NOTD: Pumpkin Spice

Ahhh... October! I love the fall! It is my absolute favorite season... crunchy leaves, the crispness in the air, pumpkin flavored everything, the World Series, boots and sweaters. What is there not to love about this time of year? So, with that being said, here is my first official Halloween inspired manicure. My base cost is OPI Black Onyx with one coat of Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Pumpkin Spice on top. Good ol' black and orange!






Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Grasslands

Hey guys! I was playing ball with Bella Roo yesterday and my nail on my pointer finger sustained a critical break. She got really excited and tried to grab the ball out of my hand. It was was the perfect storm of puppy teeth, a tennis ball, and a 3 day old manicure... there was nothing I could do to save it. So, I ended up cutting back all my nails since there was such an extreme difference in the lengths... broke my heart. :o(

It's a wee nubbin!

Oh well, what can ya do? So anyways, I've seen several new takes on stamped zebra and tiger manicures in the past few days and I have to say, I'm a fan! I think my fave has to be this gorgeous number from That's So Fresh... I love the effect the layering created. So being inspired and with my conveniently shorter nails that make for easy stamping, I created my own version.






I used OPI Skull and Glossbones for my base color. Then I sponged on OPI San Tan-tonio, China Glaze Westside Warrior, and Orly Luxe in random spots. After that, I stamped on the zebra print using Essie Licorice with the Konad M57 plate. I started to use a white polish for my base but I wanted the look to be more earthy and fall-ish... I'm definitely glad I did!

Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Falling for Leopard

Hey guys! Super quick post since I have to be up for work in just a couple of hours. (eek!) I used OPI Mermaid Tears and San Tan-tonio as my base colors and then the designs were completed using Essie Little Black Dress with the leopard Bundle Monster plate and then I added gold Stripe Rite for the final touch. Easy peasy and ready for fall. ♥




Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Irene is Coming!

Unless you haven't looked at a computer or T.V. in a few days, I'm sure you've heard about Hurricane Irene that's heading up the east coast... I just happen to live in North Carolina but fortunately, I live about 200 miles inland. We're still expecting some rough thunderstorms though so I have my storm kit ready. I took this picture this morning about 11:30 and the storm clouds were already rolling in. Icky stuff!


So in honor of Ms. Irene, I went with gray and blue nails to match the storms clouds. The gray is Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Wet Cement and the blue is OPI Ski Teal We Drop. I did a tape mani which I first learned about on Chloe's Nails oh so long ago. She has amazing tutorials and was one of the very first nail blogs I started following. She hasn't updated in a looong time but I hope she comes back soon... I miss her awesome designs.






I love the gray polish... the color reminds me of an elephant which means it's the prefect shade. It's an actual true gray which is hard to find sometimes since a lot of them tend to lean towards blue or brown. And at at about $3.00 a bottle, it's a great deal. :o)

Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Bling Dynasty

Hey guys! Quick post today... I did a random design using Bundle Monster image plates BM-208 and BM-221. My base color is OPI Bling Dynasty and the stamps are done with China Glaze China Rouge, Orly Luxe, and Essie Licorice. It's very different than what I would typically wear but I think it's pretty none the less... I'll still probably end up taking it off tomorrow though, lol.






Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Roses and Baby's Breath

Hey guys! Just a super-quick post today... I did a 5 dot flower manicure using OPI Mermaid's Tears, Jade is the New Black, Koala Beary, and Italian Love Affair and Orly Terra Mauve and Pointe Blanche. (The Koala Beary and Italian Love Affair were mixed together to make a lighter fuchsia color for the accents on the flowers.)





Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Roses for the Yankees!

This mani wasn't originally intended for the NY Yankees but since, at the time of this post, they're up 17 to 7 in the seventh inning, I decided to say it's for my boys since OPI Russian Navy is the perfect Yankees blue. :oP

I started out with just the OPI which was way too plain for my taste. (You know I can't leave well enough alone.) So I added some white flowers using Sally Hansen Whirlwind White and my large dotting tool. Then, I free-handed the green leaves using China Glaze Tree Hugger and the silver details of the flowers with Sonja Kashuk Smoke and Mirrors. The camera doesn't capture the silver that well... it's a lot more visible IRL. Then I added the polka dots using my smaller dotting tool and free-handed the white moons using Orly Pointe Blanche.

This is without any topcoat so I would have a matte finish:




I prefer the shiny look so I went back and added a top coat of Seche Vite:




So, which do you prefer? With or without the shine?

Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Chartreuse Shatter

I feel like I have been such a bad blogger as of late... I haven't had the time to take pictures and post my manicures the past couple of weeks like I normally do. After we got back from New Jersey, my mister's grandfather passed away so we had to pack back up and go right back to Newark for the funeral. It was so sad but we're very thankful we got to see him the prior weekend. Sorry for the Debbie Downer moment... on to the nails!

So after keeping my nails just plain old pink for a week, I needed something a little more fun and wild. I had picked up a bottle of Sally Hansen Insta Dri in Chartreuse Chase on clearance from Target a couple weeks ago and this was the perfect time to try it out. After that, I just added some OPI Black Shatter in a random design to liven it up a bit.




This was my first time using the OPI Shatter... I've been solely a China Glaze Crackle girl up until now. I have to say, the application of the OPI is a lot smoother than the China Glaze but it doesn't shatter as nicely in my opinion. I don't think most people would really be able to notice a difference though... just us polish obsessed girls would be.

Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Multi-Colored Blooms

Hey guys! I was feeling a bit uninspired last night when I went to do my nails so I decided to wait until today. I still didn't have an idea of what I wanted to do so I got dressed and that's when I had a 'eureka' moment. I have this top from Old Navy that I just adore so I decided to do my nail design based on the fabric.

This the top that inspired me. You can get it at Old Navy for $13.00 now.

There are couple things I would have changed about how I did these but overall, I like the look. I used OPI Skull and Glossbones for my base. Then for the flowers, I used Zoya Gemma and Jules, Orly Pointe Blache, China Glaze Solar Power, and OPI Chop-sticking to my Story. I like that it's so colorful yet neutral at the same time. I hope you guys liked this mani too and until next time...

Thanks for reading!
- Kim

NOTD: Fiercely Fiona

Hey guys! I picked up a couple of new polishes at Ulta the other day. They were (still are?) having a buy two, get one free sale on Orly and China Glaze so while I was taking advantage of the sale, I also found a bottle of OPI Fiercely Fiona on clearance for $4.99. Awesome! I ended up using it for my mani/pedi today. (Yes, I actually did my own toes for a change!)

I wasn't that into nail polish when the Shrek collection first came out so I missed out on all of those. I will say that I wish I picked this color up sooner. It's bright and summery and will go well with color blocking trend that's so popular this season. I'm thinking I need to rock a blue dress and orange cardigan with these nails...






And on to the toes... I did the design with my trusty Kiss Nail Artist paints in Black, Silver Glitter, and White and then I slapped on BIG gemstone for some added bling. I feel ready for the surf and sun now!~


Thanks for reading!
-Kim

NOTD: Star Spangled

I decided to go with "Old Glory" and I also went with the rustic flag stripes as suggested by Dani Rage. I changed the design a little bit by adding silver glitter tips and half-moons instead of the blue in the corner as a way to kind of pull the two designs together. I see some flaws here and there but overall, I like how they came out. I think I just need to practice painting stars and stripes, lol.


For the colors, I used OPI Dating a Royal, Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Rapid Red, Sinful Colors Nail Art White, and Kiss Nail Artist Silver Glitter.





Thanks for reading and I hope you all have a safe and happy 4th of July!

-Kim