O. P. I. - athon: Tiramisu For Two... And A Cup Of Java, Please

Hi friends,
Ahhh... tiramisu, that light creamy, rich, cocoa, espresso flavored, choclatey goodness. Who can say no to a teeny tiny taste? My mouth is watering thinking about it. The name tiramisu means "pick me up" probably because of the espresso and cocoa in it. This polish is from the Fall 2015  Venice Collection inspired by the great city itself. So, this is how it works. Our eloquent O.P.I. team of polish naming magicians were taken to a top secret, national security level, Quantico sealed, undiscoverable location where they perused maps and viewed the art, architecture and any other notable treasures of Venice, devoured the local foods (hence tiramisu) while brainstorming names to suit the chosen polish colors. I take vacations that don't compare to their brainstorming sessions. Polish Naming Magicians who are you and how did you get that job???  Those powers cannot be taught. Are you Chosen Ones, groomed from birth to bless the world with your creative talents?  I believe they actually have true magical abilities to pull those names out of the hat. They couldn't have attended Hogwarts could they?  I mean that is a fictional place...right?

The magicians must have gotten fat from tasting, testing and sampling the local cuisine judging by the fact that many of the names in this collection seem to have been food inspired.

Since coffee is one of the main features to a good tiramisu , I decided to do a coffee themed manicure.  It's my personal Ode To Starbucks, with whom I have an ongoing love affair.

I think I'll make a coffee run now. Bucky misses me.
Ciao for now.

O.P.I.-athon: Memorial Day Tribute: Going My Way Or Norway?

Going My Way Or Norway?

Good Memorial Day Morning O.P.I. lovers,
Our O.P.I.-athon will not break because of holiday festivities. No, instead we're honoring the men and women who served our country.  Pools open, and the kiddies are wrapping up the school year soon, but this is the day to remember those who served in the U.S Armed Forces. I live near an army base, and here, we do just that. Which leads us to my contribution to this holiday of observance.

Going My Way Or Norway? is the perfect mannequin hand match for me. I lucked up on it by accident and fell in love immediately.  It's the perfect neutral for showcasing a little patriotism. Did I overdo it a bit? Yup, I did, but if it''s not overdone, then it just wouldn't be me, would it?

Because this short series is to delve into the world of O.P.I., here's a little not-so-well known fact.  O.P.I. is sold in more than 75 countries around he globe. Not so hard to believe, but did you know that they fill about 150,000 nail lacquers each day, about 55 million bottles a year? I'll let you know how they do it when I start working there. They don't know it yet, but they're getting a new hire soon. I just need to put in my two week notice.  Then I'm off to sunny CA.

Until next tme, Ciao for now!

Zen Moments

Hi friends,
It might not sound like it, but I'm having a zen moment so I decided to post a zen manicure today. You may not agree that sitting at Starbucks, my uptown office/getaway, and drinking a super pumped up Venti could be soothing and restful. But after my week, this is bliss.

My cares and concerns are far away from my mind. It doesn't bother me that I'm not wearing a stitch of makeup, or jewelry (except for my fitbit, of course). My hair is a mess, and I'm wearing sweats (gray, of all colors). I don't care that half my friends in the neighborhood will pass through here and say "hey, Court, is that you?" Ha! there's somebody now...didn't even recognize me, secluded in my cozy corner, feet up, tablet in lap.

Ahhhhh. This is heaven. My heart is racing from the caffeine, but I'm considering ordering my free Venti now.

I'm enjoying this moment. And my day is going to get even better because at noon, I'll go home and start prepping my son and "adopted" daughter for their prom tonight.

Exciting for me because I get to do nails and makeup and enjoy girly talk that I miss since I don't have daughters. This will be fun, especially since she's a girly girl like me. I can't wait to see her dress. She's going to be gorgeous by the time her mom and I finish with her. That won't be hard because she's a beautiful young lady.  

Shout out to my kids and all their friends attending prom tonight. Be safe, have fun, and bring home lots of pics. I'm going to relive my teenage years through you.

Ciao for now.

A Borgia Inspired Manicure

Hi friends,
I've been watching the Showtime series the Borgias. The imagery, scenery and costumes are striking and leave an impression in my subconscious. That might be why I came upon this manicure. I stamped the intricate scroll design over a glittery beige/gold base.  For the ring finger, I reversed the design and stamped neutral scrolls over a black base.

While the series is stuck in my head, I might consider another Borgia inspired manicure.
Till next time, Ciao Bellas!

Zoya Week Sunday: Meet Edyta and Neely

Although I have more Zoya polishes to share with you, we've come to the end of our week long Zoya journey.  These last two ladies are in direct contrast with one another.  Edyta is a black/gold micro glitter while Neely is a pastel green creme.

Edyta

Since my new stamping polishes and stamping plates arrived, I haven't been able to stop playing with them.  I did several manicures, but somehow lost the pics (Painful. I can't talk about it).  But I did salvage these two.

Edyta is a black/gold shimmer polish that appears glittery in the bottle, but is more of a shimmer once applied.  I used gold Mundo De Unas stamping polish with a MoYou London plate from the Explorer set.  The Greco Roman theme worked great with this black/gold polish.

Mundo De Unas Gold 17 and MoYou London Explorer Collection - 09

Neely

I have two Neely polishes.  Once again, I unintentionally repurchased a polish. Maybe I could avoid this if I make a list of the polishes I have and carry it with me. Not likely, but it's a good idea. 

This polish is such a soft color that I wanted to add a soft design to it.  I stamped a simple floral design and used a dotting tool to create multi-colored circles.  Soft and simple.

What are your favorite Zoya polishes?   

Zoya Week Wednesday: Meet Rue and Jolie

You know that I love Zoya polishes, but I haven't told you why. Well, there are a few reasons.  I have strong brand loyalty, so once I latch on to a brand, it's full steam ahead.  And when I'm consistently impressed with a brand, my loyalty grows.  Zoya has never let me down yet.  If I find one I'm unimpressed by, I'll let you know.  Little things build my brand loyalty.  The shape of the bottle, type of brush, the name of the company and the names of the colors.  The more creative the polish names, the more I'm inclined to be drawn to a brand.  I admit that I have purchased a polish just because of the name.  A little obsessive, I know, but for me, it makes my polish experience all the more pleasant.  Zoya polishes usually have female names.  Or names that you could choose for your daughter. I love the simplicity and the added feminine touch the names bring to the brand.  There are other reasons why I like Zoya polishes. They are 5-free, meaning that they are free of 5 not-so-healthy chemical ingredients that are often found in nail polish.  Those are Tolulene, Formaldehyde, Formaldehyde resin, DBP and Camphor.  Most likely, wearing these chemicals in small quantities on your nails won't harm you, but many companies are jumping on the 3-free and 5-free bandwagon so that they can advertise the natural and healthy qualities of their polishes.  Go green. Now, you understand why I love Zoya polishes.

I have two great polishes for you.  No glitter or sparkles today.  Instead, I have two soft neutrals that are versatile and appropriate for all occasions.  One is a cream, the other is a sheer pearlescent.

Rue

The first polish I want to show you today is one that I bought just because of the name. It's a beautiful soft blush cream called Rue.  Usually the color draws you to a polish, followed by other attributes, but I never considered the color of this polish until I got to the counter and really looked at it.  I thought, "Hmm, this might be cute". And it is.  The name attracted me because of the Hunger Games character, Rue.  I'm a Hunger Games, Harry Potter, Divergent fan (Yes, I admit to enjoying a few YA books) and anything that relates to my favorite book/movie series is a definite no-brainer for me.

For this design I used Born Pretty stamping plate BP-13 and Your Touch by China Glaze.

Jolie

Jolie is a sheer pearlescent ivory polish.  I used three or four coats to achieve this look and you can still see a hint of a smile line peeking through.  To avoid having a visible smile line, you can use a white base coat.  However, it works perfectly as a sheer top coat to tone down an otherwise overpowering polish.    I used a gold stamping polish (probably Konad Gold) for the design. Tomorrow we'll look at a couple more neutrals. Ciao for now.