Archive for August, 2010

Originally I started my sale to get rid of polishes since I thought my obsession was up, but apparently it’s not LOL!  So, I’m getting rid of colors I know I’ll either never wear, or I just don’t particular feel love for anymore.  If you want pictures of anything, just let me know and I’ll take them.

I prefer a minimum order of $10.00, and please feel free to make reasonable offers. I may also list other colors, and possibly even some miscellaneous cosmetics. Pictures can be taken of all items by request.

Shipping is $2.50 for the first bottle and $0.50 for each additional polish, up to a maximum of $5 unless you buy more than I can fit into a flat-rate box (which can fit anywhere from 6-8 polishes). Currently, I am only shipping within the USA.

I accept PayPal only, and payment needs to be made within 48 hours of being invoiced. Items will only be held for 24 hours before I move on to the next request. For a quicker response, please message me using the contact form here.

Polishes are alphabetically listed by brand. Unless noted, all polishes are BN, have only been swatched, or have been used no more than 2x.

$1.00 EACH
——————————————————————————-
Confetti Moonstruck
French Colors Acid
LA Colors Color Craze – BCC
LA Girls Dance Studio
Love My Nails All That
Love My Nails Dazzling
NYC Starry Silver Glitter
Petites Periwinkle (purple)
SH Marble Crème (New Lengths – x2) ***PENDING (1)***
SH Craze Frost (Hard as Nails)
SH Tailored Crème (Hard as Nails)
SH Blue Chip Frost (New Lengths)
SH Opulent Frost (Hard as Nails)
SH Lucky Crème (Hard as Nails)
SH Black Out
SH Lime Lights ***PENDING***
SH Wild Life
Goldie Gold 17
Goldie Hot Pink 1
Goldie Pink 16
Goldie Pink 5
Goldie Purple 17
Goldie Rose 7
Goldie Rose 9
Goldie Taupe 21

$2.00 EACH
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ChG Sweet Cream Pink (75%)
ChG Your Touch (75%)
Color Paw Starry Night
Max Factor Momentum Moss
Maybelline Bronze Aluminum
Maybelline Clearly In Love ***PENDING***
Maybelline Diva Gold
Maybelline Goody Plum Drop
Maybelline Pie In The Sky
Maybelline Pop Star Pink
Maybelline Rhinestone Pink
Maybelline Silver Spells
Maybelline Sweetie Pie
NYX Shell
Revlon Grey Suede
Revlon Lilac Pastelle
Revlon Minted
Revlon Moody (SW)
Revlon Peach Petal
SH Black Diamond
SH Diamonds

$3.00 EACH
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Chi In Between The Sheets
Essie Barbados Blue
Essie Potato Fields
OPI Malaysian Mist (75%)
OPI Sweet Heart (75%)
Orly Gold Rush ***PENDING***
Orly Quite Contrary Berry (75%)

$4.00 EACH
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OPI All Lacquered Up
OPI Apple Of My Eye
OPI Boot Hill-a Vanilla
OPI Charged Up Cherry (OF)
OPI Cheery Cherry ***PENDING***
OPI Cozu-melted In The Sun (OF)
OPI Crepes Suzi-ette
OPI Espresso Your Style!
OPI Fair Dinkum Pinkum
OPI Holy Pink Pagoda!
OPI How To Jamaica Million (OF)
OPI I’m Not Really A Waitress
OPI Jewel Of India
OPI Koala Bear-y ***PENDING***
OPI Log On To Love
OPI Mauving To Manitoba
OPI Melon of Troy ***PENDING***
OPI Merry Holly-Days!
OPI Mod-ern Girl ***PENDING***
OPI Nice Color, Eh?
OPI Pink-ing Of You
OPI Royal Flush Blush
OPI SoHo Nice To Meet You (OF)
OPI Stars In My Eyes
OPI The More The Berrier (OF)
OPI Tijuana Dance?
SpaRitual She’s A River
Zoya Charlize
Zoya Harmonie
Zoya Tangy

TREATMENTS
——————————————————————————-
SH No Chip Acrylic Top Coat $1
Avon Pearl Shine $2
ChG Flat Top Matte Finish $2
SH Insta-Dri Speed Dry Drops $3

I used to love the squoval look, but as of late, I’ve preferred an almost rounded shape.  Sadly, I don’t think my nails want to take on that shape.  I also don’t think my nails know what shape they want, and my right hand’s middle finger is a serious irritant!  So, I tried to get the info I wanted from “rescue your nails,” by Rescue Beauty Lounge creator Ji Baek.  No luck, so I then went on to the internet, and I found the interesting article below that was adapted from Love in the Palm of Your Hand, by Ghanshyam Singh Birla (Inner Traditions, 1998).

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The ancient system of palm-reading is based on Vedic wisdom from India. According to this system, the lines in our palms, as well as the shape of our hands, fingers, and fingernails reveals something about our personalities and can also tell us about our relationships with others.

Fingernails are an especially significant feature of the hand, as they are nature’s way of protecting the nerve endings. Nails reflect your stamina and ability to cope with stress, so the condition of your nails may indicate the degree to which the state of your nervous system affects your relationships.

Find out what the shape of your fingernails may tell about who you are and how you relate:

Broad Nails
You are open-minded, tolerant, and relaxed. You have an easygoing nature capable of absorbing stress. Broad nails denote a healthy nervous system and physical vitality. You have good circulation; you are resourceful and optimistic in your approach to life. You believe in extending yourself to others unconditionally. Just be careful not to exhaust yourself. You have a tendency to go to extremes; you accept all that life has to offer with enthusiasm, and also good-naturedly take on all that others ask of you.

Long, Narrow Nails
These speak of grace, refinement, and a strong aesthetic sense. You may be idealistic in your desire for the perfect relationship. You need to develop more tolerance and patience regarding your expectations of others.

Generally, this nail will be seen in conjunction with fine texture on the hand. Often you will gravitate toward professions that do not require strenuous physical exertion, and that give your aesthetic sense full expression.

Flared Nails
You have an extremely analytical nature. You often have the same desire to share and accomplish as does the broad-nail type. However, the short length of the nail and its narrow base suggest that you lack the nervous resistance to carry out your actions in a calm, relaxed manner. You may become nervous over slight disagreements. You can be easily upset, defensive, and prone to nervous strain. Your high-strung nature makes you vulnerable to all sorts of anxieties and impatient outbursts, which exhaust you.

Your energy can best be exercised in research activities or other detailed work. Avoid being overcritical. You need to curb the tendency to find faults in your partner, which can place a strain on your relationship.

Short Nails
You may have an extremely nervous disposition that is prone to temperamental and unpredictable behavior. You are analytical, with a tendency toward perfectionism. You can easily become intolerant of those who fail to measure up to your critical standards.

Guard against losing your cool during disagreements and learn to see things from a larger perspective. If you are too fastidious, you may annoy your partner.

Bitten Nails
These indicate that you have a nervous temperament. Biting your nails destroys the very armor that protects your nervous system. Learn to recognize what triggers this habit and find a harmless alternative for relieving tension: for example, counting to ten, deep breathing, or drinking a tall glass of water. Such a diversion may give you the time to calm down and perceive your situation more clearly.

via Annie B. Bond of Care2

So, I like this… But I’m not sure how much.  Swept Off My Feet is from Essie’s 2009 Fall Collection.  I’d describe it as a dusty rose/mauve color.  It took three coats to get this as opaque as it is.  Essie seems so hit and miss with  how opaque a color is in just two coats.  However, so I love the brand and I can’t wait to get my Fall 2010 colors!  Yay!

Okay, I was very happy to have found this!  This is a color from Maybelline’s Fall collection for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week 2010.  The collection has a dark green, navy blue, deep shimmery purple, darkened berry cream, and this lovely beauty.  I also got the dark purple, Pretty in Purple.  I wish my picture picked up the shimmer, but of course it doesn’t.  However, you can mosey on over to Steph’s Closet for pics of this lovely as well as pictures of the collection display (here and here).

I have GOT to find my lightbox!  I have no idea where I put it, so I might have to make a new one.  That’s okay too though!  It’s been rainy the last few days here in NY, so I haven’t had sunshine to try to take my pics with.  I think the sun’s supposed to come out to play tomorrow though

08/24/2010 – Essie Lacquered Up

A nice vibrant red.  It’s a true red that didn’t seem to lean more orange or more blue.  I like it!  I had slight VNL with two coats, but nothing horribly noticeable.

08/25/2010 – OPI Baguette Me Not

A muted salmon… Soft, but not as coral or pink as my pic might make it look.  Slight VNL with two coats.  Definitely a fall color IMHO, which is okay because I’m ready for fall!

(Gah!  The spacing on this theme is killing me!  I either need to fix it, or make a new one!)

So, I recently dipped my toes back into the pool of Nail Polish Madness and bought a few new polishes.  I bought Confetti Moonstruck thinking it looks a lot like ChG Channelesque.  I had also bought Petites Color Fever in Periwinkle, and it looks a bit like Maybelline Hip Huggers.  And, Petites Vintage Gray looks quite a bit like Color Club High Society.  Let’s compare them, shall we?

Confetti Moonstruck vs ChG Channelesque

Okay, in the bottle, they look almost identical.  However, when applied Confetti pulls more brown than Channelesque, and you need at least two thick coats or maybe four thin coats to equal Channelesque.  However, I’d recommend it as a close dupe.

Petites Periwinkle vs Maybelline Hip Huggers

Maybelline Hip Huggers tends to have a bit more blue to it and is darker.  I think if you added a smidgen of dark blue to Periwinkle, you’d have a good dupe!

Petites Vintage Gray vs Color Club High Society

Color Club High Society has more of a brown/taupe look to it, where as Petites Vintage Gray is definitely grey.  Not the best of dupes… And I tested Petites against CC Who Are You Wearing, and it’s darker.

Granted, they’re not the best pictures, but I have no idea where I put my lightbox!  I might just have to make a new one…

There’s a reason I always ask my DH to rate things on a scale of 1 to 10… Because I can’t make up my mind!  It’s a good thing I’m a woman, so I use that as my excuse with him LOL!

I recently got a sample of pureDKNY, the latest scent from DKNY.  It’s sweet enough for summer, but all I can think about is apple picking and pumpkin pie when I wear it!  For some reason, instead of getting a perfume I’ve grown to like over the last few days, I got Dior J’adore.  It seemed to sit okay with me last night, so I thought I would be okay with it… Sadly, this was not the case.

I was fine last night when I tested it out, and again this morning when I used it.  It wasn’t until this afternoon when I went out to lunch.  By the time I came back, my head was pounding!  I’m not sure if the mix of the summer heat and my skin warming up is what did it, but something about the scent induced a sinus headache like no other!  I called Macy’s to be sure they’d take it back since I opened it, and luckily they said yes.

Of course I almost made a silly choice in purchasing Burberry Brit Sheer since I know I like it from when it was first released over a year ago, but I decided to go with my gut and get pureDKNY.  I tell you what – I’m glad I did!  The sales associate was even nice enough to let me have the free bag and mini body butter you’re supposed to get for purchasing a 3.4 fl. oz. even though I only got a 1.7 fl. oz. bottle.

Goodness knows why I didn’t just bother getting this to begin with last night… I could’ve saved myself from a headache, the torture of making a bad decision, and I could’ve saved some gas!  But, I did end up spending $20 less for the same size as the J’adore and still got a free gift!  I’m now a happy and lovely smelling woman!  I’ll have to write a more formal review on this later, but you’ll have to be gentle on me since I’m definitely not a perfumista!

Oh, look! A new recipe for you! Lately my family and I have been going to parties at a good friend’s house, and it’s almost mandatory that I bring my pasta salad to go with her divine burgers. I normally make this in the summer since it’s easy to make, and it’ll serve as dinner with enough for leftovers. If you’re only serving it as a side, you’ll probably have enough for at least 10 people (depending on the amount served).

Ingredients
1 lb. rotini noodles
1 pkg. beef smoked sausage
8 oz. colby-jack cheese
1 small can black olives
1 16 oz. bottle Wishbone Italian dressing
Garlic powder, to taste
Grated parmesan, to taste

Directions
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cook rotini noodles according to package directions.

3. While noodles are cooking, cut smoked sausage and cheese into 1/2″ cubes. Put cheese in sandwich bag, and place in refrigerator to keep cold.

4. Place meat into baking dish and sprinkle with garlic powder. Bake for 30 minutes. Drain meat on paper towels to get rid of excess grease.

5. When noodles are done, rinse them in cold water while draining. Lightly coat with Italian dressing and parmesan. Place in large serving bowl, cover and put refrigerator to cool (approximately 2 hours).

6. When noodles have cooled, add meat, cheese and black olives. Coat with more Italian dressing and parmesan to taste.

I might not be explaining this in the best way, and maybe one day I’ll either try to make a video of me doing it, or take step by step pictures. Feel free to write with any questions, and definitely let me know if you try the recipe and like it! I hope you enjoy it!

***SIDE NOTES***
I use Hillshire Farm beef smoked sausage, but I’ve tried this with pepperoni and hard salami as well. My family prefers the beef smoked sausage, with hard salami as a close second.

You can use any cheese you like, but we like the colby-jack. As far as the Italian dressing, I’ve tried Kraft and Wishbone, and the various varieties they have, but it’s definitely best with plain old regular Italian by Wishbone.

Green and/or red peppers might be nice when added, but no one else in the house besides myself is big on peppers so I never add them.

LONG time no post! I know, and I apologize! Life was hectic for a while there, but things are starting to calm down. I must’ve suffered from a bout of depression too because I wasn’t doing my nails at all! I wasn’t blogging, tweeting, posting on forums… I’m still not, but it’s something I do hope to change soon.

I’m currently deciding on what direction I want my blog to take. There’s a bazillion nail blogs out there now, and while it’s not a competition, I’m not sure that I want to continue with mainly nails. I guess I’m dry on thoughts, which might be another reason I’ve kept in hiding. I’m sure I’ll figure it out soon, and get back to posting.

I just wanted to peek in and say “Hi!” to whoever is still out there checking back on my blog, and let you know I’m not dead LOL! Thanks to those who still check in from time to time! I’ll be back soon… I promise!