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Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Naked Nails, Products & Hauls... Oh My!

Hey there lovelies!

I don't think I've mentioned it but, along with learning / doing nail art, this is my first attempt at growing out my natural nails.  I've decided that I want to document this with pics and some comments through my blog.  I do apologize if this does not interest you in the slightest, BUT... I also will be sharing nail polish hauls and some products that I absolutely love and use on a very regular basis.  So, stick around :)

The following pics are of my left and right hands just after I removed the polish from yesterday's post...


The very first thing I noticed was that I take way better care of my left hand (the "modeling" hand) than my right hand... and that just seems a little unfair, so I shall be remedying that soon lol.  They don't look too terrible but I do have some splitting at the tips that I'm dealing with.  I bought some crystal nail files and I hope that they will correct this problem :\

I've had a couple of people ask me what happened to my left ring finger and I thought I should fill you all in.  I'm a dumb.  And a klutz. I was removing those purple fimo bows with M.A.S.H.'s super pointy nail art tweezers and I slipped... and gashed my finger pretty good.  It's healing faster than I thought and I'm sure my hand will be picture perfect again soon lol.  Now onto my polish hauls and favorite products!


I was out to lunch with my honey last Friday and we were near this beauty supply store that I adore.  It is privately owned and I love it because they carry a TON of O.P.I polishes (they have a lot of retired collections which I'm going gaga over) and Essie polishes for $6.50 versus the $8-9 that I spend at other stores.  And here is what I picked up...

Essie - Bazooka, O.P.I. - Care To Danse?, O.P.I. - Pirouette My Whistle

I used Bazooka on yesterday's mani and I attempted to use the O.P.I.'s for my church mani, but I went to bed not realizing that they were still wet.  Needless to say, I didn't have a mani for church on Sunday because they were ruined in my sleep (hence no post!).  

Then, on Saturday, I went shopping in LA with a girlfriend of mine (the Fashionista).  We went all over the place (Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters, Made Well, we even stopped by Tiffany & Co for a bit!) and while we were out I picked up these bad boys (girls?)...

 Jesse's Girl - Wild Thing, Color Club - Hydrangea Kiss, Urban Outfitters - Barstool, Urban Outfitters - Bandeau 

I finally tracked down some Color Club polishes at a drug store and I was got a little too excited, the Fashoinista looked at me like I was a little kookookachu lol.  Unfortunately this was the only color from the store's stock that I liked :(  I bought the Wild Thing because I was hoping it would be brighter than the Sinful Colors - Dream On that I have.  Dream On dries darker than it looks in the bottle and it's bummy :\  I'm thinking of doing a color comparison this week.  Maybe you can help me decide which is the better neon purple?

The Urban Outfitters polishes don't have any labels on them, just a sticker on the bottom with the polishes name, which I find a little odd.  I used the Bandeau on yesterday's post and it worked out well.  Again, it dries darker than it looks in the bottle.  Maybe it's a purple thing?  Does anybody know?? *le sigh*  Onto the products we go!

Last but not least... my faves!  :D

My favorite acetone so far!  I picked this up at a Sally Beauty Supply for $6.  It is fortified with wheat protein and vitamin E which is awesome.  It dries with a light, sweet, fruity scent that's very pleasant :)
 I use this cuticle remover on my hands about every 2 days (every other day if I've done some extensive mani's).  I try very hard not to flood my cuticles with polish but sometimes it's unavoidable.  This product not only removes any dry flakies I have on my cuticles but left over polish as well.  I also use this on my toes about every 2 weeks when I do my pedicures :)

 I have forgotten to use a base coat one time and I sorely regretted it!  SH's Hard as Nails base coat is awesome and I never go without it.  I love Seche Vite as a top coat. It dries quickly and is very glossy.  Occasionally it causes a polish to shrink from the tips of my nails and that can be irritating.  I'm trying out a couple of other top coats to see how they compare but for right now, this one is still top dog in my collection.
I love love love love love this cuticle oil!  The ones pictured are Orange Blossom and Tuberose.  I oil my cuticles at least twice a day if not more and these beauties sit at my desk.  I love their scent and how light bodied they are.  I highly recommend buying some :)


 
I am crazy about my crystal files that I received in the mail last week!  I ordered them 3 weeks ago and they didn't come in when they were supposed to (which was extremely aggravating), but I love them nonetheless :D  I ordered them on Amazon, 4 for $5.  I only have 2 pictured because the other 2 are in my purse which is in the living room... too far lol.

So, there you have it.  A fairly long post but hopefully it was informative (and you got a sneak preview of tomorrow's mani... teehee)!  If you have any questions feel free to ask :D 

Until next time!

Stef <3

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