Christmas Nails

Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, and I hope it was a wonderful day surrounded by people you love! Of course I had to do a little something for the holidays on my nails, but was very limited by the supplies I brought with me to my parents house. So, just a simple little red and green manicure with some gold glitter did the trick!

Wintery Blue Dotticure

I'm trying to get into the winter spirit here despite the lack of cold and snow. So, I decided to choose some nice blue colors to do a dotticure and top it with a light glitter reminiscent of a snow fall. These photos are from 3 days after application, so it's standing up pretty well, though it probably won't make it until Christmas.

Blue with White Fuzzy Glitter

This week, I really wanted to try to get into the winter-y spirit, despite the weather still being in the upper 60s! So, I went with a really nice deep blue polish and a white fuzzy glitter that I have had for over a year but never tried. It reminds me of winter snow!

Nude with Gold Sequins

I decided to depart from the 52 week challenge so that I could choose my own designs and do nail art on my own schedule (because things are so hectic!). Last week, I decided to do a simple nude polish, but then I wanted to dress it up with a little bit of hand placed sequin glitters.

Black and White Abstract Geometric Shapes

This manicure is for the 25th week of the /r/RedditLaqueristas 52-week challenge. I can't believe we are almost halfway through! The theme for this week was "Black and White". I was somewhat inspired by this post from awhile ago that I had saved as inspiration. I really like how this design came out, and I think I will return to it in the future.

Fall Colored Triangles

I can't believe it's been since Halloween since I last did some nail art! I wanted to take advantage of the last of the autumn season to use some fall colors in this manicure for the 24th week of the /r/RedditLaquerisas 52 Week challenge. This week's challenge is "Symbols", and I've always been partial to triangles. I have included a picture tutorial as well for anyone who wants to recreate it.

Jack-o'-lantern Nails for Halloween

I hope everyone had a great Halloween! I had some low-key festivities and also had fun dressing up my nails. In fact, these nails also fit in with the 22nd week of the /r/RedditLaqueristas 52 week challenge, so it worked out perfectly. The little Jack-o'-lanterns turned out really cute!

Birchbox October 2015

This review is for the Birchbox from October 2015. Birchbox is a very popular subscription box. It is $10/month for 4-5 beauty and lifestyle samples, which are personalized based on a quiz you take. It also has a great rewards points system. It is the only monthly subscription box that I still have, because I have found it to be especially worth it for the samples and the additional full-sized products I can get with my reward points.

Gray Stripes

This manicure was for the 21st week of the /r/RedditLaqueristas 52 week challenge. The theme for this week is "Gray", which is definitely fitting for this time of year. I chose to do some freehand stripes that remind me of a cozy sweater.

Taupe with Gold Stripe

I did these nails for the 19th week of the /r/RedditLaqueristas 52-week challenge. The theme was "Autumn Nails", so I went with some fall inspired colors to make a simple design. I was at a scientific conference this week, so I couldn't do anything too crazy unfortunately, but I think these turned out looking very classy.

Dark Glittery Ruffian

These nails were done for the 18th week of the /r/RedditLaqueristas challenge, in which the theme was "Half Moon/Ruffian Design". I much prefer ruffian manicures over half moon manicures on myself because I feel they better compliment my short nails. I chose some darker colors to go with the gloomy weather from the week, but with some glitter to keep it exciting.

Birchbox September 2015

This review is for the Birchbox from September 2015. Birchbox is a very popular subscription box. It is $10/month for 4-5 beauty and lifestyle samples, which are personalized based on a quiz you take. It also has a great rewards points system. It is the only monthly subscription box that I still have, because I have found it to be especially worth it for the samples and the additional full-sized products I can get with my reward points.

Jelly Lavender with Small Stamp

Wow, it has been awhile! I am hoping to get back into keeping up with my nail art blog, though it's getting pretty hard with all of the stuff I am working on right now. These nails were done for the 17th week of the /r/RedditLaqueristas 52 week challenge, which was "Pink and/or Purple". I wanted to keep it pretty simple since I had a business casual event to attend while wearing these.

Shiny Rainbow Dots

So, I missed a couple weeks of the RedditLaqueristas 52 week challenge, but I am hoping to get back on schedule now! This week's theme is "Rainbow Colors". I wanted to follow the theme subtly instead of going all out, so I did rainbow dots on a shiny silver background.

Birchbox June 2015

This review is for the Birchbox from June 2015. Birchbox is a very popular subscription box. It is $10/month for 4-5 beauty and lifestyle samples, which are personalized based on a quiz you take. It also has a great rewards points system. It is the only monthly subscription box that I still have, because I have found it to be especially worth it for the samples and the additional full-sized products I can get with my reward points.

Bright Saran Wrap Design

Another quick post...These nails were for the 3rd week of the Reddit Laqueristas challenge, where the theme was "Saran Wrap Nails". These designs are pretty easy to do, but always turn out looking unique. I picked out this color combo because I wanted to use my new orange nail polish (Zoya Paz), and I thought yellow would make a warm and bright combination.

Matte Layered Stamping

Only a quick post because I am very behind! These nails were for Week #2 for the Reddit Laqueristas 52 week challenge. Week #2 started 6/8 and the theme was "Matte Designs", so I tried out some layered stamping with matte top coat. I used 6 different stamp designs of leaves, flowers, and butterflies with 6 different colors on a turquoise base. They were a nice summery design!

Influenster: Weight Watchers Ice Cream Review

As an Influenster blogger, I am eligible to receive products free to review. For my second Influenster product to review, I got two coupons for free Weight Watchers Ice Cream of my choice. One of the ice creams I picked out were the Giant Chocolate Fudge bars. There are only 6 bars in this package, but they are each a good size and very filling. They are surprisingly flavorful and rich for a "healthy" ice cream choice. I will probably buy these for myself in the future. The second ice creams I chose were the Dark Chocolate Raspberry bars. These are about half the size of the fudge bars, and understandably, there are twice as many in the package. The chocolate coating is thin, but very tasty, and the raspberry is refreshing. I didn't like these as much as the fudge bars because they left me wanting more, but for someone watching their weight, it's a nice little treat. I would give the Giant Chocolate Fudge bars 5/5 start and the Dark Chocolate Raspberry bars 4/5 stars.

Note: I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.

Shiny Purple with Striped Tips

So, I decided to take part in yet another nail art challenge! This one was set up by subscribers to the /r/RedditLaqueristas sub-reddit, and it's a different theme for each week. I think this challenge is more my speed! The theme for the first week starting 6/1/2015 was "striping tape". To make this even more interesting, I have been coming up with the designs and having my boyfriend pick out the colors to use. 

Floral Pattern

First, I must apologize for the poor quality photos - my lighting box is currently in disrepair and I am working on making a better one. Anyway, since I postponed my rock climbing membership for the whole month of May, knowing I would be on vacation for most of it, I have been enjoying having longer nails! With the extra space, I decided to do a bigger floral design.