Sunday, May 1, 2011

Monday, May 2, 2011

I'm attending the store opening of Etude House in Megamall today so I decided to wear one of my favorite Etude House shades - Very Red (RD102).

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

No time for a full mani today so I asked a friend to turn my red nails into little ladybugs with the black nail art pen from Etude House.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

I had a great manicure planned - inspired by these cute rubber rings I bought yesterday. But after spending the whole day at a shoot, I found myself sick. And how do I know I'm really sick? When I don't even have the energy to paint my nails.

Day 4 was a complete failure nail-wise.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Still sick. And while I'm still too weak too paint my nails, I've decided to share with you some of my all-time favorite manicures.

I had a lot of fun doing this skittles shatter mani. I used Essie Pink Parka on my thumb, OPI Who The Shrek Are You? on my index finger, Essie Bermuda Shorts on my middle finger, OPI Ogre The Top Blue on my ring finger, Zoya Paz on my pinky and I painted over them with OPI Black Shatter.

And since neons dry matte and Black Shatter dries matte, I used a nice coat of Seche Vite to make my nails glossy.

I never thought I'd like crackle polish but now I love it. 

Friday, May 6, 2011

This was my first attempt at using fimo clay sticks. I didn't slice them thin enough. They were so thick that I had a hard time covering them with top coat. And they kept falling off. I lost one bear in my hair (and I still haven't found it) and I lost three more bears before the day was over. But I still want to give fimo another attempt - the designs are way too cute. My slicing skills just need practice.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Had zero energy to do my nails but it wasn't exactly a nail polish-free day. Two teenage girls (ages 14 and 16) raided my nail polish drawers and walked away with nails painted in hot pink (Essie Pink Parka) and white with black crackle (Ulta3 Lily White, Etude House Black Crack)

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Was still feeling sick but forced myself to get up and paint my nails. I thought bright colors would help me fight the flu so I chose Santee Vikini Green and Barry M Blueberry Ice Cream.

I painted over yesterday's mani with this blue crackle nail polish from Etude House. It's not available in stores yet - but it should be soon.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

My friend Nikki and I are both Bieber fans. I watched the concert here in Manila last night and she's watching the show in Hong Kong where she is based. And to celebrate our love for Bieber, she sent me these bottles from Justin Bieber's nail polish line. I wore all four colors together - I've Got Bieber Fever, My Lifesaver, Make U Smile and Step 2 the Beat of My <3. And while I didn't succeed in getting one of my bottles signed, I was able to tell him that I was wearing his nail polish.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

This is how my nails end up looking on days I get my hands on new colors or bottles I'm really excited about - crazy skittles that make absolutely no sense at all. (from left) Chanel Morning Rose, Rescue Beauty Lounge Insouciant, Rescue Beauty Lounge Look Rich Be Cheap, Rescue Beauty Lounge Purple Haze, Rescue Beauty Lounge Bruised. Yes, I'm a huge RBL fan.

Thursday, May 12, 2011

I went wild over these Snake Nail shades from Tony Moly, the Korean brand which is finally in the country. These crackled super slowly on me and the result was amazing - teeny little cracks that looked crazy cool. I loved them so much that I didn't want to take them off. I was planning on doing my nails because I was leaving for a trip the next day but I ended up wearing the three colors over Rescue Beauty Lounge Insouciant on my long flight.

Friday, May 13, 2011

Arrived in LA and went to The Boiling Crab for dinner. The line was crazy long - we had to wait for over an hour. Luckily, there was a nail supply shop just a couple of doors away from the resto. Checked it out and found these two shades from China Glaze's Crackle Collection - Broken Hearted and Fault Line. We played with them while waiting for the resto to give us a table. I know - I've been too crackle-crazy these days. But can you blame me?

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Went up to Big Bear Lake for the weekend and spent Saturday night having a little polish party. There were five of us painting our nails and playing with crackle (yes, again!) and it was a lot of fun. I finally got to try Dior Aloha, the limited edition nail polish shade from Dior's Electric Tropics Summer 2011 collection that I bought a couple of days ago. I feel so lucky to have stumbled upon it at Duty Free at NAIA - it was a two-bottle set (Aloha with Dior's Top Coat). I love it so much. I've been searching for a great wearable orange and that's exactly what Dior Aloha is. The formula is fantastic too. Love.

Sunday, May 15, 2011

I'm sorry, I couldn't help it. I just had to see how Dior Aloha looked with crackle on top of it. (Yes, yes, yes I'm addicted.) China Glaze Fault Line did a fantastic job. Purple and orange make a smashing combo - it's absolutely perfect for summer.

Monday, May 16, 2011

I finally tried dry nail appliqué for the first time. This kit was from Tony Moly. I've seen these online and in stores but didn't get them because I couldn't figure out how these stickers can promise to give you a full mani - with base coat, color and top coat. I also thought it would be difficult to get them to fit your nails perfectly. I was wrong. It was very easy. And once it was on my nail, it felt like real polish. I was worried about the design coming off easily (they're stickers after all) but I shampooed just minutes after applying these and my nails survived my bath unscathed - not a single chip. And I love how this mani looks like I worked on it for a long time when I actually just spent a few minutes on it.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

I always get a kick out of discovering that a brand I love has started making polish (see: Topshop). I walked into Aldo in Barstow and my jaw dropped when I saw they had bottles of polish for sale. I bought a fabulous pair of shoes and a bottle of polish. That night, I tried Marrakech and fell in love with it. It's a gorgeous red jelly. Now I regret not getting the other colors.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Unlike my previous trip, I haven't gone too crazy shopping for polish (I've been too busy obsessing about shoes). I've purchased less than ten bottles since I arrived in California and I don't think I'll be buying a lot more in the coming days. But I will still be hauling home a TON of polish - thanks to my good friend Lala. She and I grew up in Manila together. We've been friends literally all our lives - we share the same birthday and we have photos together as infants. She moved to the US when we were in high school but we remain constantly connected and make it a point to always make time for each other when we find ourselves in the same city. Today we shopped a little, ate dinner and exchanged presents. She sent me off with a lot of polish - China Glaze's Crackle Collection, OPI's Pirates of the Caribbean Collection, MAC bottles from my wish list and a few other goodies.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

I was so excited to try all the shades in OPI's Pirates of the Caribbean Collection. They were all super pretty - murky dusky pastels - but I just had to wear Stranger Tides first. I love it - it's a great edgy neutral. There's nothing boring about this color.

Friday, May 20, 2011

Leaving for a road trip in a couple of hours. I decided to add a little sparkle to my Stranger Tides mani. This is Rescue Beauty Lounge's Look Rich Be Cheap. I'm normally not a glitter girl but Ji Baek and Deborah Lippmann have changed my mind.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Black nail polish has always been my biggest love. If you forced me to pick just one color I'd wear for the rest of my life, I'd go for black. But because I've been exploring other colors, I haven't worn black polish in ages. I went back to black today - and I picked Iconoclast, from Rescue Beauty Lounge's Spring 2011 collection. I love it so much.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Because I missed wearing black polish so much, I couldn't bear to remove my RBL Iconoclast mani yet. I kept it on as we explored Yosemite National Park. This is a picture of my hands as we took a break from visiting the different falls.

Monday, May 23, 2011

I added a layer of OPI's Silver Shatter over Iconoclast when we reached Ely, Nevada. The result was a bit too much - I will try layering Silver Shatter over a lighter color next time.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Still on the road. This is my RBL Iconoclast + OPI Silver Shatter mani with my road trip essentials - a box of Whoppers, Fritos Barbecue Flavored Twists and my beloved LC-A+ camera.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Lucked out and ended up in Aldo again. I grabbed the chance to buy a few more colors from the brand's nail polish line. The cashier was very enthusiastic about their polishes. She told me which colors she owns. "These are so glossy you won't need a top coat," she said. She has no idea how attached I am to my Seche Vite.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Took Aldo's Marrakech for a road test. I love it. It's an orange-tinged red jelly. It looked great against Bryce Canyon in Utah.

Friday, May 27, 2011

Got back from the road trip and saw that Zoya sent me the shades from their limited edition Touch Collection. I love this collection of slightly metallic nudes. They came at the perfect time - I've been obsessing over nudes, corals, pinks and reds lately. Minka, Shay and Pandora will be available on Zoya.com starting June 1.  

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Spent practically the entire day packing packing packing. Watched The Hangover Part II and had a ton of walnut shrimp for dinner before heading off to the airport for our red-eye flight. Still wearing Aldo's Marrakech. There was just no time for a manicure.  

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Landed in Hong Kong after a 16-hour flight from LA. I was so happy to finally be able to stretch my legs. Checked Chanel's nail polish display. I just love staring at Chanel's polish bottles. So pretty.

Monday, May 30, 2011

Home at last. It felt good to be reunited with my Helmer, the Ikea storage unit I use for keeping my beloved bottles safe. This is my first drawer - it contains some of my favorite brands Chanel, Rescue Beauty Lounge, Dior and Illamasqua. 

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

How do you beat jet lag? By going straight back to work. I attended a nine-hour office seminar and enjoyed it a lot. I was happy that I didn't feel sleepy at all. I wore Zoya Shay, a lovely neutral that was just perfect. I like to think my manicure says "Yes, I had a great vacation and now I'm ready to work like crazy again."