Procrastination

What should I do on a lazy Sunday afternoon when I have the hugest test of my life looming in my near future??? Paint my nails of course!

Ok...so I started with the best intentions (notice my notes spread across my desk) but my office is also my polish room so it's easy to get distracted. For some reason I decided to dig out some oldies out of my stash (Ok...so Mr. Wrong is a new edition but the rest are old as crap):

(From left to right: Milani Honey Coated, Sally Hansen Wildfire Opal, Hard Candy Mr. Wrong, Sally Hansen Garnet Lapis, and Revlon Twilight.)

After a few days of Purple Rain I was ready for something a little more subtle. I tried some layering which turned out disastrously ugly and I won't bother posting them. However, although Honey Coated is kinda bland in normal light in the sunlight it suprised me with a blue flash!

The sun went down before I could take a picture of my final manicure but it was umpteen coats of Honey Coated (it was very sheer and I can't function with VNL) with one coat of Twilight on top.

It turned out to be a very luminous, glowy, pink. I'm not a pink kinda girl but I'm really loving it!

What unexpected laying combinations have you created?

Nars Purple Rain

This polish should be called BAM! Cause that's what I think about my nails every time I see the fabulous hot pink sparkle deep in that dark purple yumminess!

See!? BAM! You were thinking it too right? I love how it looks dark and vampy in some lights and in others you can see that insane pink flash! This is one of the few polishes that I have worn so many times I'm going to have to buy another bottle. And my supervisor is gone tomorrow so I'm taking over the caseload all by myself and rockin' this color while I do it so...BAM!

(And despite what my dry, cold, wrinkly hands would see to imply I am actually 26 and not 46 like my skin seems to appear. Note to self- macro setting on my camera does nothing for my self-esteem! )

And just so we all can get a good laugh...look at the rims I saw driving home yesterday!? Its hard to tell but those blades stick out at least 8 inches!!! I was seriously afraid to pass this car because all I could think of was his rims ripping my tires to shreds! I think he was a fan of Inspector Gadget as a kid.

Ulta Soho Pretty

Well my first few days at my internship were eye-opening to say the least. I was at an adult neuro day rehab facility last semester so it has been a transition working with an entirely different population in this elementary school!

So...my "work appropriate color" turned out a little darker and more mushroomy-purple than I expected...

I still loved it but it wasn't the pinky, grey-toned, neutral I thought it was. Luckily I tested the waters in terms of reaction to my polish choices. No one even seemed to notice my nails except one sweet little boy with autism (who was more interested in touching them rather than the color.)

The good news is my weekend starts Thursday nights since I don't have my internship on Fridays which means a polish change is in order...bring on the bling!!! :)

I also wanted to say to everyone that has been commenting that I really appreciate your feedback and opinions! I get a little giddy every time I see I have a new follower or a new comment!!!

Work Appropriate Colors

I start my internship tomorrow (YIKES!) at an elementary school. I am so excited to get started and meet my kiddos and my supervisor but I am dreading how much I will have to tone down my polish choices. I am hoping to start off with professional looking colors then try to slowly transition into something more flashy. My plan is to start off with some subtle, neutral, non-VNL choices, then move into some grey cremes, then maybe some more adventuresome cremes, then and only then I might bust out some glitters! Sadly I think I'll have to save my Sally Hansen Salon Effects for the weekends! Oh well!

The color I'm planning on wearing for my first day is...drum roll...Ulta's Soho Pretty (I just LOVE that name). I had seen this polish in the stores but it was Chloe's pictures that first made me realize how pretty it was! If you haven't already added Chloe's blog to your list of blog's to read I highly recommend it! Her pictures are exquisite and I would kill to have nails as beautiful as hers!

I will try to post pictures of my First Day Manicure tonight.

Do you have any other suggestions for work appropriate colors? What colors have you worn on your first day on the job?

Stylish Blogger Award!

I was tagged by Stephanie at Imperfectly Painted earlier this week. Love her blog and it is definitely worth checking out! Thank you Steph!

This award come with rules & they are as follows:
1. Thank and link the person who gave you the award
2. Share 7 things about yourself
3. Award 15 recently discovered bloggers
4. Contact these bloggers to tell them about the award

Here are my 7 things:
1. I took a mini vacation with my husband this weekend to celebrate our 2 year anniversary. Gosh I love him!
2. I am starting my last and final semester of graduate school this Tuesday! YES!
3. I hate chick-flicks! They are so predictable, and cheesy and real-life romance is so much better than the pretend Hollywood kind!
4. I have two miniature dachshunds, Blitz and Bailey. They also go by the nicknames Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dumb, Thing 1 and Thing 2, and Double Trouble. We are currently in the process of trying to train them not to bark maniacally when the door-bell rings...so far no dice!
5. My husband and I have been going on a weekly date night since before we were married. We never do anything too fancy...sometimes it just means we go out to eat for a change. But we look forward to it all week. I like to refer to ourselves as proud members of the OMC Club (that's Old Married Couple Club for you youngsters)
6. Writing 7 things about yourself is hard!
7. I have a sweet tooth but only if it involves chocolate...my husband pointed out this interesting contradiction to me this morning. For example, sweet drinks (Big Red, sweet tea, milkshakes) are too intense for me, but throw in some chocolate and I am a happy camper! (oh that reminds me...I love to go camping...that totally should have been #6)

I tag:
BeautyShades
...andnails4all.
The College Students Nail Guide
Fill My Head With Glitter


I tried hard to find some interesting *somewhat* undiscovered blogs! That's all I got for now...

Confetti Purple Reigns

I don't usually go for cremes but this one is stunning. Its a luscious, warm, berry purple that was super glossy before the SV and afterwards...well, I'm pretty sure I could see my reflection in it! I was surprised to find that it applied like butter and was opaque in two coats! Not bad for a drug store brand.

ColourLovers

Since my blog is fairly new I'm still working on customizing the layout and design to make sure it looks unique. I found this website through How About Orange, one of my favorite non-nail polish blogs, and had to share it! Its called ColourLovers and it has a tool that allows you to create your own backgrounds. I've always loved paisely prints and I'm on a jewel tone kick. Using that inspiration it took me all of 5 minutes to register and to create this little beauty:

And just because I can't do a post without talking about nail polish...look at what my dog did to my RBL Under the Stars!

Do you have any blog design advice? Have your dogs (or cats, children, etc) ever destroyed a bottle of nail polish?

Barielle's Jess' Champagne Toast

Ok...so I don't get the name because this polish does not remind me of champagne at all. Anyway, I scooped this one up today on sale at Ulta!!! Yes!

This is a lavender foil with rose-colored micro glitter. This is so unique and I love it (and I'm a big sucker for anything with glitter). Application was a little gloopy but it may just be my bottle as other bloggers haven't seemed to have a problem. The finish is a little bumpy, even with a thick coat of Seche Vite. I think with 2 coats of SV it would be totally smooth.

In other news...my silly little blog that is less than a week old has 5 followers! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! (one for each of you!) I'm really having fun with this whole nail blog thing! If you haven't already please feel free to leave comments! I would love to hear from you! :)

Flakies!!!

I recently found Barielle's Elle's Spell on sale at Ulta a couple of weeks ago. I was floored because finding a flakie in a brick-and-mortar is nothing short of a miracle! I've had it on for 4 days now and it was getting a little chippy at the tips so I decided to spruce it up with another coat plus a coat of Nfu 49 just to up the flakie goodness!

p.s....The wind child outside (which is the only place I could get some sunlight to show off the flakie goodies) is 9 today! So I know these pics aren't stellar because I was FREEZING. Hopefully, you'll forgive me. The cold weather is also wreaking havoc on my cuticles so bear with me!

Sally Hansen Salon Effects

My NYE manicure was Sally Hansen's Salon Effects in the Houndstooth pattern

Here it is, in all it's glory, just after application. I first spotted these at the end of December at Target for $8.99. I have also seen them at WalMart for the same price. Although the price seems steep, I will be able to get two applications from each box so it's really not so bad.

These apply much like Incoco but they come in a variety of fun patterns. I applied these on top of China Glaze Strong Adhesion basecoat and sealed it off with Seche Vite. I got almost 8 days with almost no tip-wear or chipping!

Overall, I was extremely impressed with this product. I am excited that the DIY home nail fanatic finally has an alternative to MINX and I hope this new trend in dry polish strips stays around for a long time!

Have you tried Sally Hansen Salon Effects? Did you get the same durability I did?

Hello World!

It's no secret among my family and friends that I am a addict of all things nail related. How do I know? Well...let me explain:

• My stash of polish is nearing the 150 mark and growing daily!

• I keep a polish wish list on me at all times...just in case I happen upon a big find! (I plan to post my wish list soon so stay tuned)
• The first thing I do when I wake up in the morning and the last thing I do before I go to sleep at night is read through my favorite blogs on my phone. Its a great way to start and end the day and I'm so thankful for all the work those incredible ladies put into their blogs!
• I now talk in nail-speak....I regularly refer to my polish of choice as my "NOTD", I rave about finding more "flakies", and I know how both spell and pronounce Seche Vite, Nfu.Oh, and Illamasqua!
• I no longer get professional manicures because after painting my nails at least 3x/week for years I can do a better job...plus I have a preferred nail regiment that keeps my nails and cuticles looking pretty decent (more on the later as well)

The list could go on, but why...if you're reading this blog you're probably in the same boat as me!

So the reason I am starting a blog now after years of being a blog reader? It's partly selfish really...I want a way to document my favorite colors, manicures, designs, techniques, etc. But also it's to pay-it-forward. I am the polish addict that I am today thanks to all the amazing nail blogs out there. After years of benefiting from their fabulousness and polish advice this is, in a way, my way of giving back.

So hop on board! I hope you'll enjoy the ride!