Yabba Dabba OOOH!

Get ready to go bowling, break out your foot-powered car, and get your Dino on! Today is the 50th anniversary of the 1st episode of the Hanna-Barbera classic, 'The Flintstones'!!! Fun tidbit- for the longest time when I was a kid- I always thought that Hanna Barbera was a person, not the last names of two people. I eventually caught on though... Today's nail art is a tribute to the stone-age smile-inducers- the Flintstones (and the Rubbles). On my left hand, I have Fred, Wilma, and Pebbles Flintstone, with Dino on the ring finger, and a closeup of Fred's garb on the pinky. On the right hand, I painted The Great Gazoo on my thumb, then Barney, Betty, and Bamm-Bamm Rubble, with Bamm-Bamm's club on my pinky.

I used:

Left:

Thumb: Fred Flintstone

Orly Snowcone as a base, with American Apparel Summer Peach for his skin, then mixed with Color Club Best Dressed List for his stubble. For his tongue, I used a combination of American Apparel Palm Springs and Orly Pixy Stix, for his eyes, I used Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud and for the hair and outlines, I used American Apparel Hassid.

Index: Wilma Flintstone

Orly Snowcone as a base, with American Apparel Summer Peach for her skin, as well as as a base for her hair. For her hair, I used CND Electric Orange. For her necklace and teeth, I used Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud, China Glaze Salsa for her lips, then outlined everything in American Apparel Hassid.

Middle: Pebbles Flintstone

Orly Snowcone as a base, with American Apparel Summer Peach for her skin, as well as as a base for her hair. Like Wilma, I also used CND Electric Orange for Pebbles' hair. Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for her eyes and the bone in her hair. For her dress, I used Pure Ice Wild Thing, then outlined everything with American Apparel Hassid.

Ring: Dino

Orly Snowcone as a base, with Color Club Ms. Socialite for the purple, then mixed with American Apparel Palm Springs for his muzzle. I also used this combination in a different strength for his tongue. For his collar, I used Zoya Yummy, with Barielle Aura Angora for his 'dog' tag. I used Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for his eyes, and American Apparel Hassid to outline.

Pinky: Fred's 'suit'

CND Electric Orange as a base, with Zoya Yummy for his tie, with American Apparel Hassid to outline, and for the spots on the orange fabric.


Right Hand

Thumb: The Great Gazoo

Orly Snowcone as a base, with L.A. Girl Army Green for his face, CND Green Scene for his shirt and helmet, a mixture of CND Green Scene and
American Apparel Hassid for his collar, Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for his eyes, and American Apparel Hassid to outline everything.

Index: Barney Rubble

Orly Snowcone as a base, with MAC Abalone Shell for his skin, then mixed with Color Club Best Dressed List for his stubble, American Apparel Manila for his hair, OPI Ginger Bells for his 'suit', and American Apparel Hassid to outline everything.

Middle: Betty Rubble

Orly Snowcone as a base, with American Apparel Summer Peach for her skin, China Glaze Salsa for her lips, Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for her eyes, and American Apparel Hassid to outline, as well as for her necklace and hair.

Ring: Bamm-Bamm Rubble

Orly Snowcone as a base, with American Apparel Summer Peach for his skin, Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for his eyes and hair, CND Electric Orange with American Apparel Hassid to outline and for the spots on the hat.

Pinky: Bamm-Bamm's Club

Orly Snowcone as a base, with L.A. Girl Army Green for the club, outlined with American Apparel Hassid.

Topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

It's a living.

People Say I'm Nuts

...but really, I'm just a-corny. :-D (bad joke)

A book came out yesterday from my FAVORITE author, David Sedaris, called 'Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary'. I bought it tonight, and I'm SO excited to read it. Seriously, if you haven't heard of him, or if you have, but haven't read any of his stuff yet, you seriously need to get on it. The man is a genius, and I've laughed more while reading his books or listening to him speak than I have at most comedians. His deadpan delivery and dry, self-deprecating humor will have you rolling, and I highly suggest, at the very least, LISTENING to one of his audiobooks. (My favorite is the Santaland Diaries, which chronicles his experience employed as an elf at Christmastime in a major department store) A while back, reader Shannon L. suggested that I do squirrel nails, and that got me thinking about acorns, and tonight, I joined both ideas together in honor of the new Sedaris book! :) The acorns turned out to be a funky version of a french manicure! (with lots of shading!! :-D)

and my nails with my new book.... :-D

I used American Apparel Palm Springs as a base, with butter LONDON Crumpet over it, then mixed OPI Ginger Bells with American Apparel Palm Springs and MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious for the tips, with a darker version of that mixture for the textured 'scales' on the acorn caps. For the shading on the acorn, I used a mixture of American Apparel Palm SpringsOPI Ginger Bells and MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious to shade, a mix of OPI Ginger Bells and American Apparel Palm Springs for the darker highlight, then pure American Apparel Palm Springs for the main highlight. For the thumb, I used OPI What's With the Cattitude? as a base, with American Apparel Palm Springs as a base for the squirrel, topped with OPI Ginger Bells, then a mixture of OPI Ginger Bells and MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious over that, then a few swipes of American Apparel Palm Springs around the eye, ear, and tail. For the eye, I used American Apparel Hassid, and for the grass I used CND Green Scene , L.A. Girl Army Green, and Pure Ice Wild Thing. Topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Stand on the magic star, and you can see Cher!!

Friki Tiki

I've always loved the aesthetic of tiki masks, and the funky feel they have. I like the different face shapes and facial expressions that you can see on them, whether silly or scary, tiki culture is awesome!! Today's manicure is my interpretation of the wooden tikis that are often portrayed for parties and shindigs. :-D

I used Color Club Best Dressed List as a base, then mixed with MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious to shade, and mixed with American Apparel Palm Springs to highlight. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Something I learned last night while making cookies- if you put chunks of caramel in cookies, you have to let them cool to remove them from the cookie sheet, otherwise you get a lot of broken cookies that you have to eat, because naturally, you can't give away broken cookies, now can you? (what, I think I've stumbled on a great idea here...more cookies for me!!)

Tarte Cosmetics Sale on ideeli!

There is a Tarte Cosmetics sale on Ideeli today!! it ends at 11:59 PST (so, approx 24 hours from this post). There are check stains, brow kits, foundations, mascara, and other odds n ends. Decent prices, too! :)

Check it out! Tarte Cosmetics Sale on Ideeli

Cross-hatching a Plan

So I broke down and checked out the MAC Venomous Villains collection tonight at the Pro Store. Bad idea. I have far more willpower than I thought, because it's all super pretty!! The mineralized shadows from Maleficent's color story are crazy sparkly and beyond gorgeous. The three polishes are pretty too, though, as I'm sure you know, two are dupes for the Orly Cosmic FX collection. The third, however, is called Bad Fairy, and is a magenta foil duochrome that flashes an orange-red color. Super pretty. While in the Forum Shops, I also came across Inglot, there is a STORE AT THE FORUM SHOPS NOW! (that is my excitement typing) I've never seen any of their products in person until tonight, and let me tell you, everything I saw was crazy awesome, and once I have money again, that place is going to be Dangerous (yes, capital D). Anyway- today's manicure utilizes Bad Fairy (yes, I broke down, I'm not a saint :-P)

I used MAC Bad Fairy as a base, with American Apparel Hassid for the crosshatch design. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

This pictures don't do this polish justice. It's super shiny, sparkly, foily goodness.

He's Got a Way With Murder

We know him as Dexter, loving family man by day, serial killer that takes out the 'trash' by night. He's America's So-Called Favorite Serial Killer, and tonight IS the night... for the season premiere, that is. I'm one of the devoted followers of Dexter. Love the books, love the tv show. I actually SQUEALED when I saw the first commercial for this season on Showtime! Seriously. I re-watched the entire series AGAIN to prepare for tonight. :-D Lame? Perhaps. Awesome? Definitely. Today's manicure is devoted to the man who likes to dismember... Dexter Morgan. :) (I'd considered painting each nail a different color as an homage to the ice truck killer in the first season, but thought it wouldn't really be considered nail art, so I didn't) The cartoon Dexter on the thumb is a mash-up of Dexter Morgan, and the illustration style and some characteristics of Dexter from Dexter's Laboratory, I dug it when I first saw it, and thought it'd be a fun addition to an otherwise gory manicure. :)

and the close-up/right side up picture of Dex on my thumb:

I used Essie Bone Chilling White as a base, with A Beautiful Life Poison for the blood spatter and DEXTER logo. For the thumb, I used American Apparel Summer Peach for his face and neck, OPI Ginger Bells for his hair, Orly Snowcone for his eyes, and American Apparel Hassid to outline everything, with, again, A Beautiful Life Poison for the blood spatter on his face and collar.

Did you watch Dexter tonight? It was a good one, for sure. I freakin' love this show!

I'm Not the Villain Here!

As all you makeup addicts out there know, MAC Cosmetics is releasing a new collection on Sept 30, and if you have Pro Store access, you can even get it NOW. Obviously, I'm talking about the MAC Venomous Villains collection, which is separated into four color stories representing and emblazoned with the images of 4 Disney Villains...The Evil Queen from 'Snow White', Maleficent from 'Sleeping Beauty', Doctor Facilier from 'The Princess and the Frog', and Cruella de Vil from '101 Dalmatians'. I was going to go to the Pro Store today to check it out, so I did today's manicure in honor of it, but got sidetracked, and it's too late to go because I have to be somewhere else- so I'll go tomorrow! I want to buy stuff, but seeing as I JUST started my job, I'm still broke (and will be for a while), so just window shopping for me! :-P

I'm not in love with how these turned out, Cruella looked better when I did her for the 101 Dalmatians manicure a while back, but my hand was super shaky, so I did what I could. I also think that I need to get a new paintbrush! The only one I'm pleased with is the Evil Queen on my ring finger, I think she turned out pretty ok. :-P

I used:

Thumb: MAC logo

American Apparel Hassid as a base, with Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for the logo.

Index: Maleficent

American Apparel Hassid as a base, with Orly Gumdrop for her face, Barielle Grape Escape for her eye shadow, A Beautiful Life Poison for her lips, American Apparel Hassid to outline everything, and Essence Pointbreak to outline her horns. I also used Barielle Grape Escape for her collar.

Middle: Cruella

American Apparel Hassid as a base, with a mix of American Apparel Summer Peach, Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud, and Eyeko Punk Polish for Neon Nails for her skin, Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for her white hair, Essence Pointbreak to outline her black hair. American Apparel Butter for her fur coat, China Glaze Flyin' High for her earring, A Beautiful Life Poison for her lips, Pure Ice Wild Thing, and American Apparel Hassid to outline everything.

Ring: Evil Queen

American Apparel Hassid as a base, with American Apparel Summer Peach for her face, Barielle Grape Escape for her eye shadow, Barielle Aura Angora for her crown, A Beautiful Life Poison for her lips, Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for her collar, and American Apparel Hassid to outline everything.

Pinky: Doctor Facilier

American Apparel Hassid as a base, with Color Club Best Dressed List for his face, then mixed with Barielle Unraveled Rust for his lips, Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for his eyes and teeth, Orly Snowcone for his pupils, MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious to outline, American Apparel Hassid for his hat, A Beautiful Life Poison for the sash on the hat.

Topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

What are you going to buy from this collection? I'm excited to see it, but I'm praying for lots of dupes to stuff I already have. :-P

Circle, Circle, Dot, Dot

I got my cootie shot.

:-D

I survived day two at the new job- and let me tell ya, I'm outta job-shape, I can't remember ever being this exhausted after a day of work. So far, the job is great though, and the people are really super nice! :) (I hope they think the same about me too!) I'm debating what I can whip up in my oven to fully win them over though. :-9 Today's nails are just a random design. I liked the colors, and wanted to use them together, and this is what I came up with!

I used butter LONDON Artful Dodger as a base, with circles and dots painted over it with MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious, Essie Alligator Purse, and the yet unnamed franken that I showed you yesterday. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Great, now I have that damn Jamie Kennedy song in my head. Whatever happened to Stu Stone?

A 'Bone to Pick

Herringbone that is. Today's nail art is my interpretation of a herringbone pattern. I actually even frankened the base polish myself- it matches the wall pant of someone I know perfectly! I loved the color so much on the wall (I picked it out, natch) that I had to create a nail polish for my very own. :) I used a mixture of equal parts American Apparel Manila, American Apparel California, and a few drops of L.A. Girl Army Green.

It matched my shirt (unintentionally):

I used my franked polish, which I'm still undecided on calling, with MAC In the Buff to paint the lines to make the pattern. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

About the job:

I am now working for a real estate marketing company as a graphic designer! :) First day went great, other than freezing. Everyone seems really nice so far, too! :)

Fall-ing for You!

Hey all!! Quick post today- I'm on a desperate hunt for my birth certificate, which has magically disappeared, and which I need TOMORROW. :-/ Not good. Anyway, today's manicure is to celebrate the first day of FALL!! (which, sadly, Las Vegas doesn't really have... it's just slightly less hot.) I used three autumnal colors over Incoco's Oscar Night nail appliques! (which saved my life when I had 1.5 hours to get showered, ready, do my nails, and get to my last minute interview!)

I used Incoco nail appliques in Oscar Night, with Barielle Unraveled Rust, Essie Alligator Purse, and butter LONDON Minger marbled over it. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Wish me luck with finding the birth certificate!!

Awesome Graphic Designer Seeks Job

UPDATE: I got a job!! Ironically, not from this post, but from a résumé that I sent out at the same time. They called me up right when they got it, and I interviewed this afternoon and GOT THE JOB!! :) YAY! Thank you all for your well wishes!!!

Are you hiring?

As many of my readers now, except possibly the new subscribers, I am, unfortunately, unemployed right now. When I started the project, I was a full-time graphic designer working as a slot machine artist here in sunny Las Vegas, Nevada. About 7 months into my yearlong project , I was let go due to some company restructuring. I've had about ZERO luck finding a job. No one here in Las Vegas is hiring, and most of the ads I read that are hiring, which are for service industry jobs in the casinos (bartenders, cocktail waitresses, hostesses), have a requirement of head shots, and suggest that applicants be models, actors, or dancers. I'm none of these things. I do like to work- and prefer to have too much to do as opposed to not enough. I'm quick and friendly. I like deadlines and challenges, and learning new things. I have knowledge of major design programs AND mixing drinks. I like people, and can talk to anyone, yet I'm still unemployed. Not fun. I've applied for design jobs, for typesetting jobs, for marketing jobs, for bartender jobs, and for server jobs to no avail.

I know that plenty of people are in my same predicament, and trust me, I empathize.

So in closing, I put this message out into the world. Hire me?

NYX Sale at Hautelook!

I know that I've been posting sales every day this week, but it's apparently Beauty Week at Hautelook- so they're doing lots of great cosmetics/beauty sales!!! Today's sale is NYX Cosmetics, they have everything from brush sets and brush belts to chrome pigments, to eyeshadows and mascaras...and everything in between! They also have some KILLLLLER special effects eyelashes (perfect for fun looks AND Halloween!), palettes, huge kits and makeup sets, too!

Check out the sale! NYX Sale on Hautelook!

Gleekin' Out

The minutes tick by as the clock gets closer and closer to 8 o'clock. Finally...the night has come for the latest installment of the GLEE story- Season 2 is upon us, and I, for one, am soooooo excited! I'm writing this post as I watch, and so far, so good- LOVED the rendition of Billionaire! Anyway, I'm a huge GLEE fan, and honestly, though she's not a main character- my favorite character is definitely Brittany, her comments are so awesome.

I used American Apparel Manila as a base for all the nails except the thumb, which I used Eyeko Saucy Polish for Naughty Nails on. I also used Eyeko Saucy Polish for Naughty Nails for the letters, Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for the FOX logo, and for the hand, I used American Apparel California Trooper as a base, topped with MAC Abalone Shell, then I mixed MAC Abalone Shell mixed with Barielle Unraveled Rust to shade, and mixed MAC Abalone Shell with Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud to highlight. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Ok- I gotta get back to GLEE!!! (Next is NCIS!!!)

LORAC Sale on Hautelook!

Wow- this is one of their best beauty sales yet- prices start at $3, and don't go over $10- and that's for palettes! Almost everything is under $5. Lots of lip products (mocktails, lipglosses, lipsticks, lip polish, etc.), a few eye shadows, some palettes, cheek colors, and some foundations. :-D WOOO!

Check out the sale on LORAC sale on Hautelook!

You're Getting Sleeeeeeepppppyyy

I love black and white nail art, in fact, those were the colors that I did all of my nail art with when I was younger and had just started playing with designs. Today is a bit of a throwback to that, I did a hypnotic black and white swirl!

Tonight I went to The World Series of Comedy's first night here in Vegas, I laughed my ass off, my face hurts from laughing. (no jokes about my face killin' you, either!) Hopefully my friend Mike places in his show tonight, so he moves on!! :) Cross your fingers!

I used Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud as a base, with American Apparel Hassid for the black design. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Now that you're good and hypnotized, send all your cash to me. :)

Stila Sale at Hautelook!

Hey all you makeup lovers like me! Hautelook is having a Stila cosmetics sale today and tomorrow! There is Barbie stuff, and smudge pots, lipglosses, eyeshadows, palettes, tools, etc. you name it! From what I saw, most is at least 50% off, some is much cheaper than that!

Check it out! Stila sale on Hautelook!

X Marks the Spot!

YARRRRRR!!!! `Tis finally here! Today be one o' th' wee days durin' this 365 tide journey that I be havin' actually had th' art planned ou'. (an' in this case, I`ve had 't planned since th' beginnin' o' th' voyage) I LOVE International Talk Like a Swashbuckler Tide!! Today I decided t' do a shipmate`s booty map fer th' daily nail design.

And... to translate into non-pirate speak:

Hey! It's finally here! Today is one of the few days during this 365 day journey that I have actually had the art planned out. (and in this case, I've had it planned since the beginning of the year) I LOVE International Talk Like a Pirate Day!! Today I decided to do a pirate's treasure map for the daily nail design.

I used American Apparel California Trooper as a base, with China Glaze Classic Camel sponged over it in spots, then I sponged a mixture of China Glaze Classic Camel and MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious over those spots, then I sponged MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious on the tips and some of the edges. For the map's ink, I used a mixture of MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious, and American Apparel Hassid. Topped it off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Now that be my kind o' nail ARRRRRRRRRRRR-t! ;) Where's me rum?!

Quiet in the Peanut Gallery!

Yesterday's cookies got me thinking about other cookies... namely, Nutter Butters. Then, thinking about Nutter Butters (besides getting me hungry) made me think of actual peanuts... which, in turn, got me thinking, hey- that might be a fun nail design! So, I bring you- peanut nails! :-D Don't mind the shimmer, apparently nail polish manufacturers can't seem to make a simple golden/tan/beige creme with no shimmer. (or I just don't know about one yet- so if you know of one that is similar to Classic Camel without shimmer, LET ME KNOW!

I used China Glaze Classic Camel as a base, then mixed with MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious for the darker lines, and with American Apparel California Trooper to highlight. Topped everything off with Essie Matte About You.

My left eye is twitching, that can't be good, right?

Not So Double Stuffed

Dunno, I've never liked Double Stuf Oreos. I could never get behind the ratio of sugary filling to chocolate cookie. It's an unbalanced scale, and will never win a place in my heart. I know, I'm probably one of the few that hates them, but what's new, I'm the odd one in the group...nothing wrong with that! :-D However, I DO love regular OREOs. Seriously, I swear they're the cure for insomnia, for hunger, for a sweet tooth, for everything. The bad thing is, once I start eating OREOs, I find it hard to stop, and before I know it, 1/3 of the package is gone. :) Oops. (They're SO GOOD) Today's manicure idea was a suggestion of Chris'. (apparently the OREO commercial was on at his house when I texted, contemplating what to do for today's nails) I did the OREO logo on my thumb, and close-ups of the printed side of the cookie on the index, middle, and pinky, with a stack of OREOs on the ring finger. Nom Nom Nom. (you know I did 'research' for this manicure)

I used MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious as a base for the cookie nails, mixed with American Apparel California Trooper to make the design/highlight, and mixed MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious with American Apparel Hassid to shade. On the ring finger, I used Essie Bone Chilling White as a base, with the same colors as above for the cookie parts. For the logo nail, I used ALDO Sea You in Ibiza as a base, with Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for the logo, and China Glaze Flyin' High for the teal outline. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

I think I'm going to go bite my nails. :-9

Meep! Meep!

Guess whose birthday it is today?! I'll give you a hint... one of them preferred ACME brand products! :) If you guessed Wile E. Coyote and The Road Runner, You're correct! Today marks their 61st birthday! :) The first time they aired was September 16, 1949 with a cartoon named Fast and Furry-ous. :) Today's manicure is dedicated to those silly characters that make us laugh!

I used OPI What's With the Cattitude? as a base, with OPI Ginger Bells for the landscape, mixed with American Apparel Palm Springs to highlight, and then I used Essie Alligator Purse to shade, then used L.A. Girl Army Green for the cacti. For Wile E. Coyote, I used American Apparel California Trooper as a base, then Barielle Unraveled Rust for his fur, then outlined with American Apparel Hassid. For Road Runner, I used Orly Snowcone as a base, with ALDO Sea You in Ibiza for the wings, and head feathers, and Sally Hanson Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear in 06 Sun Kissed for the beak and legs. For the eyes I used Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud, with American Apparel Hassid for the pupils and to outline. For the sign, I used Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud, Barielle Unraveled Rust for the post, and A Beautiful Life Poison for the words. The crate was a combination of Barielle Unraveled Rust, American Apparel California Trooper and American Apparel Palm Springs, then the same combination with more Barielle Unraveled Rust to shade, American Apparel Hassid to outline and for the ACME stencil, Nubar Sexy Red for the rocket, and A Beautiful Life Poison for the dynamite. Topped everything off with two coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Meep! Meep! (Fun fact: It's actually Beep! Beep!, it just sounds like Meep! Meep!)

I'm Afraid That's Classifieds

Day 338

A long, long time ago, in a land far away from Las Vegas, there was a redheaded girl who worked at a newspaper. She was young, just having finished her first year of college, and for her summer job, she got the chance to work for the Arenac County Independent. What did she do, you might ask? Well, she typed. A LOT. She also laid out the classifieds line by line with only an X-acto knife and waxing machine to aid her in her weekly adventure. She also had tons of fun with her two partners in crime there at the news office, Jennifer (affectionately known as Jenny- pronounced- GINNY) and Kipp. They had tons of fun, and ate wet burritos at the Granton Inn. It was a jolly time. :-D This girl was affectionately referred to as...Melanie. Was this her name? Not so much, it was still Melissa, her given name, but in an effort to not confuse Kipp any further than he already was...she allowed herself to be referred to as Melanie. (not that she had much choice in the matter) Fast forward to present...sadly the building we all shared laughs in has burned down, and we are all in our own parts of the world, doing our own thing...and Kipp is MUCH older. (but not Melanie or Jenny, they have retained their youthful good looks and charming personalities...as most women do) In honor of that superfun summer at The Independent, where proofreading produced the words 'doe snot' more often than the correct 'does not', I give you the newspaper nails! I have to admit, I can't completely take credit for the effect, I saw the idea at the ORLY booth at CosmoProf, and loved it. To make it even more special- I used the classifieds...

I used Butter LONDON Billy No Mates as a base, with newsprint transferred via alcohol. Topped it off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Now that's MY kind of recycling.

What's Your Function?

There isn't a single kid that grew up in the 80s or 90s that hasn't seen or at least heard of Schoolhouse Rock! We all know and love such hits as 'Conjunction Junction', 'Unpack Your Adjectives', and 'I'm Just a Bill'. They're a part of our youth, our memories, and they're, quite frankly, AWESOME. (or AWE5OME?) Anyway, today I decided to do Schoolhouse Rock! themed nail art! From the thumb: Lolly, Inc. sign from 'Lolly, Lolly, Lolly, Get Your Adverbs Here', the 'hairy', 'scary' bear from 'Unpack Your Adjectives', Bill from 'I'm Just a Bill', the conductor from 'Conjunction Junction', and the grass with speech bubble saying 'Rufus' from 'Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla' (pronouns).

I used:

Thumb: Lolly, Lolly, Lolly, Get Your Adverbs Here

Essie Bone Chilling White as a base, with Nubar Sexy Red for the Lolly logo, and American Apparel Hassid for the sign edge, and posts.

Index: Unpack Your Adjectives

Essie Bone Chilling White as a base, with Barielle Unraveled Rust painted so you can still see the brush strokes (like the video), Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for the claws, American Apparel Hassid for the outlines, nose, and eyes.

Middle: I'm Just a Bill

Essie Bone Chilling White as a base, with American Apparel Hassid to draw Bill, Nubar Sexy Red for the red, and ALDO Sea Me in Ibiza for the blue.

Ring: Conjunction Junction

Essie Bone Chilling White as a base, with OPI What's With the Cattitude? for the hat and coveralls, Nubar Sexy Red for the neckerchief, American Apparel Palm Springs for the face, and American Apparel Hassid to outline/stripes/details.

Pinky: OPI What's With the Cattitude? as a base, with Pure Ice Wild Thing and L.A. Girl Army Green for the grass/leaves, Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for the speech bubble, and American Apparel Hassid for outlining, and the word 'Rufus'.

Topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

What's YOUR function?

Blood in the Water

A while back, I did a tribute to Alfred Hitchcock's 'The Birds', and new reader Carol P. suggested that I do a Psycho themed manicure. Of course I thought this was a great idea- so I did it!! :) 2010 marks 50 years since the release of this iconic movie, so it's a great time to do it- plus, since it's not too long until Halloween, so what better time? Fun fact: The 'blood' that goes down the drain in the shower scene is actually chocolate syrup! Should I have used brown polish instead of red?! :-D

I used Essie Bone Chilling White as a base, with China Glaze Millennium for the drain, and American Apparel Hassid for the hole in the drain. For the blood, I used A Beautiful Life Poison to marble over the white. :) Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

REE! REE! REE! REE! REE! REE!

Butter LONDON AND The Body Shop Sale at Hautelook!!

Wooo!! Two fun sales on Hautelook today, Butter LONDON nail polish (bright colors, jellies, French mani shades-$7 vs. $14 reg price!!) and The Body Shop. (all sorts of gift sets!)

These sales are definitely worth a look- I bought 5 polishes! (addicted!!) I looove Butter polishes!!

Here's the link for the sale!! Butter LONDON and The Body Shop sale at Hautelook

What's Your Type?

Tonight is the Season Finale of True Blood, I'm SO excited!!! (and bummed it's the last episode for a while) It seems like the seasons go by so fast, like the Season Premiere was a mere couple of weeks ago. In honor of the finale tonight, I decided to paint blood colored nails, with the Tru Blood beverage label on my ring finger. So, my question is, what's your type? (Mine? Alexander Skarsgård. Oh, blood? I have no idea. ;))

I used A Beautiful Life Poison as a base, with American Apparel Hassid for the black on the label, Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud as a base for the red on the label, with a little bit poking out the left side of the words 'Tru Blood', because that is how the label shows it, the gold is China Glaze 2030. Topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Are you as excited to see the finale as I am? Eric soooo can't be dead. *sob*

Never Forget.

I don't often go all serious here on my blog, but there are occasions where even the silliest of bloggers and people need to take a moment from the laughter, and observe a moment of silence. There are times in our lives where we know exactly where we were, and exactly what we were doing at a single moment. Sometimes these moments are happy moments, others leave you sad. September 11, 2001 was one of those latter moments, and will be a scar on the memories and hearts of the citizens of our country for as long as we live. I personally didn't know anyone that died on that fateful day, but it still stays with me year after year. It's hard to believe it's been 9 years. I was a junior in college, sitting in my video editing class when we got the news. We were stunned, thought that it was a joke, that nothing could possibly happen to the superpower that is the USA. Sadly, it was true, and the world lost 2,977 innocent people that day during the attack on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, on United Flight 93, and their aftermath. We lost friends, sisters, brothers, sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, loved ones, and, to an extent, a sense of security. I know that this is just a 'nail blog', but today's design is dedicated to those lost and injured, the firemen, policemen, and everyone else who helped on this sad day in our nation's history...you are NOT forgotten.

I used Essie Bone Chilling White as a base, with Nubar Sexy Red for the red stripes, ALDO Sea You in Ibiza for the blue, and Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for the stars. For the 9/ and the twin towers, I used American Apparel Hassid. I topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Cut on the Dotted Line

With the economy the way it is these days, I'm sure that I'm not the only one that cuts coupons to help save money, right? We check sales, clip coupons, and buy generics vs. name brand products...at least I do. (except Kraft Mac & Cheese, you can't go generic with that, the store brands suck...we all have to have our simple pleasures) Today's manicure was inspired by our current necessity, COUPONS! I used the dotted line with scissors image that is often around those money-saving jewels in the Sunday newspaper as a different twist on a french manicure. :)

I used Essie Bone Chilling White as a base, with American Apparel Hassid for the dotted line and scissors. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Snip Snip!

Give 'em the Ol' One-Tulle!

Today I was in the fabric store and saw this super pretty aqua-metallic looking tulle, and I knew that I had to get it and try something one my nails with it. The result is a lot more 'girly' than most of my nail art, but I still kinda dig it. I doubt the crystals will last the rest of the night before I pick them off though. I wish I could have the sparkle of crystals/gems without the sticking off the nails part. :-P

I used MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious, which I just rediscovered recently in my Helmer as a base, with Orly Gumdrop for the dots and behind the crystals. I applied the tulle over a few dabs of Seche Vite top coat instead of using it on the whole nail because it made the tulle blend into the nail too much and took away its color. :)

Feelin' Blue

Last night, after 2 1/2 years living in Vegas, I finally got to see Blue Man Group perform. Holy crap was it ever worth the wait- it was amazing!! I love how three dudes that don't even talk can make me laugh for nearly 2 hours straight! Plus, when I wasn't laughing, I was in awe of what they were doing! My favorite part of the show was near the very end, but I won't spoil it for those who've never seen it. It was sooooo awesome. I hope I can go again at some point, it was a great night!! :) I loved it so much, in fact, that I was inspired to do a Blue Man Group manicure! I did the three blue guys on my index, middle and ring fingers, then I did the black of their shirts with neon paint splattered on them! :)

Thought I'd show a blacklight picture, since they use blacklight in their performance!

I used ALDO Sea You In Ibiza for a base for the blue men, with American Apparel Hassid for the pinky and thumb nails. To shade the faces, I used a mix of American Apparel Hassid and ALDO Sea You In Ibiza, then to highlight, I used a mix of ALDO Sea You In Ibiza and Orly Snowcone, then topped with Color Club Chelsea Girl. For the eyes, I used Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud, American Apparel Hassid for the pupils, MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious for one set of irises, a mix of MAC Blue India and L.A. Girl Army Green for the middle guy's irises, and a mixture of MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious and Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud for the left set of irises. For the paint splatter, I used China Glaze Sun Worshipper, China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy, and Color Club Pucci-licious. Topped the middle three nails off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat, but didn't add it on the pinky and thumb because I wanted the splatter texture to stay visible.

Some pix:

They've definitely mastered the creepy stare. :-P

The band and I- they looked SO rad when performing, only the color on their costume and faces showed in the blacklight!

Today's News

So, something exciting happened to me today!! I was interviewed for the Today Show website! SO exciting, I never would have imagined that anything of that magnitude would EVER happen to me!! In honor of the article, I decided to do the Today Show logo on my nails!

I used OPI Alpine Snow Matte as a base, with Nubar Sexy Red for the red, CND Electric Orange for the darker orange, Zoya Jancyn for the lighter orange, and CND Bicycle Yellow for the yellow. Topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Woo!!! I'm soooo stoked! Thanks to all of YOU for being such great readers, and WELCOME to the new readers!!! :) You kick ass!! (and not the kind from yesterday's manicure)

Are You Looking At My Ass?!

Today, the decision to get the hell outta dodge was made, so Chris, the hound and I headed up to Red Rock Canyon and did some walkin' around, some hiking, and some burro-touching. (Doesn't that sound like a extremely perverse sex act?) We went to a few different areas up at Red Rock, we saw a Gray Fox, some chipmunks, a Jackrabbit (I think it was a Jackrabbit- it was a rabbit of some sort- picture is below), and some WILD BURROS!! (which I got to pet!!! <---They LOVE having between their ears scratched!!) The burros were walking across the road, and apparently they're friendly, so people often stop and the burros walk up to you. Two of them let me pet them, but the baby burro just wanted me to give it food, it was NOT about the petting. Fun thing we learned today is that Homer, the hound, is part mountain goat, he was jumping up rocks, etc. that even the two of us HUMANS were having issues with- and mind you, Homer is a 15 pound ham of a dog. (pic later) Today's manicure is in honor of my staycation today. :) The thumb is the rocks that had stripes of different color in the stone, the index finger is the cactus that stuck prickers in my jeans that later attached their barbs in my LEG (oooouuuuucccch!), the middle finger is one of the burros I pet, and the ring and pinky finger are another part of red rock canyon! :)

I used OPI What's With the Cattitude? as a base for all nails. For the red rock themed nails, I used OPI Ginger Bells for the rocks, with American Apparel Palm Springs to highlight, and mixed with Barielle Unraveled Rust to shade. For the cactus, I used Pure Ice Wild Thing as a base for the cactus, and then a mixture of OPI Green-wich Village and OPI Here Today, Aragon Tomorrow in different quantities to make the different shades of green on the cactus, and for the cactus pears, I used Color Club Ms. Socialite, and for the cactus spines, I used OPI Here Today, Aragon Tomorrow. For the burro, I used MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious for the majority of the burro, for the muzzle, ears, and around the eye area, I used American Apparel California Trooper, which I also mixed with MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious to highlight the coat of the burro, and American Apparel Hassid to shade and for the eye and nose. Topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Some pictures from today...

Burros!!!

Gray Fox

The Jackrabbit (?)

Me and the hound.

Me and the hound again- about a mile into a hike and sweaty. :-D

Red Rock

Stripey rocks at Red Rock

Red Rocks

Yup, that's me, and I'm petting a WILD BURRO!!

(Now THAT'S a nice ass.)

Under Construction

With it being Labor Day weekend here in the States, lots of people are on vacation, and vacation means road trips!! A familiar sight to most travelers this weekend will be those ubiquitous orange signs. 'Left Lane Closed Ahead', 'Workers Present', 'Prepare to Stop', 'Detour'. These signs mean waiting is ahead! :-D In Michigan, the old joke was that the orange traffic cones were the state tree. :-P As an homage to all the travelers out there this weekend, I decided to do a construction sign manicure!

I used OPI Alpine Snow Matte as a base with Color Club Wham! Pow! over it for all nails but the ring finger, where I used OPI Ginger Bells as a base, with CND Electric Orange over it. For the black, I used American Apparel Hassid, and for the stripes on the traffic barrel, I used OPI Alpine Snow Matte with Sinful Colors Smokin' Hot over the white stripes to give them the 'reflective' shimmer, and Color Club Wham! Pow! for the orange stripes, with Sinful Colors Smokin' Hot over it for the reflective shimmer. Topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Gotta love construction, and it's seemingly EVERYWHERE in Vegas.

On Fire-fly!

As the proverbial last weekend of summer is upon us (yes, I'm aware we technically have a few more weeks of summer), what better for today's manicure than a summery design? When I think of my summers as a kid in Michigan, I remember nights where fireflies filled the night sky, dancing here and there with their glowing butts. Fun (albeit cruel) fact, you can smear the butts on your skin and it remains glowing. (I learned this as a kid) Today's manicure was inspired by the bugs that light up our summers, fireflies!! :) Thank you to Chris for this idea!! :) (I was braindead today)

I used OPI What's With the Cattitude? as a base, with Orly Snowcone to shade, China Glaze Millennium for the mason jar lid, then mixed with American Apparel Hassid to make the rings on the lid. I also used American Apparel Hassid for the firefly bodies, with Hot Topic Glow-in-the-Dark for the butts, and Essie Bone Chilling White for the wings, as well as the jar highlight. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Ok, back to the Little House on the Prairie marathon. I'm officially sucked in, and there's no stopping now. Enjoy your labor day weekend!!! :)