almost 400??? How did that happen? And life's little upheavals -Picture heavy

This poor little neglected blog is still getting new followers and I'm so grateful for every single one of you!

Life has tossed a few challenges my way of late, but we're resurfacing slowly and there are some exciting changes in the works for me and my family.
On June 5th, as I was travelling home from a wonderfully relaxing visit with my son who lives in Seattle, a power line came down and fell on my little gypsy home...and blew it up. Not literally, and yet, literally.

 It actually MELTED the metal - and apparently it bounced.

 This is a huge burned out hole in the siding...water was coming in like crazy...we had huge buckets under to catch it, but still had to empty them every 2 hours or so.

 There's a small hole in the siding to the left and down a bit from that orange light...the electrical flow blew out of there too.

 Those black marks aren't dirt, they are burn marks.

 and there are MANY.

 Inside: the fuse box...the lid sits where it landed. (sorry for the hairy rug, it's where we kept the dog's water and food.)

 It caught fire, but fizzled out (thank goodness!)

The explosive force blew the fuse box out of the wall. 

So we're working on a few things (housing for one) and getting our lives back in order. It's been interesting!

I'm still in awe of the number of followers I have now...I've been away a while and had no idea people were still finding this lil' blog of mine. I've got some stash for a giveaway and when I reach 400, I will make that happen.  I'm also REALLY excited to be attending the upcoming CosmoProf show in Las Vegas with quite a few other really talented and fun bloggers! Krystal over at www.polishgalore.com has been very busy getting us all coordinated to get together and have a good time. She also published this little delight: http://www.polishgalore.com/2011/06/cosmoprof-bloggers.html  so get over there and take a look, if you aren't following ALL of these blogs, you're missing out on some GREAT stuff.

I'll end this post with my Independence day mani:

 I was going for fireworks in an evening sky...missed the mark, but it was still pretty!

Sally Hansen Crack overcoat in Distressed Denim over Nfu Oh 61.

More posts coming...soon too!

~The Lizard

Chanel Black Pearl...Ho Hum

I swatched the mighty lemming last night at Nordstroms and left it there after comparing it to real black pearls in the jewelry department.  I love black pearls and so I was excited to see if it was worth the hype.

I have to say, for me, it isn't. But then I really wanted it to look like a black pearl on my nails. In my opinion, this color is too green. That would be ok, but there should be some brown duochrome in there to make it work like a real pearl.

I realize that the black pearl comes in many tones, from gray to brown to green and even almost silver, but they all have a duochrome that is, sadly lacking in this polish.

So today, while trying to cram all the new polish in with my existing stash, I rooted through the stash to find comparable shades that might make my fussy ass happy!  I found it in Misa's "It's You!"  It's got the right balance of green/brown duochrome with just a little too much sparkle to completely pull it off but, I can keep my 25 bucks and have the color I want don my nails anytime I want it to. :)

That makes me happy!

Here are a few comparison shots: Thumb is always Chanel Black Pearl. (I realize my cuticles look like hell, just look at the pretty colors!) But first, let's begin with a few pictures of some ACTUAL Black Pearls:

Source

With Gosh Purple Heart (too much like Nubar Peacock Feathers and Borghese Stellar Notte ie: too much purple)

With Nubar Moon Shadow (thought the brown might work, but nope, it shows up very purple too.)

Sally Hansen Prisms Emerald Amethyst is actually very close, just reversed, but I can live with that.

And with Misa "It's You!"  is an almost perfect dupe only better! It shows the duochrome better in the shade, the sunlight brings out the shimmer and it's a bit more sparkly than the Chanel and/or a real Black Pearl. This one actually has the green in the middle with the purple around the edges. It's gorgeous!

I also compared it to the new Estee Lauder Wild Storm, very similar, but WS is more silver...still, I think I see a trend here. :)

And since I swapped my untried Lippmann Hit Me With Your Best Shot, I had to swatch that (I'll replace it with my Apothica gift cert won from Evil Angel) Love this color so much!

This is what my hands looked like after all the swatching. :) And again, please ignore the horrible condition of my cuticles. I've been doing a bunch of house cleaning and it's time for a deep moisture treatment. That week in Las Vegas was hard on my skin!

Why yes, that IS Lippmann Marquee Moon...which shall be mine one day. I love it, it's so different! The sparkles is me comparing Lippmann Happy Birthday with Milani Gems. I know they're not exact, but they're similar enough I can live without HB.

All in All, this Lizard gives Chanel Black Pearl a rating of Chilly. I'd say Tepid, but for the price...it's definitely chilly!

Which color do you like best or do you have an even better "Black Pearl" color? Tell me about it please!

Look What I Made!

As I've mentioned before, my 22 year old son moved to Seattle almost a year ago. I haven't seen him since April and I'm really looking forward to spending some Christmas time with him. We celebrate the American Christmas...all the fodder without the religion.

He has expressed that he prefers gifts that were made for him rather than purchased and for that I love him even more. But still, I like to get him something unexpected and purchased when I can. Things that will help him accomplish the goals he's set for himself.

This year, for his handmade gift, I thought it would be kind of cool to give him ornaments that symbolized...well.. Me! That way, he could have his mom nearby even while we're apart, and when the time comes that I leave this life, he'll have these to put on his tree each Christmas and remember me by. What better way to give him something to remember me by than to use nail polish in the creation? Yep, I did! I got into my stash, picked some of my favorites and I made these: *click to make 'em BIG
The pictures aren't the best they can be, and I'll probably take better ones and post 'em up here again...these were taken with my cell phone at work today.

All colors are listed Clockwise from the top left.

OPI Merry Midnight, Sally Hansen Opulent Cloud (GORGEOUS), OPI Shim-Merry Chic and 

China Glaze Emerald Sparkled.

 Close up of the Shim-Merry Chic bulb.

 Essie Huckle Buckle, Sally Hansen Sea and Be Seen (Scene?), Milani 3D Holographic Gold, 

Diamond Cosmetics Canyon Sunrise, Borghese Stellar Notte and China Glaze Good Witch?

Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure, Orly Space Cadet, Zoya Delilah, My LOVE: China Glaze Atlantis (this photo doesn't do the bulb justice at ALL), Sally Hansen Prisms Diamond, My Sage Franken that I made HERE (because my son really like desaturated colors...I suspect this one will be his favorite.)

This last is a Franken I made. I call it "Lights on the Tree"

I mixed equal parts Orly Enchanted Forest and Clear, just a tad less of OPI Shim-Merry Chic and a few drops of China Glaze Atlantis (about 6 or 8). This added holographic sparkle and brought some of the blue back that was lost from adding the Shim-Merry Chic.

I got the idea while looking at Ambefrski's Franken she made with Shim-Merry Chic and some red.

My kiddo doesn't even look at this blog so I'm not concerned I'll spoil the surprise. I am loving the way these are turning out and have 6 more I can make...the fumes though... WOW. My husband came home yesterday, and our little house was so gaseous he asked me if I was feeling ok.  I was getting a headache and so we left the house for a while so I could breathe fresh air. Small house + fumes = not good. We slept with all the windows wide open last night and that helped a ton. They are sitting in my office at work tonight...should be interesting tomorrow. :) 

Any suggestions for other colors I might use? I was thinking De-Luxe-ious from Color Club might be good. I think I need a few more reds though...ideas? I also think the Delilah bulb could use another coat. Amazingly this isn't using much of my pretties. There is some waste, but it's not unbearable and I'm happy to share it with the ones I love, even the ones who don't wear polish. 

I sure hope he doesn't think it's a silly thing to give him...he is, afterall, a young MAN. Something tells me he'll love it though. I think they'll be good for next year...then they won't be flammable anymore. LOL

Please comment your suggestions! I have trouble when I open up my stash and try to decide, it's almost as hard as doing a mani!

NUBBINS!!!

Hi Everyone that is still around this pathetically neglected blog of mine. I am so sorry I've neglected you all by not posting anything here.

Life got pretty out of hand there for a while and it's currently showing no signs of stopping but I'll do my best to post at least once a week. Ok?

Life has tossed me into the abyss and I'm doing lots of fun things to keep from getting sucked in but some days, it's difficult. I won't go into the challenges, only the good stuffs though.

Good stuff number one: I'm finally learning how to play the piano and really truly read music. This is something so close to my heart, so deeply ingrained into my very being, that it is amazing to me that I've taken this long to do it. But here I am, and I am HAVING A BLAST!!! Granted, I can only play Mary Had a Little Lamb and other very simple songs using both hands, but I can PLAY and I'm learning fast.  Unfortunately, as a part of this, I've had to resort to nubbins. (Sad Face Goes Here.) They are, of course, polished, but they are, most definitely, nubbins. Once I'm done learning to play the "Piano" I can grow them out again and play the "Keyboard" without having to worry about the nails. For now, those weighted keys are hard to play correctly with the talons. I did try to go with short rounded, but even those were too long. (Another Sad Face Goes Here.)

On top of that, I am taking a song writing class. Haven't written anything yet, but I think it's due to all the STUFF going on in life right now. I had to re-commit to sitting down for 30 mins a day and just writing. whatever. comes. up. So far, just a bunch of whining and garbage, but I've done this part before, so I know the gem will show up. Hopefully more than one. And this time, I'll be able to write some accompaniment.

You've all seen this one before but it's gorgeous, even on my shorter, almond shaped nails. This is prior to the major chopping I did just last night before the mid-term exam. :)

Orly Space Cadet

Look at it! It's simply gorgeous. This is under incandescent lighting at night...this color is just amazing and it's in my top 5 of all time. Orly sure got this one right in my opinion. From the application to the wear, it was amazing.

Currently, I'm sporting Sally Hansen Xtreme Purple Gala and it's almost a kissing cousin to Space Cadet...but it's a dead-on dupe for Hard Candy's Mr. Wrong. (I finally got one of those a couple weekends ago so I've compared and it's true!)  Without further ado, I give you my NUBBINS!

Sally Hansen Xtreme Purple Gala

Also taken in incandescent light. Heh! My husband said this was subtle! Then he qualified that by adding, "to what you usually wear." heheheh Yeah, that's me, Mrs. Subtle. 

So, I'll be nubbinsy for a while, but I'll be around. Hope you enjoyed the post and I have a question for you all: If you could do ONE thing that you've always wanted to, but couldn't...and you were the prettiest princess in all the land, so there were absolutely NO LIMITATIONS on what you were able to do...what would you do? Please share! I'd love to read your comments.

Burgundy Comparison

The clearing of my inventory continues. This week I'll post more of the comparisons I did, and interject those with some other fun stuffs...like pictures and review of RBL Diddy Mow which I put on today and will test the "9 day wear" claim made there.

On to the comparisons.  Here are the bottles:

Left to right, the players are: Nubar Chocolate Raspberry, Borghese no name mini from Christmas set, Diamond Cosmetics Cherry Tobacco, Sally Hansen mini from Christmas set and OPI mini All A-bordeau the Sleigh.

Same order, starting with my thumb then to my index finger left to right in the sun.

And indoors, indirect daylight.

Nubar Raspberry Truffle is a brown based creme with burgundy flecks. I love the Nubar formula and the brush is good. Two coats to full coverage, but a third adds depth and is so devine. I love this color, it's yummy and has depth to it so it gets to remain in my collection. Lizard rating: Toasty!

Borghese Unnamed mini has an exceptional brush for a mini polish. I found it very easy to use, pro wide and not super short like some minis. They also have a great formula and the pigment was impressive. This is only two coats. Lizard Rating: Balmy only because it is a mini and I'm over minis. LOL

Diamond Cosmetics Cherry Tobacco is a favorite after seeing it on all the other blogs and before this, an untried.  A gorgeous red-brown base with shimmer. Yum! This was as delightful as you've seen out in the blogosphere. The brush is ample, if rather standard. The formula was nice and very well pigmented, also 2 coats to this beautiful finish.

Sally Hansen unnamed mini. This one was also 2 coats of YUM. A rich, dark wine with shine to spare. This brush was also amazing for a mini polish. I loved this color but recently decided that my space won't allow as many bottles as I'd like to own and therefore I'm going to purge Drug Store polishes that I can dupe with a higher end polish. Besides, it's a mini...I'm over 'em. :)  Lizard Rating: Toasty, but no doubt can find a dupe I'll want to keep.

OPI All a-Bordeau the Sleigh was just "meh" for me. Cuticle drag, streaky and the typical issues I have with OPI. I am so not a fan of OPI...has to be a spectacular color that I absolutely cannot get elsewhere before I even consider going there, and usually skip it anyway. This is a not-so-deep red wine. Lizard Rating: Tepid
Maybe a fourth coat would have made this one better but 3 is my limit. Besides, it's a mini...it's gone. :)

I hope you enjoyed my Burgundy Comparison! Next up: Duochrome Purples.

Sea and Be Scene

Hi everyone, I had to post this one up now. I love this mani!
I used smART Nails stencils # N003 and N049 for the waves and N030 on my pinkies with just a slathering of holo-ey goodness on the thumbnail tips.

Sun!

Polishes used: Sally Hansen Sea and Be Seen, Milani Cyberspace for the waves and thumbtips and China Glaze OMG for the Dolphins and accent on the pinkie nail.
I love this so much that the RBLs that arrived today will have to wait til Monday unless this chips.
Sea and Be Seen is so much like sparkling ocean water on a bright sunny day. I love it. I purged my stash of just about all the drug store brands and decided I'd keep this one.

Shade!

So much cool stuff going into the upcoming contest...put your creative caps on, I'm aces at coming up with a fun challenge!
This manicure is for my niece, Julie. She loves the Dolphins and I hope, one day, she'll come visit so she can see them. Maybe we'll row my raft out and see if they'll come visit. :)
(as always, click the pics for detail)
The Lizard rates this one: Sizzling!

On another note, I have to say, the RBL bottles look so much bigger on the web than they are in person...not disappointed, just thinking you all have itty-bitty hands! I have big mitts with long fingers, so I'm going to learn how to play the piano!
Til Monday, have a wonderful weekend!

Yellow comparison - China Glaze and Sally Hansen

And yet another comparison for you dear readers! I am so in the mood for sunny weather, so I figured I'd check out my two yellow cremes and see how they differed.
I compared China Glaze Happy Go Lucky, (LOVE) and Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Mellow Yellow. (Like)

I am not sure EITHER one works on me as a single color to wear alone, but they will be good for Konad or Nail Art when I figure out how the HECK to do THAT! LMAO!!!

Take a look:

Sunlight

Shade

Combo lighting! :) I aim to please here!

Happy Go Lucky is the brighter yellow of the two, while Mellow Yellow is a bit softer. Both are pretty bright, but Happy Go Lucky is just "sunnier" to me.  China Glaze HGL is on my index Finger while Sally Hansen MY is on my middle finger. 

Both applied like I read on other blogs as yellows normally do...kind of streaky and a bit gloopy, but evened out at 3 coats. No top coat used here as these were just swatches and they were barely 5 mins dry at time of photos. 

Depending on sales and location these can be comparable in price, but I think SH will generally be the more economical choice. I am glad I got Happy Go Lucky to keep in my collex for something I will do at some point. :) It's just the right color for "Have a Nice Day" nails. 

Which one do you like better? Do you have an even better yellow in your stash? Tell me about it!

Have a sparkly, shimmery, and glossy day!

VD Fail #2!

Hi there!
As I mentioned in my last post, I spent last night giving myself a new manicure. I used The Manicured Manatee's Tip found HERE (THANK YOU for that one Lady!), and started with my usual base coat (more on that in another post) followed by 2 coats of Diamond Cosmetics Nice 'n Naked, 3 coats of Essie Huckle Buckle, two coats, sort of applied gradiently, of the pretty Borghese Holiday sparkly stuff and a little bit of Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear In the Spotlight on the very tips.

I think the Xtreme wear was overkill, but I was having fun and kind of in a ZONE...does that ever happen to you? You just start trying this and that and your in this space where it's just relaxing and your just painting away and the next thing you know you have the unbelievable 12 or 13 coats of nail polish on your nails!!! ROFL!!! I sit here in amazement just realizing this! That's a zone alrighty!

I give you the results of my relaxing creativity that just seemed to flow out of me and out of all the different bottles and onto my nails. :) And I'll tell ya, the zone flowed so well, that I had to do absolutely NO cleanup. I love the formula of Diamond Cosmetics and Essie. They go where ya tell 'em to and stay there quite nicely. After years of using nothing but drugstore brands this is such a sweet treat!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Polish Porn starts NOW!

Shade, and yes I am showing my rings here on purpose. Both were gifts from my husband. The opal was our first Christmas together, and I think it's so cool that the wedding set design is so similar to the very first ring he ever gave me. :) Close up to show the blingtasmness of this lovely color. I love Huckle Buckle.

See those little holographic strips from In the Spotlight? overkill, but oh well. :)

Have a colorful, sparkly and shiney day!