FINALLY! My first Swap

This is the beginning of my many posts about "the swap"....I have so many to compliment and thank - and some from many months ago! Here is my very first, real live swappy thingy...and it was with Rebecca from Nails Etc. Her blog is so fresh and honest - I love the style of her writing....As I read her posts, I close my eyes and go to London with her... (not in a creepy, American sort of way, LOL)...London is one of my most favorite cities.

I really didn't know how much fun or how addictive this whole swap lifestyle would be, but man, am I having a blast!

So here are the photos of what she kindly sent "across the pond":

(this is the mass)

L to R: Boots ~ (Natural Collection) "Black Cherry", Bourjois ~ "So Lacque - Bleu Violet",

Miss Sporty ~"Clubbing Colors" (I think) and Sleek ~ (Nailed Polish) "Poison Ivy".

Beauty UK ~ "Electric Purple" and "Lilac Girl"

Barry M ~ (my firsts!!!) NP 210, Racing Green, Raspberry and NPP 1.

Boots 17 ~ "Orange Soda", "Pink Grapefruit" and "Peacock"

Collection 2000 ~ "Spangles", "Intense" and "Button Moon"

MUA ~ Green Metallic (no label) and "Shade 8"

I really didn't know what to expect - but I sent the lovely Rebecca an email asking about the Beauty UK polishes she had reviewed on her blog - I offered to swap with her, and this is what I was surprised with! My swaps are many and my treasures great, but I have had the most fun getting "to know" the bloggers from these exchanges....you are all so kind and generous. From one little American gal, thanks.

~Be Polished!

Tiffani

It's Always the 4th!

HAPPY FOURTH!

The celebration for the 4th of July (Independence Day) lasted from Saturday until Wednesday!!

Here's what I used:

1. Diamond Cosmetics Super Base

2. Finger Paints -Easel come, Easel Go on thumb and pointer.

3. Essie - Well Red ans China Glaze - Nova on middle.

4. China Glaze - Snow on ring.

5. Orly - Royal Navy (LOVE THIS!) and Art Deco Silver Glitter on pinky.

I used BM plates for the firework and Konad plates with Special polish in Red and Blue Metallic - the silver is China Glaze Millennium!

Be Polished!

~Tiffani

Yours Truly

A month or so ago, I was tolling about the blog-o-sphere looking for (gasp) non polish sites...I have this new found fascination for handmade goods, especially jewellery. I found this little "gem" of a blog, and instantly fell in love with the look of this stuff!

I contacted the lovely Alice of Yours Truly Range, and we began emailing back and forth, creating the most amazing pieces together. I say together, because it was probably 2 or 3 weeks of back and forth decisions and suggestions before she actually made the jewellery. You heard me right ~ MADE....custom, beautiful, and more spectacular than I could have ever imagined. Here is what she designed for me:

This first set is made with black leather, one Pegasus pendant (LOVE) a large blue heart and one small black one....The earrings are blue as well ...I think they are Heliotrope. (yikes)

This next creation is very special to me. When Roo was a baby, his nursery was decorated in suns, moons and stars - the crystals on this necklace reflect most of the colors in his crib comforter. When I told Alice about this , she knew exactly what I was looking for. I absolutely adore this necklace....

Her color charts of available crystals can be found here and she only uses the best materials; Swarovski crystals, sterling silver and leather. Here is a little snippet from her blog:

"The Yours Truly Range is strictly my own design of jewelry. Anything you see here is created from my own mind and designs are made up myself. I would never copy a piece of any kind deliberately, as i get enjoyment out of styling and designing pieces of jewelry from my own imagination. I like to experiment and be artistic about my work.

The main materials i use are Swarovski crystals. These are a well known, high quality crystals in which arebeautifully sparkly and elegant, unfortunately the camera doesnt do any justice for them! They look better in life than in pictures i can assure you!

I like to think im doing the best i can for customers and i will provide a service that will not let you down! All products are made with the finest materials and i can ensure my items are of high quality!"

I couldn't agree more - if only you could see this jewellery in person, it is stunning!

I am going to be ordering more from Alice - those heart and key earrings are to die for!!!

I am so glad I bumped in to this blog, and if you are in the market for some amazing, personalized, beautiful, unique (I could go on for days) pieces, PLEASE, send Alice an email; she will personally create a piece for you.

Prices range from about $10-$30 ..and shipping took about 1 week from the UK to WV.

THANK YOU ALICE!!!!!! You will be hearing from me again very soon!

Be Polished!

~Tiffani

*a little disclaimer here ~ I purchased these items with my very own $$$$ :) I can't wait to order more! *wink*

Cheeky Monkey ~ III

The newest colors from Cheeky Monkey Cosmetics arrived at my doorstep a couple of weeks ago, and I was overjoyed! Andrea remembered "little ol' me" and I am VERY grateful!

So, with little introduction here are the 4 new Cheeky Monkey Cosmetics Spring 2010 colors!

This is "Booty Call"....and if someone was on the other end of the line wearing this fab color, don't you know I'd be right over. This is just beautiful; not quite purple, not quite magenta, but a sparkled mix of the two. Quite possibly my favorite of the four.

Next up is "Filthy Madame" - may be who IS at the other end of the booty call! It makes me think of some hyped-up, black-tie soiree that has out-lived the party. This is how I feel after one of those uncomfortable nights.....with my husband, of course! :)

And there there is this minty-goddess, "Get Wet". With all the makers and the mint craze, Cheeky Monkey got on the wagon, and as far as I'm concerned, came in first. This one was a tad bit streaky with the first coat, but 2 coats brought out the beauty in this polish.

Here we go with the last one - "Tease". So, I put this in the concrete category, but with a hint of purple...yes, purple. With all the grey/concrete/cement colors out there, this is def going to be my "go-to" grey.

Just because I can't get enough of this color (and I did it the last time I reviewed)... *drooling*

And I love the sun in this too.....yummy. Do you see that slight little hint of colored sparkle? Not a holo, but there is some kick a$$ twinkle in there...

So, all in all the formula is great, the pigments are great, and the owner, Andrea is THE BOMB!!! (hey, that might not be a bad name for a polish....).

Cheeky Monkey Cosmetics are available for $15 USD, each on the website, HERE. They are BIG 3 Free and worth every penny. Give you fingers a story to tell....they are RAWKIN!!!!

Be Polished!

~Tiffani

Diamond Cosmetics' New Summer 2010 Collection!

SUMMER BEACH BLOWOUT COLLECTION!!!

Diamond Cosmetics has done it again! This collection, although only 3 shades, is exactly up on the trend with polish makers world-wide.....(I'll show you why in a minute). Marissa sent me these polishes to review a couple of weeks ago, and now I am going to share these absolutely gorgeous colors with you....and now, without further a-do (Kermit the Frog voice inserted HERE)

DIAMOND COSMETICS, YAAAAAAAAAYYYYYY!!!!!

First up is #355, Magens Bay Blue. The release states: "Magens Bay Blue is a light blue-based teal. this color shines like the clear blue bay on the brightest day".

Next up is #356, Pelican Peak Purple: "a feminine and flirty lilac that will match your bikini, the beach and your boy wonderfully"....cute, cute, CUTE!!!

And lastly is #357, South Beach Pink. This one says "this bright pink is the perfect color to transition from a fun day in the syn to a wild night on the town" - and I agree....GO!

These beauts are what we have all come to rely upon from DC, smooth, 2-coaters and just plain pretty. The application was exactly what I expected....coat 2 just melts in to the first causing a smooth and shiny finish.

All of Diamond Cosmetics' polishes are free from Toluene, Formaldehyde, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP) and Camphor. They are available on their website for $2.25 each. Super price for a super polish!

Their customer service is personal and they always ship quickly! I have done much business with this company, and I will continue to do so!

And for all the US bloggers/nail fanatics out there who can't get the coveted essence "Crazy about Colour" collection - get the Diamond Cosmetics line......while they are not exact dupes, they are so close you can enjoy them just the same......and way to go, DC - these colors are just perfect for summer!

Thanks to Marissa for letting me review this line.... MUWAH!

Be Polished!

~Tiffani

Vacay, Earth Day and PK!!!

Finally a post! Lots going on here, BUT, I WILL SURVIVE! (hint, hint)

Here is what I decided for the Bermuda mani: (remember this trip was in April!)

Nubar "Funky Opal"

Diamond Cosmetics "White Shimmer" on the tips....

I stopped there for a while, but wanted to add a little Konad:

M57 with pink and white. It lasted 4 or 5 days.

I used 2 coats of DC Super Base (I usually only use one, but I knew it needed to be tough) and 2 coats Seche on top, also for durability. Here's what I bought on vacation: (this was the view from our balcony at Coco Reef resort - we were there the last 2 nights.....)

Then there was the Earth Day mani:

Nubar: "Recycle" (appropriate)

China Glaze "Nova" for the tips...simple, but effective.

(I really miss my long-ish nails)

I added the reflection pic because of the holo-happiness happenings of the Nova in the glass.

Now on to another swap I did....well, not actually a swap, but a contest of sorts. Pia (I am getting the link as we speak...yeah, I'm a dumbbell), was having a great deal for people who commented on her blog. She was going to pick 10 (I think) people that entered this combo, and while on vacation in Germany, grab up some non-US polishes and cosmetics to send to we lucky ones. The only catch was (here's the coolest part) the winners had to swap US-only things back! So it was double duty, and VERY clever. I may be going to France, Belgium and Amsterdam late this summer, and I might very well steal this idea! (THANKS, PK)

Here is what she sent me:

Essence ~ Colour & Go, "Underwater" (I also took this on vacation!)

p2 ~ Color Victim, "Shockful"

essence ~ Cute as Hell, "bad girl" polish and "DATE ME!" eye shadow.

Lip Smackers ~"Fanta Orange" yum!

This was the prize of prizes for me....at first, I had no idea what to do with it, but when I asked Pia, she said it was made for babies, but so gentle and nicely scented that she wanted to "throw it in"....(and the tin is cute, too). So, I packed it in my Bermuda bag and used it on my face to help with the dreaded peel from day 1's sunburn.

Can I tell you that I am still using it! I love this stuff! My skin is very sensitive and this has never given me one little zit. It smells so great, not greasy and has helped (YES I HAVE THEM) with plumping of the dreaded wrinkles. OK, so I like to call them "character lines" :)

......have a GREAT day!

Be Polished!

~Tiffani

My Original RAOK

If you're not sure what this stands for, well, please read on. When I started this blog a few years ago, I had 2 followers....and needless to say, they were friends just being nice. (LOL) It was all about my crochet and photography of the articles I had made;scarves, baby stuff..it's still on here, too. Yeah, there was some political humor, but when it was all said and done, not successful at all. I kept up with it faithfully, waiting, longing and really just wanting a place I could vent and share.

It lasted a few painful, lonely months.

THEN, the Commish and I took a trip to Vegas in November of 2009. (most of you have read this story before). While there I was "introduced" to Konad at the mall. Yes, those little annoying kiosks we all have to pass to get to Victoria's Secret or the GAP - you know what I mean. Well on this day, I am so glad I wandered up to the little "street cart" replica and met the most wonderful sales gal ever. She sent me home with a starter kit and a "free" m19 plate. The rest, as you can see, is history.

I decided to get the blog thing going again, but in a different direction. Don't get me wrong I still love my crocheting and heck, the photography thing is now a career, but my nail sisters???? What a great bunch you are.

So herein begins the real story behind this post. I had oh, maybe 10 or so followers...and I suddenly got an email from Laura aka "Sawan" asking if she could send me the Claire's Mood Polishes......well, what do you say, but YEA!!!!! A week or so later they arrived and I got to swatching and photographing the darlings. BUT, it was snowing and snowing and snowing....in excess of 3 feet. I did the best I could, so here is how they ended up:

I have posted before about this exchange, but never in it's entirety...I do have swatches of these, but I just wanted to share them by themselves. Besides, it was snowing so much, my swatches were "eh" to say the least...my hands were too cold to tell what was going on...now I am nubbified (stupid bowling ball) so they might have to be re-swatched.

SAWAN-LAURA - you were one of my first followers and my very first RAOK provider, so again, thank you for making this happen.

Until next time...........(let the swap posts begin!)

Be Polished!

~Tiffani

(the luckiest nail gal in the world)

No Nails today....some work. PIC SPAM!

Here is what has kept me so busy lately....well, and the vacation, and baseball games, and senior pictures, and, well, you get the picture. Not a cop-out, but I am so far behind in the post game, that I wanted you all to see my other passion. I'll get to the nail thing shortly. I have some of the BESTEST swap packages to show you and the BESTEST swap gals EVER! (Rebecca, Biba, PK, Lyra, Lily, Sawan, Susie) - you girls RAWK - and I promise, you will all get a post.)

XXXOOO MUWAH! *sending international Marilyn kisses*

This is baby Tristen and his family.

He was one month old when he came to my studio.

Baby Lucas was born 2 months early.

When he came to my studio, he had been home for about a week...

Well, there are a few more, but I think this might be enough spam for right now...and, cuteness!

Be Polished!

~Tiffani

WINNER!

This is the Roo jumping for JOY!!! (I think he found the cure before i could give it away!)

It is official! The "Cure for the Summertime Blues" goes to........................................................

ANSTAH

I sent the email to her just moments ago! Congratulations!! I had so much fun getting this together and I am planning the next one - oh, "surprise, surprise"...(said by Gomer Pyle - US gals, you know this!)

Be Polished!

~Tiffani

My next few posts are going to be about the kickin' swaps I've had lately.

I have to say, "The Swap" is one of my favorite things about this blog - meeting and emailing and trying new things; all the while giving ~ it's just the coolest....NO, you all are the coolest...THANK YOU for being readers, even when I didn't post, you all continue to comment. This blog thing brings us all together, a little....small world makes for great friends. (even if we never meet!)

You reap what you sow - and I am loving the opportunity to spread out, 'round the globe.....peace and love, peace and love..... :)