pretty excited about that.

On a bright note, the holiday hauls are starting to come in, so I will post so pics later today. I hope you'll be as thrilled with them as I am. I thought about swatching them all in one day, but I decided I would much rather follow my original mission with a new color and a new experience every day. But, you'll at least get a sneak peek soon!

Grandma-approved shades

So.... We meet again. Sorry for the long delay in posting, but from jaw injury to a cold, and a black-tie event to a day off work.

But I've only worn two shades since then so you haven't missed much.

Both shades were work-friendly/grandma-approved shades. The first: Pink Suede by Petites was conveniently swatched over at Naive Nails, so if you'd like to see it head over here, she did a great job with it, and I was not feeling up to swatching it while I had it on. I agree with everything GildedAngel says about, and was not brave or patient enough to try it again.

But here is the bottle:And here it is on the right.


On the left is Wineberry (...read on)

I am also taking a 10-day challenge, though I don't know how long that will last. With another prescription came another Sally Hansen grab bag, but I was not at all happy with this haul. However, at 25 percent off this week, ($3.35) three polishes and another dose of double duty was worth it, and ultimately will benefit y'all in a giveaway form. One is the same as another that I already have and the other is Sally Hansen Forsythia, a Tracy Reese Color from spring, but not one I can pull off unfortunately.

But I did get one Sally Hansen No Chip 10 Day Nail Color in Wineberry --a work safe color -- that I am wearing now. And it's everything I was hoping Pink Suede would be.


Wineberry is a mauvy mauve mauve. It reminds me of the interior of my parents old conversion van I had when I was little. But it is kind of nice. It has enough color, and unlike Pink Suede, goes on almost opaque in one coat. I went ahead and did two coats and a top coat, and I had nice results with little cleanup. The application was like a dream, and it feels solid and durable on my nails.

However, I went to SH's Web site today hoping to find some other colors in the same formula, but it was B-O-R-I-N-G. ALL Work Safe and Grandma-approved, but if you know a grandmother looking for some durable polish, this is it.

Like I said, I don't know if I will keep it on for all 10 days, because Christmas is coming soon, and I cannot be boring forever. But let me know what you think...

Do you have favorite grandma-approved colors?

Change of Plans Mani

So the orange dress is not going to work out :-(

It is still cute as a button, but an executive decision was made that there was a bit too much of the girls showing for a business function, and I've changed my mind to prevent too many men in tuxedos ignoring my eyes.

Instead, I am wearing a formal black dress, and in response, I had to change my nails. Here is the result.


I did Poppy Love in two coats followed by a stripe of Rimmel Black Satin. My intention was not to create tips, because my nails are currently too too short for that effect, but I like how the horizontal stripes came out.If I had any ultra glitters, tomorrow would be the night. I am officially adding a silver sparkle and a gold sparkle to my lemming list. Any suggestions? I am feeling the new Sephora OPI gold for Xmas, but I don't know quite where to turn.

The only thing I really don't like about this mani is that it definitely comes off tomorrow night, while a work safe color will be going on. (Not to say I won't be wearing this or countless other rockin' manis to work) But Friday is a big day requiring boring nails, but the existence of color to show personality.



The color I picked up (My mom picked it up actually) is called Pink Suede.

I will share soon, but likely not for a couple days, because Thursday will be an all-dayer.

Sunset Prisms

(Just put this on so ignore the mess, it will be clean I promise, but they just got dry enough to type)

I know it seems odd at this time of year to be sporting a color called Sunset Prisms (Maybelline Express Finish 330) but I have a black-tie event coming up at work Thursday and wanted to test it out for a dress I am going to be wearing. This is one of the few colors I found in my bathroom closet. I don't know quite where it came from or what I wore it with last time. But I am glad I found it.

This is about three to four coats. I am not sure because I just kept going. It dries super fast but not fast enough to ruin it so I just did one hand then another, went back to the first, and I continued the cycle.

I am happy with how it came out-- a corally orange color with a lot of shine. In fact, I was thinking about adding a top coat, but I don't think I need to with this one.

The Dress:

I think this will go nicely with the dress, but I'll let you know. I think it's a pretty cool color.

Have you seen anything like it? Seriously, If you have, I would like to know because I think it would be cool in a creme color.

Clear Polish---Quick Question

If anyone is paying attention this morning, I am on the hunt for a friend looking for the best clear nail polish to wear on its own. She is finding that base coats and top coats alone are not thick enough and chip or wear on their own. All I have is that SH Double Duty I picked up the other day, so I am going to experiment with that for her, but I am interested in hearing all your suggestions.

Does anyone else have this problem with clear?

Do you wear clear polish?

What's the best clear polish?

Personally, I don't know why you'd ever go clear!

Lay It on Me!

I got the most wonderful surprise today at work. One of my favorite people there gave me to contributions to my blog and my journey. And, there's nothing like new polish to make a Monday better.

The two polishes are called Lay It on Me! and they do not have name colors, but they do have a note on them each to not shake and to leave the bottles alone except for dipping, brushing and polishing. The idea is that the combination of three or more colors wil combine in a unique way on the brush and create a unique nail on the nail.

I've seen these before and never had the guts to pick them up, so I was so excited to receive them this morning. The OCD in me wants so badly to mix them up so they are one even color, but after testing the polishes on my lunch break, (over the white polish which was well ready to come off) I am glad I didn't because they were awesome.

The polish itself was a nice weight and easy to control, though the first layer was streaky. Though it was easily evened out and pretty by the second coat. It's disappointing because if you get a neat tie-dye look you have to cover it up.

Alone, the polishes create a creamy/candy coating finish, which makes them look like M&Ms and is very cool, but I found that with a clear coat on one and two on the other, the colors are brought out more.

The first bottle I tried had layers of purple black and a mint/aquamarine green. I had no idea what would come out, but it happened to be a lovely purple-brown that reminded me of the cherry tobacco color floating around, but without the sparkles and more grape tobacco or a cigar box. It actually is very cool.



The other shade in the bottle was a teal, blue, pink sparkle red and bright pink, and it came out on the fingers like an ocean. I would almost describe it as a duochrome without the chrome. It combined all my favorite colors on the nail, and was extremely hard to photograph, but reminded my of my favorite blanket, which my mom made me to remind me of stormy weather (my favorite!)

So, have you seen these? Have you had the guts?

White Wedding

Today, I am heading out to my fiance's father's third wedding-- a casual affair in his living room, so I decided to go with my new white, Snow Me White (Sinful Colors) for the event.

It's a creamy fluid formula that goes on like wet paint is just about as controllable, but I think I am just about ok with it, after three coats and a lot of cleanup (it could still use some).

But with the wedding comes the gifting of my old faithful camera to his dad and with it (hopefully with practice) the blurry pics.


These are with the new camera, and as a bonus: The first pics of my baby Izzy with the new camera. (oh Ya, and the BF too)



Back to snow me white-- I definitely was not going to recommend it, but after a lot of hard work, I think it makes for an interesting all-white mani, which is definitely something unique and worth the $1.88. But if you want it for design or for tips, I wouldn't go there even on the cheap.