Ice Angel Nails

I let my 13 year old daughter design my nails this time.

Okay, actually I just told her she could pick out my polish. She took that and ran with it.

I did just what she wanted me to. Using my sticker guides I painted the tips with Sinful Colors 1106 Cinderella. It's a sheer blue (with just a bit of pretty pink sparkle) so I had to really glop it on. I had to go back over it in a couple of places. Luckily I knew it was going under other layers, so it didn't have to look pretty on its own.

The next layer was Hard Candy 804 Ice Pop. I daubed it on pretty thick. For the record, I bought this polish for Betty. It's fun looking, but not normally my style. At least it's blue.

For the final step in this design, I did the top half of my nail in A'dor Beauty Supplies Tears of an Angel. I did a lot of daubing with this one too. Still totally in love with this polish, but I think it's a little much with all the rest...

To finish the look I added my usual OPI Top Coat. I asked Betty if she wanted me to do the matte top coat, but she insisted on the gloss.

She also gave this look its name. Ice Pop + Tears of an Angel = Ice Angel. Pretty clever, don't you think?

One Coat Wonder

I was given this polish as a gift and it's my new favorite.

That is just one coat of Color Club Professional Nail Lacquer in Put a Pin In It. One coat over my normal base, no top coat or anything. This stuff is so cool. It went on nice and thick but it took a really long time to dry. 

I am in love with this color. It's a very subtle metallic in a rosy, silvery, gold-ish color. It looks amazing with my skin tone. I've been looking for just this shade for months and it just fell into my lap! Thanks so much Kristin!! 

Kristin (who is now my Hero) received it in a Birchbox, and that's the only place you can get this color. I've read that other bloggers have had trouble with this polish chipping, but so far I'm not seeing an issue. 

If you're paying attention, you'll notice I'm hiding my thumb in those two pictures. That's because my thumbnail ripped off. 

I honestly don't know how it happened. I was getting ready for bed and my thumb felt funny. I looked down and the nail was barely hanging on. I tried to clip it off, but I still managed to injure the side of my finger. 

Can you see how red my thumb is? It is so sore! It's like a paper cut. I know I'm being a baby about it, but every time I touch something or grab something it hurts again. 

Experimenting

I got a new polish in July's Ipsy bag and I decided to play around with it a little.

The polish is Models Own Red Sea - Splash. The Models Own website listed it as a top coat, so I decided to do white tips underneath so I could see what the Red Sea looks like on bare nails and over a white base. I used my curvy "V" tip guides, and in an attempt at doing an accent nail I painted my ring fingers all white (I used Pure Ice Pretty 'N Patriotic.)

I wasn't thrilled with how it turned out, it kind of reminded me of strawberry syrup. I decided since this was all about experimenting I'd use the Sally Hansen Big Matte Top Coat that I bought a few weeks ago but never tried.

That did the trick!! Putting the matte top coat on toned down the shine of the polish but the glittery bits still catch the light and sparkle! It turned out really cool looking. Unfortunately, it was even harder than usual to get a good picture.

The polish was what I'd call a jelly. It looks more red on my natural nail and more fuchsia over the white base. One coat looked really streaky, but two covered nicely. 

Now that I've discovered that matte top over glitter looks so cool I'm definitely going to have to try some other combinations! Models Own has an Aqua color with similar glitters that I might have to get too! 

Show & Tell

Monday and Tuesday's mail brought fun stuff!!

First I got my new glasses from Zenni! Two new pairs of sunglasses and a pair of regular glasses. Zenni was having a sale, buy two get one free. That's why I was able to get three pairs, the total came to about $35!

Regular Glasses:

They have a stained glass look. I like them a lot. I think they're more subtle than the black frames I usually wear.

Blue "Wayfarer" Sunglasses:

A nice, traditional pair of sunglasses in a dusty blue color. When I smile my cheeks lift them up a little.

Black Cats Eye Sunglasses:

These are my favorites! The style would be way too over-the-top for me to wear as everyday glasses, but I think they are just perfection as sunglasses! I love them!! I don't want to take them off!



Tuesday's fun delivery was my Ipsy bag for July! Lots of goodies this month!

Left to right: bareMinerals 5in1 Cream Eyeshadow in Barely Nude, Pur~lisse Essential Daily Moisturizer spf 30, Models Own Nail Polish in Red Sea, Pixi Beauty Mini Tinted Brilliance Balm in Unique Pink, and Clear Clinic Laboratories Vanished Clear Spot Treatment.


I also wanted to show off my henna. It got better looking, and I wanted to capture it before it starts to fade.

This is what it looked like on Saturday night when the henna fell off:

This is what it looks like today, nice and brown:

I love how it looks! Candice really outdid herself this time.

Weekend Fun

So much went on this weekend! I hit the first Ogden Farmers Market of the season. I got there half an hour after it all started and the produce was already selling out! I managed to snag some tomatoes, but I was really there for the kettle corn.

It's also a tradition for me to stop in and see my friend Candice and get some amazing henna done!

There is so much to love about the Farmers Market. Aside from all the stalls, I always run into friends, and I always get to meet new doggies.

That's Boss. He's a baby English Bulldog!! I just had to snorgle him! His owner was very patient with me. The good news is that he belongs to somebody running a stall, so I'll get to see him next week too!!



If you've read the last few posts you'll remember that we let my oldest boy get a guinea pig. That has been a saga of its own.

What we thought was simple hiccups turned out to be a respiratory infection. We woke up Saturday morning to a dead baby pig. It was very, very upsetting. Joshua took it like a trooper though. Of course he cried a little, but he didn't act out or anything. I'm really proud of him.

He decided that it was a sign that we shouldn't ever get an animal from a pet store, adoption is the only way to go. Since we'd only picked up the guinea pig on Tuesday, there was a warranty. Josh took the money and adopted another female pig. This time a full grown, mellow adult.

Her name is Lily, and she's a complete sweetheart. Even my husband has fallen in love. That's him cuddling her in the picture.

She's still a little skittish, but she's eating and drinking well. She even took a strawberry I gave her! For the love of Pete, please let this one live!



This weekend I also had the chance to spend some time with my good friend Jen. She lives in Wisconsin now, but she came back into town to get some work done on her house so she can put it on the market.

It was great to see her again, she is as beautiful as ever, and it was so nice catching up. I'm bummed that she's going to sell her house though, as long as she had that I felt like she had ties to this town. Now the only excuse to visit is Tona Sushi and of course all the people here who love her!

Green Nails with Black and White Glitter

My daughter is really into black and white right now. It's her favorite "color". She loves it so much that when I saw Hard Candy's Black Tie Optional, I just knew I had to get it!!

I knew it would have the biggest impact over a bright color. Of course she wanted black or white, but I was able to convince her to go with a fun color.

She chose neon green!

I did two coats of the green, L.A. Colors Color Craze Mint and one coat of the Black Tie Optional. I think it turned out really cool!

Sparkly "V" Tips

A few months ago I took a chance and bought some nail tip guides from Amazon. They were $1.46 with free shipping, so to me it was worth the gamble. Normally I like to shop local, but I couldn't find what I wanted locally.

They showed up right on time, but I haven't used them until now. The order came with five different packages with three different styles in each package. The normal curved guides that I've used before, a "V" shape (you could also call it a chevron), and a shape like a "V" but with curves.

While I was at Ulta I found some pretty pink and sparkly polish that just begged to be in a French tip look. I've done a similar look before, so I decided to use the "V" guides this time.

I just love the white French tip look. It makes me happy, don't ask me why.

I started out with my normal base, and the stickers only pulled up the base polish on one nail. I think it's because I didn't wait very long after I applied it to put the guide on. I think the base needs to be really dry in order to withstand the sticker. 

I painted the tips white, with one coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Whirlwind White, and removed the guides while it was still wet. 

After the tips were completely dry I did two coats of the fabulous sparkle, Ulta Salon Formula in Diva. It's got a pale pink base and looks pink in the bottle, but goes on pretty much clear with iridescent glitter specks. I love it. 

I followed up the next morning with two coats of top coat. I really love this look and I want it to last.

Polish Removal and a Shopping Spree

After my nail disaster I painted my nails with another $1 WalMart polish L.A. Colors Color Craze NP541 Candy Sprinkles. I thought it was fun and since it was a dollar I just had to get it.

I knew I'd be redoing things pretty quickly so I didn't bother with a top coat, just one coat of my normal base and two coats of the polish. It's a jelly or gelish, whatever they call it. A semi-sheer color with glitter in it. I didn't do the normal daubing technique like I usually would with a glitter, I just brushed this one on like a normal polish. It worked fine that way, and I am pleased with the polish. It didn't last very long before chipping, but without a top coat I don't know if it's the polish that's the problem or just lack of top coats. 

Speaking of glitter polishes, they are a giant pain in the butt to remove. The polish remover can't penetrate the polish under the metal flakes, so it just doesn't come off as easily. Pinterest (the place I love) is full of pictures of people wrapping their hands in aluminum foil to remove gel and glitter polishes. I thought I might as well give it a try!

You can see how well it took the polish off my thumb and forefinger, pretty much one swipe and it was gone. 

It works great!

It feels a little weird to have alien-robot hands, and I only do one hand at a time so I can still do things. It also gets weirdly warm. I'm not sure if it's the chemicals in the polish remover or just the cotton and foil insulating things. It doesn't hurt, it's just weird. 

First, I tear five strips of aluminum foil and get five cotton balls. I apply polish remover to a cotton ball, put the remover side to my nail, then wrap the foil around it all. I've started with my thumb and I've started with my pinkie, there really doesn't seem to be a difference. I just have to keep it on long enough. I keep forgetting to time how long I leave it on, but I'd say it's between 5 and 10 minutes. 

Now, the reason I didn't post all this earlier is because Tuesday was a bit of a crazy day. 

First, I met up with my friend Tiia Lin at Ulta. Where my weakness is nail polish, Tiia's is makeup. Unlike me, however, she has actual training. I highly recommend you check out her Facebook, her blog and her videos. 

Tiia helped me pick out colors, let me hold her adorable baby, and as we were checking out she said she had a present for me! When we went out to her car she handed me a bag full of nail polish!! I love this woman!! 

L to R: Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Whirlwind White, Color Club Dark'n Stormy, Color Club Mod In Manhattan, and Nail Rock Nail Velvet Navy

In addition to those polishes Tiia gave me, I bought a bunch of my own. With the sale going on and the coupon I got 5 polishes for under $9!! It was great!! 

L to R: Essence Colour & Go 147 Miss Universe, Ulta Salon Formula Diva, Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear 481 Breezy Blue, Ulta Salon Formula Indigo-Go Girl, Pixel 233 Oh Golly Gee!!

I'm already working on a new look with my new polishes, I'll post more soon!

The other thing that kept me busy is that we welcomed a new addition to our family. 

She's still scared and spends most of her time hiding. We've seen her out to eat and drink though, so that's good. 

This little lady is named Summer, and she belongs to my middle kid Joshua. He's been working his butt off this summer, helping his dad with side work and helping me here at the house. We ask a lot of him, and he rises to the challenge. 

My husband and I decided that he's shown enough responsibility to be in charge of another life, so we agreed he could get a guinea pig. I had guinea piggies growing up, so I know what kind of challenges he's likely to face. He did a lot of research and decided that he wanted a female and a baby. He thought about adopting, but he really wants to train it and the sites he visited told him that starting with a baby is easier. 

He's doing really well so far, and going very slowly with her. He had me scoop her out of the carrying box and into her cage so that she won't associate him with anything negative. He left her completely alone for 24 hours and even then all he did was lay his hand in her cage with a treat for a few minutes. For an 11 year old kid with ADHD, this shows a remarkable amount of restraint! I am completely proud of him! 

Nail Disaster

I found a pretty coral colored polish that had some gold glitter undertones. Coral is such a summer-y color I knew it just had to be a part of my collection.

I thought it would be a whole lot of fun to add some teal to go with the coral. What I wanted was teal stripes showing through the coral. In my head it looked epic.

WalMart had some fun colors for $1 a piece and I found a teal (L.A. Colors Color Craze NP420 Atomic) that I thought would work wonderfully.

I started out by painting two coats of teal over my normal base coat. Then I added striping tape in the design I saw in my head. So far so good.

I thought about painting a coat of white between the teal and the coral, but I thought that would make the drying time just too long. I thought it would be better to do a third coat of coral if it was needed.

I got the first coat of coral (Pure Ice 984CP Twinkle) on and it didn't look great. I wasn't worried though, most polish doesn't look right after the first application.

I had to let everything dry so I wouldn't have bubbles, but I think that was a mistake. I got the second coat of coral on and pulled the tape up.

It was a catastrophe!

Not only did the tape pull up a ton of the coral, it also left lines in the teal!

So bad.

I removed everything. I've started repainting with another $1 WalMart polish, but I'm not finished and I have to head to bed. I'll post all about it tomorrow.