I Feel Polished!: August 2012

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Woodsie's Wish & Sophie

Yay, indie polish! I know I've mentioned this before, but I have been on a pretty serious indie kick since June. Amy's Nail Boutique is one of my favorite indie polish makers. Not to mention that she's extremely nice and accommodated my crazy so well (I switched the polishes I wanted. Twice)! I currently own five of her polishes and I can't wait to add more to my collection! I've been dying to use her polishes and with work and school bogging me down, nail art has taken a backseat. So, I figured this would be the perfect opportunity to use some of Amy's polishes! I chose Woodie's Wish and Sophie. Woodsie's Wish is a white base with tons of matte glitter. MATTE GLITTER! Sophie is a pink base with an explosion of glitter in it! They are both gorgeous! Woodsie's Wish reminds me of Rainbow Chip frosting...have you ever had that before? YUM.

I used two coats of Woodsie's and three coats of Sophie. Sophie is more sheer than I thought it would be, so a coat of underwear would allow for less coats of Sophie. I also attempted to pull a Lacquered Lover photo. If you've never seen her blog, Carly has a unique mani style when she polishes her nails. She also pastes her pictures together so you can see both of her hands at once. Her pictures are so cute and I really wanted to give it a try. I give her mad props because that photo is hard to get right! I attempted it twice. You can see my attempt below, but try not to laugh! Enjoy! :)

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Pencil Nails!

I've been wanting to try pencil nails that I saw on Pinterest for quite some time now! The first week of school seemed like the perfect time to give it a go! I'm really happy with how they turned out and my students loved them!

For the pencil nails I used Sally Hansen Lightning, OPI DS Reflection, OPI Atomic Orange, Zoya Shelby, and Art Club Striping Polish in Black. I started by polishing my whole nail with two coats of Reflection, which is my favorite silver polish! It looks like foil on your nails! When it was very dry, I taped the middle area off. I then polished Lightning above the tape and Shelby below the tape before pulling the tape off. Next, I mixed a tiny drop of black striping polish with a large drop of Reflection. Using the striping brush, I brushed the darkened Reflection over the silver that was already on my nails. I then mixed a tiny bit of Atomic Orange with Lightning and brushed two columns onto the yellow that was already on my nails. They turned out well and even though it sounds like a lot of work, it wasn't too bad at all! My only complaint was that Lightning was extremely difficult to clean off my skin! Ugh! Anyways...Enjoy! :)

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Blue and Green Nails

As my school school and work school get underway, please accept my apologies in advance. I can already tell that my final semester is going to be rough so if I disappear for a week or so, fear not! I will update as often as possible while also taking care of my obligations to my students and schoolwork. That being said, onto my nails!

I met my new students and their families on Thursday, so I did these nails to match my dress! It was a floral green, blue, and white pattern, so I chose Zoya Apple, Zoya Charla, and OPI Alpine Snow to match it. I also used Sonnetarium Snowfall as a complementary polish. If you've never used Sonnetarium polishes, you are really missing out! Michelle makes amazing polish! Once I get to 300 likes on , one of her polishes will be in the giveaway!

I polished my entire nail with Alpine Snow. Using white striping tape, I created a diagonal line across the lower half of my nail. Above the tape I polished Apple and below it I polished Charla. I then pulled the tape off leaving a nice white line between the green and blue polish! Finally, I added Snowfall on top of Charla. Snowfall has to be one of my all time favorite polishes. I have big plans for it a little closer to December! I finished up with a top coat of Revlon Colorstay and I was ready to meet the families! Enjoy! :)

Saturday, August 18, 2012

Versatile Blogger Award & Another Liebster!

I feel so lucky to be nominated for three more awards! I was given another Liebster Award by Nailtastic Fun. I was also give two Versatile Blogger Awards by Haley's Nails and Lightwell Nails. Thanks for all of the awards! Even though I've already done the Liebster, I am still going to answer Krystal's questions:

1. What is your favourite band/artist?

Yikes, that's difficult. I'm pretty obsessed with Adele at the moment, but I can get onboard with anything except country and heavy metal.

2. What is your favourite cartoon character?

I adore the Lorax and since he has a movie now, I can call him my favorite!

3. What do you miss most about being a kid?

The sheer lack of responsibility. No bills, no job, just school and fun.

4. What is your biggest lemming at the moment?

Absolutely, positively Seuss by Whimsical Ideas by Pam

5. If you could spend the day with one fellow polish blogger or anyone you admire that is great with nail art or just would love to play with their polishes, who would it be?

Carly at Lacquered Lover seems awesome. I adore her pictures and her attitude and I'd love to hang out with her. I'd also like to meet my blogger friend, Alex from Glittery & Polished, in person!

6. Person you admire the most?

My mom. She means the world to me and I love her dearly.

7. Have you done much traveling? If so, where have you been?

I wish I could travel more! I've been to England, Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Gibraltar, Canada, Mexico, and several states. I'd love to spend more time in England and my dream vacation would be to Sweden.

8. What would you call your personal style?

I have no idea! Practical but cute? I love wearing jean capris and a cute shirt but I also enjoy dressing up and being pretty.

9. Have you ever dyed your hair a funky, weird color?

No, I haven't!

10. Favourite food/snack?

My inner self LOVES fried food. My actual self loves black bean burgers at the moment. And chocolate chips.

11. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I'm very anxious and I let little issues get to me far too often. I'd love to be able to stress less! :)

Onto the Versatile Blogger Awards!

Nominate 12 fellow bloggers that are relatively new to blogging
Let them know you have nominated them
Share 7 random facts about yourself
Thank the blogger(s) who nominated you by linking to their blog
Add the Versatile Blogger Award to your post

My 7 random facts:

1. I don't like coffee but I love tea.

2. I never take off my thumb ring.

3. My favorite nail is my pinky nail on my left hand.

4. I'm a ridiculous overachieving perfectionist. To a fault.

5. I never set my alarm for a time ending in a 0 or a 5 (no 7:30 or 8:15 wake-up calls!).

6. I can't stand the feeling of dry skin.

7. I loathe running...and exercising in general.

Unfortunately I'm going to have to hold off on nominating 12 newer bloggers for now. Work and my internship are kicking my butt. I barely have time to polish my nails! :)

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

It's Here! My First Guest Blog Post!

I'm so excited to be a guest blogger over at Karinea0a today! It's my first time ever doing a guest blog post! It was a little nerve-wracking but I think it turned out really well! So, what are you waiting for?! Go over there and check out my post! Here's a little preview before you get over there...Enjoy! :)

Monday, August 13, 2012

Lace Dotticure

I recently saw a really cool manicure on Pinterest that was supposed to look like a lace doily. It had a heart shaped effect to it and freehand drawing on my nails isn't really something I have too much patience for, especially on my right hand. I decided to use the basic parts of the lace design and modify it to fit my needs. I used OPI Alpine Snow, OPI Black Onyx, China Glaze Recycle, and Girly Bits January Morning for this manicure. I chose these colors to match a dress I wore to a party on Saturday. Everyone loved my nails and several people asked what brand of stickers they were! Hahaha!

I began by polishing my nails with Alpine Snow. When that was dry, I used striping tape to mark off the downward arrow. Above the striping tape, I polished Recycle and below the tape I used Black Onyx. I then pulled the tape off and added my dots with my dotting tools! Finally, I topped the entire manicure with January Morning, which is a gorgeous shimmery polish I won from Glittery & Polished. It was my first (and only) giveaway win ever! My ONLY complaint about this manicure was that my striping tape, which was red, seemed to bleed a little! I've NEVER had that happen before! You have to look really closely to notice it, but it realllllly annoys a perfectionist like me! They still look good, though! Enjoy! :)

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Water Marbling for Luck!

Water marbling was the first nail art technique I ever tried. The first time I did it, it wasn't the greatest, but it still looked awesome. The second time I did it, I declared myself to be an expert. Yep. :) I've since water marbled the nails of several friends. However, I haven't done it since beginning my blog!

I had a very important state test and I wanted some lucky nails! I actually had polishers block and couldn't find a single mani I wanted to do. Could have been the stress...So I decided to go back to my roots and water marble! This was my best water marble yet taking a total of twenty minutes! Woo! I recently got Essie Bikini So Teeny and let me tell you, I am in love! Paired with Zoya Perrie and a glittery top coat of Rainbow Honey The Worst Possible Thing and I was in gorgeous water marbled heaven! And my lucky nails worked because I passed my test! YAY! Have you ever water marbled before? How'd it go? Here are my pictures! Enjoy! :)

Sunday, August 5, 2012

The Liebster Award

K over at Lightwell Nails tagged me for a Liebster Award! YAY! I used to love filling out little surveys when I was younger and emailing them to all of my friends. I know, I was so cool. :) Anyways, here's an explanation from K:

"This little award is all about discovering new blogs and helping those with less than 200 followers to get recognized."

Here are the rules:

1. Each person tagged must post 11 things about themselves.

2. They must also answer the 11 questions the 'tagger' has set for them.

3. They must create 11 more questions to ask bloggers they have decided to tag.

4. They must then choose 11 bloggers with less than 200 followers and tag them in their post.

5. These lucky bloggers must then be told.

6. There's no tag backs.

11 Things About Me:

1. I teach elementary school
2. I married my high school sweetheart
3. I'm a cat person
4. I don't like odd numbers
5. Our cats are named after a coffee shop my husband and I both worked at.
6. I can touch my nose with my tongue
7. If I could live anywhere, I would move to Sweden
8. I'm graduating with my Master's in December
9. The foods on my plate cannot touch each other :)
10. When my husband and I can't find one another in a store, we "ca-caw" each other.
11. I love hockey

Lightwell Nails' questions:

1. What would you say your getting-started-with-blogging experience has been like?

I'd say the whole experience has been awesome! When I first started, I was nervous to put myself out there. Once I decided to make my page, I knew there was no going back. Everyone has been wonderful so far and I'm loving it!

2. How do you store your stash? (Share pics! :D)

My husband built me a nail polish rack. It's currently full now, so I'm trying to convince

him to build me another! :)

3. Do you collect anything?

Besides nail polish? :) I collect dolphin stuff for my classroom.

4. What’s your favorite part of every day?

The evenings. My husband and I are both home. We relax, watch TV, eat dinner together. I look forward to it every day!

5. What other communities do you participate in on your blog topic? (i.e. Reddit, Tumblr, Facebook, MUA, etc.)

Just Facebook. I worry if I take too much on I won't be able to keep up with all of it on top of life in general.

6. What nail technique, design, color combo etc. have you wanted to try but haven’t yet?

I really want to try splatter nails but I haven't gotten around to swiping some small straws from a coffee shop!

7. Star Wars or Star Trek?

Star Wars. I like the new Star Trek but I've never seen the old stuff.

8. What was the most memorable trip you ever took?

Our honeymoon, hands down! We went on a European cruise. I miss it every day!

9. What’s your favorite breed of dog?

Though I am a cat person, I like dogs. I absolutely love pit bulls!

10. What do you never leave the house without?

Purse, keys, cell phone. I always say that in my head to make sure I have everything!

11. What’s your favorite piece of “life advice”?

Don't sweat the small stuff. It really isn't worth it. :)

My questions for my tagged 11 :)

1. How did you get started with nail polish?
2. Where do you live?
3. What is your favorite type of food?
4. What are your pet peeves?
5. What do you do (or want to do) for a living?
6. What is your absolute favorite polish?
7. What is your dream polish (an actual one or one you've dreamt up)?
8. What is your favorite TV show?
9. What was your biggest polish fail?
10. What are your hobbies?

11. What's your favorite quote?

And finally, my 11 tagged bloggers (If you've already been tagged, forgive me!):

1. Glittery and Polished
2. Pinked Polish
3. Can't Hold My Lacquer
4. Lena Loves Nails
5. Blattitude Nails
6. Apple Lacquer
7. Did My Nails
8. Lacquer and Lattes
9. Heartfully, Janelle
10. All The Little Things
11. Pretty Face, Happy Bank

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Mermaid Tail? Mermaid Scales? Mermaid's Dream?

I don't know what to call this manicure. It's definitely in the mermaid genre. I couldn't decide...is it a tail, scales, or dreams, as the polish is called? No matter what you call it, I LOVE IT. Plain and simple love. I've been dreaming up these nails ever since my glitter delivery coincided with the arrival of Deborah Lippmann's Mermaid's Dream. I had them sitting on the table together and I knew they must be combined.

Before I move onto the manicure, let me just say that this is my first DL polish. It is absolutely stunning. And expensive. I likely won't buy another for myself because I can't justify that price for nail polish. Unless one as gorgeous as Mermaid's Dream comes out...then I'll reconsider! :) If you know of another beautiful DL...keep it to yourself! ;) Mermaid's Dream is a seafoam green with a gold-ish shimmer and blue glitter. Stunning. It was opaque in two coats and I didn't use any underwear. It also dried relatively fast.

I polished all of my nails with two coats of Mermaid's Dream except my accent nail. I did just one coat and then skipped it when I did the second coat. When the second coats were dry, I polished my accent nail with its second coat. Then, while the nail was still wet, I went to work with the glitter. Each piece was placed individually. I used a toothpick dipped in a little water between each glitter placement. I started in the top middle and made a line all the way to the tip of my nail. From there, it's just like a hexagonal puzzle! By the third column, Mermaid's Dream was dry so I used a quick swipe of clear polish to rewet the nail. Then I clipped any overhanging glitters and covered it with a coat of HK Girl which made it super smooth. This did take a little time for obvious reasons but it maybe took 5-8 minutes per glittery accent nail. That's why it makes a great accent nail and probably not a whole manicure! That would take FOREVER! Anyways, onto the pictures! Enjoy! :)

P.S. The DL bottle is super awkward to photograph with...so three of the four pictures feature the HK Girl bottle! :)