Pamplona Purple

OPI Pamplona Purple

It's been a while since I posted... I've been painting my nails regularly BUT I've just been too lazy to photograph them. I didn't use my D90 for this picture (or the one below, for that matter). Neither of my lenses will focus any closer than 18 inches :(

I kept this manicure simple by using Konad only on my ring finger and embellishing the center of the bow. Base Color - OPI Pamplona Purple Bow - Konad M59 (in Silver Special Polish) Process to adhere the rhinestone: Paint nails with desired color. Stamp Konad image. Apply Konad top coat. Stick gem to nail while top coat is still wet. Once dry, apply Seche Vite to the nail while making sure not to paint over the gem... flood the top coat AROUND the edge of the rhinestone.

My Fancy New Camera

Here it is! The D90:

I bought the kit which came with the lens below (18-105mm) but I ended up purchasing the 50mm f/1.8 lens (above) a few days later. I needed a larger aperture. It doesn't have zoom capabilities but that is fine with me. It is smaller, therefore lighter, and is the same lens that several other bloggers use for their photographs :)

This thing is long and heavy!:

And here is the camera bag that is on its way as I type:

Doesn't look like a camera bag does it? It's actually cute! And not black! Yay!... It is a Jill-e bag. Check out the inside:

The last thing I got was an 8-point star filter for my lens. I'm still trying to figure out the best conditions in which to use it, but here is a fairly decent example of its effect:

Where there is a concentrated spot of light reflecting off an object, you get this cute starburst. Fun! (FYI: That is OPI's Mad As A Hatter)

And lastly, a fun picture (taken with the 50mm lens) of a camel limoge my Dad sent me. It's adorable and matches my room decor well. Underneath it you see some dinars! I asked him to bring me some Middle Eastern currency. It is so pretty. Colorful. One side is in English and the other a foreign language. I think my Dad said it cost $6 U.S. dollars to get these (1 1/2 dinars).

Such a long post! I guess I could have split it up but it is all "new camera" related. Hope you found it interesting:)

Collegiate Nail Tattoos!

I've told you before, I went to school at Iowa State University. Ohhhh how I wish I were still in college... life was easy back then! I do go back and visit every once in a while. My friends have graduated and moved on but my sister just started a family in Ames. During my last visit I found these gems! Nail tattoos!...? Awesome! But they were expensive! $3.99 for 4 sets of five! Yikes. I'll save these for special occasions only. Maybe next football season.

Speaking of football season... I thought it'd be fun to create some of my own personal styles on Polyvore. This is something I might wear tailgating, or I guess any day of the week:

An ISU shirt, a hoodie (ALWAYS! I get cold a lot), some True's, fun sandals, and a sparkly necklace to jazz it up! What do you think? Would you wear it?

Oh, one last thing! I've been wanting an ISU mouse pad forever now! I finally got one! Isn't it nice?! I love our new logo! (Well... new as of last year)

Could he be any cuter?

What is it about cats that makes them want to jump into every bag, basket, or place they aren't allowed? And then they peak their little head out and act all innocent! He also sneaks up on my bed while I'm getting ready in the morning and digs himself a spot under my blankets! I'll have to take a picture of that sometime... By the way: if you didn't already know, this is Pete :)

Jade Is The New Black

OPI Jade Is The New Black

I love this color! This is the first time I've used Jade Is The New Black and I've already bought a backup bottle! Who knows, maybe one day it will sell for $50 on Ebay like OPI Rainforest, OPI Jasper Jade, and OPI Creme De Menthe! (What do those polishes have in common?... They are all shades of green!)

Jade Is The New Black is a green creme polish that gives you complete coverage in 2 coats. However, I found the formula rather thick... I'll have to try some lacquer thinner on it and see if that helps with the consistency.

Konad French Tips

OPI Canberra't Without You & Konad M19

Since I wasn't really a fan of Canberra't Without You, I found it the perfect opportunity to stamp with Konad image plate M19. Even though I was unsuccessful the first time I used this plate, I figured it wouldn't hurt to try again. (I wasn't going to be out of anything. I just wanted to remove my polish anyways!)

I did a much better job stamping the french tip this time around :) Below is a hand-shot.

How do you like it? I wouldn't use Canberra't Without You again for a french manicure on my hands. It's not quite the right color... But on someone else, it may be perfect.

Canberra't Without You

OPI Canberra't Without You

This polish looked a lot prettier in the bottle! You must believe me! It was a perfect skin-toned color with tiny silver specs scattered throughout... Little did I know, those glitters only looked good because they were stuck to the side of the glass! When applied, the silver bits look more like imperfections because they are covered in nude polish.

See in the picture? The glitters almost look like bubbles. They certainly aren't twinkling like I had imagined! I should have known better.

Canberra't Without You is a sheer polish. I applied 3 coats when swatching for this photo and you can still see the nail line. I'm not sure you would ever want to use any less coats. The polish is fairly streaky.

Dyed Easter Eggs?

Here is another attempt at Easter eggs. I'm not convinced this pulls off the look I was going for. Anyone else having difficulties creating nail art for Easter?

Base - OPI Pink-ing Of You

Stamped Image - Konad M78 (White Special Polish)

Glitter - China Glaze's Tinsel

I wanted them to look marbled without actually having to marble my nails. Then I threw on some glitter to see if that would help give them that hand-decorated look. You know, some eggs have glitter nowadays.

But here is a picture without glitter:

And then I used Essie's Matte About You. I don't like the matte version at all...

Overall, I like the nails a lot (with the exception of the matte effect) but I don't particularly think they scream "Easter"... Dang.