'Stache Celebration

Okay, it's technically December 1st, now, but this was planned for the last day of November until life got in the way.  It has a funny habit of doing that...
I want to thank you all SO much for your amazing response to the Movember movement and my own personal story.  You have created some amazing manis showing love to the men in our lives, letting them know that their health is important to us because they are.  I have been so humbled by your kind words, amazing art, and awesome response.  THANK YOU!

Today is my final Movember mani for the year, because the month is over.  Like breast cancer awareness, though, this is not the end.  These awareness campaigns are wonderful and really do cause people to pause and think about their health, but I worry that there is a danger in moving on afterward.  Yes, we think and talk a lot about breast cancer in October and prostate and testicular cancer in November, but what happens in March?  We need to be aware of our bodies and our health all the time, trusting our instincts and speaking up when we see changes.  Why?  Because it literally saves lives! 
So today I am celebrating.  Celebrating you, and all of your support that far surpassed my hopes.  Celebrating the promise that medical advances bring, thanks to pressure from the public and the hard fundraising work of people like you and me.  Celebrating my pappy, and his healthy new reality.  Celebrating early detection and the wisdom of those who have devoted their lives to saving others. 

 Celebrating the 'Stache!

I figured that I would pay tribute to all of you brave ladies that freehanded mustaches this month and do one of my own. Yup, it's a weird looking little guy! I know that the nails are a bit dark, but I really wanted to let the confetti stand out! However, that little mustache needed to show up, so I added an accent of Zoya Ginessa (2 coats).

I was going use my trusty Black Out, but instead tried out Jacob's Protection by Essence.  This was part of their Breaking Dawn quad.  I have no experience with the Twilight books or movies, but these polishes were pretty (and less than $2!).  This black base is full of a pretty blue shimmer, so I used 2 coats as a base and then again for the mustache.  Then came the glitter!  I wanted a celebration, but couldn't choose one glitter, so this also morphed into a comparison:

Insert more pictures here.

(Well, I'm at a bit of a loss right now.  As I was uploading photos I hit my 2G limit.  Now I have to decide how to continue this blog and how much I want to invest in it.  For tonight, though, no more pictures, I guess.  It's late and I have some decisions to make.  I do have shots of all of these glitters to compare though.  Oh well, this was really about something more important anyway!)

So there it is--glittery joy!  I love the names of the polishes, too, which are appropriate for this joyful post: Party of Five Glitters by Wet 'n Wild (pinkie), Milani Gems (middle finger), Pinata-Yada-Yada by Ulta (index) and Happy Ending by Cult Nails (thumb).  How perfect!  These are all so fun, with Gems and Pinata-Yada-Yada being the most similar (and my favorites).  Happy in a bottle! 

Life is short and can be scary, so why not embrace a little celebration?  Cancer can be so dark and daunting, but the reality is that there is hope and can be life after, which is worth some sparkling joy.  So thank you!  There has been a lot of good this month to celebrate and I can only hope that movements like Movember bring a lot more celebrations to many more people--here's to the power of the 'stache!

A Berry Big Problem

I realized, earlier this week, that I have a problem.  Perhaps it is excitement over fall and the upcoming holiday season.  Perhaps it is forgetfulness.  Perhaps these are excuses.  I have a new addiction to berry colored polish with holo sparkles.  I decided to compare the 4 that I could find (my Sinful Colors magnetic is missing...so tragic!).  In the bottle, they look very similar.  On the nail...only mostly similar...

Here's the line up!  These cover a pretty broad range of prices, from $1.99 for the Pure Ice to a retail of $12.50 for the OPI (but not with my Ulta coupons!) and different availabilities.

Left to right: OPI DS Extravagance, Zoya Blaze, Ulta Material Girl and Pure Ice Super Star.  For comparison, I used 2 coats of color over 1 coat Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Hardener and under 1 coat of Out the Door.

Extravagance.  How gorgeous is that?!?  This one applies like a dream.  This is one of the darker shades, a deep berry or wine shade.  The silver holo particles are small and super-dense.  This dries with a smooth, shiny finish, but I always add a top coat.  Totally worth the cost (especially if you can get it discounted)!

Blaze.  This is one of my picks from the new Ornate collection and amazing!  Like Zoya polishes in general, this is also an amazing application, easy and smooth.  The color on this one is lighter and brighter than Extravagance, more cranberry.  Like Extravagance, the holo pieces in this are very fine, though not as dense.  Another nice, shiny finish, even without a top coat.

Material Girl.  This one is darker berry, like Extravagance.  There are a couple of key differences, aside from the price (regularly $6, unless you get it on sale, which is pretty easy to do).  The holo pieces in this one are larger, more like glitter than shimmer.  They are quite dense, and reflect a bit differently because of their size.  Also, because of the size of the glitter, the application is a big uglier with a little dragging.  This is the only one of the three that dried gritty and really needed a top coat for a glossy finish.  ALL of that being said, this is a gorgeous polish and a great alternative if you cannot find the OPI.

 

Super Star.  This was a lighter, brighter berry like Blaze, but not quite the same shade.  It's almost a little bit purple in tint.  When I saw this at Walmart with the new Pure Ices, I fell in love.  When I got home I realized that this same reaction had happened too many times before... This one has an easy application and good coverage for such an inexpensive polish.  The holo is much less visible on the nail than in the bottle and than the other three.  It's almost more of a golden-red glitter than a true holo.  Of the 5, I think that this is the only one I really regret nabbing, which is ironic since it's the cheapest of the bunch!

This out of focus shot helps show off the density and appearance of the holo for each.  You can see that the colors of Extravagance and Material Girl (index and ring) are really close in color.

So there they are.  What do you think?  Do these make you think of fall and winter coziness?  Do you own any?  Have you discovered any of your own little addictions like this--let me know because it could be contagious!

31DC: Inspired by a pattern

I'm was very excited about today's design!  Then, I got sloppy and took out a nail...it's pretty gruesome.  The pattern that inspired my mani today is: my bed! 

 

*1 coat Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Hardener

*2 coats Sinful Colors Cream Pink

*2 coats Ulta Smoke Screen

*1 coat OPI Pirouette My Whistle

*Sinful Colors Snow Me White

*1 coat Seche Vite

 

 

This is my bedding that inspired my nails.  I love this bed set!  I had my eye on it for a while and then it all clearanced down.  Just to brag about how awesome this is--you see those little pillows?  They retail for $29.99 (I think...maybe $39) and I got them for $3.99!  Awesomeness!

I have come to really like Cream Pink.  It has a pretty, subtle shimmer to it and covers well with 2 coats.  I used Snow Me White and a dotting tool to make the button lines on the pink.  While my lines were a little crooked on a couple of nails, I love how this looked!  I think I'll have to work with this design again soon!

But those little dots were the death of me.  As I was focusing on my pinkie (the dots are really straight there!) I hit my ring finger with my other hand.  The polish was thick and tacky, so a big glob pulled up.  It was late, so I tried to hide it.  This is not my specialty. 

 

This is the first time I used Pirouette My Whistle.  I had been after it for a while and thanks to a coupon and a fully-stocked new Ulta, this beauty is now mine!  I was dying to try it and and I decided I'd use it instead of trying to dot on flowers like my duvet. Clearly I kind of regret that.  C'est la vie!

 

Aren't those little dots cute on the cream pink?  I sort of forgot that my pillows had 3 rows, but I think that 2 worked better for a space as small as my nails.  Do you have any tricks for painting disasters, besides starting again?  I'd LOVE to hear how you fix them!

31DC: Inspired by a movie

I am a movie hoarder.  I have far too many DVDs.  My Netflix queue is a mile long.  I love movies!  This challenge became super overwhelming for me because my mind went in a million directions.  I tried to narrow it down to Halloween movies.  That is a much more narrow category because I am also a movie wimp.  I don't do horror.  I still have nightmares about Gremlins (yeah, the ones that the Family Channel shows). 
I love Tim Burton's work.  I love his aesthetic but, more importantly, I love the vulnerability and brokenness of his characters.  They are intensely human, weird, lonely, and remarkable.  My aunt is a really big fan of The Nightmare Before Christmas.  I haven't watched this in years, but it did kind of creep me out the last time (I may or may not have been in college..."wimp" is an understatement).  It fit the theme and I really love her, so I wanted to do something with her in mind.  Here are my Nightmare nails:

 Like yesterday, I used a lot of polishes to do this art, so I'll save you the list and get to each one!

Nothing screams "Burton!" like the iconic curling hilltop, set against the glowing moon.  It is everything quirky and striking about him.  I used Color Club Almost Famous as my background and my Color Club art striper in Black Hologram for the hill itself.

 

Jack!  Mr. Skellington himself has the creepy warmth that you find in Burton films.  You can't help but love his dreaming and enthusiasm!  (I realized, after the fact, that I made this really high up on my nail.  Jack looks a little fat here.  Sorry buddy!)  I used my trusty Sally Hansen Black Out and a small paint brush for his features and Sinful Colors Snow Me White.

 

 

Sally!  Who knew a creepy patchwork doll could actually be so cute and lovable!  I tried to get a patchwork nail to capture this.  I know there is so much more detail in her dress, but it's impossible to think of the movie and not picture this!  I used Zoya Tru, Zoya Yara, Cover Girl Candy Corn and Ulta Smoke Screen for the patches, lined with Black Out.

 

Oogie Boogie.  This is where the movie started to lose me (and by that I mean I started to freak out a little)...But, he's a key part of the story.  I used Zoya Yara again (I love this shimmery olive green!) and my Black Holo striper for the stitching.  Moving on to something happier...

Zero!  Who doesn't love Zero?  Everyone needs a dog, even Jack.  I used Color Club Wild Orchid (gorgeous!) as the background and painted his nose on with Snow Me White (with a little China Glaze Make A Spectacle on top--the only untried today) and Candy Corn and Spoiled Vitamin C for his jack-o-lantern nose.

 

 So there is my little Halloween Town!  Is this a favorite movie of yours?  What are your thoughts on the genius of Tim Burton (no pressure--I'm not biased!).  Do you like painting your nails for others so that you think of them when you look down?  I love it!