Cinderella Nails

I needed a little retail therapy to lift my spirits, and Ulta came through for me. I got a mailer from them with a $10 off card in it. No exceptions, it was basically a $10 gift certificate except that I had to spend it all.

I bought nail polish. Of course.

I splurged and spent the whole thing on one bottle. Actually, the polish was $11. Totally worth that extra buck! How could I resist that sparkle?! The polish is Nails, Inc. London Special Effects in Knightsbridge. (The anglophile in me just adores this!)

I named this look after the blue base color, Sinful Colors Professional 1106 Cinderella. It's a light blue with iridescent pink undertones. A very princess-y blue. I used OPI Natural Nail Strengthener as my base, did two coats of the blue, two coats of the glitter (only going half way) and followed up with one layer of OPI Top Coat.

I've been completely mesmerized by my nails. I love how the light catches the glitter and shows so many colors. I've already got some ideas for other looks using these polishes.

I've been doing my nails so much that I'm getting pretty good at doing my dominant right hand with my very not dominant left. This time my manicure looks just as good on my right hand as it does on my left! This pleases me greatly.

I finished this look yesterday and took pictures. Today I thought I'd have a little fun and painted a matte top coat on my right hand so I could compare and contrast the two looks. The shiny top coat on my left makes the look much more vibrant and sparkly, but the right has it's own interesting effect. I think it looks like Winter, snow and icicles. Muted glitter.

Shiny on the left, matte on the right. 

Which one is your favorite?

For the record, I redid the shiny top coat after I took these pictures. I'm just not in the mood for mismatched hands and I wanted the vibrant sparkle.

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. 

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! 

Northern Utah Fashion Expo

Saturday I had the opportunity to volunteer at a local event here in my amazing town.

A friend of mine, Stephanie, joined up with some other amazing people and put together the very first Northern Utah Fashion Expo. It was a showcase for local fashion and accessory designers, complete with live music and three fashion shows.

I was asked to be the person who welcomed people to the event and handed out swag bags to the first 100 people who came. It was a job I'm made for. I got to chat with a bunch of people, and met lots of new faces. I had a blast!!

I only spent two and a half hours there, the expo went from noon to 8:00 pm. I only stayed for the first part, then came home and crashed. I'm such a lightweight!

Sunday I had a terrible shock. I went to Pinterest, like I do eight or nine times a day... Only this time my home page looked like I'd just signed up! None of the boards I usually follow were there and there was a prompt to start setting things up! I went to "My Boards and Pins" and all my "Followers" and "Following"s were gone! I was freaking out!! I restarted my computer, tried logging out and logging back in, nothing helped!! I shot an email off to the help department and then tried to think about other things.

Thankfully, when I got up this morning I had an email from Pinterest. They suggested clearing my browser and cookies. I did it and like a miracle, it worked! WHEW!!

I would have been upset to lose all my followers, I get a real self-esteem boost every time I get a new one, but I was really upset about losing all the boards I follow. There is no way I would be able to remember all 800 of them! I follow some really great boards and would be devastated to never see them again.

Even that I could live with as long as my pins and boards are still there. It's a bonus to me that people follow me, the most important thing is that I use Pinterest. I use it to organize my recipes, crafts, sewing patterns, shopping lists, so much! I have basically stopped using browser bookmarks. I'm a visual person, so Pinterest is exactly what I need. If I lost my pins I would be completely lost!!

(For the sake of honesty I will say that I do have one board that I curate only for my followers, Long Hair Style Ideas. I started it when I still had long hair and considered not posting to it any more, but I have a bunch of followers so when I find something cute I just go ahead and pin it.)  

Favorites Friday: Tiaras

There aren't a lot of truly elaborate things I really love. I tend to like simple things, basics, clean lines.

Even in my jewelry, I like things to be simple. I'd much rather have a pair of pearl studs over a pair of glittery chandelier earrings. A simple silver I.D. bracelet over a diamond tennis bracelet, or going completely unadorned to being garish.

Glitter doesn't rule my life. Normally I prefer a soft sheen.

Unless we're talking about tiaras!

A tiara is basically as elaborate as it gets. It is the polar opposite of everyday wear. It takes a seriously special occasion to break out a tiara, and they're seriously pricey, so they're also very rare.

Opulent, over the top, and completely unnecessary, there is a special place in my heart for tiaras.

This week I've found a bunch on Etsy for my Favorites Friday. Maybe in the future I'll do a post on my favorite royal tiaras, but for now here's ones you could actually own yourself. Watch out though, these are mostly quite expensive. Don't fall in love only to be heartbroken by the price!

I'm starting with my absolute favorite. I cannot tell you how much I wish I'd found this when I was shopping for my wedding. This tiara is absolutely my idea of perfection.

Silver and Pearls Princess Tiara by KeshiJewelry $360

Isn't it gorgeous!?!!

Okay, now that I've wiped the drool off my keyboard, here are the rest of my favorites. In no particular order.

Victorian Look Rose Cut Diamond and Pearl Tiara by TraditionalJewels $1,349.11

Drusilla Tiara by AncaPeelma $640

Queen's Rose Cut Diamond and Pearl Tiara by Suratcarat $699

Crystal Circle Tiara by MadisonLaneBridal $25

Art Nouveau Zarina Tiara by Castens $1,360

Diamante Bridal Tiara by HelenCurtisTiaras $83.03

Pearl Sterling Tiara by gurlygirl $620

Extraordinary Rhinestone Tiara by yesteryearglam $68

Frederika Gold Tiara by OliviaHeadpieces $76.47

Favorites Friday: Harry Potter!!

There are not enough words to express my love for Harry Potter. I adore those books. I want to live in that world.

I'm a total geek. Midnight launches for books, opening weekend for movies. I have my own wand.

Thanks to Pottermore I know that I am a Ravenclaw, "Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure!"

Betty was just sorted, and she's a Ravenclaw too. I could not be more proud. Joshua was sorted a while ago and he's a Slytherin. Not really surprising, he's really competitive. I even forced Eric to be sorted, he's a Hufflepuff! When Joey starts reading I'll get him sorted too. If he's a Gryffindor we'll have one of each house in the family!

Wednesday happened to be Harry's Birthday. Jo Rowling's too. Neville's was on Tuesday.

Like I said, I'm a total geek!

In honor of Harry Potter and the amazing world that Jo Rowling created, this week's Favorites Friday is all about Harry Potter Wizarding!

(I apologize in advance if these are a little heavy on the Ravenclaw, most come in the other houses too. I think you can see why I'd be a little biased! I also kind of have a thing for Ron...)

Don't Let the Muggles Get You Down Mug by AfternoonCoffee $18.70 

Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans Bracelet by SammysBeadworks $27

Hogwarts Crest Necklace by wordsandwonders $23.99

Deathly Hallows Bracelet by piperandrory $5

Lumos Font Address Sign by AtlasSignsAndPlaques $196

Bookmark Buddy by bethydesigns $3.11

Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem Inspired Necklace by MyVintageVanity $65

Custom Wizard Charm or Figure by HunniBadger $1.50

Painted Ron Magnet by recTangles11 $7

Nimbus 2000 Custom Car Emblem by Empira $15

Hogwarts Bunnies by TheNaughtyRabbit $20

Friends, Friends, Friends: Small 8.5x11 Art Print by CaseyRobinArt $25

Radish Earrings by NeatEats $18.64

These are just a few of my favorites. I didn't even have to go looking for them, they were already in my Etsy Favorites list. This is only a fraction of the ones I've found. I may just have to do another Favorites Friday dedicated to my favorite books!

Favorites Friday: Pearls

I love pearls. I think they are so elegant and classy. As you can see from my profile picture, I have a small collection. Of course, the ones in that picture are faux. I do have some real ones too.

I also like the way natural pearls are made. A mollusk gets something irritating under their shell and turns it into something beautiful.

That's something I try to keep in mind. I look at the irritations in my life and try to see the good in them, or how I can change them into something good. It doesn't always work, but I think it helps with my overall state of mind.

So in honor of shelled mollusks who give their live so women can look fabulous, here are my Favorites for this Friday:

Glass Pearl and Rhinestone Necklace and Earring Set by LaKokette $29.95

Two Mermaids Ring with Pearl by SheppardHillDesigns $45

Pearl Thumbtacks with Silver Frame by JennifersCloset $8.50

Backdrop Pearl Necklace by dreamdaydesign $119

Antiqued Silver and Pearl Earrings by Cigarboxearrings $15.95

Pearl Cat Collar by jeweledhorizons $25

Pearl Leaf Personalized Necklace by RoyalGoldGifts $20

Wire Wrapped Silver Pearl Bracelet by AmbersCrafts2 $13.50

Sterling Pearl Bracelet by CallaJewelry $23.40

Silver Rose Brooch with Faux Pearl by TheHeirloomBoutique $5

Classic Pearl Evening Case by GentleMadness $22

Pearl, Diamond, and Topaz Tiara by VintagefromETSY $875