NOTD: Black and Woo!

Okay, there's a slightly amusing story behind the name of this blog-post. I was cropping my pictures and I was thinking aloud to myself:

I need to think of a clever name for this manicure...

My fiance overheard my rambling and came peeking over my shoulder to see what I was working on. He stood there for a moment, frozen in silence as he looked at my picture and thought about it. Then, out of nowhere, in his best possible movie trailer voice, he blurted out "Black and Woo." I decided to roll with it, lol.




So for my "Black and Woo" manicure, I used Essie Licorice as my base. The silver glitter with the big flecks is from Forever 21. It's simply called Silver Rose Petal Nail Polish but I absolutely love it! The glitter reflects every color of the rainbow and it's so eye catching... I really wish the pictures did it justice. Then to finish my design, I just ran a line of silver Kiss Nail Artist polish along the edge of the Forever 21 polish and sealed it all in with coat of Seche Vite. Super simple and easy to do.

Here's a slightly blurry picture to try and capture the colors in the sparkles.

Thanks for reading!
- Kim

Forever 21+

NOTD: I like Pina Colada...

... and getting caught in the rain!~ Not really. I hate getting caught in the rain but it fit with the polish name, lol.

I picked up a couple of new polishes at Walgreen's the other day and one of them is from Revlon's new Fizz scented polish collection. This color is called Colada Fizz and it's a pretty pale blue sheer glitter that smells UH-MAY-ZING. Seriously, it's so coconutty and yummy! I've caught myself sniffing my nails several times since I put it on, lol. I layered it over Essie Licorice since it's so sheer. Love it!~





Thanks for reading!
-Kim

NOTD: Purple Leopard Nails

Hey guys! Here is a quick mani I did today using Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Lively Lilac and Whirlwind White, OPI Black Onyx, and Kiss Nail Artist Black. I used the OPI with my Konad M57 plate and then I free handed the moons and tips. Very simple and took me about 20 minutes. :o)





Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Tarnished Gold

Just a quick post today. I took the gel tips off so I'm back to my natural nails... yay! For this one, I was inspired by one of the necklaces my mom and dad gave me last week for my birthday. It is so pretty... I already wore it once and I got a ton of compliments on it. (It's also budget friendly! You can find it at Wal-Mart.)

But back to the nails. I used Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Brisk Blue and China Glaze Crackle in Tarnished Gold. Love it!~






Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Take Me to St. Tropez!

Today is just a simple mani using Essie Sand Tropez. I have been super busy the past few days so I basically had enough time for a polish change (and to blog this post!)

Anyway, I really like nude shades and this one is definitely a winner in my book. It's a few shades lighter than all-time fave, Essie Jazz, so it makes me feel a little brightened up for summer.




I've read some reviews on this polish and a lot of people were complaining about the formula. Personally, I didn't have any issues... I got opaque coverage in 2 coats and I topped it off with a thick coat of SecheVite. Quick and easy-peasy!

Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Cracking Up (+ Swatches!)

Hey guys! If any of of you guys are on Twitter, you should definitely follow @ChinaGlaze if you aren't already. The reason I say this, is because I am now in possession of their six new metallic crackles... I won them in a random sample giveaway through Twitter last week! (Woot!) Lots of companies are doing giveaways and discounts via Twitter and FB these days and that's one bandwagon I'm glad to be on, lol. I initially thought by winning a "sample" it would be one, singular bottle. Imagine my surprise when I opened my mailbox and found this:


Now, that's a pretty big box for one little polish and then it was heavy... I had got all SIX of them! I was stoked to say the least... so enough chit chat and on to the polishes!


There are six shades, from left to right: Cracked Medallion, Oxidized Aqua, Haute Metal, Platinum Pieces, Tarnished Gold, and Latticed Lilac. I really like all of them, especially on darker base colors. Here are some swatches of each color on black, white, and some random color choices I made. I picked the colors based on the color family of each crackle... orange and copper, gray and silver, teal and aqua, et cetra. I figured it something a little different than the standard quot.

I also tried out painting the strokes of the crackles in different directions to see how much difference it made. I filmed the process and I'm contemplating posting the video but I'm, uh, how to put it... a little bashful and self-conscious about my voice/accent. I'll just say that if I grow a pair, I'll share it. lol


I really had a lot of fun playing around with these so I decided to take my water decals off and switch to one of the crackles. I went with the Platinum Pieces over Essence Movie Star which is a nice, deep gray. I love the whole look of this! ♥



I also shortened my gel tips. I left them on to protect my natural nails while they grow out but the length had to go. I seriously thought I was used to the long nails but a load of laundry and a sink full of dishes later, I realized that was a negative, lol.


Another thing I like about this mani, is that it matches my outfit perfectly today... metallic belt, metallic cardigan, metallic nails... (I like to be matchy-matchy, I don't care what the fashion-experts say! ;o)

So much shiny!

So thanks for reading and until next time!
- Kim

NOTD: Country Chic Matte

Nothing major... I just added China Glaze Matte Magic to my water decal manicure from yesterday. I dare say, I like the matte version much better! ♥




Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Country Chic Water Decals

If you remember, a month or so ago, I had bought some water decals off eBay. I used them once, tossed them into the bottom of my polish drawer, and forgot about them. That was until last night when I had a bit of an epiphany. My nails are long now thanks to the gel tips and I have plenty of length to get a better view of the decal image.

I had two sets left to pick from: the purple stripes or the mint green floral. Well, you guys know I love florals and I love pale greens and blues so the choice was a no-brainer.


I love the country chic look of this. It sort of reminds me of home. When I was a kid, my mom went against the grain of what was popular and always decorated our home with a country flare... lots of lace, wood grain, and floral prints in powder blues and mauves. I also remember a lot of wooden ducks and farmhouse pictures, but I digress. The decals came out beautifully and were a breeze to put on.



Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the "accident." Remember when I said it was only a matter of time before one of my tips met a tragic fate? Well, it didn't take long. On Saturday, in a traumatic event involving my fiance's car door, I broke off the nail on my pointer finger on my left hand (which is the one I take pictures of. Double oh no!) I performed emergency surgery and I was able to reattach it. I buffed down the fault line where it broke off and added a coat of the gel overlay. I'm glad to say you can't even tell it happened. Otherwise, the wear of the gel tips has been amazing even through multiple polish changes. And now that I'm fairly used to the long nails, they actually feel pretty natural to me. :o)

Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Ready for WAAAGH!

That's ork for "war".

Fair warning, this post is nerd intensive... my apologies ladies, lol. My brother asked my to help him set up a blog yesterday so he could display some of his awesome Warhammer miniatures. (Warhammer is a table top wargame that uses miniature figures that represent soldiers on the battlefield.)

If you're feelin' froggy, check out his blog Sippin' On Paint Water. He is soooooo talented! I've always been impressed with art work and he can customize pieces like a pro. So, to welcome my little bro to the blogosphere, I did an ork manicure is his honor. Yeah, I roll like that. lol




I don't think any of you guys would try to duplicate this, but just in case or if you're curious about what I used, here it is.


Left to Right: China Glaze Solar Power, China Rouge, Zombie Zest; Essie Licorice; Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Whirlwind White

To do the ork face, I just blended the green, black, and white and layered it as I went. I should have made his top lip longer but oh well, I was not going to go back and redo it. It took me a good ten minutes the first time, lol.

Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Black Mesh

Just a super quick manicure today... Orly Luxe with China Glaze Black Mesh Crackle. :o)







Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Well, That's Different

I know I've vented here before about how hard it is for me to grow my nails out. They're thin, I'm violent on my hands... it just turns out bad. And as of late, my 'peelies' have been out of control. I've tried ridge fillers, hardeners, treatments, etc... all to no avail.

Well, I was venting about this to a friend and she suggested I get acrylics but I've never been a fan them. Most of the girls I know that have them done at salons, have these THICK square nails and that just isn't my style. Then she suggested I try gel tips instead since they look more natural. So I threw caution to the wind and decided to give them a whirl. I couldn't see spending the money to have it done at a salon so I picked up a box of Cosmar Quik Nails at CVS. The kit was only $9.99 and seemed simple enough since it's a brush on system. I also figured if I really didn't like them, I wouldn't have too much money invested in them.

I didn't take pictures of the process since I didn't really know what I was doing yet. (I was busy making sure I followed the directions.) It was actually pretty simple... it was literally as easy as putting on stick-on nails.

Now on to my paint job! While I was at CVS, I checked out the polishes of course. To my surprise, they had the Essie french collection on clearence for 50% off. I picked up the last two bottles they had: Sand Tropez and French Affair. I also got a bottle of Mink Muffs since I needed a good light brown. I wanted to do cherry blossom nails again so I used the last two polishes plus OPI Mermaid's Tears and Orly Terra Mauve.





I'm trying to get used the length... I feel awkward and my delete key is getting worn out! Overall, I like them but I don't know how long I'll try keep them. I just have a feeling one of these nails will meet a terrible fate in a desk drawer or cabinet door...

Thanks for reading,
- Kim

NOTD: Hey There, Cupcake!

When I got done with this manicure I realized that I sometimes forget that I'm almost 28 years old, lol. That's okay though since I'm just a kid at heart. I really do love cutesy designs and this one is definitely cute! I'm interested to see what the ladies at the office have to say about this one tomorrow! ;o)


I've seen a ton of cupcake nail designs online but my version is inspired by the adorable Georgina at Cupcake's Clothes. (You can see her version here.) She also has an online store called Dolly Mixx where she sells sets of false nails painted with her different designs. I'm eying the Strawberry Fields set currently. ♥


I used quite a few polishes on this one... it's so colorful and that makes me happy. :o) I used the following colors:

China Glaze Solar Power & Spontaneous; Orly Blue Collar; Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Mint Sorbet; and Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Rapid Red, Pink Blink, Fuchsia Flare, & Whirlwind White.


Thanks for reading!
- Kim