Jamberry Nail Wraps Sample Sheets

Hello my dear friends!  Today I want to share with you photos of the Jamberry samples that I received in my nail mail recently. I included the contact information (business card info) of the kind ladies who sent me samples so that you can contact them if you are interested in Jamberry as well.

"A Treasury of Wit and Wisdom" from Reader's Digest | Book Review

In our day and age, more and more people shy away from reading. But in order to have wit and wisdom, that which are necessary for life, we can not solely rely upon videos and sound, we must train ourselves to read.  Of course, for it to be worthwhile, it has to be a meaningful book.  I totally recommend a quotation book.  Easy, short quotes are memorable... they make an impression.  Here's an example...

"Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes,
Art is knowing which ones to keep."

~ Scott Adams

"When inspiration does not come to me, I go halfway to meet it."

~ Sigmund Freud

"Creativity comes from trust.

Trust your instincts.  And never hope for more than you work."

~ Rita Mae Brown

"A woman is like a tea-bag.  

You never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water."

                                                                                                          ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

The Diary - A Trustworthy Friend | How to get Started and Some Nail Art to Match

A blog, a diary, a journal ~ many of us keep account of the special events that happen in our life - whether it be sad or happy, exciting or mellow... Some of us share it publicly, to anyone who might be interested, such as a blog as this.  We hope to inspire or to inform... Some others share with only a chosen few, intimate friends or family.  And still some others choose it to be a personal companion, a trusted friend.  IN this article, we will focus on the kind of Diary that can be a trustworthy friend, an intimate confidant that one might choose to write for one's personal use only. 

"Find a note book that you would like to keep for many years, or make your own.  Write accounts in it daily... short or long.. about anything that comes to your mind."  Said my English teacher way back in grade school.  In the Philippines, part of our school curriculum is learning the English Language.  In the effort of helping us express ourselves in the foreign language, my teacher encouraged the writing of a journal. It was very intimidating at first... but as I wrote it, I came to enjoy it... then I loved it.  I started with short, uninteresting sentences.  Later on, I was writing essays and poems.  Looking back, that journal and it's contents are very childish now.  But I still remember how my teacher complimented me specially for one of the poems I wrote.  I kept a journal ever since.

Whenever I see nail art design such as the newspaper nail art or a design that employs words in it, I always think about the Diary.  I'm sharing with you some designs that you might find inspiring as well as I hope to inspire you into writing a journal yourself.  You may click on the images for the full post from their original artists. Please continue to read...

The Best Gel Polish Removal Wraps | Julep Party's Over, Sensationail Foil Wraps and Hands Down Bandage Style Wraps

In this post, I will be showing you comparisons of Gel Polish Removal Wraps
~ Julep Party's Over Rubber Caps
~ Sensationail Foil Wraps and
~ Hands Down Bandage Style Wraps

Wanderlust | Julep Subscription Box August 2014

"I believe it's time for another adventure."

Wanderlust - noun, a strong innate desire to rove or travel about.

Origin: 1850–55; < German, equivalent to wander(n) to wander + Lust desire; see lust

I am guilty of being attracted to this box because of it's name "Wandelust."  If money was no object, I would surely travel the world... lol..  Although it's not the world right now, I still wish to rove about and see new places and experience new things. Why is summer in Canada sooooo short? :-(  So now, we try to do as much as possible and soak up the heat as much as we can.  I am so dreading the coming of winter right now... I am gearing up for the cold winter months by racking in some polishes, lol.  Then I'll sit by the warm fire and do nails... for now, I will show you the polishes that come in my mail faster than I could use them... wa ha ha!!!

Poolside Collection | July 2014 Julep Maven Subscription Box and a Little Customer Service Story

I just received my August 2014 Subscription Box called Wanderlust in the mail today.  I am very excited to show you that box.  Aren't the colors super pretty?  I am excited about this Stardust Finish as the first one I got was super pretty.  But first, Let me show you what I got in the July 2014 Poolside Collection box...

HELEN by Julep | Polish Swatch {My 100th post, wow!!!}

Helen - smoky pastel, lavender creme. 
I like how unassuming this color is, yet it is cheerful, not dark. Perfect for those days when you would like a well polished finger tips without the screaming "look at me! look at me" lol...

Keep Your Hands Satin Smooth by using HAND CREAMS | What is your favorite Hand Cream?

 

How do you prefer your nails?  How about your skin?

Natural, with no polish?  Or do you like experimenting with different nail polishes and nail art?  No matter what we wear on our nails, or no matter how old we are, our manicure (or natural nails) would look prettier and more crisp if the surrounding cuticle is healthy and our hands well nourished.  Not to mention, we ladies love to give each other a soft touch or a pat in the back (how about a handshake?) 

So, how do we keep our hard working hands happy and beautiful?  Please continue reading for some hand pampering tips and some hand cream reviews.

Avon Metallic Effects | Haul Preview

While browsing through my Avon brochure this morning, I came across this new polish collection from Avon.  Of course, I had to order it!  ETA on my doorstep is on the 18th of August, 2014.  Wooh, excited.  I love shimmer polishes... In general, Avon polishes has not disappointed me yet.

This collection actually reminds me of the Three Wishes from Julep.  By the looks of it on photos, at least.  Guess, we'll find out once it arrives and I actually try it out.  Avon polishes though are a lot cheaper and bigger in size (12 ml versus 8 ml). Since this is a new release, each bottle cost $6.99 each.  In due time, this will be on sale for sure.  Polishes on the Avon catalogs are usually priced at $3.99.  I like to grab them early though, as special effects polishes are limited edition and once the stock is sold-out, it's out!!! You see, I kind of regret not ordering the entire Holo collection when it came out... Now they're not available anymore (sad).  So this time, I took the entire Metallic Effects collection :-)

WHITE POLISHES | Featuring EL PORTO from Cult Cosmetics

White polish is a basic color in nail art.  It can be used as a base to make your nail color pop even more - for gradients, water marble, french tips, saran wrap technique - just about anything!  Best of all, I like it for making designs, it matches with any color of polish you use as a base. My favorite design is the ever easy flower-dots that you'll see on my Jelly polish below. A small dot in the middle then five around it.  Drag each dot towards the center of the flower for some definition... a walah!  You'll have an instant bouquet of flowers. Really, white is a great main-stay for your nail art basic supplies.

“Women think of all colors except the absence of color.
I have said that black has it all. White too.
Their beauty is absolute. It is the perfect harmony.” 
~ Coco Chanel

Nails By Redkoletz | Feature Friday

Ever wondered how popular nail artist get started and how they improve to be the great artist they are now?  I invited MD of Nails by RedKoletz to share with us her nail art story.  Please come and be inspired by her experiences and helpful tips.

"Never give up...Just remember,

all popular nail artist started just like us.  

They are just very willing to try new things  

and really have the passion in doing nail art."

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Introduction: Please tell us something about yourself:

Just call me MD to make our life easier 'cause my name is way too long to read and hard to memorize.

"When I was younger,
I used to paint my nails with the real house paint."

Give Yourself the Perfect Manicure & Fast Polish Drying Secrets

A few weeks ago, I posted a How To on "giving yourself a nice at home nail spa."  Have you tried it? 

After giving yourself a nice at home nail spa, now it's time to prepare your pretty little sassy fingers for more pampering.  Pick your polish colors, your designs, gather your tools.... and now you're ready to paint.  Any tips on getting the perfect manicure?  Of course! Here's some:

The Perfect Manicure in Four Steps
 

"Born Pretty Store" | Nail Art Store Review

Born Pretty Store is an online store where you can find most anything that you need for nail arts - and more (make-up, jewelries... etc, etc)!  I first came acquainted with them on Ebay a few years ago where I purchased some nail art tools and I gave them a 5 star!  It was worth it.

Not too long ago, I purchased this "nail shield" directly from their website.  Initially, I sort of regretted that.  I thought that there's no way I could get a great service now as they are not scared of the Ebay rating system...  Much to my disappointment, the nail shield that was sent to me was not at all in good condition. You can see from the photos below.

Galaxy | Cosmic from Avon {Holographic Polish}

More swatches and nail art with Avon's Cosmic Holographic Polish called Galaxy
I am in love at how this holo polish sparkle and glitter. Can you tell?

"Starlight" | Cosmic from Avon {Holographic Polish}

"Starlight" ~ Beautiful Holographic polish from Avon.  At first, I wasn't so sure about this color.  It makes me think of darkened avocado pulp.  But it is undeniably pretty on the nails. I specially love how it sparkles even in the shade.  How much more so in the sun!  If you'd like to try Holo Polishes for less, try it from Avon.  I bought this for only $3.99 each.

Aurora Point | Cosmic from Avon {Holographic Polish}

I really enjoyed swatching the Avon Holographic Polishes.  I did a galaxy nail earlier featuring 4 different holographic colors from Avon.  Now I want to show you some swatches of these beautiful polishes one by one... Oh yeah, I went camera happy... Please check out these photos and see if you could blame me or not... Let's start with the purple one: Aurora Point

Green Nails and Some Time with Nature

“I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery
— air, mountains, trees, people. 

I thought, "This is what it is to be happy.” 

~Sylvia Plath "The Bell Jar"

Long weekends are fun especially when you are working full time... It's a happy long weekend day in New Brunswick, yay!!! We went hiking and kayaking with some friends... we thought it's great to spend time with nature as summer really goes by so fast here in NB and the winters can be so long.  So we are trying to get "stuff" done as much as we can before winter hits.

I thought green nails are appropriate for an intimate time with nature.  A few minutes before leaving the house, I painted them, ha ha! This is actually the first time in my nail art history that I'm wearing plain green nails! What do you think?

23 Designs from a Month Long Nail Art Challenge | OMD2

The nail art challenge that is sponsored by Jacqui of CraftyNails.com has now come to a close.  Did you participate in it as well?  If you did, how many challenges did you complete and which one is your favorite? Oooh, I'm so excited to know who won, yahoo!!! lol.

Out of the 31 days of challenge, I am quite proud that I was able to participate in 23.  For me, that's a wow!!! I frequently say, "I ain't got time for that!"  I was content at making nail-art that I would actually wear on a normal basis. But there are some nail art designs that I want to try.  I surprised myself with some of these nail arts.  Inspirations flows when we do put our heart into the work of our hands :-)  Here are some of the designs I made...


The prizes initially motivated me to do 'some' challenges.  If I could get at least one entry in, then I know I have a chance of winning that prize.  I would really love that prize.  You know?  Who does not want free stuff? ha! ha! But as I went along with it, I realized how it made my creative juices flowing.  It was almost a shame that the designs had to be taken off in less than a day to take on another challenge as I was quite pleased with the results.  Did you like them, by the way? Please continue reading to see all 23 designs :-)

Trendy Nail Arts from Instagram's Most Talented Nail Artists | Feature Friday

Happy Friday!!!  Most of us are happy that it's the end of the week and the start of an exciting weekend... what do you look forward to the most?

Today is quite the rainy day.  The past few days have seen a lot of rain actually and I'm kind of glad ;)  Green and larger than usual foliage grace the trees outside and the grass is ever so lush.  So glad I could stay home on a rainy day like this, enjoy a cup of tea, listen to the sound of the rain drops and of course, admire some very talented girl's nail art designs.  Here are some designs I found to be pretty and interesting...If you have Instagram, please feel free to check out the other works of these beautiful, talented ladies.

Amix-match of tibal designs and a beautiful owl.  What do you think of this design?
Nail Art Credit to @badgirlnails