Independance Day Nails

Okay, so I know this is late in coming, but I wanted to post my 4th of July nails before I got any farther behind. For this look, I confess I was actually a little bored and wanted to just throw some different things together and see what happened.

My base color is OPI 'The Show Must Go On!'. I bought this color on a whim, and I actually really love it. It's a red duochrome that flashes a coppery-orange. My pictures do this color no justice, but you can catch a glimpse of the duochrome in the bottle in the first pic. I applied two coats of the OPI, and then stamped my ring finger with Kleancolor White and Metallic Sapphire using my MASH stamping plate #49. I really loved the outcome, and considered stamping all of my nails the same, but I was afraid it would be a little too much. So I moved on to my next idea. I added the little white stars to the base of my other nails. This was pretty but needed something. For my last step, I used a dotting tool to dot some nail glue down the sides of my nails and applied a sparkly blue nail foil called Caribbean Tides, purchased from DollarNailArt.com. I finished it off with a coat of Wet n Wild clear polish (to avoid wrinkling the foil), and, when that had dried, a coat of Seche Vite. Overall, I'm pretty happy with the way this turned out.
So now that I have my 4th of July nails posted, I don't feel quite as much like a slacker! I hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th!

Until next time,
Peace&Polish!
~Lori

Claire's Paradise

My boyfriend and I have an awesome friend who works at Claire's (Hi April!! *waves*), and every time we stop in to visit with her, I get drawn to the nail polish section like I'm caught in a tractor beam! Claire's always has a wide variety of pretty colors, and I just can't resist the urge to check them out. On my last visit, I picked up Paradise, a pinky-orange neon polish with beautiful blue shimmer!

(please forgive my short ring-finger nail. stupid breaks..)

Full sun

Shade

Wow...I'm a sucker for neons, and this one is stunning! Feel free to click and enlarge these pics, and check out that shimmer! Paradise is a little on the sheer side, but built up well. I'm thinking this was only two coats (sorry I can't quite remember). Because it is a neon, it dries to a satiny matte finish, but a coat of topcoat will give it a beautiful shine!
This color is still available at Claire's for around $5, and all of their polishes are buy one get one half off!
Until next time, Peace&Polish!
~Lori

Deborah Lippmann Let's Hear It For The Boy

As I mentioned in a previous post, I recently bought my first Deborah Lippmann polishes. HSN had their exclusive Footloose duos on sale for $9.95/set. I just couldn't pass up a sale like that, and it was Let's Hear It For The Boy that really sealed the deal! I love a good baby blue polish, but I was having trouble finding the exact shade I really wanted. I had previously bought China Glaze's Caribbean Blue, and although it is a beautiful polish, it just wasn't what I was looking for. So when I saw LHIFTB, I hoped that it would be closer to the perfect baby blue I envisioned. Although it isn't quite as bright as I'd hoped, it still comes closer than anything I've found before! I'm counting this as a win!
Please note: My pictures were taken in the following lighting..

Outdoors but NO sun anywhere in sight...=(

Two coats + one coat of Seche Vite

Because this polish is so..almost pastel, I expected it to be a little streaky going on. I was in for a very pleasant surprise as I had no streaking at all! It applied very smooth and creamy, and was opaque in two easy coats! The color is actually closer to what the bottle shows (a little dustier) than what it looks like on my nails, but it is still beautiful! I was very happy to see how pretty it was on. Some blues just do not flow well with my skin tone, but this blue was very flattering. Overall, I'm a happy camper!
This color is discontinued, but can still be found on eBay.
That's all for now! See ya next time!
~Lori

MASH Stamping Plates

This is just a quick post to show you my new stamping plates from MASH. This is their second set of 25 plates and they are awesome!

MASH plates 26-50.

You'll notice that the plate in the top right corner has it's protective plastic covering peeled off. I'm going to pretend I did this so that you can see what they look like with and without the covering. The truth is I was so excited to get these, I just started pulling off the plastic like a kid at Christmas before I remembered to take the picture! =D
These plates are available at the MASH website for $12.99 (*EDIT* Now $13.99) and FREE shipping! What an awesome deal! They also offer the stamper/scraper set for the plates, rhinestones, fimo canes, nail art brushes, dotting tools and more!

That's all for now! See you next time!
~Lori

Deborah Lippmann Mermaid's Dream

So I finally bit the bullet and bought my first Deborah Lippmann polishes! Yay! HSN was offering their exclusive Deborah Lippmann Footloose polish duos for $9.95/set! Considering they usually sell for $18 per bottle, I just couldn't resist! I do love a good bargain. So I hurried over to their website and grabbed the 'Let's Hear It For The Boy'/'Dancing In The Sheets' duo. Then I decided, while I was at it, to buy the Deborah Lippmann I had really been lemming for so long, 'Mermaid's Dream'. Every time I saw a swatch of this beauty I would think, "Wow...I NEED that polish", but the $18 price tag would stare back at me like a giant red flag. But, as I added the Footloose duo to my bag, I decided if I was ever going to get that beautiful polish that I so longed for, it might as well be now! I am so glad I finally broke down and bought Mermaid's Dream! It is absolutely everything I hoped it would be! 

On with the pics!

First, a shot of all three polishes. 

Left to right: Let's Hear It For The Boy, Mermaid's Dream, & Dancing In The Sheets

Unfortunately, the sun was not cooperating with me when I took these pics, so sorry they are not the greatest quality. Let's Hear It For The Boy is described by HSN as a 'creamy powder blue'. Dancing In The Sheets is described as a 'deep purple shimmer'.

Deborah Lippmann Mermaid's Dream

Mermaid's Dream is a stunning seafoam green and gold glitter with larger blue glitter mixed in. It applied like a dream, with complete coverage in two effortless coats. Like most glitter polishes, it is a little rough to the touch on it's own, but a couple coats of topcoat will smooth it out. It was difficult to get a picture that didn't make the polish look gritty, but I assure you it was smooth as glass after the topcoats. This was two coats of polish, 1 coat of Gelous, and 1 coat of Seche Vite.

 

 

Click to enlarge. You can really see the gold glitter peeking out here.

Sigh...beautiful!
I am happy I finally got my hands on this stunner. Was it worth the $18? To a polish hoarder lover like me, yes. It is every bit as beautiful as all the hype made it out to be, and the formula was a breeze to work with. I wish the price tag hadn't been so steep, but I'm still happy to own it.
Mermaid's Dream is available at HSN.com for $18 & free shipping (always a plus!)

Bonus pic! This is my kitty, Mina. She perched herself on top of my car to watch me take pictures.

That's all for now. See you next time!
~Lori

Trade Day Treasures

Let me begin by saying this was NOT how I intended my blog to go. I posted once, and disappeared. I am currently working full time and pursing a college degree, and unfortunately that leaves me very little downtime. What with having tests to study for at least 3 nights a week and papers to be written, my poor blog has had to take a backseat. This makes me sad. But summer is almost here and I am taking a much needed break from school! So hopefully my neglected blog will finally be getting the attention it deserves.
Now, on with the show! My boyfriend and I love to go to the local trade days on the weekends. If you're not sure what a 'trade day' is, imagine a giant neighborhood yard sale but better! Lots and lots of people from the area come together to sell anything and everything you can think of. There are food vendors who sell everything from funnel cakes to burritos, a caricature artist, prize drawings, and of course the usual ‘yard sale’ type offerings. To us, it’s like one giant treasure hunt! You just never know what kind of amazing hidden treasures you’ll stumble upon. And yes, even this kind.

Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure

This is of course where my addiction comes into play. At every trade day, there’s always SOMEONE who is selling nail polish and often other drool-worthy goodies. In this post I will show you what I picked up last Sunday. All for less than $20!
Polishes first!

Kleancolor polishes L-R Chunky Holo Black, Blue-Eyed Girl, TLC, Mud Pie Sparkle, Metallic Aqua, and another Chunky Holo Black

 I just had to get a backup bottle of the Chunky Holo Black! I mean, this stuff is GORGEOUS! Take a look!

Yummy holo deliciousness!

Revlon Lilac Pastelle and Sunshine Sparkle and Sally Hansen Golden Flash

Two rhinestone wheels

So pretty! Hearts and Stars and Flowers! Oh my!

Nude Eyes eyeshadow pallete by Physicians Formula

Mentha Lip Shine by C.O. Bigelow

Lypsyl LypRadiance in Honey Rose

 If you guys have never tried Lypsyl, your missing out! Seriously, Lypsyl is my favorite lip balm ever.

If you have any trade days, swap meets, flea markets, yard sales or other such events in your area, I would highly suggest visiting them. You not only get to search for buried treasures, but you’ll also be helping your neighbors out. ‘Keeping your money in your community’ type thing. I hope to be able to bring you more ‘Trade Day Treasures’ soon!
If you’ve ever been to a trade day, leave me a comment! I’d love to hear about your experience and about any goodies you’ve found!
‘Til next time!
Peace&Polish!
~Lori

Happy New Year =)

Ah, a new year! A fresh start! A perfect time to begin a new project! I've tossed around the idea of starting a blog for quite a while, and I finally decided, what with the new year and all, this would be the perfect excuse to start. I'm a little intimidated by all this, and am expecting quite the learning curve, but I'm so excited! I could ramble on about my blogging insecurities, but why not jump right into things with some nail art!
This was my New Year's Eve, New Year's Day manicure.

Happy 2012!

This is one coat of Wet n Wild Black Creme with sparkly gold number stickers, and handpainted champagne glasses and bubbles on my thumb. =) I really liked the way this turned out. The stickers fit my nails perfectly except on my pinkie, which only had to be trimmed a little. Just goes to show you, nail art can come from anywhere, not just the nail polish aisle!
And just because my sweet boyfriend worked so hard taking my pictures for me, here's another shot.

That's all for now! See ya next time!
~Lori