Shynk!
Mar 11, 2011
Match This!
So I bought this shirt months ago and never have had the chance to wear it, but tomorrow I'm heading out of town to visit my bestie :) Gonna wear my cool shirt and did a mani to match!!
Shynk!
Shynk!
...really?
Hideous. HIIIIIDDDEOUS!
(Of course, if they were itty bitty photos of my cat, I would be like "Brilliant. BRIIIILLLIANT!")
Eh, to each his own.
Shynk!
(Of course, if they were itty bitty photos of my cat, I would be like "Brilliant. BRIIIILLLIANT!")
Eh, to each his own.
Shynk!
Mar 10, 2011
Simple
Sometimes simple is nice. I found this Wet n Wild color and was drawn to it for some reason. It's like a weird coral-y red color. Reminds me of cougars in Florida. Why do I always relate things to old ladies?? Anyway... a finger or two of leopard print would go great :)
I can't wait until these little stubs grow out! Short nails are fun but sheesh.
Shynk!
I can't wait until these little stubs grow out! Short nails are fun but sheesh.
Shynk!
Mar 9, 2011
Mar 7, 2011
Mar 6, 2011
Circles
Did a circle pattern stamp with neutral colors:
I did a different stamp on my thumb because the stamp pattern is too small to cover my entire thumb nail. I just put cuticle cream on, so my fingers look all shiny.
For the base I used Rimmel Lasting Finish Pro in Pink Bliss. The stamp is NYC In a NY Minute in Park Ave. Both cheap polishes, but I liked the soft neutral combo.
ASP makes this grabber tool for cotton and it's the COOLEST tool ever! It grabs the cotton ball or pad and holds it tight so you can dip it in remover and not have to ruin your nails! Freakin sweet! I always mess my own nails by doing clean up, but now I just use this little doo-dad and I can clean the stamp plates, clean the scraper, take off toenail polish...and never mess my nails up or get my fingertips dried out from the remover! Love it :D (Got it at Sally's for $3)
Shynk!
I did a different stamp on my thumb because the stamp pattern is too small to cover my entire thumb nail. I just put cuticle cream on, so my fingers look all shiny.
For the base I used Rimmel Lasting Finish Pro in Pink Bliss. The stamp is NYC In a NY Minute in Park Ave. Both cheap polishes, but I liked the soft neutral combo.
ASP makes this grabber tool for cotton and it's the COOLEST tool ever! It grabs the cotton ball or pad and holds it tight so you can dip it in remover and not have to ruin your nails! Freakin sweet! I always mess my own nails by doing clean up, but now I just use this little doo-dad and I can clean the stamp plates, clean the scraper, take off toenail polish...and never mess my nails up or get my fingertips dried out from the remover! Love it :D (Got it at Sally's for $3)
Shynk!
Mar 5, 2011
Stamping!!
Finally got my stamping kit in the mail! Super excited. I bought the Bundle Monster kit from Amazon and the Konad Double-end stamper with scraper. The Bundle Monster came with 21 plates for only $18, which is way better than $6 per Konad plate.
I wanted to try all the stamps (or at least a whole bunch of them) but I've been so sick and out of it that I did one stamp. Here is the plate I used:
And the stamper and scraper:
I used OPI in red for the base color and Wet n Wild in black for the stamp. The Wet n Wild is a very good stamping color - opaque and cheap!
Not too shabby. It was a bit difficult to get the stamp on the entire nail. Especially the thumbs. And I have tiny fingernails! More to come :)
Shynk!
I wanted to try all the stamps (or at least a whole bunch of them) but I've been so sick and out of it that I did one stamp. Here is the plate I used:
And the stamper and scraper:
I used OPI in red for the base color and Wet n Wild in black for the stamp. The Wet n Wild is a very good stamping color - opaque and cheap!
Not too shabby. It was a bit difficult to get the stamp on the entire nail. Especially the thumbs. And I have tiny fingernails! More to come :)
Shynk!
Hand Health
Living in such a dry climate is very damaging to the skin. My hands often look like old lady hands and I've been searching for better cuticle oils and hand lotions to help. I came upon an ingredient called urea which is used in high percentages in medications for psoriasis and eczema. Urea penetrates deeper in the skin layers to pull the moisture while other ingredients form an oil layer on the surface of the skin to keep the moisture in.
I've had a good skin response to glycerin products, and find the hand lotions with glycerin as one of the primary ingredients less greasy than others made with more oils. So I looked in the grocery store for a good lotion which contains the ingredients I prefer, plus urea.
I found Gold Bond Ultimate and have been using it the past few days. This one is the Shea Butter lotion which says it penetrates fast and is non-greasy. Both are true. It doesn't just sit on top of your skin - it absorbs quickly and doesn't feel greasy. It also smells really good :) The top ingredients are water, hydroxyethyl urea, glycerin, dimethicone, and jojoba esters. Yay!
Eucerin brand is generally recommended by dermatologists for psoriasis and eczema because of urea being a top ingredient. I don't have psoriasis or eczema, I just have dry wrinkly hands so I went with the less expensive Gold Bond. (Btw, if you have psoriasis or eczema, you obviously should see a dermatologist who can prescribe appropriate medications)
Another change I made in my goal of healthier hands: switching to non-acetone polish remover. It is less drying and still works although it takes longer. With as often as I change my polish, the pure acetone is a little overkill for my skin and cuticles.
Oh ya! I got some cotton moisturizer gloves so I can put on the Gold Bond at night, slip on the gloves and hopefully wake to softer hands! Haven't tried it yet because I've been sick, but will try soon.
Shynk!
I've had a good skin response to glycerin products, and find the hand lotions with glycerin as one of the primary ingredients less greasy than others made with more oils. So I looked in the grocery store for a good lotion which contains the ingredients I prefer, plus urea.
I found Gold Bond Ultimate and have been using it the past few days. This one is the Shea Butter lotion which says it penetrates fast and is non-greasy. Both are true. It doesn't just sit on top of your skin - it absorbs quickly and doesn't feel greasy. It also smells really good :) The top ingredients are water, hydroxyethyl urea, glycerin, dimethicone, and jojoba esters. Yay!
Eucerin brand is generally recommended by dermatologists for psoriasis and eczema because of urea being a top ingredient. I don't have psoriasis or eczema, I just have dry wrinkly hands so I went with the less expensive Gold Bond. (Btw, if you have psoriasis or eczema, you obviously should see a dermatologist who can prescribe appropriate medications)
Another change I made in my goal of healthier hands: switching to non-acetone polish remover. It is less drying and still works although it takes longer. With as often as I change my polish, the pure acetone is a little overkill for my skin and cuticles.
Oh ya! I got some cotton moisturizer gloves so I can put on the Gold Bond at night, slip on the gloves and hopefully wake to softer hands! Haven't tried it yet because I've been sick, but will try soon.
Shynk!
Mar 1, 2011
Sinful
Got two Sinful Colors - one in Let's Meet (the yellow with tiny gold flecks, but you can't tell from the photos) and Let's Talk (the deep purple)
It looks so blue in some photos, so I tried taking shots that showed the true purple.
I also added some Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear in Disco Ball to put some sparkle over the purple.
This is the only photo that actually shows how purple the color is :) Really pretty and I like the combo of yellow and purple together.
By the end of the week I should have my stamping kit!! Although I do like the perfection of nail stamping, free-hand is so much harder that I will try to master it and not resort to stamping all the time. But I can't wait to try out all the different designs :) It's almost like cheating but the nails turn out so perfect and pretty!
Shynk!
It looks so blue in some photos, so I tried taking shots that showed the true purple.
I also added some Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear in Disco Ball to put some sparkle over the purple.
This is the only photo that actually shows how purple the color is :) Really pretty and I like the combo of yellow and purple together.
By the end of the week I should have my stamping kit!! Although I do like the perfection of nail stamping, free-hand is so much harder that I will try to master it and not resort to stamping all the time. But I can't wait to try out all the different designs :) It's almost like cheating but the nails turn out so perfect and pretty!
Shynk!
Feb 28, 2011
Deco
Did this design and it reminded me of art deco...
I found nail jewels at the dollar store, which is really cool since I don't have to waste pricier jewels changing polish every day. Shynk!
I found nail jewels at the dollar store, which is really cool since I don't have to waste pricier jewels changing polish every day. Shynk!
Feb 25, 2011
More Argyle
If my nails were larger or longer, I would do the full pattern. But they're so little right now, I had to modify.
Shynk!
Feb 24, 2011
Argyle
Did an argyle pattern! Was planning on doing the ring and thumb with a pearly while thin line instead of green to mix it up, but got in the zone and completely spaced it.
And then I messed up the ring on my right hand so covered it up with a gray skull n bones decal but it doesn't look good lol! Meh, more argyle to come...
Shynk!
And then I messed up the ring on my right hand so covered it up with a gray skull n bones decal but it doesn't look good lol! Meh, more argyle to come...
Shynk!
Feb 23, 2011
Lovely :)
Saw a lady today who had the loveliest shade of lavender on her nails, so I found one similar. Its Rimmel 60 Seconds in Magnetise.
It is a pale lavender from some angles, but has an iridescent sheen that turns pinky-purple at other angles. Very pretty! I did pearly white diagonal stripes then applied a silvery Rimmel color called Insolence to the lower half. Added pink glitter bits (they sparkle in the light, but not really in the photo) and presto! *Lovely nails*
Shynk!
It is a pale lavender from some angles, but has an iridescent sheen that turns pinky-purple at other angles. Very pretty! I did pearly white diagonal stripes then applied a silvery Rimmel color called Insolence to the lower half. Added pink glitter bits (they sparkle in the light, but not really in the photo) and presto! *Lovely nails*
Shynk!
Feb 22, 2011
Happy Toes :)
It's hard to take decent pictures of toes. My toes are goofy as hell, but at least now they look happy :)
Hee!
Shynk!
Hee!
Shynk!
Feb 21, 2011
Cuticle Health
Okay, I've never really taken care of my cuticles and in turn have been plagued with hangnails, cuts and dry, ragged cuticle skin. Not good. The dry skin often tears up the finger causing very painful hangnails :( My nails have always kinda sucked too - splitting and weak all the time - which is what happens when you don't take care of your cuticles.
Recently I've been paying extra attention to my cuticles and want to share some tried and true tips:
1. Don't cut your cuticles. This can be very damaging and lead to infections! However, if there are flaps sticking up, use a *sharp* set of nippers to nip it off.
2. Push your cuticles back gently after applying a good cuticle remover. A good remover contains AHA which will slough away dead skin cells. If you want a more natural option, you can do the milk bath soak for your fingertips (lactic acid accomplishes the same thing).
3. Don't paint your cuticles when you paint your nails. Plus, it's just ugly.
4. Condition your cuticles often.
I've used many cuticle oils and they are all pretty good. Mineral oil doesn't penetrate the cuticle skin as much as it sits on top, so stay away from products which use mineral oil. The best oils are almond, jojoba (which is actually a wax, not an oil), and vitamin E.
For the past 4-5 days, I've been using this:
It's Tuscan Citrus Herb Complex made by Cuccio. It contains cottonseed, sunflower, & safflower oils, and vitamins A & E.
So far it's been the best for my cuticles! I really see the difference - my cuticles are supple and soft just from a few days. You can go back in the blog pics and see the difference.
I'll continue to use it daily until my cuticles are healthy. Or until spring because winters in the high desert are crazy dry :)
Shynk!
Recently I've been paying extra attention to my cuticles and want to share some tried and true tips:
1. Don't cut your cuticles. This can be very damaging and lead to infections! However, if there are flaps sticking up, use a *sharp* set of nippers to nip it off.
2. Push your cuticles back gently after applying a good cuticle remover. A good remover contains AHA which will slough away dead skin cells. If you want a more natural option, you can do the milk bath soak for your fingertips (lactic acid accomplishes the same thing).
3. Don't paint your cuticles when you paint your nails. Plus, it's just ugly.
4. Condition your cuticles often.
I've used many cuticle oils and they are all pretty good. Mineral oil doesn't penetrate the cuticle skin as much as it sits on top, so stay away from products which use mineral oil. The best oils are almond, jojoba (which is actually a wax, not an oil), and vitamin E.
For the past 4-5 days, I've been using this:
It's Tuscan Citrus Herb Complex made by Cuccio. It contains cottonseed, sunflower, & safflower oils, and vitamins A & E.
So far it's been the best for my cuticles! I really see the difference - my cuticles are supple and soft just from a few days. You can go back in the blog pics and see the difference.
I'll continue to use it daily until my cuticles are healthy. Or until spring because winters in the high desert are crazy dry :)
Shynk!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)