Polishes Coming to Hawaii

Hello, everyone! It's FINALLY that time where I can share with you the polishes that I will be bringing with me when we move to Hawaii. As some of you may have guessed, this was really hard! After sharing my nail polish collection, it's pretty obvious that I have-- by the standards of a "normal" person-- too much nail polish. My goal was to narrow it down to 10 and I actually ended up with 15. That's pretty good in my book! My challenge to myself was to fill this bag and allow myself ONLY this bag for nail polish.

It's a tight fit, but I made all 15 polishes fit.

I allowed myself some neutrals, a pink, a red, a coral, a light, bright, and a dark purple, a green, and a black-ish/grey glitter, as well as two glitter top coats and a white color for french manicures. Overall, I really tried to pick a wide variety of colors because I tend to pick nail polish based on my mood.

I have my white Sally Hansen color for french tips and Essie Sugar Daddy, which I love for a more clear looking french manicure.

For the "neutrals" (and by that I basically just mean the non-bright colors) I chose Essie Fiji, Essie Demure Vixen, and Essie Angel Food.

I chose OPI La Pazitively Hot as my pink, OPI Come to Poppy as my coral, and OPI Cajun Shrimp as my red.

Next I chose OPI You're Such a Budapest, OPI Purple with a Purpose, and Essie Mint Candy Apple.

For those times when I just feel like wearing a dark color, I've chosen OPI My Private Jet and Revlon No Shrinking Violet.

Last but certainly not least, for the glitters I chose OPI Polka.com and Essie Stroke of Brilliance.

You can see additional pictures in my "Nail Polish Collection" post, and many of these have their own "Nail of the Day" posts.

Hope everyone has a wonderful week! This is my last week of school and I'm preparing for finals. Graduation is May 4th and it's totally surreal! Hopefully another update soon.

xx Anna

OPI That's Berry Daring

So I know I said the next time I posted it would be about the colors that I'll be packing in my suitcase, but I thought I'd squeeze in one more regular post before I did that! I figured you guys wouldn't mind ;) Anyway, I dug up a color I don't think I wear very often. I figured why not? I won't see my full collection for 5-6 months (my husband will be deployed in December, so I'll be home during that time). This color is a hot pink almost fuchsia color.

I actually forgot how much I like this color. It applies really easily and could even be used with only one coat. The reason it's not coming with me is because it's just a solid color. If it had some shimmer, then we'd be talking. Like I said, I like it but it's also something I don't think I've worn for probably a year. The polishes that are coming with me are ones that I'm constantly going back to.

Maybe I'll love it more when I don't see it for another 6 months. We'll see! It might be a color I just give to my mom. I'll keep you guys posted on my next update. I'm hoping for Friday evening or at least by the end of the weekend. I'm excited to share the colors I've officially decided will be making the trip to Hawaii. :)

xx Anna

OPI Cajun Shrimp

I'm not one to wear red, as I think I've mentioned before. It's not a color I wear in clothing or in nail polish. However, OPI Cajun Shrimp is by far the best red that I've ever worn. It's a brighter red and the color payoff is great. I think you could easily only use one coat of this color, though I always use two.

This color will definitely be making the trip to Hawaii. In fact, it was one of the first colors I knew 100% that I would be taking with me. Now, I also promised something a little different. With today being my birthday, I wanted to do something a little different with my nails. Not really different, but special.

I've had this "trend tips" for over a year. I used them for the first time on my last birthday, and decided I wanted to use them for this birthday as well. WARNING: If you do not completely seal them up after use they will dry out! I thought I sealed them up well, but they were definitely a little dry. They normally just apply like a sticker, but I had to be a little more creative and hold them in place for a few seconds so they would stay in place.

I just love this combination. The vibrancy of OPI Cajun Shrimp combined with the cheetah/leopard (what's the difference, anyway?) is just an awesome pairing. For some reason, it's a "feel-good" pairing. It's kind of like the feeling you have after you get your hair cut. It just makes you feel GOOD. It's feminine-- and dare I say sexy!-- which is why I chose this pairing for my birthday. Everyone wants to feel good on their birthday, no matter what age. :) 

My chosen nail polishes to take with me to Hawaii will definitely be in an upcoming post! I've almost got it narrowed down, which is much harder than I thought it would be. :)

xx Anna

Essie Angel Food

If you've been following this blog, you know that I'm in the process of narrowing my collection for our big move to Hawaii. My goal was to choose around 10 colors, but I think I have at least 15. Oops! It's such a hard thing for someone like me who loves having such a wide variety of colors at my finger tips. One color I had to choose was the perfect "nude" color. It's not really a nude, but it's definitely a light neutral. Two colors that are practically identical in my collection are Essie Angel Food and Essie Ballet Slippers. I chose Angel Food because it's SLIGHTLY (like .00009%) more pinkish than Ballet Slipper. If you've ever seen an actual ballet slipper then you know that it's more nude than pink. These colors look the same in the bottle, which is why I decided that I could only take one with me.

I first discovered this polish almost a year and a half ago when I was watching the Food Network. Weird, right? Well, my guilty pleasure is waking up on Saturday mornings, drinking coffee, painting my nails, and watching the new episodes on the Food Network. I sound exciting, don't I? :) My  favorite chef is Giada DeLaurentiis, which is how I discovered this polish! I always wondered what color she wore on her nails because it is such a flattering neutral that doesn't stand out too much, yet still looks like you're wearing nail polish. I started following her on twitter and saw that someone asked her and she said that she wears Essie Angel Food and Essie Ballet Slipper. I immediately bought Ballet Slipper and then bought Angel Food sometime later.

It looks a LITTLE darker here, almost looking like Essie Fiji, but it's still more sheer. I think this is the perfect color when you're doing something professional or want to look sophisticated. It even kind of replaces a french manicure for me. If you use only one coat of this, you can even use it for a french manicure. I've done it, but it depends on how sheer you like your french manicure.

You can tell a little better in this picture that it's not as dark as the first. I just really like this color. It's great when you want to wear nail polish, but don't want something bright or colorful.

I'll have another post on Thursday or Friday. My birthday is on Thursday (yay!) and I already know what I want to do for "special" 22nd-birthday-worthy nails. Can't wait to show you guys! :)

xx Anna

Essie Barefoot & Topless

Happy Sunday! Hope you all had a wonderful weekend and are ready to begin a new week. As you've been able to tell, I typically paint my nails on the weekend. I find it relaxing, not to mention that I'm typically too busy during the week. I've started narrowing down the colors that will be making the trip to Hawaii with me and one color-family I have yet to look into is the nude colors. Being fair-skinned, I think nudes can be challenging to pull off.

I'll admit, when I bought this color it looked different. I don't hate it, but I don't really love it either. I'll probably change colors in a couple days. Since I'm only to have such a large selection of colors, there's no point in wearing a shade if I don't love it. Maybe if I get a bit of a tan (ha! fair skin, remember?) it will look better. I was reading somewhere that nude polishes are the best to wear because they elongate the fingers and don't age the appearance of hands. I'm not overly concerned about it because I'm still young, but it's an interesting idea regardless.

Like I said, it's not bad....but it's a little too close to the color of my skin. I have one other nude that's slightly darker that I definitely feel like I need to try now just to see the difference. I'll most likely have a new post in a couple days :)

xx Anna

Essie Lilacism & OPI Show it and Glow it

Sorry I've been a little MIA lately, but school has been absolutely hectic. I just purchased my gap and gown a couple days ago so it's totally hitting me that this time in exactly one month I'll have just graduated. When I entered my freshman year everyone said "appreciate it because it goes by so fast" and they were absolutely right. It's surreal that I'm, what most people would consider, an "adult" now. Anyway, back to my love of nail polish.

As you know, I've been using nail polishes recently to help me decide which colors will come with me to Hawaii. I love this nail polish, but I'm not sure that it will come with me. I'm talking about Essie Lilacism, which I actually think is similar to OPI You're Such a Budapest. I prefer the OPI version because it's brighter, and there's really no point to bring two similar shades with me. I paired Essie Lilacism with OPI Show it and Glow it, which was actually part of the Burlesque limited edition collection. I can't express how hard it was for me to find this polish over a year ago. It's a little dried up now, so it really needs to head to the trash, but I wanted to use it one last time!

I really do love these colors together, and the glitter just makes me happy. I think my next couple of posts will be me trying to narrow down which colors go to Hawaii with me. My biggest challenge is taking fun AND "professional" looking nudes, simply because I don't know yet what I'll be doing as far as work. I'll post again this weekend because I painted these colors on my nails last weekend, so be on the lookout for that!

xx Anna

Essie Fiji

Yes, it's 100% worth the hype. If I had to choose 1 nail polish for the rest of my life it would probably be Essie Fiji. It's the perfect baby pink and will definitely be in my luggage heading to Hawaii!

Anytime I wear this polish, I always get asked about it. I actually bought it because Emily Maynard, former Bachelorette, wore it on her season of the Bachelor. She was wearing it in every episode and I knew I had to get my hands on it. It's hands down probably the best polish I've ever purchased.

I've been searching for the perfect "nude/pink" color for quite some time now. I've come close with Essie Ballet Slipper and Essie Angel Food Cake, but I think Essie Fiji is definitely perfect "neutral" shade. Yes, it's baby pink, but it's so subtle that I think it can easily pass for a neutral. I would also say that this is my go-to polish. "When in doubt, go with Fiji." I know others feel the same way just because it's the best neutral; it goes with everything! I think you could also say that this could pass for a "pastel" color, which makes it perfect for spring. I've already started thinking about what lucky polishes will get to come to Hawaii, and the only one that I know for sure will absolutely be Essie Fiji. It applies beautifully as well. I used two coats, but I think you could get away with one coat. I love it because it even looks good with my fair skin; which I hope to get a couple shades darker while living in Hawaii. I can't imagine how good this shade will look with a tan!

xx Anna

St. Patrick's Day Nails: Mint Candy Apple

I love St. Patrick's Day for multiple reasons. I love dressing up in green and eating corned beef, cabbage, and potatoes. Not only do I love it for those reasons, but my ancestors were also from Ireland. My Great Grandma's grandparents (Kelly's) were directly from Ireland. I usually only wear green, but I decided that I would paint my nails my favorite shade of green: Essie Mint Candy Apple.

This is actually only 1 of 2 green colors I have, but the other is slightly darker (OPI Mermaid's Tears, I believe). I discovered this color last summer and it's definitely been a favorite since then. Thinking about moving to Hawaii, and seriously having to narrow down the polishes I take with me, has me trying to decide on about 10 polishes to take. I think this will probably be one of them. I'll most likely stick to "summer" colors, mostly because the "winter" and "fall" colors I have won't really work in a state that is literally summer year round.

I'll definitely keep posting my Nail of the Day posts up until I move because I'm hoping I can get through all of my favorites to show you. I will also make sure, before I move, to share with you--what I suppose will be--my top 10(ish) nail colors. I figure I'll only pack the ones I truly consider to be favorites, which unfortunately won't include fall or winter shades. But I'll be honest, my goal of 10 may be slightly unrealistic considering I think I'm well over 60 currently. However, cutting out winter and fall shades will help me tremendously.

Happy St. Patrick's Day to everyone, whether you're Irish, of Irish ancestry, or just Irish for the day! :)

xx Anna

OPI Suzi's Hungary Again

My first thought about this nail polish was that it reminded me of OPI Come to Poppy, except a lighter version. 

It's probably not my all-time favorite color, but it's still pretty.

I typically look up pictures of the polish before buying it, and I definitely don't think the pictures that I saw made it look like this. I feel like it looks brighter than I expected. It definitely looks brighter in person!

It's also already started chipping. I did everything as I usually do: base coat, 2 coats of color, and top coat. I literally just painted my nails on Tuesday and my right thumb nail has already chipped in 2 places! To be honest, I will probably change this color over the weekend. This is probably the only polish I've been disappointed with in as long as I can remember. I'd recommend OPI Come to Poppy over this anyday! 

xx Anna

Coffee-mate Natural Bliss creamer

When I was in Seattle, I decided to try the Natural Bliss creamer. I've seen commercial after commercial about it, but have never tried it. The reason I actually got it was because it was the cheapest creamer, plus I was interested to try it. As you may assume, the Natural Bliss creamers are made with real, natural ingredients: milk, cream, sugar, and real flavor. It also comes in caramel and chocolate, but I noticed that the caramel was $2.99 while the vanilla was $2.79. Not sure what that was about, but I got the vanilla regardless!

I paired it with the Vanilla Caramel Cream k-cups.

The creamer was pretty good, but not as rich and creamy as other creamers. I guess whatever artificial gunk makes creamer rich! The pairing, however, made me think of the instant coffee. Whenever I smelled it while it was brewing, I instantly was reminded of the Cafe Escapes. Yuck. When I took a sip, it wasn't as bad as I feared. I'm thinking it was the coffee, not the creamer. Or maybe the combination of the two. I'm definitely interested to try the creamer in the other flavors, but maybe with a different flavored coffee. These two just don't go that well together because of the "instant" coffee vibe.

xx Anna

Moving Update

So I have some rather big news for those of you who have been following my posts about my husband getting orders in April. Originally, we were told it would either be California or North Carolina. We were SO hoping for North Carolina because it's only a 13 hour drive to our hometown of Greenwood, IN. However, we didn't get either of those. Drum roll please........

We're being sent to HAWAII. It's pretty unbelievable and it really hasn't set in yet. I think because I've been so looking forward to NC, that it doesn't even seem real that in 2 months we'll be in Hawaii. It's pretty bittersweet. On one hand, we probably won't be able to come home very often in the next 2 years because of the expense of travel. Not only that, but the cost of living is so high that it will be impossible to save any money. Thankfully we've already been saving as much as possible to cushion us a little bit. And on the other hand, how many opportunities come around like this? Honestly, I would probably never get to go to Hawaii any other time in my life. My husband and I are too cheap for travel and I doubt we'll travel much, except maybe when we have kids in the future. It'll be like a 2 year vacation, except I'll obviously have to find work somehow. Again, the downside will be not seeing my friends or family (that more than likely won't or couldn't afford to visit us) for 2 years. I'm hoping that if we both can't visit home, then at least maybe I could at some point.

I'm trying to be optimistic about it rather than bummed. It seems selfish and ungrateful for me to be upset when many people would only dream of being able to live somewhere like this. So I'm guessing that I'll have even more to blog about now, as far as travel goes, because I'm guessing NC wouldn't have been quite as exciting.

Anyway, I'll let you know more as I find out. I've only known for about 12 hours, so all I know at this point is that we'll be in Hawaii. I'm curious to find out about where we'll actually be and how in the world we'll get our stuff moved there. Clearly most of my nail polish collection will have to stay behind....lol

xx Anna

OPI You're Such A Budapest & Polka.com

I couldn't leave on Spring Break without leaving you all without another Nail of the Day, could I? The Spring 2013 Collection from OPI (aka Euro Centrale) is absolutely amazing. I purchased three of the polishes from the collection, and am tempted by two others that I will more than likely buy as well. One of the great things about this collection is the polish Polka.com because it goes with several of the other polishes in the collection. If I'm going to buy a glitter top coat, you better believe I want more than one color to wear it with.

I've decided to pair it first with OPI You're Such A Budapest from the same collection. I personally think these two look awesome together, and make me feel super girly and happy. Yes, I despise taking glitter off, BUT, I certainly enjoy wearing it. This will not be the last time you hear me talking about this collection, and I'm sure there will be many posts to come with other various colors.

You're Such A Budapest is such a pretty purple color! Slightly lavender, slightly periwinkle as well.

Now the fun part: OPI Polka.com

As you can see, there is pink, purple, and turquoise glitter (which is why it goes with so many different polishes!). LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!

Until next time,

xx Anna

Spring Break 2013

Hello, everyone! I'm on Spring Break, which is crazy to think about because that means only 8 more weeks of school after this break! And I suppose it's my last Spring Break for a while. This weekend, I'm going on a little girl trip with my mom and grandma to one of the casinos a couple hours away. It should be fun! I'll come back Sunday afternoon and then head to Seattle on Monday afternoon and stay until Sunday. I feel like quite the busy bee! I've had such a stressful couple of weeks with midterm tests, papers, and other random assignments, that it will be nice to get away and relax....now if only I were going to a sunny beach. I will probably be MIA for the next week, but I'll be back in action after Spring Break.

xx Anna

Lush: Almond and Coconut Shower Smoothie

I have been hearing about Lush products for over a year now and finally broke down and bought my first Lush goodie. This winter has been super harsh on my skin and it seems that no amount of lotion helps keep my skin happy. I heard about how moisturizing the Almond and Coconut Smoothie was and decided I would give it a try. It's certainly not cheap, at just under $22, but I decided that it would be worth the money. I was happy to find out that it was! I've only used this twice, but my skin feels so much better. Not that you wouldn't want to put lotion on after using this, but it's still a great product. I felt like getting a head start on moisturizing made my skin really absorb the lotion I put on afterwards. I tweeted this picture and tagged Lush and they even tweeted me back! Nerdy, but still pretty cool.
I also bought 3 bath bombs that they were selling for Valentine's Day and I'll report on those after I try them. I've used something like it before and LOVED it so I'm sure these Lush bath bombs will be no different. The bath bombs were definitely more affordable. All the ones I bought were under $8. Maybe that seems like a lot for a bath, but I think they'll be worth it on those super stressful days where you just need a good soak in the bath. Being a new "Lushie" means I'm open to suggestions on what I should try! What are your favorite Lush products?

xx Anna

Essie Demure Vixen

If you've seen my posts about my nail polish collection, or any of my "Nail of the Day" posts, then you know that I have a eclectic taste in nail polish. Every week, it's a different color or shade to match my mood or a specific outfit I have in my mind. Typically this time of year, I choose more pastel or brighter polishes. However, today I had to attend a Donor/Scholar luncheon at school. Basically it was just a way for students to meet the wonderful people that fund our scholarships and be able to thank them in person. The invitation said "business casual" and automatically I was trying to think of a nail polish that wouldn't be too crazy. My first thought was Essie Fiji or Ballet Slipper because they're soft and neutral. Then I thought of my most recent nail purchases and decided that Essie Demure Vixen would be perfect.

I keep a list of all the nail polishes I want to add to my collection on my phone and this one was at the top of the list. I find myself looking for more "business" appropriate nail polishes, since I clearly won't be able to wear bright colors forever. This is a perfect choice if you want something neutral, but want a little more color. It's a dusty rose color that I think is perfect.

It's sad that I'm already thinking about the next color that I'll paint my nails, but it's because I've added three new colors from the OPI Spring 2013 Collection to my own personal collection. I'll be super excited to share that with you guys next weekend!
Until next time,

xx Anna

OPI Come to Poppy

As we're nearing spring, I find myself being drawn back to the OPI 2012 Spring Collection. One of my favorites polishes from that collection is Come to Poppy. It's such a gorgeous coral/poppy color that I haven't seen duplicated by any other nail polish brand. This is easily one of my "go-to" polishes for spring, and even summer.
Today I'm going to a baby shower for my best friend and was trying to figure out which polish to wear with the outfit I picked out and Come to Poppy was an easy choice for me. It's such an easy color to wear and even looks good on my fair skin. If you have fair skin, you know that sometimes polishes don't look the best with our skin tone. If you can't already tell, OPI is seriously (in my opinion) one of the best brands of nail polish. I feel like I'm getting a great quality product for the money that I'm spending. The Spring 2012 collection was probably the first collection that I purchased completely. I try my best not to buy an entire collection unless I really think I'll wear every polish. It's just hard because if you want half of them, sometimes you can find the entire collection for around the same price. Anyway, I love this polish and I can't rave about it enough. I'm also super excited about the 2013 Spring Collection and currently have a few that are en route to my house as we speak. More on that later! :)

xx Anna

Valentine's Day Nails

I thought I'd take the perfect opportunity with V-Day coming up to share a little tutorial with you.

This is the final look. It's a pink, red heart for a statement nail, topped off with glitter. Doesn't get better than that!

First, you'll need to collect several things. You'll need a base coat, a baby pink color of your choice (I'm using OPI Sparrow Me the Drama), and red of your coice (OPI Cajun Shrimp), either a silver or pink glitter (OPI I Lily Love You), and a top coat.

Base coat comes first, which protects your nails and also helps from chipping. Next, you'll paint two coats of your pink color.

I love this color because it's almost a dusty rose color, but any light pink will work here. It's totally up to you! So after you've painted two coats of your pink, you'll need to let it dry for quite a while before you try to draw the heart. It's important to let your nails dry so the pink layer doesn't get messed up trying to create the heart!

For the heart you'll need your red and an orange stick, or anything with a point. You can use a toothpick as well!

You'll put a drop of the red onto a piece of paper. Since I only did my ring fingers, this amount works well. If you do more than one nail you'll probably need more of the red.

You'll take the orange stick and dip it into the red, making sure you get a decent amount onto the stick. Make two dots in the middle of your nail and then use the orange stick and drag the stick through the red to make a point. You may need to work and shape it a little bit to make it look like a heart, but this is typically a foolproof way to make a heart.

After you connect the dots you should end up with a heart like this! So once you've made your hearts you'll also need to let them dry completely. If not, the red will smear into the pink when we put the glitter on top.

Now it's time for the glitter! OPI I Lily Love you is from the Spring Collection 2012 and it's actually not clear, but rather it's slightly pink. I love this glitter because there are also big chunks of iridescent pieces as well as the smalls bits of glitter. You'll want at least one coat of this, depending on your glitter preferences.

Once the glitter dries, you'll need a top coat. I used two layers of top coat to make it last longer.

And that's the final product! I tend to only make the hearts on my ring fingers just because I don't have the steadiest hand, but the hearts would look good on every nail as well. Let me know what you think! :)

xx Anna