Happy 4th of July!!!



Happy 4th of July!!  I did a fast design this morning using the Fergie 4th of July mini set, OPI Thanks So Muchness,  and the new Bundle Monster Holiday plate BM-H25.  The images didn't stamp crisp, I think it's because I wasn't using my Konad stamper.  I couldn't locate it.  The hardest image to stamp was the flag.  I gave up after several attempts. 

Have a safe and fun 4th of July!  Time for me to leave the house.

 

The Bundle Monster Holiday Plates Have Arrived!!!

 

The 2013 Bundle Monster plates are now available.  This year they did a holiday/special occasion theme.  I wasted no time ordering my set.  I wanted to get them in time for the 4th of July.  For disclaimer purposes, I did pay for the set with my own funds.

 



I'm really liking the tree design.

Totally awesome Thanksgiving designs!!! 

The wedding plate is so great for anniversaries.  Along with some
number stamps to represent the years of wedded bliss.

Sorry for the blurry image.  I didn't notice until I was cropping and didn't have the
lighting to retake.   I can't wait to get to use this plate!

This is the plate that was the immediate selling point for me.  I've been trying to decide
what I was going to do and this is what I needed.  

So did anyone else place their order and which plate are you most excited about?

 

Summer Tribal

There are so many fun polishes to try this summer-liquid sand, fuzzy coats, and all the vivid summer colors.  It could run a polish hoarder broke.  I have been showing restraint and have been very selective about my purchases.  The Sally Hansen Insta-Dri has some vivid limited edition colors with a swim team theme.  I only grabbed one that was truly unique to my collection, Man-Go Team.  It's not really a mango color, more of a fluorescent  cantaloupe.  Sally Hansen also released Sugar Coats and Fuzzy Coats.  The Sugar Coats didn't appeal to me, but I have a love/hate relationship with the Fuzzy Coats.  I love the idea of it, it costs less than Nails Inc. and is more readily available, plus all of the color combo possibilities.  The part I have been having trouble with is removing it.  The "fuzzies" seem to be plastic bar glitter that does not remove easily.  Not any harder than a glitter bomb, it takes just as much effort. 
For the tribal. I used Man-go Team on the middle and ring and also for the stamping (Insta-Dri polishes are great stampers).  I taped it off and used 2 generous coats of All Yarned Up.   For the base on the pointer and pinkie is the duochrome version of Not Like the Movies. 

Liquid Sand Jinx

It feels like a really long time since I last blogged.  Ever since Summer break started, the three of us have been ill.  The girls are still not their best and I have an ear infection that doesn't seem to be responding to the prescribed meds I got.  It's now officially two weeks that we've been sick.  We still have been doing our Summer activities minus the trips to the beach.  My daughter had an appointment on a neighbor island and I think that the pressure of riding in an airplane might have caused my ear infection.  My daughter and I also have allergies.  We've been taking allergy meds, mucinex, antibiotics, ibuprofen.  I have a mini pharmacy in my cabinet.  It's just been exhausting. 
On one of our mini travels, I picked up Jinx from the OPI Bond Girls set.  I've seen other brand textured polish, but they look like stucco.  I like the sparkle of the Liquid Sands.  I might pick up a couple more from this set.  Jinx is a perfect shade for Summer.  I did a matching mani/pedi with it.  In pictures, it looks bright red orange, but it's a toned down coral in person. I did two coats over a base coat. I added When Monkeys Fly with Revlon Matte Top Coat as an accent for some added bling.

Pink of Hearts Skittles

My aunt recently gifted me the OPI 2012 Pink of Hearts set.  She saw it at her hair dresser and thought of me.  This is my first Pink of Hearts polish and was very excited to receive it.  I kept it on my table for a week before deciding on this skittle. 
My ring finger is two coats of You Glitter be Good To Me.  It is not meant to be a full coverage glitter.  Even though there are bald spaces, the color combo of the glitter keeps it from being noticeable in person.  Middle finger is three coats of I Think In Pink.  This one is labeled as a "dreamy sheer pink".  It reminds me a little of I Theodora You, but slightly more pink.  All other fingers are two coats of The One That Got Away.  I still have my mini bottle from the Katy Perry Collection.  I brushed halfway down from my cuticles a thin coat of You Glitter Be Good To Me. 

Its been overcast and raining a lot so I'm really liking my sparkly nails to brighten things up.

Fuzzy Coat Wool Lite

I am really liking the double accents.  This is the third in a row I've done.  I don't know if I can go back to using one color on all ten fingers.  Using different colors at once keeps it interesting and I don't have the urge to change my polish that often. 
My pointer and pinkie is WNW Wild Shine in Night Prowl, Revlon Facets of Fuschia on thumb (not pictured), and OPI Steady As She Rose topped with Sally Hansen Fuzzy Coat in Wool Lite on middle and ring.  Four polishes total.

 

I'm still trying to figure out my new camera.  I've been taking a lot of blurry pictures and missing all those Kodak moments.  With the girls, I have to be fast to get a good picture.  They won't wait for me to adjust modes and color.  My daughter just had her May Day school program this morning and all the pictures are blurry.  I used Auto and Live modes and just found out I have a low light option.  For the moment, it's set on portrait.  I just want to point and shoot, not have to make everyone wait while I adjust my camera.  This is one of the better pictures taken.  It's not sharp or color accurate.  But at least their faces aren't blurred.

Double Accent Nails

This is my first bright manicure of the month. "When Monkeys Fly" has been sitting on my dresser waiting for another turn.  I paired it with "My Boyfriend Scales Walls"-my go to white.  I'm over the single accent nail and have not yet mastered the art of skittles.  Doing a double accent is very much in my comfort zone.  It feels more balanced-if that makes any sense.  My thumb, pointer, and pinkie is "Conga-Line Coral".  This is an OPI from back in Summer of 2009.  It doesn't look like much in the bottle.  I found it in a $2 clearance bin about three years ago when I was rebuilding my nail polish collection.  I'm glad I got it.  On the nail-it's a stunner! 

Right now I'm downsizing my polish collection.  I grew it too much.  I just sold thirteen bottles this weekend in a garage sale.  I'm planning on going through my dupes and non OPI brands and eliminating more polishes.  It will make my monthly polish maintenance routine a little less time consuming.  It will also mean that beautiful colors like the ones I'm wearing will get more use.  I'm also being ultra selective when purchasing new colors.  I haven't bought anything new for three weeks now. 

Stranger Tides with Shine of the Times and Polish Maintenance

It's the time of year when I bring out my Pirates of the Carribean polish collection.  I'm really fond of this set.  I have the mini pack and some full size bottles.  Stranger Tides is in a mini bottle.  It is half empty.  I think I have two more uses left.  I added a drop of thinner to it, but I really should use it up this year before it gets goopy or streaky.  I used two coats and then brushed Essie Shine of the Times from the tip going up halfway.  That is another beautiful polish that is no longer available.   The stamping was done with plates BM-311 and Konad m66 using SH Insta-Dri in Coco-a-Go-Go.   Coco was another limited polish that I hope they bring back.  It is my favorite color to stamp with. 
This was done right before my nails broke and I had to trim them really short.

About once a month/month and a half, I do some polish maintenance.  I go through EVERY bottle and give them a good shake so they don't permanently separate.  If it is starting to thicken, I will add a few drops of thinner.   What I have never done until now is clean the bottle necks.  Only found out about doing that very recently.  No wonder two of my shatters dried up.  The polish dries up around the top and no matter how tight you think you are closing your bottle, air is still coming in, slowly drying up your polish.  It took a while, but every bottle (including all my nail art bottles) are cleaned.  They were all pretty crusty around the top.  Even some drugstore polishes that I've never used yet.
It's a pet peeve of mine when people open nail polish in the store and paint the shelves and make a mess of the bottles.  I don't think I would be able to work in the cosmetic department of a store.  I would be giving lectures to customers.  Painting the shelf is not going to tell you how a polish is.  There are so many swatches online that it is not neccessary to paint the shelf or the little paper they tape on the rack.  The polish section in Wal-Mart is awful.  There is paint on the racks and it looks like several bottles had dropped and spilled polish all over the floor.  They just got a new display, but the worker said it won't stay that nice for long.  I stopped buying from Wal-Mart because I feel like I'm buying used polish.  Okay I'm done ranting and completely got off track.
Why am I being so anal about polish maintenance you might ask?  Well, on a lot of sites, they say nail polish lasts about two years.  It can be true.  If you don't store, shake, and clean your bottles properly.  Most polishes are not cheap.  Even some drugstore brands.  It's an investment that I want to take care of.  I want to be able to use a polish until it is empty before throwing it out.    I am in quite a ranting mood today.

Moody Nails

I usually change my nails to match my mood.  In the evening, I had on Softshade Skittles.  It was light and pretty.  The next morning, it looked quite irratating and I removed it immediately.  Right now, I have my polish in groups.  A basket of Summer shades, a basket for Spring.  All others are in their designated place in my nail cabinet.  There was nothing I felt like in either basket and wanted a dark Fall shade instead.  In the pictures it looks black.  This is two "sister" colors.  Both OPI.  My pinkie and pointer is DS Mystery-a dark purple with fine gold glitter.  Middle and ring is Live and Let Die  from the holiday Skyfall collection.  It is a dark green/teal with the same fine gold glitter.  The stamping is with Konad plate m77 and Sally Hansen X-treme Wear in Golden-I (a polish reserved just for stamping).  In person, both colors are obvious.  On camera it just looks black.  I tried taking pics in the lightbox-didn't make a difference.  Tried lightening the photos, adjusting color balance.  Still black.  Oh well.  I am happy with my "moody" nails.

 

 

Venus Di Violet Working Hands

As you can see my nails are now short and in terrible condition.  They have been very soft and prone to tears recently.  I just finished Spring cleaning for my garage sale this weekend.  I cleaned through the entire house and left nothing untouched.  How does things accumulate so fast.  All closets and cabinets are now neat and orderly.  That took a toll on my nails.  Also, my little one will soon be four years old and I am prepping all the activities and games for her party.  Totaling about thirty children if everyone attends.  Crazy, I know.  She is in preschool and made a lot of friends.  It's My Little Pony themed.  One activity is pony decorating.  I cut 30 ponies from cardstock and now need to make about 35 yarn tails so they can pick what color tail to add to their pony.  There are four additional activities I need to prep.  My car has also been giving me problems and completely died on Saturday.  I NEED MY CAR!!!  It's my starter.  The shop is now repairing it.  I will be doing some walking in the mean time.  My daughter is excited because she can ride her bike on the street for now. 
I took these aweful pictures in 7 a.m. overcast natural light.  I've had these on for several days.  I need a mani/pedi badly.  The pinkie is a jelly that I frankened using Step 2 the Beat of My <3 by Nicole and Siberian Nights.  Pointer and ring is a coat of Steady as She Rose with a coat of Venus Di Violet over.  Middle is Siberian Nights with a coat of Venus Di Violet.  There was some dragging but it gave it a nice effect.  Stamping was with When Stars Collide from the recent China Glaze Hologlam collection.  When my nails grow back, I want to redo this because the combo is very pretty. It does shimmer in the sunlight and I want to show you the effect. 

Venus Di Violet from OPI is close in color to Steady as She Rose, but with a purple shimmer.  It is semi sheer and would need 2-4 coats depending on how you apply it.  I recently found it at a Salon and was very excited.  I felt like I found treasure or something.  I had never heard of it before.  It was originally from the 2001 Collezione Italiana and rereleased in Summer 2009 Colorcopia collection.  Its finding polishes like this that I collect polish and not radomly buy polishes.  I had spent most of 2010 finding past OPI collections.  It was exciting looking up small salons all over and seeing what they still had and giving my want lists to people.  A lot of people are just as passionate and helped me with my list.
Whew that was long.  I have more to say, but I better save it for the next post.  If you are still reading this, thank you.

Don't Burst My Bubble

I broke my camera while taking pictures of my previous mani.  I was walking through my doorway and then turned  around because I forgot something.  Needless to say, my camera went flying out the door with the lens extended.  It dented the lens.  No matter how I tried to pop it back in, it won't work.  My pictures look like it is in a bubble.  I can't be without a camera-no blogging and no pictures of my children.  Can't have that.  I ordered another Canon on Amazon.  A power shot A2300. I previously had a IXY that I really liked.  The power shot has a plastic body that makes it very light compared to the IXY. My first reaction upon taking it out of the box was that I had some cheap, cracker jack camera.  Not true.  The power shot is a good point and shoot camera.  It is very easy to use.  Adjusting the color balance is faster than the IXY.  The pictures are crystal clear.  I really don't have anything bad to say about it.   I ordered it in bright blue.  All my cameras previously have been black or silver.  I'm being very careful with it.  It is so lightweight that I'm afraid this camera could really go sailing through the air. 
On my nails is two coats of OPI Don't Burst My Bubble with I Lily Love You on the tips.  I had this on a couple days before my camera arrived and it had started to chip.  My nails have been soft lately and my pointer is always the first to start chipping.