Drug Store Manicure

I've never been a fan of nail salons. Well, maybe for short period in junior high/high school when it was cool to have acrylic nails (gag), but I find that almost every time I go in for a simple manicure, I regret it for weeks to come. Even though I've had good experiences with polish staying in tact, something about the way the manicurist files my nails makes them weak and brittle. I've tried different salons, but for the most part, the same problem occurs and it takes about 2 months for my nails to grow back to normal. So now I reserve my manicures for special occasions where it is an absolute must that I have professionally groomed nails.

Anyhow, I'm a huge fan of OPI nail polishes. Here are some of my favorites:

What's that on the end?

The newest addition to my nail polish collection: Sally Hansen Salon Effects Nail Strips. I never got into the nail art trend-- something about it looked too busy on my hands-- but I saw an ad for this in a few different magazines and couldn't resist trying it. The Sally Hansen Salon Effects kit comes with real nail polish strips in different pre-painted designs. I opted for the honeycomb/net print (there were about 10 other choices including lace, cheetah, faux-glitter, some of which were a little too over the top for my liking). Take a look at what comes in the box:

16 strips in varying sizes, a wooden stick for your cuticles, nail file for pre-shaping as well as trimming the strips once they're on, and simple instructions. All you really do is open the strip, stick it on, and file along your natural nail line. This took all of about 20 minutes, comes off with regular nail polish remover, and even worked on my super short nails.

What do you think? I still prefer solid nail polishes, but this was a fun $8 manicure for an otherwise boring weekend.

What's New, Cupcake?

Like I've said many times, I'm a huge fan of semi-homemade baking. Last year, I purchased Hello, Cupcake and have wanted to make every single cupcake in the book since. In reality, I've only tried a few but love the easy and inventive techniques that Karen Tack and Alan Richardson have come up with. A lot of these cupcakes are made with unusual mixes of candies/snacks, and I probably wouldn't eat them, but I think they're so fun to make and jazz up any dessert table. Most of the cupcakes are playful and better suited for children's parties, so last July I made these animal cupcakes to supplement the huge sheet cake at my niece's birthday party:

I was most pleased with the elephants, especially since it was my first time using candy melts (the trunk and ears). But the monkeys turned out kind of creepy...(reminded me too much of the scary-ass flying monkeys in the Wizard of Oz)

I just bought What's New, Cupcake (the second addition to the Tack/Richardson cupcake series) and thought I would try another one out for my niece's birthday this year. There were a lot of options for a 4 year olds birthday but decided on these candy flower cupcakes. For one thing, they are practically all sugar and I don't think my sister would be too thrilled if I showed up on any other day with these. And again, I thought they would add a nice decorative touch to the table.



Pink flowers made with marshmallows, spice drops, nilla wafers and melting candy.


Smaller flowers were made with m&m's and mini oreos (and pretzel stick stems)

Monster Mash

I've always been a big fan of Halloween. Like I've said before (and many times over) I love dressing up. But somehow, Halloween gets screwed up every year.

This year, I haven't made too big of a deal out of the whole costume thing, which is very unlike me. Even when I don't dress up, my mind is constantly clouded with thoughts of potential costumes. My main problem of late is that I can't quite seem to find my niche. I know a lot of girls say Halloween is the one day of the year you're allowed to dress like a slut, but I guess that isn't exactly my thing. Of course I don't want to look like a frumpy grandma, but I don't think wearing a glorified stripper outfit works as a costume (a little extra skin compared to a normal day is acceptable to me, but I really don't understand the girls walking around in underwear. And aren't they cold?? Maybe I'm a prude, I dunno). Also, when you go with a costume-in-a-bag ensemble, you're going to look like every other girl at the party. So this year, I have a few options that I've been trying to work through....

#1: I purchased a sailor girl costume online last year but could never bring myself to wear it. The dress itself isn't trashy but I bought it with the intention of altering it to make it more unique. I thought I would cut the one-piece dress and hem it into a top to wear tucked in to a high-waisted pencil skirt. I also swapped out the cheap, nurse-inspired sailor hat that came with the dress for one that is more captain-esque (please excuse my fashion vocabulary). This came together pretty well and reminds me of the whole vintage pin-up sailor girl icon. Something about it just isn't entirely "me" though...maybe it's treading too close to the costume-in-a-bag dilemma.

#2: I have an old ballerina skirt from a costume years ago. I can pair it with some accessories from the store to make some sort of fairy/princess/nymph costume. I would love to be an actual ballerina for Halloween but I think it's more appropriate for a casual house party. Maybe next year...

#3: Vampire Victim. This was my original idea for this year, mostly because it's simple, low key, kind of cute and, most importantly, creative. The only drawback is I don't want people to think I'm going for the whole Twilight thing (never read or seen it but from what I understand, there isn't any actual biting in it. Either way, just not what I'm going for). My take on the costume is to wear what I would normally wear to a party, exaggerate my hair (after all, it is Halloween!) maybe do a somewhat drained look on my eyes using gray eyeshadow, and lastly: the bite marks on my neck. I did a tester tonight out of boredom using whatever was in my makeup bag. This took all of 2 minutes, but naturally I would put more time into it on Halloween night.

I think I'm going to go for option #3. Any thoughts??

*Not included on the list: Lady Gaga. I was really excited to buy a wig and do this one, but then I found out it's supposed to be a really popular costume this year so I decided not to. Also, Bonnie and Clyde for me and best friend. I had the outfits down to a tee but for some reason, not this year....

Oh and does anyone know why they don't play the Monster Mash on the radio anymore??? I live for that song at this time of year!

Lovely Saturdays

Doesn't that look yummy? I baked cupcakes this weekend and remembered that I had found this on howdini the other day, so I decided to try it out. In case you didn't click the link, it's actually an ice cream cone made with cupcakes. 

What you need:  Ice cream cones, frosting, cupcakes (regular and mini. If you don't have a mini pan, it still works well with just a regular sized cupcake), sprinkles.

What you get:  Yummy cupcake cones that won't melt in the sun!

I like semi-homemade baking, so something like this makes it a little extra special and creative. These cones would be a great treat on a hot summer day or for a child's birthday party.