it's a bird!... it's a plane!... it's a speckled dragon!!

okay so, aside from the corny austin powers reference, these polishes are pretty awesome.

I think this little look is super fun & i just might keep it on my nails longer than the usual one day :)

*fluorescent light

* regular light

I used 2 coats of CG's 'Flying Dragon' and followed with 2 coats of 'Nubar 2010'. 'Flying Dragon', though super pretty in the bottle, dries matte (which I didn't know when I bought it) and it was hard to see the little blue glitter in it. SO I decided to use Nubar 2010 (which I hadn't used yet) to give it some shine and a little extra UMPH. And boy howdy did it work. I really like the speckled effect it gives.

Anyway, nothing too special considering i'm not the nail artist that most of you are (& make up is my true passion anyway), but still a fun little look :) 

What do you guys think?!

'winter ice' swatches

hey guys- just a quick post today.

i was asked to do some swatches of the polishes I got in China Glaze's 'Winter Ice' gift set,

so here they are!

* regular indoor light

*fluorescent light

From left to right:

Icicle, Tinsel Town, Snow Globe, Blue Year's Eve

This is 2 coats of each, also.

:D

Have a great rest of the day!

christmas present haul

SUP.

I've got some super exciting things to post tonight in my haul consisting of christmas gifts!

woo hoo!

first & foremost (and what i'm most excited about) are my brushes & eye pencils! I've been wanting some quality brushes for awhile to better execute my shadow looks and these are legit. 

I got the Crease brush and the Shadow brush, & can't wait to try them! I'll have to post some looks with them soon.

I also got a few of the eye pencils i'd asked for:

I've never used any of these before (though I use these 3 eye shadows all the time) but am expecting great things :)

NEXT,

i got several different nail polishes :

from left to right: Watermelon Rind, Flying Dragon, Blonde Bombshell, Ruby Pumps (mini), Grape Juice, Strawberry Fields, and Emberstone

(i apparently have a fruit theme going...)

I'm super excited about theses and will have swatches of these up soon!

I also received 2 normal size OPI polishes of two minis that I already have-

(and a good base coat, woo!)

Lastly, I got 4 stripers.

 I've never used these before either but am looking forward to trying & learning new things about them! ... Though I don't really think too much will look good until my nails get longer :/

ANYWAY, that's it for my little Christmas haul.

Do any of you have any of this already? And if so, what are your opinions on it?!

Thanks for reading, and any feedback is more than welcome!

:D

China Glaze's Winter Ice

hello, and

Merry Christmas !

I haven't posted in the last few days because i've been running all over east Tennessee with my daughter and boyfriend seeing our respective families (who are more anxious to see us now more than ever since there's a new addition to the family). Needless to say, though it was nice to see everyone it was a hellishly tiring couple of days. But now i'm back home- where I don't have to wear pants and can blog as I please :p

Just wanted to update you on a purchase- CG's 'Winter Ice' gift set!

Every single one of these polishes are awesome! 

I already love wearing gold or silver (& actually needed a new, quality silver to replace an old, crappy one) & the silver 'Icicle' polish in this set is fantastic- a good basic :) The 'Blue Year's Eve' is a rich, deep blue that's gorgeous, albeit a little runny. My favorites are, of course, the 2 glitters- 'Snowglobe' (the lighter of the two) and 'Tinsel Town'. I feel like 'Tinsel Town' has been all the rage this season as i've seen it featured on many blogs- and for good reason! It's a wonderfully fun polish with micro & macro glitter... though it's a pain to remove, like most glitters :/ 'Snowglobe' is a bit thinner than I thought it would be but still amazing.

All in all- a great purchase.

Do any of you have these? What do you think?!

Any feedback is welcome!

;D

blush review

Ok so for today i'd like to talk about this awesome little creation I discovered:

Tarte's 'Cheek Stain'!

I've used this in 'Natural Beauty' and it's super neat. I've had a hard time finding a powder blush that I don't have to touch up every couple hours so this was an answer to my beauty prayers. It's an all natural cheek stain that is very easy to apply and build up your desired amount of color. The design is kind of similar to a push-pop :) What I like most about this is the ability to blend and it's staying power... once it's on, there ain't no re-application necessary! Another bonus, this cheek stain is blended with 5 different "superfruits", so it's great for your skin.

It's a little pricey (but you get what you pay for!)- you can find it at Ulta for $30!

Do any of you have this? What's your favorite method to use on your cheeks?

going green

Woooo! I'm pretty stoked about today's post because I tried out my first holographic polish! I bought Nubar's 'Reclaim' off Amazon for a sweet price and got it just in time for Christmas...

and i LOVE IT.

It's from the Going Green collection and is a beautiful holographic green. The effect it has is seriously mesmerizing- especially in the sunlight :)

of course as they were drying i messed up my pointer finger :/

see what i mean! I used 2 coats here & a top coat, and it turned out totally awesome. I'm definitely going to have to invest in some more Nubar polishes for sure. What do you guys think?!

Do any of you have Nubar polishes that you're crazy about? 

let me know! :D

'liebster'

so after a ridiculously hectic day with my daughter, she's finally settled down enough that I can put her down and have the first 'me' time i've had since I got up early this morning- whew.

ANYWAY,

today i received my first little award!

( thanks so much to Kaki at Obsessed with Glitter! )

this gives me some super awesome exposure and enables me to pass the favor along!

"Liebster" is a German word, meaning dearest or beloved, but it can also mean favorite.  The idea behind the Liebster Blog Award is that it is given to bloggers who have less than 200 followers in order to create new connections and bring attention to these wonderful blogs! 


The rules are as follows:

1. Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you.

2. Reveal the five blogs you have chosen and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.

3. Copy and paste the award onto your blog.

4. Request that people you have sent the award to forward it on to their favorite bloggers.

Nominations:

GaGa for Nails

Move Your Acetone
Nails Like Lace
The Scholarly Nail
Finger Painted

techno nails!

hello all !

So finalllllly my little Christmas present to myself arrived in the mail today! :p

Kleancolor's 'Techno High' metallic mini collection!

I found these on Amazon for like $7 and thought they looked super cool. As i've already stated, i'm hardly the nail artist or enthusiast that most of you are. My fingernails are mostly crap because i've bitten them for years (until just recently, when I decided to quit), I never get manicures, and... yeah, they just suck. But i've always thought nail polish was super fun- I just never had the confidence to draw attention to my nails since they were so bad.

So now that i'm allowing my fingernails to finally grow, i've jumped whole-heartedly on the nail polish bandwagon!

So anyway, I wanted to try every one of these simultaneously and didn't have the time or patience to devote a whole hand to each polish, so I just used fingers :)

*note: due to budget constraints, i'm having to wait awhile before I can order new contacts. SO, seeing as how i lost one the other day and now just have ONE contact in, (the one currently in my left eye), please excuse my godforsaken painting jobs in these posts... i squeeze the 'bad' eye shut when I do them but my depth perception is still absolute crap :X

These polishes are awesome. I was surprised how much I liked the brown, actually; it's chocolate-y richness was most unexpected. I believe the brown, pink, & green are my favorites. The polish's consistency was a little on the thick side, but not so much so that I didn't like it. Overall, for seven bucks, i'd definitely recommend! :D

What do you think!?

and SINCE we're on the theme of techno, i thought i might a well put up a couple of my favorite techno tunes :)
ENJOY!

OPI review

good evening! I just wanted to quickly post the results of one of the mini OPI's I got in the 'Deck your Nails' pack.

I present to you: 'A Sparkle Yule Love' with a touch of 'Designer... de better!' on my ring finger.

(forgive my deplorable cuticles)

* 'A Sparkle Yule Love' mini

* 'Designer... da better!' from Muppets collection

Well I'd already become a passionate fan of the latter polish before doing this look, but this was the first time I'd used the 'A Sparkle Yule Love'. It's a orange-ish pink with chunky, colorful glitter. I'm still indifferent as to how I liked it on me... though I'm sure it'd be gorgeous on most people. The polish grew on me after a couple days, though. 

However, I WILL say that this stuff was a pain to get off :/ I wouldn't suggest using this unless you're going to be wearing it for awhile... but overall I was pretty happy with the way it turned out.

:)

Thanks for reading!

little favorites #2

HOORAH! 

I had my last final today & am fairly certain I did very well. That will mean 1, maybe 2, A's this past semester AND i had a baby :p

(not to toot my own horn, but whew)

Anyway,

Today I want to talk about one of my little favorite beauty products.

I don't know how many of you use foundation- i know a lot of young people don't. I, however, choose to use it a teeny bit just to even out my skin tone, as my nose and cheeks tend to be redder/pinker than the rest of my face. Prior to being on my current budget I used a fantastic foundation by Lorac. It was one of the few brands that had a shade that was close to my facial skin color. I don't know about the rest of you, but it is hard as hell for me to find a brand that could match my skin tone! Anyway, though Lorac is amazing- it's also sold for about $36, which is more than I can afford to spend on my current budget. So i set off on an adventure through the more generic cosmetic isles in the hopes of somehow coming across a foundation that would match, not make my skin look oily, apply well and evenly, etc.- the unicorn of generic make-up brands.

or so i thought.

and then, behold, I discovered Maybelline's little creation- Fit Me foundation.

This stuff is awesome. Not only was I able to find a shade that EXACTLY matched my skin tone, the quality of this foundation is great for the price ($8 at Ulta). I apply it with a sponge lightly over a few select areas on my face and then dab and 'blend' as needed. It gives me the smoothness (for the lack of a better term) i'm looking for and has wonderful durability. I hardly ever have to re-apply through at least a 12 hour period :) It looks very natural and even gives my face an almost dew-ey appearance, which I like.

So if any of you are looking for a great, cheap foundation- this one is definitely worth a shot.

: )

nail polish tag !

welp, i received this tag from the bestie, & this is how it works!

The Questions

1. How many polishes do you own?

Oh, i'd say about 20 or 25 :p I've just recently discovered my interest in nail polish... plus, my main focus is make up! >.<

2. What is your favorite nail polish brand?

There are so many that I want to try that look amazing... but out of those I own, i guess OPI.

3. Do you like or hate crackle nail polish?

indifferent. I've never tried it. It looks neat, but i've heard it doesn't translate very well? Jury's out until I try it for myself

4. What is your first nail polish brand?

lawl, i do believe it was Bon Bons :p

5. If you create a nail polish line, what would you name it?

hmm good question... i have no idea. Perhaps 'Tots.' (my nickname when I was younger)

6. What nail polish color does not compliment you?

I don't think i've tried one yet that I thought didn't compliment me... BUT, there's a lot i havent tried. I can say that I don't think yellow or lime green look good on me.

8. Name two of your best nail art friends.

Out of my actual friends from the 'real world', Courtney is the only one who is interested in nail art. But she's my best friend & has a completely legit blog!

9. What was the best nail polish gift you have ever received?

Can't say that i've ever gotten a nail polish gift... at least none that I can remember. I've pretty much bought all my own stuff.

10. Make a speech about thanking the blogger who tagged you.

WELL, Courtney @ GaGa for Nails has inspired me to do my own blog! She's been my best friend for many years, and is also the Godmother to my daughter :) She's stuck with me through thick and thin, and is everything a best friend should be.  i love her very much :)

The Rules

- Answer the 10 questions

- Pass this tag to 5 bloggers

- Alert the bloggers you tagged about this

I'm passing this on to:

Obsessed With Glitter

The Scholarly Nail

Mandy's Secrets

Finger Painted

The Nailasaurus

(mini) haul !

So I went on a mini shopping spree (for i'm on a pathetically strict budget) and got 5 new polishes to add to my teeny tiny collection!

Woo! Since i've recently decided to quit biting my nails, I got these in the hopes that I can wear them soon on my slightly less crappy nails :) HOORAH!

I bought:

Nicole by OPI's 'Rich in Spirit'

Essie's 'Buy me a Cameo'

Nicole by OPI's 'Gone Wishin'

Sally Hansen's 'Platinum'

Sally Hansen's 'Pink Promise'

: )

i'm quite happy with my purchases. I'll try to get some of these on here soon!

Do any of you have any of these already? If so, what do you think about them?

bowchickawowwow

 hello all!

so much for the subtle looks- today I felt quite playful. Thus, i went with one of my favorite bold looks! Applying this look today made me even MORE anxious for my brushes, because though blending with my finger is fine, I could achieve a much more refined look with brushes :/ oh well!

* i can't get over how it doesn't look the same here as it does in real life :/ humph. Also, this was taken pre-eyeliner

*both eyes, obvi

* look when eyes are open!


Behold! my feisty little number. I don't wear this look (or any bright shades, for that matter) quite as often as I used to, due to the fact that I feel it makes me look younger... and seeing as how i usually have my 2 month daughter in tow with me- i don't want to look 16. I never really gave a damn what people thought about me until I became a mother. I'm still not so sure why I care if they think i look 16 or my actual age.... i guess because they're not just judging my person anymore, but judging what kind of mother I am? I don't know. It's dumb, i know :/ But ANYWAY, this look is a lot of fun and something I may just say 'to hell with it', and wear it more often again :)

 & Just for kicks, picture of said daughter!

She's just started smiling :)

Anyway...


Swatches!
(all Urban Decay)

* Vanilla, Graffiti, Peace, Blackout


'Vanilla' & 'Blackout', as i've stated before, are in the 15th Anniversary palette and i'm pretty sure they aren't sold separately. However, UD does sell a very similar black, 'Zero' that you could use instead. 'Graffiti' and 'Peace' can both be found in the Deluxe Shadow Box, and- good news!- are sold separately here for $18 bucks a pop!

Any feedback is welcome :D
Thanks for reading!

positively pink

WHAT'SUPWHAT'SUP
So i know that I mentioned in a previous post that I don't like pink eye shadow on me, but that was light pink- a brighter pink, i don't mind :) SO, today I was inspired to do the pink look, as it's been a long time since i've done it.

* crappy bathroom light

* close up; weird, fluorescent light

*look when eyes are open!

I actually really like this look. It can definitely be a daytime look and has that slight subtlety to it that I prefer to use so often. I really love playing with all the different shades and blending until I find a combination I like :)

Swatches (all urban decay, of course) :

Vanilla, Midnight 15, Scratch, Fishnets, & Junkshow

Unfortunately, some of these shades are only available in their respective palettes, not sold separately. 'Vanilla', 'Midnight 15', & 'Junkshow' all come in the 15th Anniversary palette. 'Scratch' & 'Fishnets' come in the Deluxe Shadow palette (if you're going to get ANY palette at all- get this one! it has all the best shades. in my opinion :p), AND are sold separately for $18 a piece.

And, as always, not all of these shadows are necessary to achieve this look. One could easily just use Vanilla, Scratch, & Fishnets :)

** ALSO, The GiveAway Lifestyle is doing a blog hop. Check it out to get your name out there!

Thanks for reading :D

little favorites #1

as they say, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".

i like to apply that reasoning to some of the products i just can't get away from, one being:

(not the usual 'packaging'; this was obviously a Halloween special)

tada!

Bath & Bodyworks's 'Japanese Cherry Blossom' !!!

or, more clearly,

I know there are a million fragrances out there, but no matter how many i've tried- i always seem to come back to this one. This particular bottle was $10 or $12, i can't remember which since it's been awhile since I bought it... but you can always get it at a decent price.

I particularly love this in the winter/fall, because (though it's categorized as a 'sexy' scent) that's exactly what it reminds me of.  It's timeless and I feel warm, cozy, and yes- maybe even a little sexy- when i wear it :P

Would definitely recommend!

What's your favorite winter fragrance? :)

pretty in purple

one of my favorites things about Urban Decay are/(is?) their fantastic purples. Aside from the neutral look, purple is one of the other shades that I love to wear. I feel like it's a great look for those that have brown eyes, especially :) Here's my version:

 * taken in crappy bathroom light ( forgive my deplorable eyebrows!! )

* slightly less crappy fluorescent light

*deer-in-the-headlights look :/

I really like this look because, though the colors are bold, it's still a fairrrrrly subtle look. You could definitely jazz it up with a grey or black on the outermost corners for a more dramatic effect. As you can see from my weird picture above^, the look isn't super obvious to the outsider, unless you're looking down or something... but that's why i like it :)

Swatches of the shades I used:

Vanilla, Midnight 15, Ransom, Omen, & AC/DC

I really love any excuse to use 'Ransom' (my favorite purple of them all) or 'AC/DC'. 'Midnight 15' I use most always in the corner to lighten things up (if i'm not using 'S&M' or 'Uzi', which you can find here for $17 each). And again, not ALL of these shades are necessary to achieve this look- i just really love blending :)

Anyway, that's my little version of a purple look. Any feedback is welcome!

deck your nails

unfortunately, i've been a biter of my nails/picker of my cuticles for years :(

however, i have recently vowed to change that so that I can wear some color beside a subtle pink on my fingernails (the idea was not to draw too much attention to them).

Because of my little decision, i've really been wanting a glittery, bright, happy, Christmas red for the holiday season.

And i JUST SO HAPPENED to be wondering around aimlessly in ULTA tonight and saw this:

!!!

Hollaaaaaaa. 4 minis for $12.50, with the exact red I was looking for (and a black glitter that i've been wanting as well) : ))))

Disclaimer: by no means do I pretend that I can paint my nails very well. I NEVER get manicures and my finger nails are complete crap compared to these other beauty/nail blogs (if you want to see some LEGIT nails, go here!), but i'm trying to take better care of them, do have a recent interest in polish, AND figure I should cover nails at least a little since they fall under the umbrella of beauty :)

As a testament to the above statement, here's OPI's 'Speak for Your

-Elf' and 'How's it Snowin' on my nails:

Indeed, it looks like a 5 year old did it, but at least you get a (crappy) glimpse of the polishes O_o The red is pretty much exactly what I was looking for. The 'How's it Snowin' isn't quite as black as I thought it would be, but I still love it!

What's your favorite polish for the holidays?

:D

Thanks for reading!!