Nail Polish For Days

If you’re standing there gobsmacked, jaw hanging open in amazement and bewildered confusion, no, wonders have not ceased and your eyes are NOT deceiving you – this is an actual nail art-related post on this nail art blog!  I’d even go a step further and say it’s A post, period – I’ve been so remiss in providing any blogging updates that don’t involve D Who Shall Not Be Named, and for that I’m deeply sorry.  I aim to do better (#bloggoals.)

And so what pretties do we have here?  Well, three polishes – Polished For Days’ purple Fireflies, turquoise Willow and pink Unicorn – that broke my no buy fast, albeit via parentally-provided birthday funds.  So from a financial perspective, we’re still ahead of the game, although can I tell you how odd it was to actually spend money on something as seemingly frivolous as nail polish?  It felt weirdly illicit!  Also totally unfamiliar, perhaps because these three polishes represent the first lacquer I’ve purchased in over a year.  But heck of a way to break the fast, because this trio of polishes is stunning.  I nabbed these lacquers at Harlow & Co., where you’ll find a number of other gorgeous Polished For Days products, including some collection mates of Fireflies, Willow and Unicorn that are just itching to join their sisters in this good and loving home. 😉

First, a quick word about my selections – they are all wildly different polishes!  And that’s what I love about them, variety being the spice of life and all that.  Typically nail polish collections feature just one or two types of polish (creme, holographic, glitter, etc.) in a range of different colours.  In this case, the three polishes I chose are all completely different types that produce completely different effects.  The end result is I feel like I’ve gotten a lot more bang for my beauty buck far beyond a trio of beautifully unique polishes.

Starting things off with my favourite of the lot, we have Fireflies, a soft, almost dusky periwinkle-to-rose-to-green multi-chrome holo laden with iridescent, colour-changing flakies.  Phew, that was a mouthful, non?  But what a wonderful polish, completely worthy of the overly long description.  I’m particularly smitten with the iridescent flakies that flash in the heathered purple depths of this lovely lacquer.

Also – and this is a complete rarity with purple, blue and purple-blue anything – Fireflies as photographed presents exactly as it does in real life, so the colour you’re seeing right now – that lush, gorgeous grape – is exactly as it looks on your hand.  The random colour-changing flakies also lend this polish a nebula-ish, intergalactic kind of look, perfect for those days when you’d like to rock a Guardians of the Galaxy manicure without two hours of prior toil with a dinky little detail brush.

Next up we have my least favourite of the bunch – one had to be in third place, right? – Unicorn, a shimmery pink holo glitter sprinkled with iridescent, colour-changing flakies.  My issue with this polish is primarily one of consistency, in that I didn’t care for it – it applied thickly (though not unmanageably) and dried down to an almost textured-looking finish that, in combination with the not-so-flattering pink hue, reminds me of cheap polyester baby dresses, all crinkly sateen and crunchy lace trim.  On the nail, it regrettably doesn’t look as it does in the bottle – there it displays as a fuchsia-leaning pink shot through with warm, golden orange shimmer.  It was that unexpected (and unexpectedly gorgeous) colour combination that drew me to this polish in the first place, so it’s a shame that it all but disappeared once applied.

Unicorn is a nice enough polish and it will see some nail art use, but this one kind of annoys me – I’m loathe to spend money on stupid things these days, and this impulsive, not particularly inexpensive last minute choice (initially I was just going to go with Fireflies and Willow) has proven to be a poor one.  Lessons learned while I’m sitting here with nails that look like an electrified pink poodle?

Finally, we have the showiest polish of the bunch, and a serious challenger to the Fireflies throne, turquoise-to-purple holographic micro-glitter, Willow.  Wowza, this polish is absolutely gorgeous, and photos are definitely not doing it the least bit of justice.  There is so much depth to this polish – streaks of purest ultraviolet and aquamarine flash with every twist of your hand.  It’s dazzling.  Definitely one of those “Don’t stare at it too long or you’ll go blind” kind of polishes. 😉

And so there we have it, a trio of beautiful birthday treats that should keep me in well-polished spirits until next year!  Although hopefully I can manage another nail post before then, yes?  Absolutely!

Cherry Blossom Mickey

Again with the Disney stuff, I know!  Yeah, yeah, I’m a broken record.  But a busted clock is right twice a day, or something like that.  Besides, our little customized vacation booklet (for our vacation in six months’ time; Disney are masters of the slow jam tease) arrived today and I’m getting ex-ci-ted!  We made up a list this week of all of the food items/experiences we’d like to try on our next trip, and the somehow incomplete list is 46 items strong.  And one of those I have listed as “Eat everything at Epcot Food & Wine.”  So.

However, you needn’t worry too, too much about my dieting motivation in light of all this gorging talk – the Disney Force is still very strong with my workouts, as evidenced by this pre-workout shot of me in my favourite Turkey Leg varsity tee.  Yes, that is a lot of Stephen King on the shelf behind me – things you already knew. 😉

Anyhow, these cherry blossom nails with not-so-hidden Mickeys are in celebration of the fact that I may be able to stop griping about the other thing I’m always banging on about, and that’s the crap weather we have been, um, enjoying this protracted winter.  Because with temperatures predicted to be in the mid-teens this weekend, it looks like spring might actually be here to stay.  So cherry blossom season, just ever so slightly delayed.

I say that now, of course.  I mean, I’m sure it’ll snow in July or something, just to spite me.  Yes, just to spite ME, I’m sure. 😉

50 Shades of Nay

So the weather has returned to its previous state of icy terribleness and I needed some pretty nails to remind me that one day this will all end.  I mean, not ALL of it in that sense – too bleak!  Just the weather.  The crap weather can totally end, right now.  Bring on the spring.  Until then, nail polish that looks like bubblegum ice cream, Delush Polish’s 50 Shades of Yay.  Or just bubblegum straight up trapped in ice.  Hey, welcome to the club, bubblegum – we’ve got (warm) jackets.

Being of a slightly superstitious mindset, I believe that Mr. Finger Candy and I may have inadvertently cursed us all to this extended bout of wintertime crappiness – we were JUST remarking the other day (a bit smugly, I might add) that the handful of days we spent down in balmy Florida over the Christmas holidays seemed to make all the difference in our tolerance of the rest of the winter.  The whole snowbird thing has been making a lot of sense lately.

But then winter had to come roaring back for a completely unappreciated second act, and it’s definitely not all our fault, but maybe we jinxed ourselves a little?  Can’t ever get too cocky about the weather when you’re a Canadian.  Or a climate change denier.  And good heavens, what if you’re BOTH?!  No amount of pretty nail polish in the world is gonna fix that.  Anyhow, hunker down, friends, this too shall end.

They Say it’s Your Birthday

It’s my birthday, too!  No, actually, it really is – today I am *giant sigh* 41.  I won’t dare complain about it, though, as the alternative is pretty darn grim.  I’m just not feeling the celebratory thing this year, although I’m sure that will change once I’m half a whisky sour into tonight’s birthday steakhouse dinner; a lot can change once you add whisky sours to the mix. 😉

And so this afternoon, for my 41st, I’m enjoying a few of my favourite things – Dirty Dancing on the TV, pretty springtime Mickey nails and a thoroughly inedible birthday “cake.”

As always, my mani’s got me thinking about Disney.  I think this is the part where I’m supposed to say I want to be there RIGHT NOW, but I so don’t want to be there right now – right now is spring break, and spring break at Disney occupies its very own circle of Hell.  I saw photos yesterday of the lineup for Space Mountain that just about gave me a panic attack – it extended all the way out of the attraction and down to Auntie Gravity’s.  For those perhaps not as well versed in the Magic Kingdom’s geography as I, that’s a gigantic, four-plus hour lineup, easy.  Ugh, what a nightmare.  I’ll take this simple, springy mani over that any day, thank you, but especially on my birthday!  Ain’t nobody got time for that nonsense.

And as has been my little tradition now two years running, I blew out a candle and made a birthday wish on a decorated wax sheet cake from Sniff My Tarts.  I don’t have much of a sweet tooth – plus there’s that whole sure-to-be-indulgent dinner thing coming up – so this custom cake (featuring a blend of Peppermint, Coconut Cream Pie and Sticky Marshmallow) really fits the birthday bill.

So happy birthday to me, and happy birthday to you, too, should you also be celebrating on this Friday the 13th.  To another great year!

Prettier Pandora

Alright, now this is a bit more like it.  Last post I was attempting some floral nails that reminded me of Pandora: The World of Avatar at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, only they wound up looking more like the ultra shiny wallpaper your mom papered the rumpus room with in 1983.  I think it was the pastel hue I chose as the base polish – a lovely colour to be sure, but it really obscured some of the free-handed and glittery details, all whilst making everything extra super SHINY.

So I said at the time – you know, two whole days ago – that I’d try this design once again, only this time over a dark base.  And here we have her, this time over top of another sparkly holographic, Lilypad Lacquer’s charcoal grey Rainbows in Space.  I don’t think the design is any more clear this time – if anything, all those rainbows in Rainbows in Space are covering up some of the details – and it might be even shinier than its predecessor, but it definitely looks more like Pandora, or at least one of the rides in Pandora, Na’vi River Journey.  It’s an awesome, awesome attraction – a tranquil dark boat ride through a neon alien jungle.  And it all culminates with one of the most spectacular – and nightmare-inducing – animatronics you’ve ever seen, one of those 11-foot tall blue kitty people who bids you adieu with a weird, warbling tune that you won’t be able to get out of your head for the next week and a half.  Disney’s a weird place, man.

Pretty in Pandora

Unlike virtually everything else in my life, I assure you that this manicure did not start out life in a Disney place.  I KNOW.  I didn’t know it was possible for me to not be yakking about Disney either, but — oh.

Anyhow, I was going for a neon-on-pastel-on-holo sort of floral look, which is definitely quite Pandoran in look, and I think I mostly (quite unintentionally) succeeded, although were I to attempt this design again, I’d do it over top of a dark purple or blue base polish, as opposed to this lovely, but detail-obscuring, lilac from Enchanted Polish.

And out in the sun, it looks like vintage wallpaper.  So very shiny and sheen-y.

Unicorn Dreams

To paraphrase Ed Helms’ little tiger-centric ditty in The Hangover, what do unicorns dream of, when they take their little unicorn snooze?  Do they dream of impaling idiots in expensive Etsy unicorn headbands, or even bigger idiots at Coachella in some holographic catsuits?

Okay, so I think the whole unicorn thing is a little played out.  I particularly dislike any of the numerous indie bath and beauty products named after any bodily function or fluid of a unicorn.  Seriously, that’s so gross, stop giving your products such off-putting names.

Still, slight diatribe aside, it’s the best descriptor I have for this polish, Liquid Sky Lacquer’s Dream – unicorn-y.  Just look at that rainbow flare!  And the tiny blue flakes and the micro shimmer, and the almost neon-looking holographic effect, too.

I love this polish so much, and I just had to dig it out of “Why don’t I wear this more often?” storage yesterday to take advantage of the dazzlingly bright sun and clear blue skies.  Because this was the weather we were experiencing here about a day and a half ago – total whiteout.  You know, just your standard, bitchingly lame springtime blizzard.  As you do.

And then today’s afternoon forecast is calling for more of the snowy same, only hopefully this time ever so slightly less fierce and roof-rippingly intense.  So good thing I got all these rainbow unicorn sparkles in while I could. 🙂

Robin’s Egg Blues

And why are those robin’s eggs – or this nail polish, which reminds me of actual speckled robin’s eggs – feeling bluer than usual?  Because it’s April 4th and it’s bloody snowing AGAIN!  Seriously, Mother Nature has until my birthday next week to cut this crap out before I start getting ragey (snowfall after my mid-April birthday always makes me apocalyptically furious; I almost take it as a personal affront.)

Anyhow, I hope any robins who have already returned to my city have dug their toques and mitts back out of storage and re-winterized their nests, because it’s also a chilly one out there.  So lame.

Less lame is this beautiful lacquer, Enchanted Polish’s March 2017 mystery release.  I think robin’s eggs are some of the most beautiful things on earth – the matte texture, the pastel hue, the tiny brown speckles.  What wonderously lovely little treasures, and darn useful in creating other tiny robins as well. 😉 I suppose the one thing this polish has up on actual robin’s eggs is that nifty purple micro-shimmer that adds so much depth and dimension to your manicures.  A gorgeous one to wear simply on its own, no add-ons or adornments needed.

Keep Climbing That Mountain

I experienced both the pros and cons of my low buy-turned-no buy this month when I first found myself feeling unflatteringly resentful about all of the things other people have been buying and I have not, and then wildly proud that because of our commitment to cutting back on unnecessary discretionary spending, we have already been able to pay for half of our now-booked Disney anniversary trip!  I’m so proud of this accomplishment, and it came about at just the right moment, precisely as our joint motivation was really beginning to wane.  Being financially virtuous is kind of a pain in the arse, and it’s no fun abstaining from the fun things in life, even with the promise of even funner things in the future.  So quite literally being able to put my money where my mouth is is a great feeling indeed. 🙂

Other positives to this unintended no buy of a low buy?  Learning to identify other poor or lacking financial habits outside of the area of discretionary spending.  That’s one spending foe I thankfully seem to have vanquished – I haven’t made a wax purchase in over three months, and I doubt I’ve spent more than $75 on the non-essentials of life during that time either.  And as for the essentials, I’ve now begun paying a directed mind to them, looking for ways to maximize our hard-earned money.  But man, being virtuous truly sucks, and I miss the little rush that accompanies a new purchase.

However – and this would be another unintended positive – I don’t miss coughing up for exorbitant shipping fees on my online purchases.  International shipping fees are just beastly, and I can’t bring myself, even now with the benefit of hindsight and some gained wisdom, to make a full accounting of the shipping and customs fees I paid in 2017.  I have a feeling the number is terrifying.  And while we’re on the subject, I absolutely do not miss dealing with the always-clumsy postal system, nor do I miss guiltily breaking down reams of cardboard boxes to sneak out in stages so my neighbours don’t think I’m some sort of weird box hoarder (a candle hoarder, sure, but cardboard?  Never!)

And as I have noted the past three months running, a wonderful positive of the no buy-low buy is that I’m actually using up that which I did buy; my once fit-to-bursting stores are now merely bursting. 😉 And as I promised scent highlights, here’s one from this month – Rosegirls’ Mini Melters in the comfortingly cozy blend of Birthday Cake, Marshmallow Smoothie and Vanilla Bean Noel.  I actually used to really dislike Vanilla Bean Noel; there’s a musky note to it that does not always play well with some of the juicy fruit and berry scents I prefer.  But it is so darn scrumptious on its own, and it’s amazing in combination with fluffy marshmallow and rich, frosted cake.  This is a simple, “warm hug” kind of a scent – it just makes you feel cared for and comfortable.  Not bad work from a few hunks of scented wax!

Next month I really hope to find a bit of balance in my spending habits.  As in, I should not feel absolutely ridden with guilt because we ate out once in the past month.  Life happens and money needs to be spent – now I just need to learn to find a happy medium between the two states.  To another month of continued positive financial growth!

On the Hunt

Hop to it, friends, those chocolate eggs aren’t going to find themselves!  Wishing you all a nice end to your Easter weekends.  Mine is closing out with a big dinner at my mom and dad’s.  My mom’s an excellent cook, with a particular emphasis on blow-out holiday meals, so this should be fun!  Watch this space later for any updates I can manage on my turkey and roast potatoes and GRAVY coma. 😉

But talk of chocolate and holiday feasts aside, if you’re trying to hunt up this festive nail look for yourself, I regret to inform you that this is one of those deeply aggravating posts where I used two polishes (heck, potentially two brands) no longer in existence, Candy Lacquer’s Ring Pops glitter topper over Smitten Polish’s Not Your Mama’s Easter Grass (then whose Easter grass is it precisely?)  I believe Smitten operates under the name Dreamland these days and I’m really not sure of Candy Lacquer’s status.  But both of these polishes, despite being years old, are still trucking along just fine, and so I put them to good use in this very Springy manicure that looks like a macro shot of the inside of an Easter basket filled with sweet treats.