Granola To Glam: how to

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50% Select Sales @ LOFT: Restock On Basics

Thanks to La Vie Petite I've been hooked on LOFT for the past 2 years. Prior to then I had never stepped foot into a store. During my first visit there the very nice sales associate explained to me that every season they design clothing so that everything in the store goes with everything in the store. So hypothetically, you could go through picking pieces with your eyes closed and end up looking ok. Sounds so easy, right?
Well, I'm not so trusting in their concept, but I love going to LOFT for basics and their sales are to-die-for. These are the items I picked up during their 50% of select styles + 40% sale items. I don't believe I've ever paid full price for anything there, which is really hard to do since everything goes on sale.

I would suggest signing up for their emails as that's how I stay up to date on their sales.

1) Button Back Tulip Tee

2) Knit and Woven Tiered Cotton Tank

3) Dalmatian Spot Print Short Dolman Sleeve Blouse

4) Stripe Terry Knit Dress

5) Striped Slubbed Cotton Tank

DIY Nude Blingy Manicure With OPI, Martha Stewart Glitter and Gelish

Hi Friends!
It's been awhile since I posted a DIY nail tutorial. Here is a step-by-step tutorial of this Nude Silver Bling mani.

All products are linked within the tutorial below:

1. Give yourself or get a standard manicure.

2. Paint nails with 1 coat of your desired nail color. Here, I used OPI Did You 'Ear Me Van Gogh.

3. Right after your 2nd coat of nail polish (on each nail), dip or apply with a sponge the silver Martha Stewart Leaf Glitter.

4. Use a wood stick to press the edges of the foil down. They have a tendency to flip up, which will be a cause for annoyance later.

5. Then sprinkle the silver glitter, emphasizing most of your coverage on the tips.

6. Use blowdryer to dry and blow away loose glitter.

7. Apply 2 coats of your favorite top coat. I used Gelish Top It Off with a UV Lamp for my top coat.

I'm on day 4 and the manicure is still going strong. I utilize Gelish top coat all the time with regular nail polish. The trick is to ensure the polish is completely dry. If you can, let it dry overnight. If Gelish is applied to paint that isn't dry, you will find a soft ripply texture, as opposed to the hardened high shine finish.

Email me if you have any questions and please "Pin This" to share the love.

Quick Pic of the Day: Nude and Sparkle Nails

Tutorial of this to follow.
Doesn't it remind you of this infamous Britney outfit?

Ombré Glitter Bling Gelish Manicure

I put my "professional" work nails away and gave myself the wildest holiday manicure ever. I am loooooving my new Gelish goodies purchased from Amazon. Since trying Sephora nail glitter, I thought, why couldn't I use craft glitter? So I headed to my local art supply shop and grabbed this monster pack of Martha Stewart glitter for $15 (after 20% sale).

Inspired by this JCrew Sequin skirt (here and here) I attempted the very trendy ombre look and here is the result!

I was so concentrated on this manicure project, I regret not taking in-process photos. I will list step by step instructions below, but trust that next time I do this I will take in-process photos to share.

glitter polish at Beso.com

Beso.comAds by

All links below are to the exact products I use. Again, I follow these steps one (1) hand at a time- rather than alternating between hands. I find working on one (1) hand all the way through the process avoids many clumsy goof-ups.
Step 1: give yourself a standard manicure- cuticles, file, trim, etc.
Step 2: rub nail beds with rubbing alcohol. Then apply ph bond.
Step 3: apply base gel and cure in lamp for 1 minute.
Step 4: apply thin coat of Vegas Nights- cure for 1 minute.
Step 5: using an old eyeshadow brush, apply silver* glitter to all fingers. Then apply gold glitter to all fingers, then copper. Allow some of the glitter to overlap to create the gradient look illustrated here.
Step 6: apply another coat of Vegas Night over entire nail bed. At this point, you should have 3 shades of glitter on each nail- cure for 2 minutes.
Step 7: Apply 2 coats of Top it Off- cure 1 minute each coat.
* the silver I used on my nails is actually NYX Disco Ball #23 glitter from Urban Outfitters.

Thanks for checking out my holiday manicure and let me know if you have any suggestions for my next nail project.
Merry Christmas Eve, everyone!
**UPDATE: see Day 7 of this manicure here

First DIY Gelish Manicure (Shellac type polish)

After my Blingy Chanel Manicure, I was on the search for a Shellac or Gel Polish option that would last longer than 3-4 days. I know my local nail salon charges at least $30 for a gel polish manicure without any glitter or additional designs. Thanks to the ladies of TPF Nail Care forum, I was able to find all the supplies needed to try doing this at home.

My total order was less than $80, which will pay for itself after 2-3 DIY manicures.
Helpful links: Gelish Color Swatches ThreadGelish General Knowledge Thread
Although intimidating at first, it was easy to get the hang of and I've already practiced on a few girlfriends.
Here are the supplies I purchased from Amazon:

1) Gelish Foundation Base Gel 2) Gelish Pink Smoothies 3) Gelish Top It Off Sealer 4) UV Nail Lamp

Note: I follow these steps one (1) hand at a time- rather than alternating between hands. I find working on one (1) hand all the way through the process avoids many clumsy goof-ups.
First: Trim, File and prep your nails to remove any cuticles that may be growing on the nail bed. With rubbing alcohol, remove any excess oils/moisturizers from your nails.
Second: Apply 1 coat of Foundation Base Gel- cure for 1 min.

I wear rubber gloves with the tips cut off to avoid any pre-mature aging

Third: Apply a thin coat of gel nail color of choice. Cure for 2 mins- repeat for a 2nd coat. I used Gelish Pink Smoothie this time. If the color seems uneven, don't worry too much, the curing process will level out the color.

Fourth: After curing your last color coat, use an old lip brush to apply desired glitter to the tips or in any pattern you like.

Note: I used Sephora Nail Glitter, but any arts & crafts glitter will do. In fact, visiting a stationary/ scrap booking store will give you many glitter color options.

Here's a picture of left hand application of glitter:

Here's a picture of right hand application of glitter (a bit harder to capture):

Fifth: Apply two (coats) of top coat and cure each for 2 minutes.

Note: the glitter will shift around during top coat application.

Here is the finished look.

Since completing my first DIY Gelish Manicure, I've purchased more colors and look forward to sharing more manicure ideas with you!

Here's my Holiday Nail Project if you'd like to see another glitter concept.

Blingy Chanel 527 Self Manicure

I am obsessed with this blog, by Bisou Lounge in Oakland. They've done an amazing job on my nails before, but I'm afraid I can't be a regular customer because of other "maintenance" things I have going on.

I tried doing an "at home" version of a Tiffany box inspired look. As I type, my self-manicaure is on Day 3 and holding up very well :)

So much so, I decided to buy Gelish soak off gel polish with the UV lamp from Amazon to keep up my at home manicures and save some moolah.

If you need some help with either Gelish or Shellac suggestions, the ladies over at TPF Nailcare forum have been amazing!

Above are the tools I used (not picture: 100% acetone). I use the brush dipped in acetone to shape the blue tips. Seche Vite is also the BEST and ONLY top coat I ever use...believe me.

SHOP: Chanel 527 (similar) / Seche Vite top coat / Sephora nail glitter

Brooch Storage

Here's a picture of how I store my brooch collection.

I hang a 2" (width) satin ribbon on the slats of my closet doors. Then I pin or clip them to the ribbon- simple as that! Because the brooches are hanging near my clothes, I can quickly pick one out to wear for the day.