rich in spirit

metallic baby blue - almost like a silver with a tint of blue

dipped in gold nails for CNY

It's all about the glam - nicole by OPI
A gold winter's night - nicole by opi
A cut above - essie

making waves

After seeing the gorgeous set of nail polish called waves by the new black at Sephora and reluctantly putting it down I was determined to convince myself that I didn't need the set to create the pretty ombre look... and voila!

 

I had on Mint Sorbet by Sally Hansen Xtreme wear on which I layered Nicole by OPI's somebody teal love (from the bieber collection) - one coat on my index fingers and two coats on my middle fingers, followed by respect the world also from Nicole by OPI and finally Revlon's over the moon on my pinkies - not exactly a dupe but I think it turned out pretty neat! 

Nicole 's nickel

another haul at shoppers drug mart

i know i have a horrible obsession but how could I resist checking out Shoppers Drug Mart after those unbelievable deals earlier this week?

This SDM in Mississauga didn't have any Stila holiday sets on clearance prices, but they had something else:

Another ~$100 of damage

perfectly teal

Unexpected haul @ shoppers

Went into Shoppers Drug Mart looking for Neocitran at behest of man-turned-baby (yep the flu this season had gotten the best of him) - only to find that it's out if stock and there is actually a shortage in Canada since the manufacturing plant had shut down after visits by inspectors... so instead of finding what he needs, I found a bunch of stuff that I didn't really need but picked up anyway because they were such good deals!

 

All these plus a box of advil and a bottle of honey for just a tad over $50 - and got a $10 gift card!

all is glam, all is bright

sparkly!!

Purple Teal & Silver

 

Inspired by my dear friend's wedding theme colors - 

I painted my nails with different shades of purple, teal & silver

(well, mostly purples, because I only have one polish that resembles the greenish-bluish-teal that she had in mind) 

 

If I can recall the shades correctly:

Nicole by OPI - the Grape Debate (grape purple)
Nicole by OPI - Respect the World (greenish teal)
Revlon - Rock (royal purple/cooler tone than grape)
Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme - Celeb City (shiny silver)
Revlon - Gum Drop (pastel lilac)

Probably just a tad too funky to wear as bridal nails.

holiday cheers nails

At a dollar a pop in the Lisa's Cosmetic Warehouse Sale, I couldn't resist but to pick up this nail polish in a dark crimson red along with another one in a rich dark chocolate brown - both that would be great for winter wear.  I loved the Real Royal from Sally Hansen's Maximum Growth plus Nourishing nail polish, but was a little disappointed in Always from the Diamond Strength line.  I was really drawn to it because of the crimson color in the bottle, but on the nails the color is closer to a cherry red.  

 

Way too loud and cheerful for the classy understated elegance I was looking for (like the Oxblood that Michelle was wearing on her accent nail) - but with some glitters (a la Nicole by OPI's Love Your Life), it's actually just what would be perfect for adding some holiday cheers :)

 

nail art stickers

You know how I tend to go overboard on things (remember my gingerbread house compared to Michelle's)... Well, I did it again, this time with sparkly stickers on my nails. I think this nail art could pass for a bridal design, or at least if you are planning to attend a party where you would want to show up with a fancier manicure.

The base color is Nicole by OPI in cocoa a go-go and the stickers were a surprising find at the dollar store. They were quite finicky to peel off and properly position because of the adhesive backing but once you get the hang of it - it's so easy that I had put more than what's classy on my nails.


Also trying for the first time Drying Drops from the same line and I'd have to say although not an indispensable tool, it's something nice to have in case you are in a hurry.

nail polish of the week

Loving this new addition to my collection of nail polish which has seen several expansions recently thanks to my shopping sprees, because it's a nice light bronze/metallic pink shade that is nude enough to make chips not noticeable but shiny enough (but not in a glossy way) to not appear passé.  I was surprised that the color came out so light though, because the lacquer appeared to be more coppery brown than pink and that's why I bought it.

This shade is called "it's starts with me" from Nicole by OPI.

Morning after...

These late-night outings on Tuesdays (and they seem to drag on later and later every week) are going to either get me fired or get me killed on the road one of these days. It's not so much that it's not as much fun as before - it's more like they are having too much fun to realize that it's way past bedtime - and I can no longer pull late-nighters and still function in the morning like I used to, back when I was still in school. Staying out late is also taking a toll on me mentally and physically - I get so grumpy and irritable - and the dark circles under my eyes are getting so bad that none of my concealers worked anymore. I really don't know how much longer I can put up with it - especially since this is supposed to be our stress relief!


On the bright side we had tons of fun last night painting our nils and trying different color combinations - and we finally tried on the Lancome Miss Perfectly Pink nail polish Michelle had picked for me from one of her US shopping trips. It's a Barbie pink that would be perfect for summer - except it's still quite chilly out there today.

The metallic lavender Auntie picked looked great on her too :)

my obsession

I was never really into makeup and all that, but even as a kid, I had been fascinated with nail colors and all the other pretty things you could do with it.  Of course, being thrifty as I am, I have only played around with DIY nail art - salon manicures and pedicures are overpriced, and I can't stand sitting idle while my hands and feet are being worked on.  I did want to try gel nails, which was the newest trend when I went back to Hong Kong, and all those crystals and embellishments looked so yummy (the decals were in shapes of sweets and strawberries). My vacation time was limited though and there were so many friends and families to visit so I never got the chance to sit for a gel manicure.  Other than that, I enjoy trying out new colors on my nails in the comfort of my own home, and over the years I've ended up with quite a collection of nail colors:

But how could I pass up the sale when Rexall was having a "nail event" with everything 50% off?  So I ended up splurging a bit (OK, maybe a little bit more than a bit), and picked up several new colors from Nicole by O.P.I.  That's usually a brand I don't buy because it's about five times the price of what I usually pay, even though their color selection is quite attractive.  Now why would I spend 10 bucks on a bottle of nail polish when I can get a similar color for 2 bucks, knowing that I may not even use it more than twice?  But with this sale event, they became reasonably-priced, so I figured it's the best time to treat myself.

Compared to my usual brands, Nicole by O.P.I. was easy to apply - it goes on smoothly and only needed one coat to give a vibrant color.  It also dried quickly, which is another bonus.  So I guess you do get what you pay for, but I still can't justify spending 10 bucks on one nail polish and I'd rather get more variety with that same amount of money - can you?