I'm Loving O.P.I's Shatter Nail Polish

I have been on the hunt to find the shatter nail polish from the O.P.I Katy Perry collection. I finally found it- REJOICE!

See it's in my possession!

As you can see in the pic above, I've been rocking Sally Hansen's nail stickers in leopard print. As some of you may know, I'm in New Jersey with family because my uncle passed away. Today is the visitation and tomorrow is the burial. My family has been loving the leopard nails but I didn't feel they were appropriate for a funeral. I had made a big fuss about trying to find the shatter nail polish that now my family is requesting I wear it. If they insist...

I decided to make the base color Butter London's "All Hail the Queen," which is a grayish champagne color. I wanted something subdued and this color is gorgeous. The girl at the beauty supply store said to wait and apply the shatter nail polish when the bottom color has COMPLETELY dried. Knowing how impatient I am, I decided to paint my nails the night before so I knew they would be dry in the morning.

This morning I followed the directions of applying ONE coat. It quickly took affect and dries in no time at all. I thought I would have to wait around 20 minutes but no (yey!). My only negative is that it is kind of clumpy so I did mess one nail up because I thought I could go over it twice (you can't). I suggest dipping the brush in the bottle for each nail for best application.

I showed my dad and he said it is very funeral appropriate so hopefully the rest of the family approves. What do you think?

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Oh Helena, What Wicked Games You Play

Anyone remember that Chris Isaak video? SO HOT! Now 20 something years later, Helena Christensen is still looking smoking hot for Caractere's Spring campaign.

Hello boob!

See more at Fashion Gone Rogue.

Can I look that good at her age?!

Great Reads of the Week

Here are some great reads for your weekend:

- Everyone wish LoveBrownSugar a Happy Birthday!
- because im addicted shares the gorgeous Valentino collection
- ...love Maegan offers to DIY for her readers!
- The Fashionista Lab breaks down the "fashion food pyramid"
- That's So Cuegly shows how to be frugal this Valentine's Day
- awkward CHIC and I share a laugh about Butter London's new color
- Red Legs in SoHo gives her thoughts on ageism on television
- I am Styleish gives her tips for how to walk in heels (I know I need help!)
- Nubia's Nonsense gives her review of Blue Valentine along with tips to keep your relationship afloat

Unfortunately, I'll be attending another funeral this weekend. My Uncle Dave passed away after suffering a stroke. To any smokers out there, I say quit now! He was only 66 but lived a hard life of alcohol and smoking. 2011 so far has not been off to a good start for me. In good news, my sister is about to pop any day now so I'll be an aunt again soon!

What are your weekend plans?

Best Dressed of the Week

 

Leighton Meester shows she can be stylish at the premiere of her new movie "The Roommate." She's wearing a cut-out dress from the Michael Kors pre-fall collection 2011. I think she looks fantastic and I really like the straight hair!

Now I'm not usually a fan of Alexa Chung's style (gasp!); however, I loved what she wore to the Chanel Haute Couture show. I'm a fan of menswear on women and this dress I think does it in a fun way. The little bow tie adds some cuteness to the look!

Which looks did you like this week?

Review: Sally Hansen's Salon Effects Nail Stickers

I've been wanting to give Sally Hansen's Salon Effects nails stickers a try. I've tried Incoco nail stickers when I was working at Lovelyish. I kind of wanted to compare the two. I picked up the leopard print ones because that is one design I haven't been able to do on my own nails. For around $10 you get 16 stickers.

The instructions are so easy you could follow the side of the box. Although they kindly include a full page length of instructions along with some tools:

Nicely packaged in the box is a wooden cuticle stick, nail file/buffer, instructions and two packages of nail stickers. As for the steps:

All the stickers come individually unlike Incoco which were all connected and you had to tear them off. First, you pick which size fits your nail best. Then you remove the plastic covering (as I'm showing in the picture).

Then you remove the paper backing (seen in background) and apply the sticker to your nail. Once it's placed on you can pull at the top to stretch it in order to fit better. Then press on the sticker for a few seconds and smooth over your nail.

Voila!

Then you use the nail file to scrap off the excess and shape it at the top. They recommend doing your thumbs last (which I didn't listen) but I agree since you use your nails to peel off stickers.

Pros:
- Lots of patterns and styles available. There are animal print, metallics, lace, and the list goes on.
- Very helpful instructions and includes all the tools needed. The nail file includes a buffer on the other side so you can smooth out your nail. There's a wooden cuticle stick so you push the sticker around the edges.

Cons:
- An odd amount of nail stickers. There is 16 so now I'm left with 6. Not enough for another manicure and for $10 I feel like I should. Most nail polish bottles are $7 and you get many, many manicures out of them!
- The packaging. It is pretty sleek but the plastic containers for the nail stickers made me feel like an idiot trying to open them.
- For patterns, which I used, if you stretch it to fit your nail better it doesn't look consistent. The pattern will look bigger on some nails and not others. It's a small detail that is bugging me.

Would I buy it again? Probably. But not anytime soon again. It is more for a fancy, fun manicure not an everyday thing. I kind of prefer to manipulate and play with liquid polish myself.

Have you given these a try? What was your experience?

Guest Post: Snooki Is A Good Role Model For Females

*Today's guest post comes from television blogger, Faith Jones. We are both huge fans of the "Jersey Shore" and definitely agree on this topic. Enjoy!

Okay, so I’m really hoping Sammi decides to leave the Jersey Shore tonight to go home and wallow in her giant vat of ridiculous self-pity. Am I alone here? I mean Sammi “Sweetheart” Giancola is the perfect example of why I have approximately ONE close girlfriend. I literally cannot stand women who blame their boyfriends’ bad behavior on other women. Call it low self-esteem, call it living in a giant delusion—if your man cheats on you in “da club” it’s no one’s fault but his. It’s also no one else’s fault but YOURS if you stay with him.

Sammi is pathetic as Jezebel so kindly pointed out. When she isn’t laying around staring into Ronnie’s eyes, she is yelling at him about how much he’s hurt her. So, leave! I would. She should too especially considering everything Ronnie did in Miami was caught on tape and played for us over and over again. Why do you stay with a loser…and then crucify your friends for trying to make you aware of the situation?! You can’t kill the messenger, just because the message was delivered poorly.

Now that I’m writing this, I really can’t figure out why exactly it is that Sammi is angry with the other women in the house. Is she mad because JWOWW and Snooki wrote her an anonymous letter letting her know about the indiscretion? Is she mad because they made her look stupid? Is it because they didn’t tell her in a timely fashion? Is it because they shouldn’t have told her at all? I’m confused.

More women should be like Snooki. Let’s examine. Do you guys remember during the first episode when told us that Vinny slept with her best friend RIGHT after she admitted having feelings for him? It was never a thought in her head to blame her friend for Vinny’s slutty behavior.  She confronted Vinny for his inability to consider her feelings, and moved on. Let’s hear it for not being passive-aggressive! Imagine holding men responsible for their actions instead of blaming the participating female (although I’d like to argue that I’d be pretty upset at my best friend if she slept with someone I openly had feelings for).

I commend Snooki for her ability to have relationships with other women, without letting a man interfere. She cherishes her friendships with women, speaks openly about her feelings with them, and turns to them when she’s emotionally distraught. Honestly, this is the way it should be. I love men as much as the next girl, but there are only so many things you can talk to them about before they begin pretending they’re listening (if they were ever listening in the first place).

As far as I’m concerned, Sammi’s screen-time is up. I am over her. She’s annoying and mean, and I’m tired of her “stank” face. We, as women, should all strive to create trustworthy relationships with other women. In a sense, we should all strive to be a lot more like Snooki.

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Taraji P. Henson Goes Naked For PETA

...and I'm not complaining! This woman is SO hot and she has a son in college. Hello tattoo.

What do you think?

via BV on Style

Check Out Gabriella Designs For All Your Valentine's Day Needs

Still searching for the perfect Valentine's Day gift? Look no further than Gabriella Designs. You can find unique handmade items in many different mediums at this Etsy store located in San Francisco. The owner started with jewelry many many years ago, and has expanded to painting, mix-media artwork, cards, paper flowers, special occasion invitations, hair clips and who knows what will be next!

 

For the entire month of February, Gabriella Designs is having an exclusive sale! Just in time to find that romantic gift. If you want to take advantage of this exclusive sale leave a comment below and include your e-mail address. You will be added to Gabriella Designs mailing list in which you will receive a special coupon code to use during check out.

All submissions must be received by Thursday, February 3rd. Don't miss out!

Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/GabriellaDesign
Fan: http://www.facebook.com/GabriellaDesigns
Follow: http://twitter.com/GabriellaDesgn

Oscar Nominations Are Out!

This morning the Oscar nominations were announced. Here are my thoughts on who will and who was snubbed!

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Actor in a Leading Role:
    * Javier Bardem in “Biutiful”
    * Jeff Bridges in “True Grit”
    * Jesse Eisenberg in “The Social Network”
    * Colin Firth in “The King's Speech”
    * James Franco in “127 Hours”
WTF?! That isn't the film I would nominate James Franco for and what about Mark Wahlberg?! I say this one goes to Colin Firth.

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Actor in a Supporting Role:
    * Christian Bale in “The Fighter”
    * John Hawkes in “Winter's Bone”
    * Jeremy Renner in “The Town”
    * Mark Ruffalo in “The Kids Are All Right”
    * Geoffrey Rush in “The King's Speech”
John Hawkes? I didn't hear good reviews about "Winter's Bone" so I'm surprised. Christian Bale won the Globes for his Supporting role (so why isn't Mark nominated?!) so I'm guessing he gets the Oscar as well. He goes through amazing transformations for his roles. 

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Actress in a Leading Role:
    * Annette Bening in “The Kids Are All Right”
    * Nicole Kidman in “Rabbit Hole”
    * Jennifer Lawrence in “Winter's Bone”
    * Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”
    * Michelle Williams in “Blue Valentine”
I say give the Oscar to Natalie Portman! She was AMAZING in "Black Swan." She also went through a dark transformation for this role.

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Actress in a Supporting Role:
    * Amy Adams in “The Fighter”
    * Helena Bonham Carter in “The King's Speech”
    * Melissa Leo in “The Fighter”
    * Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit”
    * Jacki Weaver in “Animal Kingdom”
Since Melissa Leo won the Globes, I say this goes to HBC! And can she wear something fabulous? I don't think this is a very strong category though.

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Best Picture:
    * “Black Swan”
    * “The Fighter”
    * “Inception”
    * “The Kids Are All Right”
    * “The King's Speech”
    * “127 Hours”
    * “The Social Network”
    * “Toy Story 3”
    * “True Grit”
    * “Winter's Bone"
I'm not a fan of 10 nominees for this category. "Social Network" swept at the Globes so perhaps it will go for the Oscar. I love Jesse Eisenberg so I'm bias in wanting him to win some award for this role!

So Michelle Williams gets nominated for "Blue Valentine" but Ryan Gosling doesn't. Jesse Eisenberg gets nominated but no supporting nominations his " Social Network" costars? Looking at these noms, 2010 seems like a bad year for movies.

What are your Oscar predictions? Who got snubbed?

Source: Starpulse

My Mini Victoria's Secret Shopping Haul

I've been wanting to try Victoria's Secret makeup for a little while now. They are currently having a huge blowout sale so since I seem to be on a beauty binge, I bought a few things. I also threw in two clothing items for good measure. Nothing was over $40 and of course... free shipping!

During my job interviews I've come to discover that I don't have a basic black trouser! I picked up some simple boot cut pants for $39.50.

I also purchased this SUPER comfy gray hoodie (I'm wearing it now) which is a pullover and oversized. Perfect for curling up in. It was $35.50.

Now onto the makeup...

I've been on the hunt for my perfect red lipstick. This "Showstopper" color looked promising for $12. I'll do a review at another time ;)

For a steal at $3.99 was this silky eyeshadow in a great nude color called "Bunny." It definitely is silky to the touch so I'll see how it holds up.

Lastly, they were having a 2 for $12 deal on their shadow duos. I opted for safer colors just because I've never tried their makeup before. "Pink on Earth" has a soft pink combined with a brown. I think it will good for a smoky eye look:

Then lastly since purple is the big eyeshadow of 2011, I picked up the "Plum Bubbly" shadow duo. They are very sparkly definitely more for an evening look.

Have you ever tried VS's makeup? What was your experience?

Collector or Hoarder?

This is just the beginning...

My family teases me about the stacks of magazines on my bookshelf next to my bed. I like to think that I collect fashion magazines and newspapers, but I'm worried it is starting to become an issue. I think I may have early stages of hoarding. It runs in the family, which is why I think I watch the show "Hoarders" to scare myself straight. My grandmother and aunt keep so much crap! My mom has the opposite problem where she throws everything away. Let me show you:

I have stacks of New York Times Style sections in a bin.

I have old Apparel News from when I lived in California. For those who don't know, Apparel News is a newspaper about the fashion industry in Los Angeles.

There's pages and pages of this!

I used to cut out images from the pages I ripped out and put them in collage form in a notebook. I just couldn't keep up with it *tear*

At least I try to be organized

When I get a magazine, I try to rip out images I like from and file them away but as you saw by my bookshelf... I'm falling behind.

Do you think it's hoarding or am I allowed to collect this much? What is a better way to store them?

I Die For Dior's Haute Couture Paris Collection!

John Galliano debuted his Spring/Summer 2011 haute couture collection in Paris and I AM NOT DISAPPOINTED!

Paying homage to Dior's "New Look" from the 40's.

Love the fishnet!

Power shoulders!

Oscar dress perhaps?

Forget the clothes... I want the beauty looks! What do you think of this collection?

Images via Fashion Editorials