Bad Romance

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Love her or leave her - GaGa is definitely one to make a major statement.  GaGa's Workshop Collection, currently available at Barney's does not disappoint.  The exclusive Holiday collection includes a little bit of everything- from onesies and t-shirts, to leather jackets, biker hats and gloves, to eyelashes and - you guessed it - nail polish and accessories.  The nail looks are just as over the top as the entertainer herself, but shamelessly fun (much like the entertainer herself.) 

 Here are a few of my picks:

Press On Nails - $45.00

Tribal Press On's - $45.00

Flame Press On Nails - $225.00

Pinned

I know I am way late to the party - but about a week ago, I FINALLY caught on to the current craze sweeping the masses (or at least all the southern girls I'm friends with on Facebook), PINTEREST.  I signed up for the site months ago, but never really gave it a chance until recently - thanks to my cousin Erin, who would not rest until I drank the kool-aid.  Well, I drank it, and in one short week I feel like I've been sucked into a little bit of a black hole.  I love all the fashion inspiration, home organization and decor, recipes, and hair and beauty looks that seem to be never-ending.  Additionally, there are more nail looks than I can count just waiting for me to give them a whirl.  I am seriously having trouble deciding what to try first. 

 Here are my top contenders:

via the Nailasaurus Blog

via Passion Nail Art

via Fashion Trend Alerts

via Pocket Size Fashion

via Grosgrain Fabulous

I am beyond overwhelmed with nail art and inspiration.  My one pet peeve regarding Pinterest is that I find it incredibly frustrating when people do not credit the original website for the pin.  Notice I took extra care to credit each site on here?  Bloggers take note - always give credit where credit is due!

Technicolor Tips

My newest colorful endeavor....

I achieved this look (you have no idea how tempted I was to title it "Just the Tip") but scotch-taping my tips off, then painting my nails with two coats of Chinchilly by Essie.  Then, I used various bottles of Kiss Cosmetics nail artist paint (the brushes are super skinny) to create a rainbow french mani.

                   

                                             

Major Upgrade

I recently had the chance to catch up with a girlfriend who happened to be carrying a big, fancy camera.  The results speak for themselves.  I realize that my iPhone nail shots are no longer going to cut it.  

While holding the glass of water (my hangover had a hangover) does nothing for my street cred, it does showcase my nail art quite nicely (as does my formerly blonde mane.)  I painted my nails One of a Kind by Essie, one of my faves.  I then enlisted a friend to help with the designs on my right hand (it's always feeling neglected.)  The sparkles were an after-thought.  The results were fun - thanks to Graham for the steady hand and Angela for the artistic vision!

Hey Barbz...

*Disclaimer: for those of you not versed in the language of Ms. Minaj, please refer to the Nictionary in order to decipher this post.  

This is happening.  One of Nicki's very loyal Kens has just alerted me that the First Lady of CMYM is launching her own line of nail polish for OPI.  Following in the steps of Katy Perry, everyone's favorite H.B. has come up with six new shades as colorful as her language on Pink Friday.  Here's a peak at what we can expect from Nicki and OPI in 2012:

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The shades, named for some of Barb'z biggest hits, are just as festive as the petite (in most places) rapper.  If only I could have gotten my hands on them in time for last year's Pink Friday party...

Breaking News

Essie Polish is on sale for $4.00 a bottle (that's half off!) on the Nail Supplies mecca website!  Ready for more good news - I'm pretty sure this sale is permanent.  Nail Supplies has a huge selection of polishes and products, and it appears that as far as Essie is concerned, they have just about every color.  I am literally restraining myself from buying the bar.  As I'm sure you are all familiar, Essie makes fabulous of-the-moment colors, with some of the cutest names around. 

 Here are a few shades I am loving right now:

Nutrcracker Sweet 

(Mauve is huge right now)

A-List

(a true racy red)

Bahama Mama

(a pretty purple for fall)

Charleston

(a rich brown reminiscent of my old stompin' grounds)

School of Hard Rocks

(dying for this slate shade)

Lady Godiva

(an almost-black burgandy)

I could literally go on and on.  I don't know about you, but whenever I am looking for a specific shade in Duane Reade or a salon, it's always the shade that's sold out.  The good news is - fashionable polish is now just a click away - at half the price!

P.S. - Thanks for sharing the link Laura - keep 'em coming!

Trick or Treat

Halloween is right around the corner and my creativity is seriously lacking this year.  I am usually one to go all-out with costumes (theme parties are my jam) but I am just not feeling festive right about now.  Creative costume notwithstanding, there are some fun Halloween nail ideas popping up all over my radar.  Sally Hansen has struck again in the form of Halloween-themed nail strips.  I am always a proponent of using these on an accent nail or two if the all-over look is a little too overwhelming for you (or your uber-professional workplace.)

If you have read my blog before, you know I am a fan of these easy to apply polish strips.  They last longer than polish (especially if you use a good top-coat) and look great!  The second Halloween nail look to discuss comes from Lauren Conrad's Beauty Department.  While I try to check up on LC and her beauty tips a few times a week (I am secretly DYING to dip dye my hair the rainbow shades she debuted this past summer ... shh), my cousin Erin, and blog author of HuddyP,  sent me this link and ordered me to blog about it.  Done and done.  

Fashionable Candy-Corn nails can be yours with orange, yellow, and white nail polish and a roll of scotch tape.  Lauren walks you through the painting process in 6 carefully detailed steps on her website.  I can vouch for this method - I am currently rocking color blocked nails courtesy of the scotch tape trick.  Happy Halloween painting - and good luck to those creating costumes!

Total Basket Case

I am ALL ABOUT basket weave nail art these days.  WAH Nails tweeted some shots of the look a few weeks ago and I haven't given my nail polish pens a rest since.  I love that basket weave looks great on either all nails, or just an accent nail (or a few).  It goes great with other designs and looks fab in gunmetal and black, as well as pastels.  Here are the pictures that started my obsession:

Wah Nails Dublin Basket Weave

Candy Basket Weave, also by Wah Nails Dublin

Basket Case Remix (aka my theme song) by Wah Nails

Once again the nail artists at WAH have me wishing they would open a salon in NYC.  I would go broke, but I would go down with fashionable nails.  Here are some shots of my own nails rocking basket weave.

Trend Alert

Nylon Magazine is forever tweeting fabulous nail pictures, looks, and trends.  Today, the hot topic to catch my eye - Magnetic Nail Polish.  It's not what you think, your nails will not stick to your refrigerator.  Think more Magna-Doodle, less Electromagnetism.  Nails Inc. has three shades of the polish, currently sold at Sephora.  You paint your nails as you normally would, then wave the magnet-laden polish cap over your nail and voila! totally unique nail designs.  My mind is already conjuring fabulous nail designs and fun color combos I can create with these lacquers.  

colors L to R: House of Parliament, Trafalgar Square, Big Ben 

images via Sephora 

Put A Ring On It

I have had two weekends of back-to-back wedding dress shopping.  Not for myself mind you, (always a bridesmaid...) I am on the verge of starring in a bootleg sequel to 27 Dresses.  This white dress is for my very best friend since birth, Cary.  She and her amazing fiance got engaged in July and I have been bugging her for a wedding-bling nail pic ever since.  She finally came through this weekend...sort of.  

Her very of the moment nails feature slate grey and eggplant in various colorblock designs.  I love them!  I was raving over them! Until I saw her other hand...

Being engaged MUST be exhausting, because she was "too tired" (her words) to colorblock her right hand. I can't fully blame her - precise nail art can be very time consuming.  

decisions, decisions...

I came home from a grueling day in the classroom to a real treat - new nail polish!  My roommate saw two shades of MAC lacquer that he said were screaming my name, and bought them for me - in the name of fashion and blogging.  The first shade actually made me elicit a squeal of delight - In the Buff, a cream shade.  I am ALWAYS on the lookout for good neutrals and this one definitely fits the bill.  I can picture this perfect taupe on my nails with chunky gold jewelry and the perfect black dress.  The second polish, a frost finish, is called Style Clan.  While to the naked eye, it looks like a smokey grey-brown, it's actually flecked with bronze shimmer.  Now that I am in possession of two fabulous new little bottles, the only question is: which do I use first?  

Nails of Gold

As any blogger knows, I can't do this job alone.  Luckily for me, my friends are great about texting, calling, and emailing nail "tips" to me all the time.  Giving credit where credit is due, my good friend Mikey called me after leaving the New Museum to tell me about real gold nails he saw there.  The inner Cleopatra in me (you know we all have one) went straight to the museum's website to investigate.  It seems that, in honor of MBFW, Dzine has set up a pop-up nail salon within the New Museum, in collaboration with Salon94 and The Standard Hotel.  How much swankier can you get?  For three Saturdays this month, museum goers can receive free nail designs courtesy of Dzine, in relation to Kustom Kulture.  While the mobile salon is already totally booked, you can score a set of gold nails to do at home - if you have an extra $250.    Dzine's Pinky Nails Edition includes a set of 40 totally unique 24 karat gold-plated nails, including wild 3-D designs and some gem-stones (available in New Museum Store and online.)  Maybe King Midas was on to something?  

images via

Fashion, Baby.

For those of you living under a rock (aka not in NYC) tomorrow begins FASHION WEEK.  I have mixed emotions about this bi-yearly event.  For starters, fall Fashion Week is always a little more intense than the spring week.  The trains become jammed with models, PR girls, and all kinds of fashion house lackeys which makes for fabulous people watching during my commute.  Lincoln Center transforms into every ballerina's worst nightmare - super-slim models prancing all over their turf.  The usually outrageous looks shown during Fashion Week, while tormenting to those who live on a teacher's salary, set the tone for the next season and inevitably spur knock-offs and budget looks at every corner (I'm talking to you, H&M.)  While the next week can be incredibly crowded, frustrating, and over-the-top, it is sort of fabulous to know that the rest of the country and the WORLD look to New York for what is in.  

In the world of fashion, the spring 2011 shows (which actually show clothes for the upcoming fall season) predicted big trends in nail art.  As far as predictions go, the runways were right on the money.  You can't turn your head without seeing fabulous nail art, crackle polish, and 3-D designs.  Nails are loud right now - which is fine by me.  Here are some looks from the spring shows:

  

Moon Mani's by Butter London and Ruffian, via

Funky French Manicures at Ruffian, The Blonds, and Jason Wu, via

If I were a betting woman, I would guess that these fall shows are going to give us a more tone-downed nail palate for spring.  I don't think nail art and funky polishes are going out the door, per se, but I do think a lot of designers are going to get back to the basics with rich jewel tones and clean neutrals.  One indicator - Jason Wu, now collaborating with OPI, is using the brand's neutral colors in his show on September 9.  Your guess is as good as mine, but here are a few standout shades from OPI that the designer du-jour may have selected:

Sweetheart

Mimosas for Mr. and Mrs.

And my personal favorite...

Skull and Glossbones

Time - and every newspaper I touch for the next 10 days - will tell the trends.  Here's to fashion, no matter how much (or little) you chose to participate in it.  

End of Summer Blues

September is here and I have to say, it's very bittersweet.  I have to admit, while autumn if by far my favorite season, it's always hard to let summer go.  It feels like just yesterday I was hitting the shore for Memorial Day, and now I'm packed and ready to celebrate Labor Day (what are we celebrating?)  In honor of the occasion, I applied a fresh coat of polish (obvi.)  Since so many of us are having a hard time saying farewell to summer, I chose blue (get it?)  I have seen too many shades of pastel blue, aqua, and teal all summer long.  While I love pastels and brights, I am ready for a change.  My go-to winter blue has been Russian Navy by OPI for the past two winters, and while I love it, I'm just not ready to take the plunge quite yet.  I picked up Royal by Revlon at Duane Reade today and it's just what the doctor ordered.  Not too bright, not a pastel, and not quite as vampy as a navy, this shade is the perfect way to  transition to a new season.  

Bonus - It dries in 60 seconds!! (for real)

Please excuse these budget photos of my nails.  Yes, those are my pink leopard pajama pants used as an unfashionable background.  Don't judge.