Hi Kids!
I'm feeling very emotional and mushy today, and because I have a fierce and hardcore image to maintain, I'm going to blame it on the weather...dreary days, rain, & thunderstorms.

Anyway, for Readers who have not been with me for long...I don't have much of a "life" outside of my job. I'm a restaurant manager, working for a Greek who, in a nut-shell, cannot do anything by himself. His name is George, and he "leans" on me hard- for everything. To give you an example- When his wife is away on vacation with their kids, I have to call his house to wake him up for work. He knows nothing in regards to an alarm clock- how to turn it on, how to set it, how to snooze, how to turn it off. He's a "mamma's boy" who delegates everything that makes him impatient, and things he doesn't want to learn or deal with. Aside from his wife, I am the only one he trusts to get a job done and to make him look good.

I used to have a great life that included my own corset business, friends, clubbing, concerts, shopping and traveling. I've had none of that life for the last 4 years. I am married to my job, and it sucks. I'm not trying to whine and complain...these are just the facts, and it is what it is. Ideally, I'd rather be working at a job that makes me happy...something that allows for creativity and pays well. Sadly, New Jersey does not have much to offer job-wise for someone like me.

Having said all that, as pathetic as it sounds, this little Blog, and loose-knit community of nail polish lovers means the world to me. Honestly, I feel as though I've been in a vast ocean, no horizon in sight, and coming upon a buoy to hang on to.
This Blog is for me...I'm not looking for anything but to have a place for creativity and LOOK!- 297 souls are interested in what I do next! AMAZING!
Thank you ALL for keeping me company!!!

Now that I have that off my chest...although there is no art to show today, I can at least show you what I've had on my nails since Saturday. Savvy (Femme Couture), French Cafe. I would never have worn a nude a year ago, however, since Blogging, my color world has expanded beyond blacks, greys and vampies.
Thank you Girls!
I absolutely LOVE wearing nudes...especially after sporting a series of layered, multi-color manis.
Anyway, this is 3 coats. After the first coat I added polish thinner and some Wet N Wild topcoat because the formula on this one was stickey and gluey. It helped bunches!
I got that pretty ding on my index from opening a creamer for my coffee at work.
With flash-

overcast-

Oh, I almost forgot!
I have 25 new fauxnad plates coming from Chez-delaney and another 21 fauxnad plates from an Ebay seller.
Woohoo!
I am also expecting my first BB Couture polishes from Overall Beauty in addition to my second order with Zoya!

Earth Day Garden- layered fauxnad

Hi Kids!
You know, I hadn't planned on doing an Earth Day mani- in fact, I didn't even know it was Earth Day until I logged in today! Having green on my nails today was a fluke..I only swatched this color yesterday because the formula was so nice. Anyway, since there's a "built-in, no brainer" theme of the day, it would be silly not to take advantage of it.

Readers who have been with me for a while know how much I miss my gardens. I think it is fitting that I should have one on my nails this day. As always, pictures are clicakable for largest view.

I love how the light makes this jelly glow.

Weird shot of my index above....it looks like a bubble...actually all my nails look weird in that shot. I loved how the colors turned out though, so I included it in this post anyway.











All photos were taken in my lightbox, and surprisingly, the colors turned out quite accurate.
**Mani- 3 coats Ruby Kisses, Neon Green. Obviously not a neon- more like a grass green. It's a jelly, and has an amazing formula!
**2 coats Nfu-Oh #50 layered over RK. Although the base of #50 is a lavender, it did not change the green. I really liked this combination...it looked very much like the green and blue found on a globe of the Earth.
**All stamping colors are frankens, with the exception of Konad Special Polish, Wine Red.
**Konad plates- M21 & M66
**Fauxnad plates-A07, A13, H29 & P55 ...from chez-delaney
**Essence Plate
**1 coat Seche

Test stamping aside, my garden took me about an hour to complete.
This mani looks slightly different in real life. There is more depth than my pictures show. The Macro mode seems to isolate each element in this mani and brings them to the front. The garden seems busy in these pictures, especially when viewed at full size.

Green jelly

Hi Kids!
I know...weird thing to do, posting an unfinished mani...
Several months ago, I purchased 2 bottles of Ruby Kisses, Neon Green for frankening. I swatch all my frankening polishes on fake nails and put the bottles away in a drawer. Anyway, earlier this evening, I finally got around to doing the swatch, and then some. I really liked the color a lot, so I applied 2 coats on my own nails.

I knew by the bottle that this was a jelly, however, what I didn't know- this cheap, $1.49 polish has an outstanding formula! It is virtually streak free on the first coat and almost vnl free on the second coat! RK Neon Green is definitely not a neon, but more on the lines of the New York Summer Amaranth swatches I've seen...maybe a tad warmer.

Sooo, ya...this color and formula was a total surprise, and I wanted to share. 
I'm going to sleep on these 2 coats...maybe I'll keep this mani and add fauxnad.
What do you think?

Petites Color Fever, Fairy Pink- a gossamer holo!

Hi Kids!
I'm back with an actual mani w/fauxnad, albeit a very simple one...one of my "quickies". My original idea for this mani included some layering over the full image stamp I used. Changed my mind, because this color is total  awesome-ness, and it would have been a crime to cover it up.

I hauled a bunch of  Petites Color Fever about a month ago, swatched them on fake nails and immediately ran back to the DS for a back-up of Fairy Pink and Black Diamond. Both are scattered holos and totally unique. Anyway, I had some buyers remorse with this haul and 2-3 other DS hauls in that same week. I'm always shocked at checkout...DS polishes are not cheap anymore!!! I think I spent well over $200 on polish that week, plus my prescriptions, car insurance, and a couple of other bills. Sent me to the Poorhouse as you all know! I have absolutely no discipline when it comes to spending money...but it's all good now! My bank account is back in black, mailing out my Giveaway hauls are back on schedule.
(At the end of this post, is a pic of my Petites haul...Black Diamond has been decanted into an old Maybelline bottle.)

Finally, on to Petites Color Fever, Fairy Pink. When I look at this color, the first description that comes to mind is- gossamer holo...and it fits so perfectly... I don't think I need to go on and on, except to say that this polish is oh so pretty, and you need to get it.  You'll have to click these pictures to make them larger and to see the pretty scattered holo and red flash.

Please excuse the cuticle wounds...I have yet to learn how to sand my nails without being so aggressive.
Anyway, this mani is 3 coats Petites Color Fever, Fairy Pink.
Fauxnad plate- H23
Stamped with Sally Hansen, Aqua Chrome
Nail jewel decals double stacked on tips. (can't remember the brand)
1 coat Seche

RIP Peter Steele

Hi Kids!
This whole not feeling well is driving me nutz!
Making everything worse, this past weekend, Peter Steele from Type O Negative passed away. ToN , along with Alien Sex Fiend are the 2 bands I listen to on my way to work every day. Both of these bands are the best at dark, dramatic, sarcastic, funny, cheezey, tongue-in-cheek music.
Saturday morning, I walked into the restaurant with tears in my eyes, a lump in my throat, and an all day pass to the Loo.

My mani of the weekend was Orly, Iron Butterfly. On Saturday evening, I tried and failed at a ToN tribute mani. I had hope to re-create the thorned canes on the cover of October Rust, but did not have a brush fine enough to freehand the thorns. Not that I could see my nails through the tears anyway...pathetic?....not really...

 I am an excruciatingly intense soul, wound up tight and internal. For all this internal drama, ToN has always been a welcome relief and release from seriousness.
And on the 28th day, you sing, and I can laugh!

143 Peter Steele~ RIP

Not well

Hey Kids!
Still wearing Quirius Cruiser, and the art planned for it is on hold. I am not well....a condition that hit me last April has returned. I'm not sure why I have it again, as I've not changed anything in my diet to bring it on, save for taking (very good) vitamins for a week. Maybe my body likes being deficient, I don't know.

possible tmi ahead...
I have severe digestive/intestinal issues and a damn furry tongue. Because it sits at the back of my tongue, my gag reflex is involved. Last year it took me months to get back to normal and only through eating yogurt morning, noon and night.
So I'm feeling very weak and more than run down. I *still* have to go into work which really sucks. It's just me and the owner at the restaurant.

I went to my Dr last year for this condition, and he prescribed an antibiotic. From everything I've read in my research, antibiotics cause this condition! I don't believe in taking antibiotics unless absolutely necessary, so going to the Dr for this is out of the equation. I will do as I did last year, and help my own body heal itself.

Just to let you know how really sick I felt last night- I put on my jams as soon as I got home from work and went to bed! If I'm a little mia, please forgive me.

Quirius, Cruiser

Hi Kids!
As you can see, this ain't no Milani holo, or the pink I thought I'd use next. The weather forecast said dreary and rainy on Tuesday...definitely not a good day for holos. And the pink?...well... my appetite changed after seeing Sasha's post HERE with BB Couture, Zuma Wave Rider. That's a Baby Blue I can get into!

The 3 baby blues I have in my collection are; Claire's pastel blue, Quirius, Cruiser & Maybelline, Pie In The Sky. Out of the 3, I'd say Pie In The Sky comes closest to Zuma Wave Runner. Since that one has been swatched to death, I tried Claire's pastel blue, and immediately gave up due to the brush size. So, I went with Quirius, Cruiser, and what a nightmare! Before I say anything else about this polish...I am not a creme fan!
I don't apply them well, nor do I think they look nice on my nails. I think they look fabulous on everyone else, but on me, cremes tend to look ...um...flat and one dimensional. I dunno, perhaps my dislike for cremes stems from the fact that I grew up in the age of frosts, and that is why I prefer shimmers.

Anyway! Quirius, Cruiser is a pretty creme, however, it is definitely super-streak-city for me. I did not add thinner to this...my instincts tell me that this polish would benefit from the addition of thinner and a bit of clear, and a decant into a bottle with a better brush. (This polish doesn't "level" well, and thinner is not enough, therefore my reasoning for the addition of a clear) I've decanted one of my Quirius polishes, Paris Night(?) into one of the new Sally Hansen Complete Salon bottles, and it did  wonders for application.

This mani is 3 coats and done 1 hour before I went to bed. Drying time was great! I love the color of this polish, and I *really* wanted this lacquer to redeem itself, so I did not apply Seche. Upon waking this morning, I had NO sheet-marks and miraculously a lot- but not all of the streaks disappeared with curing overnight.

What do you think of this color on me?

Bottle comparisons

I believe that with a brush like this, even the best formulated polish would have streak issues;