They arrived! Fauxnad shipping update. wordy

Hi Kids!
The 8 fauxnad plates I ordered from chez-delaney on 1/19 arrived yesterday! As most of you know, I've ordered from her before, and although I received that order, I was a bit un-nerved that there was no return address on that package.
I thought I'd let you know how this package arrived...I'm happy to report that this package *had* a return address. I'm also happy that my plates were mailed the morning after I ordered and it only took 9 days  from France to New Jersey.

I'm going to try my best to squeeze in a fauxnad mani before I leave for work this morning. I've been real busy...worked 12 days straight, half of them 14/16 hour days! I did manage to get to the salon yesterday for a much needed fill and repair of 2 broken nails. My right thumb and index finger nail tips snapped after I picked up a heavy bag of rolled change. Curious creature that I am, I gently pried off the acrylic on my index fingers nail plate- to see what shape my natural nail was in. Not surprisingly- all the "old work" left the oldest part of my nail  paper thin and flake-y. All the "new work" by Angel is in pristine condition. Gotta love a Tech that does everything by hand with an emery board!

Anyway,  Angel polished my nails with a lacquer I picked up the other day-Borghese, Stellare Notte. Although it's a gorgeous color, it looked terrible on me.
I just removed it and am going with one of the new Sally Hansens, Thinking of Blue
That said, I think I'll take a cat-nap (3:32am now- have to be @ work by 10am) and try to get to a fauxnadicure.....

Fridge tag!

Tagged by the awesome and mighty Heather and the lovely and sweet Sasha .

The fascia of my fridge is naked-except for "dent" on the left side. The top, however, is pretty cool with 2 deer skulls, a skull mount and a vintage scale. The skulls and mount are my husbands- the scale is mine. I found it many years ago while renovating a very cool, Second Empire(?) house in Ocean City NJ. I loved that 3 story house with its huge pocketed doors and wonderful woodwork. My second husband and I were fixing and cleaning it before we put it on the market. Anyway, I found the scale in a strange cubby-hole in the detached Carriage House on the property.

Barbie mani

Hi Kids!
I'm back- the most terrible migraine I've ever had in my life is gone, and you'll never believe the odd way I got rid of it! Having felt a measure of relief from drinking 2 beers with my cooks Sunday night, I went home and bravely drank 4-6 shots of Tequila. Much to my surprise, the migraine vanished! Alcohol usually produces headaches, not cure them.

Moving on...When it came to having enough time to work on the cool thing I had planned for the MPJ mani, I was already bored with the color. The best cure for that- is a new mani.

And this Barbie mani....Well, all I can say is that I must have been possessed when I did it, because *nothing* about it is "me". All I really remember about this is that I was disappointed with the sticky, gloopy, streaky formula of Diamond Cosmetics Cotton Candy. Everything after that is a blur.
What was left on my mani desk;
Diamond Cosmetics, Cotton Candy
Small chunks of sponges wet with Sally Hansen Fire Opal, Flame Opal
Hot Topic Fauxnad plate and Fauxnad plate P55
Chelly, #56 and Sally Hansen Insta-Dri, Brisk Blue
Nicka K, Magical (clear base, blue and teal glitter)
Acrylic jewels...everywhere
Seche

OPI MPJ- original & a migraine

Hi Kids!
First- I want to thank all who replied to my skull & roses mani. I've had a migraine for almost 4 days, and I'm just too sensitive to be looking at my screen for very long. Nothing I have in my arsenal from Pharmaceuticals to otc is helping. Hopefully by tonight it will be finished running its course.

Anyway, I wasn't feeling that last mani. I removed it after having it on for only 10 hours.
I replaced it with OPI My Private Jet- original version. I'm going to do something very cool with this tonight- if my migraine goes away. As you can see, I pierced my ring-finger nail! I did with a red hot embroidery needle before I left for work yesterday.
Pictures are not very good. I was trying to change some settings on my camera and screwed everything up. I now have some kind of frame on my screen which distracted me from taking my pictures on center.
All these were taken yesterday at work....

I hate the way my nails look in this next picture....wide and pasted on. :(  They don't look like this irl, so it must be the cameras fault. I spent a lot of time last week buffing down my sidewalls- just so this wouldn't happen...meh!

Skulls, roses and barbed wire fauxnad

Inspiration was this Alexander Henry print;

Hey kids! As promised, a mani using the Hot Topic plate I received from Andrea. This is going to be really fast, as I'm in a hurry this afternoon!
I was hoping to get an EOTD wearing Evil Shades Cosmetics Heartless Queen , but there's no way- I don't want to be too late for work.
Anyway mani specs;
3 coats Orly Dazzle
Hot Topic fauxnad skull from Andrea of Black Nail Polish and Lipgloss
fauxnad plates H17, H25 & P57 purchased from HERE
stamped with- Claire's Matte Green, Konad Special polishes in black and red
1 coat Seche

I'm not sure if I like all this stamping over Orly Dazzle. I think it's just too "busy" to be over a busy/flashey silver. I would have loved this over a black background, like my inspiration A.E. print, however, red never shows up on black. Maybe a beige base would have been better? At any rate, I *love* this Hot Topic plate!
Thank you Andrea!!!

Orly Dazzle, fauxnad shipping, swap!

Hey Kids!
I *knew* I was forgetting something in my last post- Konad vs Fauxnad...
It's in regards to shipping from the vendor I purchased my first batch of fauxnad plates from;
http://www.chez-delaney.com/delaney.html
I was going over the invoice for the 8 plates I just ordered and remembered how lucky I was to receive the first set a few months ago. "Lucky" because the box my plates came across the sea without a return address- anywhere-. Nothing outside or inside the box...I received a box of plates with my name and address- no paper invoice- nothing! That was certainly a gamble I didn't know I was taking at the time. I'm anxious to see if this practice from the vendor has changed... I'll keep you posted on that issue.
On to the good stuff!

Orly Dazzle... pre-clean-up, waiting patiently for some skull and roses stamping. Click for ginormous view. The "warmth" you see at the tips is a reflection of the rust color sweater I am wearing.

The other day, I received a package from Andrea of Black nail polish and lipgloss. I've had a serious lemming for the Hot Topic faunad plate she uses. The one with the skull and crossbones, and hollowed out large stars. When she offered to send me her spare plate- I was game for a swap!





I wanted to be angry at her for sending me sooo many extras, but I <3 everything so much, how could I? My dh put it all away for me, so I have no pictures...4 nail polishes in colors I love...BPAL Malediction being my favorite... black, my go to color. She also included 3 Mineral eyeshadows- Heartless Queen, Sasha's Heart and a 2010 LE color from her company, Evil Shades Cosmetics! I'm a Minerals convert, and have been lusting after that red eyeshadow, Heartless Queen ever since I laid eyes on it! I LOVE red eyeshadow with my light green eyes! Definitely going to include an EOTD when I post my skull and roses mani tomorrow!
Thank you so much Andrea!

Konad vs fauxnad

Hey kids! I won't have a new mani until tomorrow- maybe. I'm feeling a bit unmotivated- still wearing SH Bronze Pink Prism. Remarkably, it is still going strong with nary any tip wear.-One of the perks of having acrylics!

Before I move on to my topic, I want to apologize to a certain blogger- ykwya. Must have been combing my hair with a hammer that day-duh!!!

Soooo ya- Konad vs fauxnad. I don't think this has been done yet, and with the soon to be released 8 new Konad plates I think it's time to do some comparison. I have 20 Konad plates and the entire fauxnad large plate series found here.
Side by side comparison- As you can see, the fauxnad plate I have is much larger. Small fauxnad plates are available. When handling both plates, the first thing I notice is the difference in weight. Konad plates have a backing...not sure if it's a waxed paper or if it's plastic. My fauxnad plates have no backing. I believe that the backing on Konad plates serves 2 purposes- #1-labeling and #2-protection from the rough edges around the plate.
This backing on the Konad plates sometimes gets in the way of my stamping. I don't use the pink, plastic plate holder included with some Konad Kits. I place my plates on a folded paper towel. When I scrape a Konad plate, the slickness of the backing makes the plate slide across the towel...it sort of gets away from me.

My "backless" fauxnad plates have rough edges, but they do not bother me. In fact, I rather like them as it helps the plate "grip" on to my paper towel. Some of my fauxnad plates have edge dings and flaws...while not attractive, these flaws do not impact the quality of the image.

Fauxnad



Konad

<-edge ding fauxnad





While Konad is definitely a better quality plate "feel" wise, it has less to offer "image" wise. The full nail images on my fauxnad plates are *almost* twice as large as Konad full images. The tip images on fauxnad are also *much* larger, making it sweet for those of us who have long nails.
Because my nails are wide and long, I have to multiple stamp full nail Konad images. This is ok- *only* when my image choice is abstract, like the cheetah stamp on M57. If I choose the fishnet image from the same Konad plate, I am in trouble. First of all, I'm going to have to flip the Konad fishnnet image horizontal to try to span the width of my nail...will it cover it? Let's see...

Horizontal Konad Fishnet- as you can see, it doesn't quite span the width of my Flipper Finger, which is the widest nail after my thumb. I should have aligned this image better with my cuticle, ah well, you still get the idea.

Double stamped on the horizontal- you can see- if I had aligned this better, I'd have to stamp a third time to get full coverage on my nail, instead of 2. Aligning this linear image with the previous took some doing. I did a pretty good job at getting this somewhat straight, however, we all know that an acceptable stamp, first try, doesn't always happen. I've used the black Konad special polish for stamping. If I make a mistake, a bit of alcohol on some cotton swiped on the image would remove it. I don't usually use the special polishes, so if the linear alignment wasn't straight, I'd be sol and have to remove it all.
Now for a fishnet fauxnad stamp, really more of a "pothole" net than fishnet...

Well, that didn't turn out well- did it? No fault of the image- my application. I can't remove this one, because the Konad special polish is too thick for the finer lines of this fauxnad image, I used regular polish. I used this fauxnad image upright because it *is* wide enough to span the width of my nail. In fact- it is *wider* than the width of my nail! As you can see, I have about 1/3 left to stamp length-wise. I also want to mention that the full nail fauxnad images are longer than the large end of Konads dual end stamper. If my stamp head had been longer, this fauxnad image would have covered my nail almost an 1/8" more!

This would have looked great if I had spent as much time with alignment  as I did for the previous Konad stamp. I make my posts in real time- not in advance. I'm watching the clock, and am pressed for time because I have to work today.




While I like the look of the Konad fishnet over the fauxnad pothole stamp, I don't like the time and effort it takes to triple stamp Konad. I also don't like the fact that even stamping Konad on the horizontal, I have gaps at my sidewalls empty of an image.

The other side is worse, but this is my damaged right hand- it's semi fused, and I can't twist it around to view the other side.

Why does Konad do this? One size does not fit all. Better to have a larger full nail stamp than a too small one. I think the 8 new Konad plates set to be released are really boring compared to THESE plates...tic the "A series" for the new fauxnad plates available through that vendor. I purchased 8 plates @ $60.60 USD- shipping included! Check out my 2 favorites A18 and A20...those leaf vein tips are amazing!!! I should mention here that I am not affiliated with any vendor or brand. I have no codes, no loyalties. My opinions here are from my experience with the Konad and fauxnad plates I purchased. There are other fauxnad plates available through Ebay and Amazon, but I can't give an opinion on them. I believe a search with "nail stamping" will give you those options.

All in all, I love my fauxnad plates better than my Konads. The volume of image choices are greater in addition to them being very original, interesting and workable with each-other. Some fauxnad images stamp better than others, so testing is a must. Sometimes using a regular polish works better than using a stamping polish.

Having said all that, if someone were to ask me; "Should I get Konad or fauxnad?"...Surprise! - I would recommend purchasing a small Konad Kit...(a few plates, stamper, a couple of special  polishes). Konad is a bit easier to work with. If you find that stamping is "your thing" and want better creative options, invest in some awesome fauxnad plates.

Well, I think that's all! I've run out of time for posting and doing something with my mani. I'm going to work with my previous Prisms mani on 7 nails and sloppy fishnet stamps on 2, and a spare nude nail. By the way, for the example stamps, I slopped on 1 coat of Borghese, Biscotto Beige over SH Bronze Pink Prism. It almost went on full coverage with 1 coat. The brush is interesting as well...shorter wand than I'm used to- but dang- I had awesome control with it.

Surprise water effect SH Prism & Fauxnad

Hi Kids! I have something really cool to show you today! And no-it's not the Hieroglyphics inspired Fauxnad I did today...that's just coming along for the ride in this post.

Pretty cool, huh? This is Sally Hansen Bronze Pink Prism under water! I noticed this effect while I was in the tub yesterday, and was totally mesmerized by it. I was so excited, I almost grabbed my camera right then, but decided to wait and re-create the scenario after some Fauxnad. These photos are all unedited and are clickable for a larger view.

After those, this picture seems so boring...

Fauxnad plates- H4, 16, 25 & 30- P7 & 21, and an unmarked plate.
Color Club, Where's the Soiree for stamping
Accent lines, Stripe Rite liner #903(?)...a medium blue pearl color.

Haha- I just realized that I have 6 coats of polish on my nails! 2 coats Rimmel Pop Apricot, 1 coate Seche, 2 Coats SH Bronze Pink Prism and another coat of Seche!

Sally Hansen Prisms- Bronze Pink

Last night, I changed my mind about stamping over Rimmel Apricot Pop. Because I don't have much time during the week-ends to work on my manis, I took a short-cut. I buffed up the 1 coat of SecheV I had over Apricot Pop and applied 2 coats of Sally Hansen Bronze Pink Prism. The build-up isn't too bad, as the formula of Prisms is on the thin side.
Bronze Pink isn't one of the most popular colors in the Prism line, but I Love it! Bold and different, it changes from bronze, to warm rose, olive green, and burgundy. I definitely have an idea in mind for stamping on this mani...
Pre clean-up---

Rimmel Pop Apricot made better

I picked up Rimmel Pop Apricot for the gold glitter dust and for the pretty pink shrimp color. Once I got it on the nail, the glitter was just too sparse for my liking, so I added 1/2 tsp of TKB Gold Reflecks, and wow! Much improved!
This color is less orange and softer than pictures show...

I really love this color with my skin-tone. As my hands age, (note- I said hands here-the rest of me is having none of that aging business), they've taken on a yellowish haze, taking my once cool toned skin into the neutral zone. I'm finding that I am more attracted to cool based colors that have a warm flash, warm shimmer, warm reflect...etc. Not cool-not warm, but a neutral made by the marriage of opposing color temperatures. Am I making any sense?
I checked out the reviews of this color on MUA, and most said this was a 3 coater. I did 2, and got full coverage, probably due to the Gold Reflecks making the formula thicker.
I'm going to enjoy this color sans art today, and perhaps do some Konad/fauxnad tonight.

Tag! I swear, I am Not the snake lady,

Except for one night, that is.... Tenth picture in my folder;

Halloween 2008, going to Dracula's Ball in Philly.
That guy on the left is Eric, a friend.
Picture is quite dark, and you can't see the detail in the wig I made, so here's a shot of that by its lonesome.

Zoya Yasmeen & tip art-Fauxnad & 101 Followers!

 I'm afraid this mani looks much nicer, colors blending and matching better irl. While my camera got Yasmeen color correct, it totally missed the mark on the gold glitter overly tips matching the gold fauxnad stamp :(
I wonder if this would have looked better without my camera set to macro. Battery is dead now, so I can't experiment.

I started off this mani with Zoya Yasmeen.
Orly tip guides
Overlay in Orly fantasea, topped with Nicka K Cosmetics, Mardi Gras(gold glitter, clear base)
Fauxnad plates- H3, P16 & P21
Stamping polishes- Konad Special P- the blue shimmer, CG, 2030, CG, Metallic Muse
1 coat SV

I like how this mani looks irl- not so much in pictures. The Konad SP blue shimmer looks great under CG Metallic Muse flowers, adding depth to the art as well as bringing out the blue tones in Yasmeen. The gold glitter and CG  2030 work so well together you hardly see the demarcation of the tip line. This may be one instance where a macro is not the best setting.

******************************************
I can hardly believe it...I don't post swatches of new collections, nor do I post the most popular colors, and I haven't had a single Giveaway. I know that my  Blog will never be the most popular on the block, given the fact that my writing style fails miserably(bores *me* to tears),  haphazard posting,  and  manicure/art choices based on the whims and fancies of a girl who dances to the beat of a different drummer, having 101 Followers means the world to me!!!

For whatever reason you follow my Blog, Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!!!
I have installed JS-Kit Widget so I can have personal dialog with you, so don't be shy about replying. I have a very "tough skin" (exception being my acrylics)- say what you want, good and bad. Trust me, I will find a "wth?" comment hilarious~ I know how to laugh at myself!

There will be a 101 Followers with a Giveaway...so stay tuned!!!

Happy 101 Meme Tag

The lovely Cindy from Nail'd & Polish'd tagged me with this meme. ~Thank you!
I'm to list 10 things that make me happy and tag 10 Blogs. Doing these Tags have been a lot of fun for me.
1.) Gardening! My current home being the exception, I've always had amazing flower and vegetable gardens.
From my last house. My nephews are in the first picture, and the grand-daughter of my 2nd husband in the second.

 

2.) Warm weather make me very, very happy.
3.) Good, home-made butter cookies!
4.) My online time.
5.) Listening to my music on a great sound system!
6.) Reading a good book always makes me happy.
7.) Thursdays, because it's my payday.
8.) A trouble free car.
9.) The smell of clothes after they have been dried outside.
10.) Being debt free!!!!
Tagging 5 blogs;
Deniz  Emerald Sparkled
gildedangel  Naive Nails
Christy The Kronicles of a Konad-er
Karen  Nail*Na*Nails
Mary Mary's Nails

Intermezzo...Diamond Cosmetics, Tira-mi-su

What color does a girl choose after having her new #1 polish on for 3 days?
I thought I would use my former #1 polish-OPI, Yoga-ta Get This Blue!, but meh, it's #2 now, and doesn't quite measure up to the still fresh in my mind, Dick Weed.
What I needed was a palate cleanser! A nude!
I chose a polish from a recent haul, Diamond Cosmetics Tira-mi-su. My first stab at DC, and I am impressed!

It's been a while since I've touched my Konad-Fauxnad plates. I think I'll do some stamping over this tonight.

I also took a picture of my right hand injury, if anyone is interested. I have limited mobility/dexterity and the start of arthritis. :(  The large scar you see near my wrist is where the steel pipe entered my hand. It exited out of my palm just under the pinky...I have no "pad" there anymore. The mold actually folded my hand in half like a piece of paper.

Bleach Black, Dick Weed mani! 14 pictures

Trying my best, I *just* could not get a true colors picture of this amazing polish! When I did 2 fake nail swatches a few posts ago, I was wrong when I said this was a blackened Emerald duochrome. The black I saw is actually a greyed/drabbed out purple. Here's my best description...
Highly Glowing, Metallic Emerald Green, flashing Blue & Turquoise, with a Dusty Purple Haze around the edges.
I have read many polishes being likened to beetle wings, however, I can truthfully say that they *all* pale in comparison to Dick Weed. This polish really does look like the wings of a beetle!!!
I bought this polish because I love the Bleach Black Website and for its unusual name. Judging from the website picture of this polish, I was expecting a color something on the lines of Color Club Emerald Depths. With a name like Dick Weed, I was sure that I was purchasing nothing more than a novelty polish with a crap formula.
Boy, was I ever wrong!!! This polish is the most unusual and prettiest I own.
Dick Weed is not an in-your face-duochrome- it's more subtle than that. Most times, Dick Weed looks to be a gorgeous metallic emerald, leaning to aqua. The other colors in this polish come out in the shadows of different lighting. As I type 10:19 in the morning, northern exposure window to my right, Dick Weed looks emerald at the cuticles, turquoise in the middle and a blackened murky purple at the tips. And on my left hand from an eastern exposed window, Dick Weed looks metallic emerald with dark edges. In full sun the shimmers in this polish reflect a light turquoise with a murky purple halo.
Wings of a beetle, for sure! Dick Weed is gorgeous, different, and odd. The colors are as elusive as a flying beetle...one minute you look down and see a gorgeous turquoise, move your hand for a better look and you see something else.
I've had Dick Weed on for 2 days, and have done nothing but look at my nails, going from window to window and light to light, trying to find all the colors in this polish! 
This is easily the #1 ranking nail polish in my collection! I say this honestly... and I consider myself a purple lover, certainly not a green fanatic. 
I suppose this would not be a proper review if I didn't talk about formula...
(By the way, I purchased this polish and I am not affiliated in any way with Bleach Black.)
My nail tech applied 3 coats and it was opaque. I applied an additional 4th coat for good measure. The first coat was thin and streaky, each coat after building color an opaqueness. The brush was decent and loaded up perfectly.
I took hundreds of pictures over the course of 2 days, under all kinds of lighting. I pared the pictures down to 14, choosing color over composition.  Oddly,  small images show Dick Weed at its best in the duochrome department! All my pictures, however, are clickable for a giant view.
I love this polish so much, I am ordering 3 more...one for a back-up, 1 for Sasha, and 1 for Andrea.
Pictures in no particular order...I took so many I have forgotten what pic was taken under what lighting. Some were taken pre-clean-up as well...