OFF WITH HER HEAD!! Absolutely Alice OPI & Nail Art

(edited to add a full sun pic!) This is my right hand. I think it is it's first appearance on my blog!



Thank goodness for OPI!! Absolutely Alice is an amazing blue with sparse gold glitter. These pics aren't in sunlight and do not do it any justice. I just had to do something to give honor to the character I am most excited to see in Tim Burton's Alice In Wonderland. Helena Bonham Carter as The Red Queen!! Hmmmm.... I wonder what nail art I'll be doing when I swatch Mad As A Hatter......

Post Holiday Blues and Remembering Our Loved Ones

Barielle slate of affairs (old pic)

Diamond Cosmetics Don't Teal My Heart Away with black konad. (old pic)

Phew! I'm so glad the Christmas season is over. I always love the start of a new year. I've been really missing a few of my loved ones that have passed on. I'm not trying to be morbid. There is just something about the start of a fresh year that makes me remember the people that are no longer with us. It makes me grateful that I am lucky enough to enjoy another year. It makes me cherish the precious memories of the time I had with these special people. There are three people that I really miss. Maybe there is internet access in the next world and they can see this? :)

Here are my Grandma and Grandpa. My Grandma was feisty and adorable. My Grandpa was so full of love! This picture was taken during WWII. They both lived long, full lives.

This is my brother-in-law. He was Mr Eighties!! He introduced me to so many cool bands that I would have never heard of on my own. He passed away in his early thirties after a freak accident.

I would love to hear about the people my lovely readers are remembering as we start a new year.

This is a ** MAN-icure ** BB Couture For Men Pipe Bender

Today, I bring you a MAN-icure. :) I felt like being a little tacky, a little inappropriate and a little awesome. The base color is BB Couture For Men Pipe Bender. This is a VERY unique color. It's a pretty slightly blue-ish deep green packed with a blurple shimmer. It's not super manly on it's own. So, I added a bit of testosterone with a mudflap girl! Can't get much more over the top manly than that!! This is two coats with seche vite on top. The chrome girl is stargazer chrome.

Here is a close-up of the color.

It's Jack! A Dog and Snuggie Post!!

This is Jack. He is a seven-year-old Scottish Terrier. He is a very good boy. He is NOT allowed on the couch. Never has been. Well, my significant other got a snuggie as a gag gift for Christmas. I couldn't resist it!! I wore it all morning and basked in it's sex appeal squashing comfort.

I came downstairs and look who was ON THE COUCH with the snuggie!! He was way on the top of the couch... not just on the cushions!

Behold.... the snuggie.... try to resist it's polyester power....

5 Guys I Used to Like Tag

The lovely Nihrida tagged me in the 5 guys I used to like tag. FUN! :)

I will list them in chronological order from when they started. I used to like these guys... Wait, I still do like them come to think of it! :)



1. C3-PO was my first crush. I was just a tot. I kinda had a crush on Kermit the Frog too. But, I really liked C3-PO. He is so ... robotic!


2. Joey McIntyre. I loved NKOTB. There. I said it... Don't judge. This crush was crushed when I saw New Kids in concert. I was 11 or 12. They were so phoney! I was expecting them to jam. Play instruments.. Do something besides dance..

3. I first saw Elvis in concert when I was around 15. Elvis Costello is one of my favorite artists. He is so creative and seems like a fun guy. His lyrics are so much fun to decipher and his voice is unique. His music has been relevant no matter where I am in my life. I LOVE him! It's more than just like.

4. Around 17 someone said I looked like Bettie Page. I ran and looked up who this was. She isn't a guy. But, I liked her very much! She is so opposite from the current narrow idea of what a women should look like. She was fun, flirty and not afraid to have fun with her femininity.

5. In my early 20's I realized something. I like old men! :) Sir Anthony Hopkins and Sir Sean Connery are two of my favorites. I guess I like actors who have been knighted?? I love old knights.

Hmm.... I tag anyone that feels like doing a really fun tag!

My Best Friend is a Droid (with orly iron butterfly)

I'd like to introduce you to my new best friend (sorry Erla!) He won Time magazine's Gadget of the Year award.

I finally got a new cell phone. It is a magical contraption. The Motorola Droid uses the Google Android platform. (the little droid is the Android logo) The things this puppy can do.... google voice search, scan barcodes, dvd quality video. I'm in love! I'm basically a PC girl. Finally, there is a phone that can step in the ring with the Iphone! No matter which phone wins the championship belt...

I Heart My Droid.

Wait a minute. I should have blogged from it! Next time?

Side note: The incoco was really easy to take off? I used pure acetone. I bet it would have lasted forever. I'm just too impatient! :)

The base color is Orly Iron Butterfly from the Metal Chic collection. The "I" is a chrome silver color by Stargazer. The heart is China Glaze China Rouge. The android is Pure Ice Wild Thing. I used Essie matte about you on the nail art to keep with the matte theme.

Incoco está loco!! Day Three (or Four?) of Incoco Test Drive

Um... Will it ever come off? I SCRUBBED my whole house yesterday. A normal polish manicure would have been toast. I'm just barely getting tip wear. I'm now getting worried about just how long this will last? I might break down and just remove it. I have some fun nail art I want to try! :)

Incoco Dry Nail Polish Review and Test

I've had these incoco dry nail polish strips for quite some time. I bought these at Walgreens. I think this color ( Red Velvet ) has been discontinued. I don't see it on their website. www.incoco.com I tested out the white french tip on one nail before I had a blog. It stayed on forever. I put polish over the white tip when I tried it.

I was really scared to try a full nail. They are supposed to last up to 14 days.

Here is my experience.

Here are the strips fresh out of the packet. They smell like nail polish! I guess that is because they are made out of nail polish. Still, I wasn't expecting them to REALLY be nail polish.

First, you remove the clear plastic coat on top of the product.
Then, you take the strip off the paper backing.
On their website, it says to remove the silver tab. I just left it on. Looking back, I should have stretched the strip more. It's kind of elastic like. Or, more like stretchy saran wrap. I was able to press it down and wrap the free edge of my nail. I barely needed to file the edge. Most of the excess cam off just from wrapping the tip.
Here is a gap I got on the side of one nail. This is driving me crazy. The most difficult part of this process is picking out the right size!
Here is my finished pinky. The bumps would have smoothed out if I would have stretched in more. I just was afraid it would break. The dry applique felt like almost dry but still dentable polish.

Day One: Here are my nails the morning after I applied the dry nail polish. They don't feel dent-able anymore. Click on the picture to see it SUPER up close. (if you dare!)

You're a Mean One... Mr Grinch

The holidays are in full swing. The Grinch is the perfect character to express how I'm feeling about the craziness that surrounds the holiday season! I put him on my grouchy finger...

I just want to say that this green ROCKS. It is BB Couture Poison Ivy. This is the first polish I've tried from this line. It is so stinking shiny. This is two coats with Seche Vite on top. This is now my favorite green. I have a few more greens to try from BB Couture. We'll see if they end up being favorites too! I understand the hoopla over this line now. It really applied well.

The Grinch's face is Carolyn New York Greenwich Ave. What a bummer that this company is no longer around. The hat is China Glaze's China Rouge. The trim is OPI Alpine White. His eyes are blended colors.

Sidenote: I finally took the silk wrap off my middle finger!!!! The break finally grew past the free edge. My middle nail is so short. The rest of my nails have been growing at their usual crazy fast pace. I've been filing off any new growth because of that LOW in the nail bed break on my middle nail. Now that that break is past the "painful if trimmed" stage, I decided to do a gel extension on my middle nail only. I used a nail tip placed under (instead of on) my nail (I didn't have any forms.) I used a builder gel and sculpted the tip of my middle nail to match the length and shape of my other nails. I cured the gel under a UV light. Then, I removed the plastic nail tip. I really didn't think this would work. If it stays put.. I'll do a tutorial.. :)

A little bit of info about little ol' me

I was tagged by the super cool Sasha at Nihrida's blog. I get to answer some questions about me. Hmmm... Don't know how interesting I am but, here it goes!

1. Where is your phone? In my purse.

2. Your hair? Faded. Red is hard to keep up!

3. Your Mom? Is the best mom in the galaxy

4. Your Dad? is a sad, tortured soul. Too smart for his own good.

5. Your favorite meal? Stuffed bell peppers!

6. Your last dream? I don't remember. :(

7. What do you like to drink? This:

8. Your dream? I live it everyday.

9. In what room are you? Office

10. Your hobby? painting my nails and blogging.

11. What are you afraid of? bridges and escalators

12. Last travel? Lake Tahoe

13. Where were you last night? Up late reading books

14. Something you are not? I am not wearing shoes.

15. Muffins? What? stud muffins? muffin tops? *mind wanders into gutter* I love muffins made out of this:

16. Wishlist? What I want is what I need and I have everything I need... plus some. :)

17. Where did you grow up? Southern California

18. Last thing you did? Wrapped a present

19. What are you wearing? black with pink stripes adidas pants, black shirt and a smile!

20. Your television? Is an alien portal. The aliens try to suck my brain cells through the screen. I have to be careful when I watch How Clean is Your House and Dexter!

21. Your pet(s)? Two dogs. A Scottie and a Cairn. Had a hamster... It ended badly

This is Maisie

This is Jack (he needed a hair cut in a BAD way!)

22. Your friends? Make life interesting.

23. Your life? Is constantly evolving.

24. Your temper? practically non-existent

25. Do you miss someone? quite a few someones.

26. Your car? Needs to be washed!

27. Something you don't bring with you? A bad attitude.

28. Your favorite shop? Target

29. Your favorite color? Red!

30. Last time you laughed? about 10 minutes ago

31. Last time you cried? two days ago

32. Your best friend? Has been the yin to my yang for almost 20 years!

33. A place where you can go again and again? the bathroom. :)

34. Facebook? scares me! Twitter is even scarier. I try to get it. I just can't!

35. Favorite place to eat? At the table with family. With the TV OFF! :)

I tag:

The Daily Polish! She has painted her nails (and posted them) every day for NINETY FOUR days!!

Avon Nailwear Pro Swatches and a Comp

First, here is a reindeer I made out of a beer can last year. :) Tis the season!

Now, onto the swatches!

I've wanted to try Avon nail polish again for some time. I used it when I was little. My mom would order skin so soft products every summer (it's supposed to keep mosquitos away.) She would always let me pick out a few things. (have I ever mentioned how amazing my mom is?) I remember getting the lipsmacker-like chapsticks (I'd eat them) and the nail polish in PLASTIC containers! Avon nail polish has come a long way. These are all glass bottles. :)

You can order these from Avon.com

Tweed is a perfect vampy jelly bordeaux color. This is three coats with seche vite top coat. Two coats would have been plenty. (side note: I still have a flipping silk wrap on my middle nail. Since these were swatches I didn't get it perfectly smooth. )

Nocturnal is a very easy to apply putty color. Color wise, it is an exact duplicate of OPI You Don't Know Jacques. It is more creamy and opaque faster than it's twin.
Here, the whole nail is painted with You Don't Know Jacques. I painted a swipe of nocturnal in the box. Can you see a difference? I can't! :)
More comparisons: 1. You Don't Know Jacques 2. Nocturnal 3. Orly Prince Charming 4. Sephora By OPI Metro Chic
Midnight plum is a pretty vampy plum shade. It looks almost black indoors. But, not fully black. The purple is noticeable.
This is Blue Flare. Definitely the most unique of the bunch. It is frosty without being streaky. I like that it is fairly dark without being blackened.

Classic fit is an almost black vampy purple. The top picture shows it's vampy side. The bottom pic shows it's purple base color.
This color is so not me! I don't know what to say. :) It totally doesn't fit in with the other colors I picked. I'm not sure what I was thinking?!

I've been using this cuticle balm for a few days now. The dry weather has been killing my cuticles. I'm really loving this balm. It's easier to travel with than solar oil. I feel like it protects my cuticles more than just oiling them up. :) The scent is very faint.

Hard Candy Mr Wrong Is Oh So Very Right!!

I very rarely wear a color for more than a day. I've had this beauty on since SUNDAY! The picture was snapped today (Wednesday) and you can see some tip wear. But, considering how tough I am on my nails, this stuff is awesome! This truly is my favorite new color from 2009. The gold flakie pieces give it a foily finish. But, it's not too chrome like or frosty. A+ (and a D+ for only being available at Wal*Mart)