It's been a long time!

Hi everyone!
I hope your 2015 is going great. I know I've been gone for a long time and it's not something I'm proud of. Life happens and my obligations have been a lot more demanding but soon, I hope to get back on the blogging world.
Yesterday I uploaded a few pictures of nails I've done over the past months...
Enjoy ♡

Tribal and Gradient (Pictures Only)

Flowers and Special Guest

Here kitty, kitty!
One thing I might have not mentioned before is that I am a huge animal lover. Canines, felines, rodents... You name it, I love it. This is Tarzan and here is a little story about him. One afternoon, he was just standing at my door waiting for someone to come out. My brother saw him and started feeding him chicken. He came in and let us pet him and then he took off. Next day, there he was again... We fed him and gave him some milk. He let us pet him again, came into the house and then he left. On a third occasion, same thing happened but this time his eye was almost bleeding. At this point we were sure he was a stray cat and I felt so bad for him; he looked miserable. We fed him again and he left. Two weeks after, my brother saw a cat that had been run over close to one block from our house. We thought it had been Tarzan. About three months after that, guess who showed up? It was Tarzan! This time, he had gained weight, his fur was healthy and shiny, his eyes looked bluer than ever... Just a beautiful cat. He came into the house and this time he did not want to eat or drink anything; he just wanted love.
Well, we didn't take him in because we found out that Tarzan's name is Blue and he is our neighbors' cat! Yup, right next door... Sneaky cat! We still call him Tarzan though and I am really happy he is not a stray cat :)

For my nails, yeah, this is a nail blog after all... I did a French manicure using OPI Fair Dinkum Pinkum as a base and OPI Cha-Ching Cherry for the tips. The details are just black and white acrylic paint.

Meow!

A cutepolish Design - Doodle Flowers

One of the things I love about the nail polish community is that you can try the different manicures you see and then you realize how doable those tutorials and techniques really are. I am not ashamed to share a manicure which I saw on someone's blog or YT tutorial; in fact, I have shared a number of them now. I am pretty sure you know who cutepolish is... If not, well, you should check her out! Here is a manicure I copied from her, I just loved it and I got many compliments on it:

Here is the original video tutorial:

xoxo!

Disney's California Adventure!

Hello :)
Although I have not told you the horror story of my peeling nails, I did this manicure when they were getting back in shape. I went to Disney's California Adventure the last Friday of June and it was amazing! I hadn't been there in about 5 years and I enjoyed every minute of it - except the long lines for some rides. The picture above is from the end of the World of Color show on water. If you have watched it, I am sure you are just in awe as I am. It is such a show, worth every penny; it even made me cry...
On to the nails... I googled Disney nail art and I just copied this manicure which came up several times. I did not take more pictures because I had a topcoat issue and sheet marks- ugh! but I really liked it. I took the picture before the Pixar parade.

What is your favorite Disney character???

Polishes:
-Red: China Glaze Ruby Pumps
-Black: Finger Paints Black Expressionism
-Yellow: Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Lightening 
-White: acrylic paint
-Dots: essence stamping plate

Review for KK CenterHK: Light Pink 2mm Circular Studs

Hello :)
I have an exciting post for you guys and girls. I meant to have it ready a couple of weeks ago but it turns out that my nails were dying- I am talking about extreme peeling, chipping and some other horrors that I will get to in a separate post.
KKCenterHK was kind enough to allow me to choose one item for review and I picked their light pink 2mm circular studs. -Thank you very much! (Please be ready to see MANY pictures)

 
I have seen many studded nails and I have read many reviews. However, here are my first impressions and some info (prior to using the studs):

• The ~50 piece package is $4.73
• The package arrived in good condition, very well protected with bubble wrap 
• The studs are very shiny, lightweight and nicely pigmented
• The backing is hollow, which turned out to be helpful

Here is the manicure I used to show of the studs:
Polishes: Jenna Hipp The Freshmaker (mint) and Damage Control (pink)

 

 I used the studs like I used any other 3D decoration. I used a non-fast drying top coat as glue and they held up perfectly. They lasted longer on my nails than the polish itself. As you see, I placed them on the nails with the minty green polish because they would create a nice contrast since the studs are light pink. I am impressed on how 3 tiny studs can completely change and improve a plain manicure.

 

 

I apologize for these awkward pictures, the purpose is for you to see how they were on my nail, I am not pointing at you, that's rude.

 

My final thoughts and recommendations:

• The 2mm size is perfect for my narrow and curved nails, I am sure they can fit beautifully other nail shapes and lengths.
• The studs are not bulky at all yet they give that three-dimensional feel which is quite nice.
• The color does not bleed. However, if the topcoat protecting the stud undergoes friction, it is highly likely that the studs will show some wear.
• They are easy to use, they are not heavy and they can accessorize any type of manicure.
• I love them!

For being so kind and reading my entire post, here is a 10% off bonus courtesy of KKCenterHK for your next purchase:

KKCenterHK Website: http://www.kkcenterhk.com/index.html
Find them on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kkcenterhkcom

 

* Product sent for honest-review consideration *

 

 

Purple-Blue Gradient and Flowers

Hello :)

It's Hot in California! That should be a show... If you have watched the weather news, you might have seen that we are sweating like crazy here in the Golden State. Although I enjoy not having to wear boots or long sleeves, I don't like being sweaty and oily all day and night.
Today's manicure came about as a test for my birthday manicure... I liked it a bit, but in my eyes it's not birthday worthy. Maybe I would do the same thing but with reds and oranges. I will keep you updated if I optimize it :)