Guess who's back, back again...

Hi all!

I feel like hugging this blog, it's been so long! So, quick update on my life now: as you may know, I graduated from my bachelor's degree in May but you (probably?) don't know that I am now working on my master's! As well trying to get everything in order to apply for a post-doctoral program in the fall of 2014. I'm busy, to say the least. I often feel like I'm drowning in coursework and just life in general. That sounds sadder than it is, lol. In fact, the only reason I'm blogging now is because I'm procrastinating doing some school work but today I just got an overwhelming desire to blog again so here I am! It helps that I really like this mani :D

Right, nails, that's why you're here. For this mani I started with a base of Illamasqua Jo'Mina and then saran-wrapped-sponged Illamasqua Nomad on top. Then I stamped with the silver Color Club holo and MASH 39. These even got the boyfriend seal of approval with a cheery "Ooohh look who's back!" when I showed him.

The pictures aren't perfect and I have to re-tweak the lighting because my setup changed since I wasn't using the lightbox but I'm just happy to have these up!

Sappy time: I am really happy you're all still following this blog and to show my gratitude, I'll be having a giveaway soon! Nothing huge, but I do have some things I've stashed away for an occasion such as this. As for the future of the blog, I do strive to continue blogging but I am definitely not pushing myself too hard. Sometimes I just have time to paint my nails in a single color and no nail art, and I'm actually still falling back in love with doing my nails since I was often naked during the break so I don't want it to become a chore again.

See you soon! :D

ABC Challenge 'N' - Nails Inc. Sweets Way

Hi all!

Still being a pretty terrible blogger/nail enthusiast but I did manage to find a super old post that coincided with this week's challenge so here it is!

This mani was done in a rush for my neighbor's baby shower and while I truly enjoy the braided nails look, for the love of polish, don't ever use a sheer base glitter polish for the braid. This mani would have been so much better if I would have just used a solid white as an accent nail. Oh well.

Two coats of Nails Inc. Sweets Way, Essie Bikini So Teeny and Bettina Cotton Candy.

Thank you all for still being here despite my slightly irregular/sparse posting and I will answer all your comments soon, it annoys me to no end to have unanswered comments! I'm actually  pre-scheduling this and I'm nodding off as I type so I'm off to bed and feeling productive :D

Have a great day!

MASH Nail Art Pens Review

Hi all!

I know I never shared any Valentine's day manis on here because I'm just not that into that particular holiday but today I have some nail art that would be perfect for VDay or an anniversary or whenever you feel like wearing cute hearts. Got a lot to say so I'll get right into it.

I started with two coats of Orly Boho Bonnet from their Spring 2013 collection. Formula on this was weird, it seemed to thicken with use and wouldn't spread to the edges or self-level but it still looked good at two coats. It's also a close dupe of Zoya Kristen, not exact but enough for me since I can't get Zoya here.

After that was mostly dry, I used my pink MASH Nail Art Pen for the hearts and the black pen for the outlines. The consistency of the pink pen was great though it was a touch sheerer than the black one, I went over the big hearts twice for that bright pop of color and left the little hearts with just one 'coat'. If my base color had been white or lighter,  I doubt I would have needed the second coat. Finally, a little flick of white acrylic paint and topcoat finishes the look.

My favorite heart was on my thumb.

You'll notice I said the base polish has to be mostly dry to use these pens and that is because the tip of the pen is plastic and could dent the polish if it's too fresh. Also, if you're going to go over a part of your design twice to either deepen the color or make a line cleaner, it's best to wait for it to be mostly dry as well so you're not pulling up parts of the design or making grooves in it.

Aside from those tips, I found these SUPER easy to use and I'm in love with them already. I've always been mediocre with a nail art brush because of the abnormal way I hold them but with these pens I can make it work! I'm sure someone more talented than I would make amazing art with them but they're also great for beginners. They do take a couple of tries to get them going when they're new though. Nothing major, but worth mentioning.

These nail art pens can be found HERE on the MASH website and you can see the different colors they have (I'm dying to try the silver one now). Also follow MASH on Twitter or like them on Facebook for info, ideas or special promotions!

Product featured was sent for review, all opinions are my own. For more information, refer to my Disclosure policy.

Born Pretty Store Fine Brush Review

Hey all! Hope you've had/are having a great weekend!

I know nail art has been in short supply here lately and I do miss it, but I've been painting my nails so late that I just don't have time to experiment with nail art techniques. This is also the reason it has taken me so long to do this review. I have had this brush from the Born Pretty Store for a while and I've tried a couple of different designs with it and they've all been such a fail that I don't even take pictures before I take it off. However, I gave it another try and decided this was decent enough to post.

Up for review is THIS brush (Item ID: 3296) from Born Pretty Store. It has short flexible bristles great for fine details. It's not the best brush for straight lines (as you can see), you're still better off with a striper brush for lines, but it works great for filling in details or for a design that needs short strokes 

Grr smeared ring finger

What do you think of the design? I didn't have a plan at all when I went into it, I just started making shapes until something looked decent then I repeated that.

Remember that you can get 10% off from your BPS order using my coupon code FHL91! What kind of design would you think of for this brush? I <3 comments :D

Something Snowy This Way Comes....

Hey all!

A couple of weeks ago I received an email from the staff at Nail Polish Canada inviting me to take part in a nail art challenge! I was extremely flattered and signed up even though I knew I was in a funk. All that excitement died down just a little when I saw the ladies I'd be going up against but I've decided to just have fun with it and enjoy it for what it is. It's also a great way to get me to do holiday manis, I usually slack off on those.

Now, the first week's theme is SNOW! I've only seen snow once in my life, it was in NYC on January when I was 14ish. I remember looking out our hotel window and seeing the snow fall over Times Square and thinking it looked so beautiful and peaceful so I decided to try to depict a snow fall at night. When I was done, I felt it needed something more to make it special so I asked boyfriend and he suggested Santa's sleigh and the reindeer.

That red dot is Rudolph's red nose btw. I must say, I'm pretty happy with how these look! It turned out pretty much how I saw it in my head and that is an incredible accomplishment in my eyes.

That being said, this is still a competition so I would reeheeeaally appreciate your vote! Do the clicky HERE to vote for my entry if you so wish. There's sure to be a ton of great submissions and you still have time if you'd like to join in!

If you're in the US, I hope you have a great Thanksgiving day! If you're not in the US, the week is almost over so yay! 

31 Day Challenge Day 24 - Inspired by a Book

Hi guys!

Today's challenge was Inspired by a Book! I really hit a wall with this prompt too, I looked at my little bookcase hoping to be inspired by one of the book covers or one of the scenes in the book but no such luck. In a desperate attempt to not miss another challenge day, I asked my mom what my favorite book was when I was little. The answer was El Principito.

"The Little Prince" is a children's book that is insanely popular here (and maybe elsewhere?). I have very fond memories of it though I admit I have no idea what its about anymore. I just know I remember the cover vividly, and he was standing on a moon for some reason.

I decided to do my nails just from memory instead of looking it up. I started with two coats of Sation It's All Navy Baby, which is an awesome deep inky blue jelly. It has so much depth and just glassy shine and I'm so happy I found it by its lonesome at TJ Maxx.

I think the lighting is making the color look a smidge lighter. IRL, it looks more like my thumb. Then I added a pretty silver holo glitter from Forever 21.

This macro was taken after topcoat, which made my tips matte again for some reason.

Then I re-did my middle finger so I could do the moon without the glitter disturbing the background. I did the moon mixing Illamasqua Load with China Glaze Elephant Walk.

I totally regret the yellow stars but, by then, I had looked up images of the book cover and it had really pretty yellow stars, so I added them and promptly effed it up. Here's an image of the book:

Image Source

I hope you guys like this and can forgive me for skipping 'Inspired by a Movie' day. To make up for it, I have some unrelated posts lined up, starting tomorrow with a spanking new top coat comparison!

Have a great last day of the weekend and visit the other ladies participating!

-Kimber at Kimber's Lacquer Korner

-Kat at Hooked On Polish

-Diana at Nails By Diana

-Aly at Wonderland Beauty

-Meredith at Perfectly Polished

-Nicole at The Color Republic

-Kate at The Painted Pony Nails

-Cee at Absolutely Cee

-Sam at Polished Art

-Nail Narcotics

-Nicole at Nicole Gets Nailed

-Shelby at Shelby's Swatches

-Stephanie Louise at All Things Beautiful 

-Mixed Mama

-Joanna @ Sweet Polish of Mine

-Patty Greenberg

-Liz and Lisa @ Lozlosa 

-Mari at Nailista 

-Miss L at Beauty by Miss L 

-Gini at Sassy Paints 

-Chameleon Stampede 

-Pam at Nail-E-Glance

-Me, Myself, and Polish 

- Robin Sparkles

31 Day Challenge Day 22 - Inspired by a Song

Hello lovelies! Mondays suck as usual. Let's go straight to the point.

Today's prompt is 'Inspired by a Song'. I'm very tempted to just put the pictures and the first person to guess the song in the comments gets a little prize..... Yeah I think I'm going to do that.

I started with two coats of Illamasqua Kink, from their Theatre of the Nameless collection a while back, which were all rubber finishes. I'm so in love with this forest green, its flawless and fall-y! Other colors I used were Milani Rapid Cherry, Sally Hansen Grass Slipper, Pop Beauty Turquoise, Essie Little Brown Dress and black China Glaze crackle.

Now, I went pretty literal with the song lyrics and the images on my nails. The song is from Radiohead, btw. I rediscovered this song recently and fell in love with it all over again. It was insanely popular and is still used in movies and shows to this day, so that's why I'm venturing to try this guessing game.

Ok, may the best lady with a weird music memory win!

For less complicated interpretations of songs, make sure to visit the other bloggers participating!

 

-Kimber at Kimber's Lacquer Korner

-Kat at Hooked On Polish

-Diana at Nails By Diana

-Aly at Wonderland Beauty

-Meredith at Perfectly Polished

-Nicole at The Color Republic

-Kate at The Painted Pony Nails

-Cee at Absolutely Cee

-Sam at Polished Art

-Nail Narcotics

-Nicole at Nicole Gets Nailed

-Shelby at Shelby's Swatches

-Stephanie Louise at All Things Beautiful 

-Mixed Mama

-Joanna @ Sweet Polish of Mine

-Patty Greenberg

-Liz and Lisa @ Lozlosa 

-Mari at Nailista 

-Miss L at Beauty by Miss L 

-Gini at Sassy Paints 

-Chameleon Stampede 

-Pam at Nail-E-Glance

-Me, Myself, and Polish 

- Robin Sparkles

Baptiste had Twins! (Feat. Born Pretty Studs)

Hello all!! I tried to edit as much as I could but this is still slightly wordy. You've been warned!

Today is pretty exciting for me, it's my very first twin post! You all should know Kimber, who organized the 31 Day Challenge I'm participating in and you might also remember that she won my giveaway. When I asked her which Illamasqua she would like for her prize, she just told me she trusted my judgement and I could choose for her. This promptly sent me into a permanent state of worry that maybe I would pick something she didn't like.

Eventually, I manned up and browsed her blog to see which shades she favored and thought she might like a good vampy. I had always seen Illamasqua Baptiste but never gave it much thought so,  while I was at Sephora, I looked up swatches and did this face O_O. It was so pretty! It was settled, I was sending her one. But I liked it so much I grabbed one for myself too and that's pretty much how this twin post came to be!

For this mani I started with two coats of Baptiste and did a stripe down the middle in OPI Dutch Ya Just Love OPI. Then, I placed these square studs (Item ID: 2859) from the Born Pretty Store. Sorry I don't have swatches of Baptiste on its own, the pics came out horrendous and I didn't know until I had already added everything else :(. My twin has swatches! And they're awesome. Check 'em out here.

And this is how you receive the studs from Born Pretty

To apply them, I just used a dotting tool to add a little topcoat to where I wanted the stud and, using the same dotting tool with what was left of topcoat, picked the stud and placed it. Add a coat of topcoat and you're done! They really stay in place and you can even cut them if you had to. I cut the edge of one stud on my ring finger with a cuticle nipper for a better fit.

I loved this whole look, the studs look so edgy and eye-catching. I have another look with these coming up to show you another way you can use them. If you're planning on making a purchase from the Born Pretty Store, remember you can get 10% off with my code FHL91.

Obviously, you need to go to Kimber's blog and see how she used Baptiste today. She really is one of the sweetest girls I've met and she helped me out a lot before I even started the blog so go show her some lurve!

*Born Pretty Store item was sent to me for review. For more information, please refer to my Disclosure Policy* 

31 Day Challenge Day 19 - Galaxy Nails

Hello everybodah! Happy saturday :)

Today's prompt was galaxy nails and, to be honest, I wasn't pumped about them. Before I started blogging, I had done a couple of galaxy nails and really liked them, but they're just kind of meh now. Until I saw Kayla Shevonne post this on her blog and fell in love all over again.

I accidentally covered too much of the blue streak with the other polishes so they're more blended and less galaxy-looking, but I really liked them anyway. The original post for this look (here) did the little stars by flicking acrylic paint on the nail with a toothbrush. It's slightly messy, but I liked the mess on my fingers so I left them there because I was too tired to wash my hands to complement the galaxy look on my nails.

I started with a base of Illamasqua Muse and added a Mattese Elite shimmery polish (doesn't have a label) to mimic the look of Orly Haley's Comet, which I didn't have.

I used a shitload of polishes for this, but I remember using Milani Mint Candy, Sally Hansen Mint Sorbet and Co-Bolt Blue, China Glaze Turned Up Turquoise and Spoiled Use Protection (aka Sinful Colors Nail Junkie).

Like I said,  I blended the colors a bit too much, but I still kind of liked the look. I definitely recommend you check out both Kayla's post and the original post because they're amazingly pretty. The original also has a video tutorial you can check out if you're interested. I also know I have a couple of pictures laying around of the first galaxy mani I did before my blogging days and, if you guys are interested, I'll edit this post later when I find the pic!

Also check out the other galaxy nails!

-Kimber at Kimber's Lacquer Korner

-Kat at Hooked On Polish

-Diana at Nails By Diana

-Aly at Wonderland Beauty

-Meredith at Perfectly Polished

-Nicole at The Color Republic

-Kate at The Painted Pony Nails

-Cee at Absolutely Cee

-Sam at Polished Art

-Nail Narcotics

-Nicole at Nicole Gets Nailed

-Shelby at Shelby's Swatches

-Stephanie Louise at All Things Beautiful 

-Mixed Mama

-Joanna @ Sweet Polish of Mine

-Patty Greenberg

-Liz and Lisa @ Lozlosa 

-Mari at Nailista 

-Miss L at Beauty by Miss L 

-Gini at Sassy Paints 

-Chameleon Stampede 

-Pam at Nail-E-Glance

-Me, Myself, and Polish 

- Robin Sparkles

31 Day Challenge Day 18 - Half Moons

Hey guys!

Continuing with the challenge, today is half moon day! I had a really awesome idea for this and the next challenge day but, as always, it turned to crap. Then it turned cool again by sheer coincidence.

I've always wanted to try a half moonicure (lol) but I never really got around to it for some reason, so I'm glad the challenge made me do it because I loved the result AND got to use two untrieds! I started with a base of China Glaze Stone Cold (which is awesome for tape manis since it dries so quickly), applied the reinforcement stickers and added China Glaze Elephant Walk. It looked pretty nice but still needed something, so I added two black rhinestones.

I'm really happy with how this turned out! It looks edgy and chic and totally season-appropriate. Well, for those of you who have seasons. We just have "HOLY MOTHER OF GOD ITS SO HOT" and "Oh, still hot, but not that bad".

As always, pay a visit to the lovelies participating with me:

-Kimber at Kimber's Lacquer Korner

-Kat at Hooked On Polish

-Diana at Nails By Diana

-Aly at Wonderland Beauty

-Meredith at Perfectly Polished

-Nicole at The Color Republic

-Kate at The Painted Pony Nails

-Cee at Absolutely Cee

-Sam at Polished Art

-Nail Narcotics

-Nicole at Nicole Gets Nailed

-Shelby at Shelby's Swatches

-Stephanie Louise at All Things Beautiful 

-Mixed Mama

-Joanna @ Sweet Polish of Mine

-Patty Greenberg

-Liz and Lisa @ Lozlosa 

-Mari at Nailista 

-Miss L at Beauty by Miss L 

-Gini at Sassy Paints 

-Chameleon Stampede 

-Pam at Nail-E-Glance

-Me, Myself, and Polish 

- Robin Sparkles

31 Day Challenge Day 16 - Tribal

Hey guys!

Tiny bit late on this post, but no big! I had a hellish day yesterday and I just crashed when I got home.

Today's challenge prompt was supposed to be tribal but seeing as I was feeling uninspired and very short on time to actually attempt a complicated tribal mani, I kept it simple but close to the heart again. I chose to do a mani inspired by the indian tribes that were the original residents of Puerto Rico- the taínos. I started with a base of OPI Don't Pretzel My Buttons (a very mannequin hands polish!) and sponged a gradient with L'Oreal Now You Sea Me and a random white polish to simulate the beach. Then, on my pinkie I used a fine tip Sharpie marker and acrylic paint with a striping brush on my ring finger.

The ring finger is the classic taíno depiction of the coquí, our natural little tree frog that sings us to sleep. It's weird, visitors sometimes find the sound annoying but, when I'm traveling I really miss the sound, it's comforting. The smeared sad pinky was a spiral I saw in the image I used for inspiration. My idea was to do their depiction of the sun, but it was a little more complicated than I wanted.

I'm sorry this was short on explanations, I'm pooped as I write this.

As always, make sure to visit the other ladies to see their tribal manis!

-Kimber at Kimber's Lacquer Korner

-Kat at Hooked On Polish

-Diana at Nails By Diana

-Aly at Wonderland Beauty

-Meredith at Perfectly Polished

-Nicole at The Color Republic

-Kate at The Painted Pony Nails

-Cee at Absolutely Cee

-Sam at Polished Art

-Nail Narcotics

-Nicole at Nicole Gets Nailed

-Shelby at Shelby's Swatches

-Stephanie Louise at All Things Beautiful 

-Mixed Mama

-Joanna @ Sweet Polish of Mine

-Patty Greenberg

-Liz and Lisa @ Lozlosa 

-Mari at Nailista 

-Miss L at Beauty by Miss L 

-Gini at Sassy Paints 

-Chameleon Stampede 

-Pam at Nail-E-Glance

-Me, Myself, and Polish 

- Robin Sparkles

31 Day Challenge Day 15 - Delicate Print

Hi all! Sorry, I know it's Monday. Sucks for me since this week is going to be pretty awful school-wise.

I'm finally caught up in my challenge manis and this one is actually on time so a HUZZAH! is in order. When I think of 'delicate' nails my mind automatically goes to subtle stamping, so that's what I've done. My base color is Essie Cocktail Bling, one of my favorite colors, topped with China Glaze White Cap. The stamping was plate m63 with the silver Essie from the Mirror Metallics collection.

Look at that shimmah from White Cap! I have no idea why I bought it or when, but I lurves it. I think it's going to become one of my go-to layering shades. I like this mani, I find it very icy and delicate/subtle. Oh, I do have to apologize for my cuticles though, I have no idea what's going on with them or why they're acting up. And please, don't say it's the colder weather that has my cuticles drying up, because it's still hot as hell here and if you say that, it'll make me want to hit a kitten.

Check out the other Delicate manis today!

-Kimber at Kimber's Lacquer Korner

-Kat at Hooked On Polish

-Diana at Nails By Diana

-Aly at Wonderland Beauty

-Meredith at Perfectly Polished

-Nicole at The Color Republic

-Kate at The Painted Pony Nails

-Cee at Absolutely Cee

-Sam at Polished Art

-Nail Narcotics

-Nicole at Nicole Gets Nailed

-Shelby at Shelby's Swatches

-Stephanie Louise at All Things Beautiful 

-Mixed Mama

-Joanna @ Sweet Polish of Mine

-Patty Greenberg

-Liz and Lisa @ Lozlosa 

-Mari at Nailista 

-Miss L at Beauty by Miss L 

-Gini at Sassy Paints 

-Chameleon Stampede 

-Pam at Nail-E-Glance

-Me, Myself, and Polish 

- Robin Sparkles

31 Day Challenge Day 14 - Flowers

Hi all!

Ok, first things first. Is anyone else pumped for the premiere of Once Upon a Time today?! I didn't realize how much I missed the show until I started seeing the promos! I had kind of a little ritual where I would always give myself a pedi while watching Once Upon a Time (not weekly, but always while watching the show) and I'm happy it's tomorrow because my toes need some love o_O.

Back to nails. For today's challenge prompt I was, once again, befuddled (I freakin' love that word). I had a couple of ideas I wanted to try out but my mojo was definitely gone and nothing came out nice enough. Before giving up and just stamping, I tried these little freehand flowers and I'm ok enough with the result to show you guys. Base color is Illamasqua Milf (yum), the flowers are Essie Play Date and Orly Charged Up and the leaves are China Glaze Exotic Encounters.

I did little blobs with Play Date then added Charged Up with a striper brush. Sometimes I wouldn't like the result or I would have too much polish on the striper so I would pat the blob with a tissue, sorta like a saran wrap marble mani. The leaves are most assuredly not my best work but it was late and I was watching Sons of Anarchy with le boy while polishing so I was distracted. I was also distracted by someone whining that he was watching tv alone and not receiving any cuddles, so I apologize for the awkward leaves :D.

There is a 92% chance I'll see you tomorrow for a challenge post that's actually on time!

-Kimber at Kimber's Lacquer Korner
-Kat at Hooked On Polish
-Diana at Nails By Diana
-Aly at Wonderland Beauty
-Meredith at Perfectly Polished
-Nicole at The Color Republic
-Kate at The Painted Pony Nails
-Cee at Absolutely Cee
-Sam at Polished Art
-Nail Narcotics
-Nicole at Nicole Gets Nailed
-Shelby at Shelby's Swatches
-Stephanie Louise at All Things Beautiful
-Mixed Mama
-Joanna @ Sweet Polish of Mine
-Patty Greenberg
-Liz and Lisa @ Lozlosa 
-Mari at Nailista
-Miss L at Beauty by Miss L 
-Gini at Sassy Paints 
-Chameleon Stampede 
-Pam at Nail-E-Glance
-Me, Myself, and Polish 
- Robin Sparkles