Blast from the Past...I'm in the mood for a bit of Heaven!

I love this polish, it totally helps cheer me up! I
need a backup of it!!

Have you ever had one of those days when you're just moody as heck for no real reason¹, and every time someone speaks to you, you either want to scream at them or curl up and cry? Yea, me too, only mine seems to be one of those weeks. Very frustrating!

I'm taking a new medication for my fibro, and unfortunately it's got a list of side effects that's pretty unnerving: simple ones like blurred vision, dry mouth, weight gain, and drowsiness; and more upsetting ones like back and forth eye movements, chest pain, fainting, loss of coordination, memory loss, speech changes, twitching, and worst of all- "new or worsening mental or mood changes (eg, depression, agitation, anxiety, panic attacks, aggressiveness, impulsiveness, irritability, hostility, exaggerated feeling of well-being, restlessness, inability to sit still)."²

Now, normally I wouldn't be too concerned about this. There's just one little thing... I took another drug that's very similar to this one and ended up having extremely bad "mood changes." I won't go into it, but let's just say the doctor got me off of it really quickly after we explained what happened. Knowing that, my doctor and I discussed whether I should even try this drug, and we're in the process of slowly building up to a theraputic dosage of this drug. Right now, I'm taking the dose they'd give an unwell 80 year old woman. My doctor said that I won't notice positive results yet, but hopefully if I do react badly, it won't be nearly as bad as before.

Unfortunately (it seems I'm saying that a lot in this entry... ah well...) my doctor left the clinic two months ago. My last visit was with the nurse practitioner (whom I absolutely adore), and Monday I'll get to meet my new doctor. I'm a bit anxious about this, bu I'm optimistic, and if it doesn't go well, I still have options. I'm just afraid I won't be taking this medicine any longer, and I really was hoping it would work well for me.

That's a heck of a long introduction to explain why I'm in the mood for happy things!! However, between overdoing it on our little vacation the last couple of weekends and this new medicine, I'm one grumpy camper. I'm working very hard not to snap at the people around me and not to be a total pain in the butt. To help with this, I'm finding myself doing little things to cheer myself up.

For example, I am writing this blog wearing my pink penguin pajamas, with the absolutely adorable patch on the shirt that has a sweet little penguin dressed in a lime green scarf and hat and absolutely covered in green microglitter! The glitter doesn't even come off, it's mixed into a clearcoat, so it's not scratchy or anything! I love these PJs more than I should, probably, considering I'm a thirty-something mom!

Also, I've been experimenting with nail colors. I've been a bad blogger and not taken photos, but you'll have to forgive me. With the fibro acting up, I've had a hard time carrying the camera, much less dealing with Photoshop. You'll have to make do with photos from the archive and vivid descriptions, sorry!

Two days ago I painted my nails again. I was in the mood to experiment, so I started with Sally Hansen Salon Reddy to Mingle. It's a sheerish red with a very slight shimmer that's really intense, and slightly on the warm side. Absolutely gorgeous, and one coat did all I needed. I decided I wanted to warm it up even more, so I added a coat of Sinful Colors Let's Meet, a sheer shimmery yellow that I absolutely adore. Between the two, my nails were a very nice slightly streaky orange that I really liked. I wanted to up the sparkle factor, though, so I added a coat of Revlon Glimmer Gloss in Grapefruit Glimmer.

The final result was a gorgeous reddish-orange with super sparkle. I don't think I could have gotten any more sparkle without adding glitter! I liked the way the color was built up of sheer colors, because it wasn't that flat opaque look you sometimes get. There's nothing wrong with that, but this was interesting, and you should know by now how much I like interesting!!

Today has been a busy day, and I managed to twist my knee while I was out and about. I'm icing it now, and I decided I wanted a bit more ... more. So, I dug deep into the polish vault and dug out one of my all-time favorites- Ruby, by Heaven Nail Lacquer. I started with a base of Sally Hansen Teflon Tuff Nail Coor in Red Forever Creme. This polish is super-old, I don't even remember when I bought it! However, it's still a fantastic polish, and one coat is all I need. I topped that with two coats of Ruby, and oh my goodness, does this sparkle. This is definitely doing the trick, although I've got all sorts of other ideas now for glitter polishes.

And of course, I topped them off both times with Seche Vite. I'm starting to twitch, because I'm almost out! Looks like I really need to get those Etsy listings up! C'mon brain, you can do it!!

So, that's my day, and my nails for the next few days. Let's hope my mood improves, so I don't have to tell my new doctor on Monday that this medicine is making me do all sorts of awful things. Cross your fingers for me, ok?

¹ I don't even get PMS anymore, so I can't blame that!

² Side effects copied from http://www.drugs.com

³ This was well before my polish obsession, back when I didn't know how to properly clean up my nails, or how to use cuticle remover. And I wondered why I had trouble keeping my polish on!

Trying new medication sucks. I don't recommend it.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

Life's a Beach- Revlon Beach, that is!

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope it's a wonderful day for you. If I had my way, I'd have every single one of you over for a giant party (catered, of course!) so we could sit and talk nails and fashion and just have a great time! Unfortunately, life doesn't work that way, so whether you're having a giant gathering or a simple day at home, I hope your life is filled with blessings and bright spots.

I'm thankful for so many things: my wonderful best friend (who happens to be my husband!), my awesome kid who isn't a kid anymore, my extended family and friends, the fact that my health is better right now than it's been in years. I also have to say this- I'm so thankful for every single one of you reading my blog, because you guys bring me so much joy every single day. I hope I can bring a smile or two to all of you as well! *hugs*

Ok, enough with the sappy stuff- let's get to the goodies! Today, I'm showing you a polish I got in a wonderful prize package from Dainty Darling Digits a while back. It's a very light golden green color with absolutely gorgeous shimmer. I think I would be absolutely in love with the color if it didn't make me have lobster hands!

The interesting thing about this polish (other than the gorgeous color) is that it's scented! I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not, since I don't particularly like the smell, but it's certainly interesting.

Beach applied really nicely, and although I was worried about brush strokes there really weren't any. It's such a lovely color, and I'm sad it makes my skin look so... icky. I'm now wondering if I should try layering it, or just set it aside to use in a prize package for someone else. =/

So what do you think- keep it or share the love? And what are you thankful for this year? I'd love to hear some positive stories!

Another Layering Experiment- Adding Sparkle to Mme Moriarty!

What can I say, I am a layering addict. There's something fun and exciting about taking a beautiful color and giving it a different feel. It's almost like changing a look with accessories. I love it!

I'm not sure what made me reach for BPAL's Mme Moriarty, but I was really in the mood for a deep red. You don't get much better red than this if you're wanting blood red! But even though this is the ultimate blood red for me, I wanted a bit of sparkle as well.

I reached for the Revlon Glimmer Gloss. Honestly, winning kittypolishnbag's first giveaway gave me so many fun options for layering, and the glimmer glosses have quickly become some of my favorite polishes! They can take a polish from WOW to HOLY COW!!

They haven't failed me yet, and this was no exception! Instead of turning Mme Moriarty into an all out glitterbomb, Grapefruit Glimmer instead added a subtle hint of ... well, glimmer! In most angles there was just a deep, rich glossy red that absolutely worked well with my skin tone. But then I'd move and the light would catch the glimmer particles just right, and suddenly you realize that there's more to this than you thought...

It's understated, almost like having a secret. I know that sounds strange... how can you have a secret on your nails when everyone can see them! But this is a bit of a reward for those who take the time to pay a bit more attention to things. The world is filled with things that seem simple and straightforward at first glance. It's not until you take the time to slow down and actually examine them more closely that they yield their secrets, their interesting little uniquenesses.

So, consider this my reminder that we spend too much time taking the world for granted. Consider this a call to action- take a moment today to slow down and look at what's around you. You may find that something you've never noticed before is fascinating, and all you had to do was pay attention to it!

Revlon Iced Mocha- like chocolate milk for my nails!

Do you ever find that doing your nails helps you deal with anxiety? I admit it, I have issues with anxiety, and I find that doing things with my hands helps me to channel that nervous energy into something positive, something more beneficial. Take this manicure, for instance.

I was feeling extremely worried about something I had absolutely no control over. Instead of stressing and driving myself crazy, I pulled out my nail polish box and looked for something soothing. I knew I'd found just the right thing when I pulled out Revlon's Iced Mocha. The soft creamy tan is almost the color of chocolate milk, a warm soothing shade that seemed just the ticket.

I was surprised when I started to apply it, because it went on so easily. I only needed one coat, and it covered like a dream. Instead of having to do three or four coats, waiting between them, and worrying about too much polish on my nails I was able to finish my manicure in no time!

The soft shimmer in this polish is really pretty. It feels weird to have such a neutral shade on my nails, though. I've been wearing brights and darks for so long that I feel like I've got the dreaded mannequin hands. I know that I don't, but it's still somewhat unnerving to look at my hands and see this subtle shimmer.

Still, I really, really like it. It's perfect for any situation where I'd need to be more conservative with my nails. I'm tempted to stamp on top of it, but I think I'll betaking the polish off instead. I'm a bit bored with it already!

So what do you think of it? Is this a beautiful shade, perfect for some particular situation? Is it just too darn plain? Is it perfect for stamping, and what would you pair it with? Talk to me, I'd love to hear your thoughts!