I Can't Get No...

...well, you know, Satisfaction?!

Did you know that today, July 12, 2012, marks the 50th anniversary of the Rolling Stones' first gig? It is! They played on July 12, 1962 at the Marquee Club in London, England!

Growing up, I wasn't one of those 'normal' kids that listened to Debbie Gibson...oh wait, I was. However, I actually spent the majority of my radio-listening time on Oldies 96.1, and could sing the words to every damn song that came on. I think I knew (and still know) the songs of my mom's youth better than she does. :D (with the exception of Neil Diamond, she's got his songs down) Anyway, I remember one night that they were doing a Rolling Stones marathon, and I kept trying to call in my requests, but never got through. Poor kid, I was super sad.

One of my all-time favorite Rolling Stones songs and favorite songs in general is 'Paint it Black,' which I SWEAR is one of the most stick-in-your-head songs ever. I can merely read the song name, and it get stuck in my head for days. Damn them.

Do you have a favorite Rolling Stones song?

In honor of the 50-year anniversary, I chose to do Rolling Stones nail art today!  I painted it black (get it?!) and then topped that with black glitter for a bit o' texture (makes me want a Bit o' Honey candy bar reaaaaal bad). Instead of art on all 5 nails, I focused on two accent nails, the Rolling Stones tongue logo on my ring finger, and the best Mick Jagger caricature I could fit on a fingernail on my thumb. :)

Looks kinda messy, but from a foot away, it looks better, I swear. 

I used:

Black: American Apparel Hassid
Black Glitter: L.A. Girl Glitter Addict Uninhibited
Red: China Glaze Hey Sailor
White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On
Brown: Barielle Coco Bar
Skin: Zoya Avery
Facial Shading:
               Light- Zoya Gretchen
               Medium- Zoya Dea
               Dark- Barielle Coco Bar
Lip color: Zoya Avery and China Glaze Hey Sailor mixed
Eyes: American Apparel Passport Blue

I see a red door and I want it painted black.


Disclosure: Links to Zoya polishes are 'Share the Love' affiliate links, and any points earned goes straight to giveaways!

NAIL ART REWIND — Bacon is Great!

Now that I'm closing in on finishing my 3rd year doing this blog, I've taken some time to look back on designs that made this blog what it is. Unfortunately, there were designs that:

• I loved, but took with a crappy camera, so I have a picture that probably would've been clearer if I took it with my iPhone.
• I loved the concept for, but the execution sucked.
• Were ok to begin with, but I think I can make them better now.
• My cuticles/nails were in HORRIBLE, embarrassing, disgusting shape.

I've decided to do a new feature where I choose designs from the past every once in a while- maybe every 2-3 weeks or so? Maybe each month? and redo them the way I think they should be done NOW!

For the first of this series, I of course chose Bacon is Great! Seriously, did I have any other option for the inaugural design?!

So here you go, the design that put this blog on the proverbial 'map' — Bacon!

I used:

White: American Apparel Cotton
Red: A mix of-
               China Glaze Hey Sailor
               American Apparel Manila
               American Apparel Pinto
               Barielle Coco Bar
Pink: A mix of-
               American Apparel California Trooper
               China Glaze Hey Sailor
               American Apparel Manila
Topcoat: Seche Vite

Feelin' Blue-berry?

Growing up, there was an abundance of things to do during the summer break from school. One of of them was NOT saying 'I'm bored!' Those two words strung together were simply not allowed in my house. What did this mean? You went outside. Yes, I grew up before video game consoles were in every household (we DID have a Nintendo and B/W Gameboys as we grew older and a super awesome Texas Instruments game/keyboard thingy though), we didn't even *GASP* have cable TV. We had 4 channels: ABC, CBS, NBC, and PBS, and if it wasn't on one of those channels, you didn't need to watch it. You relied on your brain and creativity to keep yourself busy. As long as the sun was out, my sister and I managed to find something outdoors to do...luckily, we grew up in the middle of a forest, so there was an abundance of things to do and discover. We shot BB guns, rode 4-wheelers (we weren't supposed to), rode bikes, built forts, hiked through the woods, played in the yard, played with the dogs, even went fishing in our neighbor's pond. Luckily, we weren't girls that were concerned with getting downright filthy. I rarely wore shoes, and could run barefoot on gravel. Anyway, one of my favvvvvorite things to do in the summers growing up was pick all the wild berries growing around the house, we had wild strawberries (which are teeny tiny), raspberries (my favorite), and wild blueberries. I loved walking through the woods, pulling berries off the bushes and popping them in my mouth, now THAT was summer. (That and begging our parents to take us for ice cream at the local ice cream parlor, Zanner's, which was in one of the oldest buildings in town.)

Because I'm feeling nostalgic and admittedly, missing home, I decided to do blueberry nail art! I used the new polish that I got as part of a Klout Perk from Essie - Bikini So Teeny, a periwinkle blue with a barely noticeable hint of silver sparkle. You may also notice that my nails are a very different shape than usual, too. :) I was bored I guess, I've had the same (or similar) nail shape for as long as I can remember - at least 10 years or more. It was time for a change, right?! I'm still undecided whether I like this new shape or not, hoping it grows on me or grows OUT fast! :)  What do you think of the new shape?

 

I used:

Light Blue: Essie Bikini So Teeny
Dark Blurple: American Apparel Mount Royal
Blurple Highlight: American Apparel Cameo Blue
Blurple Shading: American Apparel Passport Blue


Now, I usually use the padded files from CND, they're my absolute favorite. However, I recently became a part of the Tweezerman Ambassador program, and in the kit they sent were 3 different types of files (amongst some other pretty fantastic stuff, but that will come later), so I thought I'd give one of them a go. I selected the Sansational nail file, a Coarse/Medium grit file that made seriously quick work of my nail reshaping. Another great thing about this file is that is can be washed and disinfected, which is always a plus. This file is a bit too gritty for regular filing, but for reshaping, it was absolute perfection.

Disclosure: Some products in this post were provided as a Perk through Klout Perks, or were provided for consideration by the manufacturer. My opinion is my own.

Instagram It.

So there is this wonderful, time-eating app that many of us have on our phones and post photos of things we find amusing and photo-worthy in our lives. This app is, of course, Instagram. I have fallen into it's clutches, and like quicksand, the more I try to leave, the further I get sucked in.


What's popular right now?!  


Woah, what language is that? 


Hey, that's pretty funny.


Nails!


Hmmm, interesting choice of filter. 


Ummmm, didn't really need to see that. 


Anyway, I digress... what I'm trying to say is that I'm now on Instagram... you can find me @thedailynail, and I expect all of you to follow me. Seriously, this isn't me joking. Does it look like I'm joking? OK, maybe I am, but if you think I'm cool, you should totally follow me on there. Oh, who am I trying to kid, of course you think I'm cool...right? Right?!  :-P (If not, just pretend. I'm fragile.)

I post stuff like sneak peeks of my nails, my pet monkey Homer (he's actually a rat terrier, not a monkey, but I say 'When in India...'), weird things I see, things that amuse me, and other odds and ends. No boob pics, promise. I'll do my best to keep it interesting, scout's honor. (I was a Brownie, so i can say that)

Anyway, to the point of this post and what you actually came here for... the nails. To commemorate my Instagram-ness, I did Instagram nails!!

I used:

Tan: American Apparel California Trooper
Tan Shading: American Apparel California Trooper mixed with Barielle Coco Bar
Brown: Barielle Coco Bar
Brown Shading: MAC Rich, Dark, Delicious
Brown Highlight: Deborah Lippmann Naked
Black: American Apparel Hassid
Teal: American Apparel Peacock
Pink: American Apparel Lipstick mixed with American Apparel Coney Island
Lens Highlight: American Apparel American Denim
Red: China Glaze Hey Sailor
Yellow: American Apparel Manila
Green: CND Green Scene
Blue: Ultra Pro Blue Blaze
Topcoat: 2 coats Seche Vite top coat

I totally posted a sneak peek of this design on my Instagram... it was like Leo Dicaprio was next to me in some crazy Inception shit. 

Go FOURTH and be Happy.

It's the fourth. Yeah, of July. Can you believe it? Seriously, I'm in shock. This trip around the sun has flown by like none other and here we are again, celebrating our day of independence! Well...you are. People might look at me funny if I was out on my lawn (we don't have a lawn) grilling burgers, don't ya think? Plus I had to work, because it's not Independence Day here! :) (I have to wait for August 15th for theirs!) Chris said he was going to 'get drunk and blow shit up', but apparently his version of that is a cool glass of water and an episode of Masterchef Australia while he surfs the interwebs on his iPad. :-D What can I say, we're an exciting pair, right?

I've been sick lately...it all started with a dirty little germ disseminator (otherwise known as a child) sitting next to me coughing without covering his gaping yaw for the entire flight from Brussels to Chennai. That was 2 weeks, 3 sick days, several days of sleeping, about 5,000,000 movies, a doctor's visit, 3 prescriptions, and one stern instruction that I wasn't allowed to eat ANY fruits (apples are allowed), or have any fruit juice. Odd for a doctor to say, right?  I'm pretty sure this is the perfect way to get me to eat my fruits and veggies though, because it's all I can think about now. I guess that ole 'want what you can't have' saying might hold some truth. Anyway...

As my way to 'celebrate' being American, I did what any other sane nail-art loving blogger would do...my nails. Now, every year it gets harder and harder to do my nails, because there is only so many ways you can configure red, white and blue, right? Well, In the past, I've actually steered clear of the good ole RW&B (I'm such a rebel), and I've done the Declaration of Independence, the Statue of Liberty (not one of my finest), and the culinary treat that is a tube of meat that we all know and love called a Hot Dog...  Well, this year I was inspired by a picture that my friend Roxie posted on her Instagram of her getting her Fourth of July buntings ready to hang. My goal was to try to capture the shadows of the draped/gathered/folded fabric, and still maintain that vibrant trio of colors that are synonymous with liberty. 

I used: 

White: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On!

Red: China Glaze Hey Sailor

Blue: China Glaze First Mate

Red Shading: American Apparel Lipstick and American Apparel Lipstick and American Apparel Passport Blue mixed

Blue Shading: American Apparel Passport Blue 

White Shading: American Apparel American Denim and Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On mixed.

How are you celebrating your Fourth of July?

Skull Appreciation Day!

Did you know that June 4 is Skull Appreciation Day?! In 2011, to commemorate the beginning of the 5th year of the Skull-A-Day website, which was created by Noah Scalin in 2007, the editors decided to proclaim June 4 as international Skull Appreciation Day! As a lover of skulls (hey, I adore mine, it protects my brain), I decided to celebrate Skull Appreciation Day by painting my nails! (Is there any other way?)

I painted the Skull Appreciation Day LOVE logo on my thumb, and then broke it down so each letter was on a separate nail (thank God it was only 4 letters long, or I'd need to be polydactyl!).

I used

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On - base
Nicole by OPI Redy to Runaway Love
Seche Vite topcoat

How are YOU celebrating?!

16 (+15 more) Candles

So yesterday was my birthday, and it was (despite turning a year older- 31, eek!!) awesome. Its the first time in a long time that I really enjoyed and celebrated the day. No, it wasn't a day punctuated by presents (other than those that I gifted myself, haha), but that wasn't what I wanted my birthday to be. I got to spend my day with my sister...after she patiently waited for me to get a mani/pedi! (she's not the mani/pedi type) Speaking of which, I got it done utilizing a Groupon that I'd purchased on a whim, but the lady that did it, Melanie, at The Getaway Salon & Spa in Grand Rapids, MI, did a faboo job. The Groupon was for a Shellac mani and regular spa pedicure, so I opted for red toes, and clear Shellac for my mani so I could paint over it, and I seriously can't stop looking at my hands. I NEVER EVER have plain, shiny, natural nails, but she did such a great job on my poor cuticles and whatnot that my hands and nails look so pretty and shiny. She even managed to get a lot of the staining off!

After the mani/pedi, we went downtown Grand Rapids to enjoy Festival of the Arts (my sister's first time!) and I ate the most amazing veal, mushroom, and onion sandwich on the most scrumptious butter-grilled bun from the Bosnia Center's booth. (Please, no lectures on veal. I know, I know, but it is one of the cruel foods that I have a complete and utter weakness for), I also ate a Walking Taco (a strange, yet delicious combination of taco meat, cheese, and lettuce added to an individual size Fritos bag), some of my sister's Souvlaki from the Greek booth, some Pavlova, and a cinnamon elephant ear. After all that eating, we went craft shopping (a nerdy favorite of mine), and then later that evening, I enjoyed the company of some great friends at a local beer bar, HopCat! I drank a raspberry lambic (a must if you've never had it), and an odd honey and sage beer called Sage Against the Machine. Mind you, I was driving, and I'm a bit of a lightweight to begin with, so I stopped there...along with 3 glasses of water, an order of Crack Fries (amazingly seasoned–and aptly named–french fries), and Killer Mac & Cheese (the menu description states that 'resistance is futile', and they aren't lying!). It was a super awesome day, and now to top off my birthday weekend, Stacey and I are taking a roadtrip to IKEA and Trader Joes!!  YAY! (I double-heart both places!!)

So anyway, these are my birthday nails, which were done before I got my manicure!  I used two of my favorite types of polishes- neons and holographic!! (and of course, Hassid!!) Since I am 31 this year, I thought it'd be fun to paint all kinds of different 31s on my nails over the crazy brightness of the neons. For the holographic, I used a topcoat that I made with Seche Vite and SpectraFlair, which was Krystal from Polish Galore's suggestion/idea, and a killer one at that! I can make ANY nail polish holographic now!! HELL-TO-THE-YES!!!

I used:

China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy
China Glaze Sun Worshipper
Urban Outfitters Neon Orange
American Apparel Hassid
SpectraFlair topcoat made with Seche Vite topcoat.

Some of the day's food/drinks!! :-D