Feeling Blue

Well I've been feeling down today since I got a red gift I was hoping NOT to receive today. So I'm swatching blue instead :) Two coats of each.

Colors are as follows:

Pinkie- "Pacific Blue" by Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear

Ring- "Ocean View" by Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear

Middle- "Celestial" by Pure Ice

Pointer- "Teal Takeoff" by Sally Hansen Insta-Dri

So here's the breakdown:

Pinkie- "Pacific Blue" by Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear

The color is very different. Yes, that's good :) It was a bit thicker than I like (which is odd, because I can't stand thin polish), but covered smooth and could have even been left at just ONE coat! It had a medium dry time- faster than expected since it was thick. 4 Blings

Ring- "Ocean View" by Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear

I love this color! The pictures don't do it justice! A perfect ocean blue with just the right hint of green, FINALLY! With a husband who works in the cruise industry, a color like this is a must for me. It was a bit thin with medium opacity and a longer dry time, but sooooo worth it! 4.5 Blings

Middle- "Celestial" by Pure Ice

Very similar to "Ocean View" without the green undertones. I honestly didn't think this would hold up against the Sally Hansen's, but it had good medium opacity and thickness and it dried hard and fast! 4 Blings

Pointer- "Teal Takeoff" by Sally Hansen Insta-Dri

This was my FAVORITE. Nice rich deep color, great opacity, went on medium-thick (which I prefer- two coats is plenty), and dries rock hard, though a touch slower than "Celestial". 4.5 Blings

So I really liked all of these, but have to take them off since I didn't do a base coat, doh.

~April

Happy Valentines Day

Hope you had a good one, Mine was great! DH and I hit a local place for some Halibut and chips and it was to die for! Soooo good! My polish was looking a little sad so I spiced it up with a topcoat of SinfulColors Glass Pink. I really like this, It's so delicate and pink and very sheer. I just love the shimmer, It looks like tiny glass flecks. It's just a really cool topcoat! 4.5 Blings

The Perfume I wore was YSL - Baby Doll. This is a grapefruit and rose scent that if I had to pick one word to describe it " Happy " would be it! 4 Blings

My red cashmere sweater is a much deeper red, a blue red, not tomato. And my necklace is a pretty gold heart that my DH gave me for Christmas a few years ago. Well that was my day! :)

~ Sylvia

Confessions of a Shopaholic

When I spend too much money I have a feeling of guilt built up inside...
so I suck it up, because I feel I have to much pride..
The day ticks by slowly...I start to watch the clock...
One shopping spree won't hurt..
It's only 11:00....
Guilt turns into money...it melts out of my hands...
into the pockets of others, and here I stand...
alone with my stuff, with a fake smile on my face...
it only helps to ease the pain, it never makes it go away...
Maybe I think, just for a minute I can change...then tomarrow comes..
And im again...shopping away.

~Monica

Cute Valentine's Day French Mani

This is two coat of Sally Hansen - Pardon My French. It is semi sheer and pale pink, love the color! But,,,,, it was a pain in the *ss to put on! Streaky, thick but runny, super slow to dry. 2.5 Blings

Anywho, I put some cute decals on, slapped on a coat of Poshe', tapped my heels three times and said there's no mani like mine, there's no mani like mine. And there you have it!

~ Sylvia

LoveMyNails "Plum Shimmer" with Hearts

First off, the color is not plum, though it is a beautiful pink and silver shimmer. It went on very easy, UNFORTUNATELY it comes off easy too! I can't get it to stop smudging, even after Seche Vite or Poshe top coats! For someone who works with horses and is very active, this is a deal breaker. I love the color, but it's virtually unwearable. Polish from hell gets 1.5 blings (.5 for good color).

The hearts are so cute and they look like rhinestones! Though they are also a bit hard to wear since they are hard and don't sit too well on the nails, a few top coats does the trick. 3 Blings

~April

UPDATE 2/14/10: This is also a real pain to take off :(

OPI Nail Wipes

Okay, I've been a big fan of cotton balls for a long time but I've clearly been in the dark ages. These wipes are 1000 times better! So fast it's like a magic wand, and I only needed one wipe per hand with 6 plus coats of polish! These are a new must have. 4 Blings


~April

Swissco Emery Glass

I got this at Sally's because my nails kept peeling and chiping (I mean at least a once a day, it was getting ugly). I've used it once and have not had a chip since! It wasn't cheap (about $7) but worth every penny! 4.5 Blings

~April

My Grandma's Cooler than Yours!

How many 79 year old women have this kind of style? These are my Grandma's new Versace sunglasses. Frames like these will only set you back a cool $250 :)

Grandma gives these 5 Blings!

~April

China Glaze - Strawberry Fields

Inside

Outside

This is 2 base coats, but for the first coat this time I tried Barielle - Natural Nail Camouflage. It went on ok, gave a nice semi - matte finish. We will see how it wears. I've heard some good things about this and it was cheap at Marshall's.
I was going to skip the Nail Envy, but as I'm still growing my nails out after some bad breaks I couldn't make myself go with out it.
The Strawberry Fields is nice, the gold shimmer will be pretty in the summer. This is three coats with a Poshe topcoat. I would give it 3.5 Blings.

~ Sylvia

Update

Odd, I put on a clear top coat and it looks more blue. Maybe my lighting too but it's much more what I expected now.

~April
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WetnWild Caribbean Frost

This went on smooth and had a good medium opacity and although I used 3 coats, I could have gotten away with 2. I am a bit disappointed that there isn't more blue. 3.5 Blings

~April

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KORRES FACE PRIMER

This is a GREAT primer to put under your foundation, I found this at Sephora! (my fav. makeup store :) ..and it's also good for your skin! I usually sweat while i'm at work, but I like to wear a thin layer of foundation, and i found this primer seems to hold my foundation really well even if I do sweat and also works as a moisturizer! ...I won't lie, it was a little spendy...it was $28 for a 1.01 oz. BUT if your looking just to try it out, it is only $9 for a 0.34 oz bottle! I have the 1.01 oz. bottle, and I use it probably 3 times a week and have had the bottle since July 2009! (...a tiny bit goes a long way!) It is 99% natural and a silicone free and antioxidant rich face primer.

To learn more about KORRES products, go to http://www.sephora.com/

~Monica

Felix Rey New York bling bag!

This is a "Felix Rey" New York handbag I found in a designer re-sale store that my mom's friend owns. She gave me a great deal on it, the price tag was still on it originaly marked $220! (wow!) The closest store to us is in California..(figures..). So i decided to go online and do a little research on it, here is the history below that I found out about the name and designers, it's a great story...check it out!

Felix Rey has established itself as a sophisticated and ultra-feminine luxury brand. The sensibility of the accessories line is a clear reflection of the personal styles of co-founders Lily Rafii Band and Sulaika Zarrouk.

So, who is Felix Rey? A Doctor! It was Doctor Felix Rey who tended to Vincent Van Gogh after he cut off a portion of his ear and was admitted to an asylum. The two men befriended each other and Van Gogh painted a portrait of the doctor in lieu of payment for his services. Felix Rey, meaning “Happy King”, is a pseudonym Lily and Sulaika chose to personify their brand after seeing this inspirational portrait.

Felix Rey products are sold worldwide and are regularly featured in WWD, InStyle and Lucky Magazines. A favorite among celebrities, Felix Rey has also been featured on Sex and the City.

L.A. Girls Rock Star - Supernova

Today was DH's Birthday so for the celebration I added 1 coat of Supernova to Sally Hansens Flirt. This long stringy glitter is so cool! I'm picking up blue, green, purple and silver. I think this would look so hot over a dark purple this summer! I did add a topcoat to smooth things out. This is the first polish I have used from L.A. Girls, and me likey! 4 Blings

~ Sylvia

Chocolate Zucchini Bling Cake

This dark chocolate cake would never lead you to believe it was made with a vegetable. This was made with frozen zucchini from last summer's garden, which we grated in the food processor. The recipe is below :) 4.5 Blings

~ April & Sylvia

Chocolate Zucchini Cake Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups regular all-purpose flour, unsifted
• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 3/4 cup Crisco
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 10 packets Stevia powder
• 3 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 teaspoons grated orange peel
• 3 cups coarsely shredded zucchini
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup dark Rum
• 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
• 1/4 teaspoon each of Allspice, Ginger, Cardiamin, and Cloves
• Glaze (directions follow)

Method

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
1 Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder, soda, salt, Allspice, Ginger, Cardiamin, Cloves, and cinnamon; set aside.
2 With a mixer, beat together the butter, Stevia and the sugar until they are smoothly blended. Add the eggs to the butter and sugar mixture one at a time, beating well after each addition. With a spoon, stir in the vanilla, rum, orange peel, and zucchini.
3 Alternately stir the dry ingredients and the milk into the zucchini mixture, including the nuts with the last addition.
4 Pour the batter into a greased and flour-dusted 10-inch tube pan or bundt pan. Bake in the oven for about 50 minutes (test at 45 minutes!) or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan 15 minutes; turn out on wire rack to cool thoroughly.
5 Drizzle glaze over cake. Glaze: Mix together 1/4 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 cup melted chocolate chips, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1/4 cup dark Rum. Beat until smooth. Pour onto cake while still warm.

Chill cake before serving. Makes 10-12 servings, NOT! Try 6 pigs realistically.

Sally Hansen X-wear Flirt

I read about this polish on another blog. Loved the way it went on, like hot blackberry jelly. This is 2 coats over the standard Barielle nail protein and Nail Envy Base. Top coat was Poshe. LOVE! 4 Blings

~ Sylvia

Reverse French

This is my reverse french mani. Sorry if it's a little worn, this is day 5. This took a long time. I'm sure I made it harder than I needed to but I liked the way it turned out. First coat was Barielle Nail Rebuilding Protein. 4.5 Blings

Second coat was OPI - Nail Envy Matte. 5 Blings!

For the base I used 2 coats of OPI - Hopelessly In Love. 4 Blings

The tips were 2 coats of OPI - Lincoln Park After Dark. 4.5 Blings

I used some cute nail stickers I got at Sally's and then It was 2 coats of Seche Vite (4 Blings). The one thing I was bummed about was that some of the silver on the flowers smeared into the dark tips and I was going for a cream with no frost look. :( O well. I really liked it and it got a thumbs up from DH. But..... it was 6:00 am when I dragged my sorry self to bed. But with one more topcoat two days latter I got a week of wear with no chips and almost no tip wear! Not bad for six hours.;)

~ Sylvia

Mr. Wrong is oh so right!

Hard Candy has a fantastic polish called "Mr. Wrong." Where did I find this score? Walmart! $5, and worth every penny. This won't show up anywhere near its full glory, but it has a dark purple base with gold/silver shimmer and looks completely different depending on the lighting. This took 4 thin coats (I like them to dry fast, and it did). I may just need a backup bottle :) Definitely 5 Blings!

~April

Welcome!

Welcome to our new blog, for all things Bling!

The first review is of my fantastic Brown and Gold purse, from Kathy Van Zeeland.


First off, it is soooo much nicer in person! The gold just sparkles! Pros: Nice zipper pocket on the front for coins (or whatever), tons of room inside (great for hiding new purchases from unsuspecting DH, just kidding LOL), and more pockets inside for wallet, cell phone, or makeup. It also has a handy snap closure for easy access. Cons: The only thing I don't like about this purse is the large rings that attach the straps- they are a bit bulky, and they come off if you don't unscrew them with a glasses screwdriver and re-attach with super glue. Other than that, it is by far my favorite purse! 3.5 Blings

~April