Laquer and Libations

Back before my move I had one of my favorite failed attempts at a blog. It was called Laquer and Libations, fun right? It was beverages and polish, my two loves!

I took a lazy weekend and didn't post at all (but my I did my nails and have many a pictures, so I will catch up!). I really think that the blog was under appreciated, and I did not give it enough support. So let me share with you a top 5 color pick and the beer that was just delish!

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After a split day of work and school, I made my way to the Kroger down the road and made my own six-pack. The first one I tried was the Spring Woodchuck Hard Cider. YUM! I have had Woodchuck before, but this one...hmmm...I could taste something different in it.

The label reads: "This spring cider desplays notes of maple syrup and brown sugar blended with fresh apple character" Not exactly what I would consider a spring flavor, but awesome. As soon as I read maple syrup, I knew that it is exactly the 'odd' taste I could not put my finger on. A little tart, sweet, and maple-y. Delish right?

Inspires by the bottle, and the cute woodchuck, I decided to grab Zoya Shawn. I just got her in the mail, and it is a great olive green. I used 3 coats, the formula on this color seemed a little thin, but other than that I really have no complaints. After waiting so long to actually buy it, it was defiantly worth the wait.
 

  

 



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What made me think of even doing this flashback was that I had an AMAZING beer over the weekend that inspired some nail art and I will soon get that posted.


I know that some people may think that alcolhol has no place with nail polish, but look at it from my point of view. I am 27, and this is a hobby. I expect grown adults to make their own decisions and I do not promote under age drinking. The only thing to beware of if you are drinking and drying, is to remember to put the lids on properly or else you may spill, and that is laquer abuse ^_~

Poise in Purple

I was in a purple mood today. I rummaged through my nail drawers and came up with a smoky and holographic combo. The base color is Zoya Caitlin - a deep grey-purple from the Spring 2011 Intimates collection. For my accent nail I used Funky Fingers, Sand and Stilettos - a light purple/bright holo.

Caitlin is a color that I could wear almost every day. It is that perfect purple, not too bright, not too light. It is a solid cream, one thick coat/two thin and you are out the door. It is a great color for a date night, or just going out for drinks with the ladies. It is far from Lava Lamp that I showed you earlier this week, reasons why my nail polish drawer is continuously growing.

Funky Fingers is a (USA made, 3-free) brand that I came across when shopping at a new funky store, Five Below. While on one of my Sunday Funday beauty shop runs, I went into a new Five Below that had just opened back home. Think of a dollar store, and then forget about all of the horrible things that are inside of it, multiply it by five and BEHOLD THE AWESOME! Te price range is from $1.00 to $5.00 and there is everything from candy, to books, beauty supplies to dorm stuff, t-shirt to seasonal goodies. I am a little bummed that there is not one remotely close to Orlando, soon I hope! Just go check one out, or their site, it's really a good find.

I am off for the next three days and I will be spending some well deserved time in the pool! I'll keep up with the posts and fingers crossed the sun doesn't burn me ^_~

Everyone always picks on Meg!

Whenever I hear the name Meg, I think of her.

I definitely do not think of Zoya Meg, but from here on I will! Check her out.

Meg is part of Zoya's summer Beach & Surf collection. Meg belongs to the shimmery Surf side. She is a light apple green and sits somewhere between a foil and a shimmer. Very opaque, one coat coat just about did it for me, but I did two just to be safe. Along with the foil there is a gold shimmer in there to give it a yellow tinge, and push it closer to my ultimate favorite of any color...CHARTREUSE!

Out of all of the pictures I took, the ones in my car turned out the best. To and from work may be the best place to get this done! Well, I wore this at work all day and I must say the more I looked at it...the more I liked it. I am usually not a big fan of foils, but the color really helps it out here. I cannot say no to a good green. ^_~

Lava Lamp

I have been a very lucky girl to keep getting new nail polished in almost every birchbox. Back in April I had the pleasure of receiving Color Club's Lava Lamp. 

Lava lamp is a deep neon orange. Not too yellow, not too red. Like all neon this ends with a satin, almost matte, finish so a top coat is recommend but not necessary. It has good coverage, and all I needed was two coats.

The real fun of this super bright color is that it glows, under black light.I went to the Magic Kingdom recently and while on the Winnie the Pooh ride I had a surprise.

Blurry...yet satisfying!

The downside of this being a neon is that it is probably the most difficult color I have ever had to shoot. Holy cow! Instead of a traffic cone orange I was getting more red, closer to a stop sign. Finally the powers that be converged and I was able to get something between my cameras.

The light orange side

The stop sign side

The closest to the real color side - oh and me!

As you can see this color shifts depending on the light. I even tried to get a picture with the flash in a pitch black room, and my nails seemed to glow. This is a special color and I am definitely a fan!

I have been getting many compliments on how bright it is, yay! Hope you enjoy and I will see you tomorrow ^_~

I Think You Call Me ... Sexy!

From the swap meet a couple weeks ago I was able to snag a hard to get NerdLacquer - I THINK YOU CALL ME ... SEXY. Why yes, it is a Dr. Who inspired nail polish!

Now I'm not too familiar with NerdLacquer, I have seen it around and on a few blogs but that is about it. The colors, and names, always seem fun and exciting so it is something I was curious about. I like the idea of these little indy brands coming up with their own colors and they are always something different from the mainstream. We have all see the trends each season, one brand will come out with pastels and then someone else comes out with the same pastels but for $5 more. Don't get me wrong, I love major brands and I do have my favorites, but it is nice to have something different once in a while.

I took a few pics with and without flash. I'm just getting the hang of taking macro pics with this new camera so I'm sure it will take me a few posts to tweak it and get it just right, so do forgive me if they are a little blurry and whatnot.

I Think You Call Me...Sexy is a glitter heavy, semi-transparent navy blue (aka. TARDIS blue). It took three coats to get full coverage. From the look of the bottle I thought there was going to be more large silver glitter, I was a little disappointed. I did manage to get a few large pieces on each nail, but I think the side of the bottle ate most of it. There is a bunch of medium silver and blue glitter, with small red and silver glitter.

In the right light, the red glitter almost makes the nail look purple. It is not super noticeable, but when I have been staring at my nails for 3 days to get this review right, lol, you can see the color shift.

I'm going to make this my nail week, so from here til next Wednesday I will be reviewing what I picked up from the swap and anything new that has come across my path ^_~

Hair Woes

About once a week Birchbox calls upon bloggers to answer a fun beauty question. Last week it was, 'What music do you listen to while you're getting ready for a night out?' This week they are asking, 'What is your biggest hair concern?'

Reminiscing over my recent hair adventures and the main thing I think of, right about the time the bleach/dye/ect. is already on my head, is, "How bad is my hair going to be damaged this time? Is this the time it all falls out?" Then I think about all the fun wigs I could get and I fall into acceptance with this possible outcome. About a week later I start to notice the damage. My hair is dry, starting to frizz, and it just does not look right. I need something to help smooth it and give some shine out without piling a whole bunch of product on it.

I had tried everything from balms to creams to oil treatments, and it wasn't til a few months ago that I found the most amazing product. Last October, Birchbox brought to me a little bottle of love, also known as Orofluido Elixer. This elixer is a wonderful blend of argon, linseed, and cyperus oils. The blend of oils makes hair stronger, shinier, and smoother for a beautiful soft look.

I like to put a few drops in my hands and tousle my hair just out of the shower to get a more wavy look. Once I have my hair styled for the day I take another drop just on my finger tips to help tame the flyaways. Right away I noticed a difference. After using it for a week my hair was less frizzy, softer, and more manageable. I went through the sample dram super fast and used my Birchbox points to get a full size! I use the full size to keep the dram full so I can take it with me in my purse.

Oh, did I mention how incredible this stuff smells? I would eat it if I could, it is a lucious amber and vanilla scent. I find myself putting a little extra and rubbing it into my hands just to keep the smell close. It soaks right in and doesn't leave you all greasy, and you smell amazing!

This reminds me, I'm starting to run a little low, it is about time to get a new bottle. ^_~

Birchbox May 2012

It's that time of month again, Birchbox time of course!


This month was inspired by the chic styles of Gossip Girl. I am not the biggest fan of the show, I admit I only watched one season and during that season I got super into it, but it didn't catch my attention to the point that I was sitting on the edge of my seat to see what Chuck was going to do next season. Although, Chuck is sneaky and super stylish. Okay, okay, the show is good but I cannot handle another show to keep track of right now, maybe I will watch the last two seasons on DVD.

Anyway...The box is Gossip Girl inspired, and I received the 'Chic Sunday Brunch' box, well one of the varieties. This is what was inside:

  

Samples (brand, item, value):

• Arquiste - L'etrog  -  $ 3.39
• beautyblender - blendercleanser  -  $ 2.92
• Color Club - Disco Nap  -  $ 4.00
• Dr. Jart + - Waterfuse BB Cream  -  $ 1.13
• twistband - Skinny Headband  -  $ 3.33
• Extra - Notecard  -  $ 0.83

Total Value  -  $ 15.60

The best part of the box, Dr. Jart+ BB cream. Worst part of the box, the beautyblender - beautycleanser. The main reason I name that as my least favorite in the box, I don't have a beautyblender, and I totally want one!

The nail polish is great, but I'm not the biggest fan of gold. The only exception in Zoya - Jules, it is the softest, nicest gold, and I really dislike that color, I'm a silver/white gold/platinum kind of girl. The white tones look better on my skin than yellow, it's just a personal preference.


Surprisingly I LOVE the headband, but have lost it just as soon as I got it out of the box. doh! I know I hear crap from vlogs/bloggers about their hate and discontent towards Birchbox for even putting the same hair ties in the boxes. I, for one, love them. I still have and regularly use the one I received in my August 2011 box. I have large wrists so these are great and don't cut off circulation to my hands. I got a small silver one a couple months back and that one goes in and out with my other one. They are not as bad as people make them out to be.

Overall I liked my box, it was not the best nor the worst. It is just a jumble of things kind of thrown together. I'm happy to try some new things, and other things I'll throw into my swap night pile for next time. I'll be back soon to post the swatch for the polish and BB cream. ^_~

Ladies Night!

Now this was a brilliant idea brought up by one of my girlfriends, Elan - the brilliant mind behind the Yay Laboritories! over there...to your right...just a little bit further...yup that cute blue thing, now click on it, yeah that's the spot. ^_^

She was cleaning out her makeup/nail polish drawer and weeded doubles and things that she hasn't worn in a while. With a short, two days, notice I was able to go through my drawers of nail polish, makeup, and Birchbox goodies to bring two full Birchboxes filled with stuff (the boxes are like 4x6x2ish). One had all nail polish, some I was a little hesitant to let go of, and others I was happy to give away. The other was a full collection of samples I had received in my boxes over the last nine months. 

Between the four of us ladies we had a pretty good haul. Check it out.

After some pizza, wine and putting the men down for a movie, we got going. With lots of girl talk over men, babies, work and stuff, we passed things around this is some of what I made out with.

Nails --->

From left to right/top to bottom:

Nubar - 2010 / NerdLacquer - I Think You Call Me...Sexy / ULTA - Deck The Halls / Sally Hansen Gem Crush - 01 Showgirl Chic / Nicole By OPI - A Million Sparkles / Zoya - Ivanka , Meg , Reece

AMAZING! Not only did I get my first Nubar, it is 2010! Always a fan of more Zoya, and I lovethe sparkle of everything else. A new holo, a Dr. Who inspired color, and fun glitters.

The makeup --->

sorry for the darkness, you'll get better pics soon ^_^

I want to swatch everything! But one thing at a time, first the mineral makeup and then I'll be on top of the nails. I'm currently recuperating from a nail chomping movie night, just a few more days and I will be back in full swing.

I promise I am not going anywhere for a while I have 2 or 3 more posts that I'm currently working on, and they will be up as soon as I load all of the pictures. I will see you all tomorrow, and don't be afraid to add me to your follow list. I don't bite, hard ^_~

What time is it?

I'm a fan of cartoons for adults, that were made for kids. This is like the modern day Ren & Stimpy, and when I look back on how awesome I thought they were when I was a kid, now I look at them and think What The Frak was that?! I should not have been watching that, but it was AWESOME!

Now the kids/parents have Adventure Time!

I was turned onto this years ago and I have been slowly introducing friends and their kids to the show as well, and they ALL love it!

The two main characters are Finn (he's a 14-y/o boy with an active imagination) & Jake (his sidekick dog with super awesome powers), they live in the Land of Ooo (which is meant to be some post-apocalyptic land, and all the people are food!). These two go on amazing adventures and save princesses from the evil Ice King.

But enough of that, I was in the local toy store and I heard that they were coming out with action figures of Finn & Jake, so I wanted to check them out. Sadly all but the super large action figure of Finn (with interchangeable faces) was left and these amazing 'Grow your own Finn' & 'Grow your own Jake'

I picked up the Jake, with hope of really getting it to grow up to 500x his size! Here is the first photo.

Awesome right? LOL.

Now I know that this veers far from my makeup and lifestyle products that I said I was going to post all about but the geeky side of me could not let this go!

The journey of growing Jake...

Day 1

Day 4

Jake has been in and out of my sink for the last 4 days, and the package says that he will keep growing over the next week if I keep him in water.

When I first got him it was like holding an egg, this is how big he is compared to my hand.

Scary eyes!

I'll see how big he gets for the remainder of the week and I'll edit the post as needed. I'm hoping to make my way back and pickup Finn and see how big he gets. ^_~

*edit: I think jake as bit the dust. *insert sad panda face here* I've kept him in water this whole time and last night after work I picked him up and gave him a little squeeze to get the extra water off and he started to OOZE... I don't think that is normal >.< I'm going to see if he gets down to normal size again and maybe start over. I'll let you know if anything changes.





NOOOOO! Don't run away just yet! ...again!

Oh my, time flies when you're having fun!

Well maybe it hasn't been all fun, but that is what I'm going to talk about ^_^

Things I have been up to and will post soon on:

• I have been growing my own Jake!     ======================>>>
• Me and a few of my girlfriends had super awesome girl-lets-swap-makup-and-stuff time. (I got sweet haul out of it and only brought home a few of my own things)

• Lots of work. Life at the library can be so rough.

• Got my Birchbox for the month! and I have a short post on my Influenster Palmolive box I received like a month ago. (I am normally not the one to hand wash the dishes so I had to give it time to get a good feel for it.)

I think that is really it. All of these I have pics and I will post on them soon. As well as swatches of the new polishes, and eye shadows that I picked up from the swap. So do not fret! I'm working on my Birchbox one right now, and maybe next month if I'm not so stuffy I'll even attempt making a video! Something I'm super nervous about, so we will see. 

I will be back shortly!