My July Maven Box

Hey there, everybody!  I'm so very happy it's Saturday, I could cry lol.  It has been a very long and exhausting week so it was a nice surprise to come home from work yesterday and see my Julep box waiting for me on the porch :)  For those of you who are just recently following, I became a Julep Maven back in April and I've bought every box that they've put out since.  I have a problem.  I know.  Lol.  Here's what I found it the box....

As you can see from the grass and hose in the background. I couldn't wait to get inside and open it!  In my box I found the Boho Glam collection for this month, 2 Atomic Fire Balls and a lip gloss.  Julep did something new this month and sent out a matching gloss to go along with each polish set this month.  Brilliant!  I got so excited about this concept that I added on another gloss (a rich wine color) that will hopefully be coming along soon :)

From top to bottom: Georgia, Mischa, America and Poppy

Another fun treat that Julep threw in this month was America, a compacted glitter (red and blue with silver stars).  Very cool of them and it's arrived just in time for the 4th of July (Independence Day here in the States)!

You can't really see the stars very well on the swatch but they're there in the upper left on the nail hahaha.

Naturally I had to play with my new pretties!  So I took Georgia and Mischa out for a spin...

I used Georgia as the base (2 coats) and then, with Mischa, I tried out this "Frame Nail" technique that I've been seeing a lot of ladies doing recently.  I just recently became sold on this look, so I completely understand if it's not your cup of tea lol.

One last thing...  Georgia has this really prettty gold shimmer to it that I just love!  I'm hoping that it picked up a little bit in the pictures...

That's all that I have for you today, I hope you are satiated for now haha :)  I have church tomorrow which means there will be a church mani post to follow (here's hoping my idea is executed well!).

Until next time!

Stef <3

We're Going To Disneylad! :)

Good morning all!  I'm up a lot earlier than my alarm was meant to wake me because I just couldn't stay asleep haha.  Today is a pretty big day... we're taking the kids at my work on a field trip to Disneyland (this will be our first time doing a trip this big!).  I'm excited/nervous about the day, but I'm sure everything will be alright :)

I decided to paint my nails for the occasion (naturally)!  I went with a Minnie Mouse theme (and no I didn't use any of the colors from O.P.I./s collection :P).  I also am not a huge fan of how they turned out.  I did them in pretty dim lighting and I didn't catch all of the flaws until this morning.  I don't care though, because watching R.E.D with my honey and sissy-in-law is much more important to me than having perfect nails :)  Anywhosie...

Colors Used: Julep - January, Rimmel - Black Satin, Sally Hansen - White On

I started with painting the tips in January.  It's a gorgeous red color that only required one thin-ish coat.  Love it!  I couldn't find my favorite striping brush anywhere so I had to resort to using a different nail art brush for my stripes... not cool! (Hence why there are some bare pars to the stripes *sigh*) I used a small dotting tool to make the polka-dots on the tips.

  The Minnie was pretty easy to achieve.  The Rimmel polish brush is wide and rounded so the base of  her head was a cinch!  (I highly recommend this it to anyone who is looking for a really excellent black polish.  It is pretty mush amazing!)  Then I did a little bit of swirling with the larger dotting tool for the ears, flipped the dotting tool over and used the smaller side to dot out the bow.

Although it has it's imperfections, I really liked this mani and It's definitely put me in a Disney kind of mood.  I wish I'd had more time to do something a little more elaborate.  Alas, something is better than nothing at all lol :)

So what do you all think?  I hope you all have a fabulous day!  I also pray that I make through mine (10 hour day with the kids and then a 2 hour rehearsal after that along with a late-night El Torito dinner with friends... ack!).  

Until next time...

Stef <3

P.S. Julep posted my Chevron/Fishtail mani in their "Nail of the Day" on Facebook.  How cool is that??  :D

Chevron/Fishtail Mani, First Attempt!

Hello hello hello!  Happy Tuesday everybody :)

In my last post I talked about this mani that I saw from Sarah at Chalkboard Nails.  I had tried this swooping-v technique on a few previous mani's and when I saw that she layered it with different colors I was even more thrilled!  (Again I will say that Sarah's blog is well worth checking out if you haven't already).

So I took this idea of layering the swooped-v's and combined it with some colors that I saw on this maxi dress at Target (side note: I tried the dress on and the bodice doesn't fit my bosoms, otherwise it would have come home with me instantly!)...

 Colors Used: E.L.F. - Coral Dream, Julep - Robin, Love & Beauty - Purple

I love love love this combination of colors and I want to wear this mani all the time!  I did 2 coats of the Coral Dream (which I really think should be named Peach Dream because it barely passes as a coral) and then 1 coat of Robin and Purple.  I topped it off with Julep's Fast Dry Topcoat and I was good to go.  I did this mani on Saturday, so I sadly had to remove it for church on Sunday (hence why Sunday's nails were a chevron/fishtail frenchie... it all come full circle lol).  I was a little bummed but I definitely plan on doing this again in the near future.  If you're interested in achieving this look it really is fairly easy.  Sarah has a video tutorial that shows you step by step how to do it and she adds some great tips as well :)

One last pic...

So what do you think?  Will you try this out?

Until next time!

Stef <3

Church Mani: Chevron/Fishtail Frenchie

Good afternoon, all!  A quick Sunday post before I run off to my practically-nephews' 2 yrs old birthday extravaganza.  One of my very best friends gave birth to 2 amazing little boys 2 years ago and I can't wait to celebrate with her and the cuties :)

For today, I did a design that combined a technique that I'd been playing with for awhile and a design I saw from Sarah at Chalkboard Nails (If you're not familiar with her blog, please check it out!  She's phenomenal!).  I don't know Sarah personally but I really do admire her work.  Here's what I did...

 Colors Used: Confetti - Lonesome Dove, O.P.I. - My Boyfriend Scales Walls

I actually did this mani last night after taking off my first attempt at the chevron/fishtail mani (which turned out REALLY well and I'll be sharing it with you tomorrow lol).  2 coats of each color and then polka dots (if you follow me regularly, you know how much I love polka dots!).  Lastly, I topped it off with Juleps Fast Dry Topcoat because I wanted to climb into bed quick like.  Please forgive my poor, beat-up cuticles :(  I have not had time to properly manicure them in a while and during the second service at church this morning, I got a little bored an started picking at them.  They're not holding up so well so I shall be putting Neosporin on them and hopefully that will help. 

So there you have it!  I hope you all have/have had a very happy and blessed Sunday :)

Until next time!

Stef <3

Because She Said So :)

Yellow and happy Saturday to you!

Today's mani has a story to go with it (I feel like it's becoming a pattern lol).  I was setting up, getting the room ready for camp, last weekend with my boss and my co-worker/good friend the Fashionista.  I don't know how we got onto the subject of summer colors, but we were talking about neons and how the Fashionista was the one who encouraged me to give neons a chance.  I told her that I hadn't worn the neon yellow I had purchased yet because I was afraid that it would look like boogers on my nails (I'm no nose picker!  Hahaha...).  She said, "You're crazy, I think it would look really good on you!."  And then she proceeded to laugh at me... she laughs at me quite often, actually.  So I womaned up and polished away!

Colors Used: Sally Hansen - White On, China Glaze - Celtic Sun, Rimmel - Black Satin

 I started with one thick-ish coat of White On, then I added 2 coats of Celtic Sun (the white helps the neon polish with opaqueness).  I finished it off with some hearts using my dotting tool and then I topped it with Out the Door.  Please excuse the spot(s) I missed with my messy clean-up!  :)

I think the Fashionista might be right.  I should trust her judgement more often haha.

What do you think?

Until next time!

Stef <3

Bye Bye Spring!

Hello there!  How are we all doing today?  Summer camp started off with a day of craziness and I'm still trying to recover lol.

Well, today I am saying goodbye to my favorite season of the year... Spring *sniff*.  I loved the pastels of this past season (especially all of the mint polishes that were available).  So here it is...

 Colors Used: Sally Hansen - Mint Sorbet, Revlon - Whimsical, Jesse's Girl - Spring Break, Sally Hansen - White On

Fun and cute, this mani was a cinch.  I'm in a kind of nail design rut (I'm open for suggestions!) and I'm unsure of what to try next.  Maybe a challenge?  Or a series on the nail fails in my picture vault??  Lol I dunno, I'll figure something out I'm sure.

One last piktar...

My next post (when I have time to sit and type it up) will be on my most recent trip to a nail salon with my sissy-in-law-to-be.  Boy, was that an experience!  Hahaha...

Until next time!

Stef <3

Church Mani: A Mix Of Jellies & Creams

Oh my goodness, it has been far too long!!  Happy Sunday everyone and happy Father's Day :)

I have been so incredibly busy with work, graduations, reunions and family that are in town.  I just haven't had a spare moment to sit and type up a post :(  But I always have a mani for Sunday and I have about 20 minutes before I have to dart out and join my fam bam for celebration so... Let's get to it, shall we?

For today's mani, I wanted to use a polish I just picked up on clearance at Target.  I'd been eying it fora couple of months now and it was half off so I decided what the hey, why not?  It's Calla Lilly by Revlon, a sort of white jelly with gold shimmery flecks in it.  Really pretty!  By itself kind of boring.  So I paired it with Nude by Love and beauty and here's how it turned out...

Of course something always has to go amiss with me... I only got one pic before chipping it on a hand rail at church (I'm a klutz, I fell, you get the picture lol).  I really really love this look tho, I'm nuts about scalloped tips :D

I hope that this will tide you over until tomorrow.  I plan on typing up a post tonight and scheduling it for 8 a.m. PST tomorrow :)  Much love to you all and I hope you've had a marvelous weekend!

Until next time!

Stef <3

I'm A Little Scotch-Irish?

Not really.  Well, I might be on my father's side, but we're not 100% sure.

Hello!  Lol.  I don't really have a great way to put this down into words so I'm just going to make bullet points as to what inspired my mani and we'll go from there :D

• I have always been intrigued with Scotch-Irish customs and traditions, even as a child.
• I am beyond excited to see the new Pixar film "Brave" that's coming out next week.
•  I am marrying into a Scotch-Irish family (most likely resulting in black kids with red hair lol).  I wanted to pay homage to their heritage <3
• I am a little obsessed with plaid right now :P
• Green is an excellent color on me, in my opinion, and I haven't worn the color in a while.
• I needed more practice with a striping brush.

So here it is, my Scotch-Irish mani...

 Colors Used: Julep - Leah, E.L.F. - Party Peach, Sally Hansen - Mellow Yellow, Green With Envy and White On

I am in love with this mani.  Leah is the perfect green!  It painted on like a dream with 2 coats.  3 coats of the peach (which really is quite orangey) and then easy-peasy stripes.  If I didn't feel so compelled to change my polish daily, I would wear this for at least a week if not longer.

I topped this off with the fast dry topcoat that Julep sent to me in my June Mystery Box.  It smells extremely skunky and acidic to my nose, but it dries faster than any other topcoat I've used.  I am in love with it as well lol.

One last pic...

 Alright all, I'm going to enjoy my day off now!  Happy Thursday :)

Until next time!

Stef <3

Playing With Purple

Good morning all!  I don't have much time this morning but I thought I should post anyway so I'm just going to jump right in :)

For today's mani I decided to use Julep - Gayle that I received in my June Mystery Box.  I'm really not a big fan of purple, I think it looks terrible with my skin tone.  But I wasn't ready to completely write the polish off.  I decided to add some pizazz and paired it with Sally Hansen - Rockstar Pink...

( Indoor with flash)

 (Outdoor with flash)

I am not in love with it but I definitely like it.  I suppose purple and I can become frenemies lol.

One last pic...

What do we think?  I hope you all have a fabulous day!

Until next time!

Stef <3

"Strawberry Fields Forever"

Good morning!  No rantings, just straight to the mani :D

I am allergic to strawberries.  Like swollen tongue, hives all over my body allergic.  And it makes me really sad because they're one of my favorite fruits!  I decided to pay homage to the sweet little yummies by putting them on my nails...

 Colors Used: Julep - Rose, Revlon - Watermelon Fizz, Sally Hansen - Green With Envy, Konad - Special White 

I've seen a few of these while googling nail art, I'm not sure who originated this look.  I started with 1 coat of Rose and then 2 coats of Watermelon Fizz ( a watermelon scented nail polish that's very sheer and very sparkly).

I then added polka-dots with the Konad white and the leaves, in Envy, with a striping brush.  I topped it off with 1 coat of Out the Door (although I have it pictured with Julep's Fast Dry Topcoat).  Tada!  

Stwah-berries :D

They're very fun and I enjoy them quite a bit.  Not to mention the smell super yummy :P

I also have a polish haul to share with you, after the jump as usual...

Concert Black With A Twist ;)

Hello, hello!

I'm really slacking on my posts right now and I'm sorry :(  I've just been a little overwhelmed with everything that's been going on recently.  Work, rehearsals, concerts and family events.. a lot of stuff!  But I just had my last concert of the season with my small chamber group and my quartet is going to take a small hiatus (mini vaca!) so that frees up 2 nights of my week.  I shall type up and schedule posts on those nights and we'll all be happy lol.

Now that I've had my little rant, onto the mani!  I mentioned in yesterdays post that I was going to change my polish to match my concert black for last nights performance.  Here's what I did...

 Color Used: Rimmel - Black Satin

I applied 2 coats of Black Satin to my nails then I added NYC - Matte Me Crazy Top Coat.

Lastly I took out a clear polish from JBL and applied polka dots.  A really subtle effect that could only be seen up close and in the right lighting.  I loved it!

And the big'n!

Fun, fun, fun is all I can say about this one :D

Since I don't have any rehearsal tonight ( let me just freak out for a second...OMG!!)  I'll be able to type up a proper post this evening that I'll put up tomorrow, nail haul included :)  Thank you, thank you, thank you for your continued support!  I love you all!!

And I haven't forgotten about the giveaway I promised!  When I get to 25 followers, it's on :D

Until next time!

Stef <3

Church Mani: I'm Feeling Golden...

Good afternoon, friends!

Let me start off by apologizing for abandoning you yesterday :(  I was helping my future in-laws with some gardening and somehow in the process my right-hand thumb got pinched/cut with pliers.  It did/does not feel good lol.  I was reluctant to change my polish because acetone in cuts hurts like nobody's business!  I had to change it for church tho so I was very careful and I kept the nail art simple... with glitter!  :D  Hahaha.

I know that I've mentioned that I sing in a church choir.  I suppose I should let the cat out of the bag and say that I sing at the Crystal Cathedral.  The church and it's ministry are going thru a lot of changes right now and I feel very honored/blessed to be apart of it.  Every Sunday just keeps getting better and better and by 1:00 in the afternoon my whole day, my whole being, my whole spirituality feels golden!  Like gold is radiating all around me.  I love it!!  This was the inspiration for my mani... well this and my injured "fumb", teehee...

 Colors Used: Love & Beauty - Gold

Simple, sparkly and golden... That's how I feel :)

I am off now to change my polish once again for a concert that I have tonight.  I have to be in all black which I shall extend to my nails, but with a twist... hmmmm.  Tune in tomorrow and check it out ;)

Until next time!

Stef <3

P.S.  This is my 50th post!  Ca-razy!!  :D

A Plaid Mani Tutorial

Happy Friday everybody!  As they say, "There is no rest for the wicked!".  And I am certainly not an exception.  It's going to be a very long weekend :(

Well, today I have a tutorial for you!  The plaid mani seemed to be a pretty popular one and it's a fairly simple look to achieve.  Here is a pick of the one I did for this tut...

Here is what you will need:

• Base Coat
• Top Coat
• 3 Nail Polishes
• Striping Brush (if you don't own a striping brush, try an old liquid eyeliner brush?)

That's it!  I promise, this look is super easy to achieve :)  So here's what I did...

 Colors Used: Julep - Gloria, Sally Hansen - Green With Envy, Sally Hansen - White On

With spring winding down, I thought I'd use some springy colors to give it a pretty send off haha.  I really love this look and I have some ideas in my head for more color combos in the future :)  I started by applying my base coat.  I am currently using Triple Wrap Thickener by Nail-Aid.  It has not strengthened my nails like I thought it would by it definitely makes them harder than they are naked.

I then applied 2 thin coats of Gloria to the tips of my nails.  You don't have to worry about being perfectly neat and even when applying this.  You're going to cover it up with stripes later :P

 Then I applied 2 thin coats of a thick, off-centered, streak/stripe (using the polish brush of course).  Again no need to stress about it looking perfect.

Time for the striping brush!  With my brush I applied a stripe of Envy onto each nail tip.

After cleaning the brush off, I applied White On to the left of the large streak, overlapping the green stripe.  And then I painted two white stripes near the bottom of the nail.

I cleaned the brush a final time and applied Envy to the right side of the streak, overlapping the white stripes.

I finished it off with one coat of Out The Door and, voila!  A simple plaid mani :)

 I cannot express how much I love this look.  It's really fun and detailed without being a butt load of work, you know?  I hope that this tutorial is helpful to you!  Please let me know how you do with your own plaid mani's :)

I'll have a polish haul to share with you within the next week.  Aside from that I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

Until next time!

Stef <3

A Sunny Gradient :D

Good morning, friends!  The week is winding down but I'm not foreseeing any rest for me *le sigh*  I hope you all are much more fortunate hahaha.

For today I have my first gradient mani to share with you.  I did this about a month ago and didn't share it because I had mixed feelings.  It's not great but it's not terrible either.  I'll let you decide...

Colors Used: Julep - Blake, Confetti - They Call Me Mellow Yellow

Pro's... I think yellow is an awesome color for me.  It's one of my favorite colors to wear :)  I also really like how simple it was.  Con's... The gradient isn't drastic enough and the colors didn't blend as well as I thought they would together :\

Blake really is a lovely color to work with and the Confetti is really shimmery... it make me happy just looking at it :P  I can't remember how many coats were applied of each.  I know I used a make-up sponge in this mani.  I'm also pretty positive that I topped it off with Seche Vite.  

One last pic...

I don't really have anything else to add.  What do you think?  Have you tried this look?  Do you have any tips/tricks that work well for you?

Until next time!

Stef <3