Holiday Robots

Hello all! Christmas is finally upon us, and personally I can't wait for it to be over.
After Christmas-y things started popping up even BEFORE Halloween, it's about time! Don't get me wrong, it's great giving out gifts to my family and I love that part. But jeez, the holidays can take a lot out of you!
What do you think of the Christmas season? Is it all too much, too little, just right? Does it stress you out too?

Yesterday was my office's Christmas party, which means I actually put effort into how I looked for the day! Pictures of the look and accompanying nails after the jump!


The look was meant to be a glimmery, golden/taupe eye with red lips, to match my sparkly gold sequin shirt and red nails. I think it worked out!

Indoor light, no flash.

Indoor with flash, true to color. My eyebrows clearly need grooming.

For this look, I started off with UD Primer Potion in Sin, then applied my highlight shade (Sephora Mono Eyeshadow in "Peach Beige 13") all over the browbone, down into the crease and towards my inner eye. I used the golden shade in L'Oreal HIP metallic duo "SHOCKED" all over my lid, and the green blended into my crease (the green tint shows up well in the first photo, which is mainly why I included it).
I was HOPING that would be enough, but the color payoff I got with the HIP duo left something to be desired.

I applied UD's "Maui Wowie" all over my lid, and then "Twice Baked" lightly into the crease, on top of the L'Oreal duo already applied. This was more satisfying. For my Winehouse-style liner, Sephora's long-lasting liquid liner in "Glittering Black" did the trick - the glitter is very noticeable to the naked eye! I usually pat on a second coat of this liner to ensure a true, dark line with no bald spots. That's what you see in these photos. For my lower lid, I lined the rim and under the lash line with Sephora Electro liner in "Cocoa", and topped off my lashes with a few coats of CG Lash Blast in Black Platinum.

Have you ever used the HIP metallic duos before? I felt the color pay-off was less than great. Granted, there was basically NO shadow fall-out, which I love, but I would rather have fallout and good color payoff. Especially since L'Oreal HIP is supposed to mean "High Intensity Pigments"? Did you have this issue with these shadows? I had wanted a bunch of these, but now I'm reconsidering.

For my festive nails, I used Sally Hansen Salon Effects strips in "Plaid About You"! I love this pattern and think it's adorable. But plaid is adorable year round, right? These colors remind me of cozy flannel pajamas.

Application was easy as pie. I used my fingers to push the strips onto my nail and secure them around the edges, rather than the cuticle stick included in the package. The warmth really helps to stretch the patterns over your nail and help them adhere. I was able to use most strips twice (using one half and then the other) on most of my nails since they are so short. I would have been able to use only one packet of strips if my thumb strip didn't split down the middle when I peeled it!
Thanks to the lovely ladies at Nouveau Cheap who commented with this tip for using each strip twice!! It makes these nail strips a real bargain to use them twice.

The picture above was taken after (1) day of wear. After application, I applied Sally Hansen acrylic gel polish and then Diamond Dry. No chips yet, which is a good start for me! I gave them another coat of Diamond Dry this morning so I could re-cap the edges of the nails.

"Bling it On!" was the first set of Salon Effects strips I tried, and they did NOT last for me. I'm hoping it's because I wasn't that great at applying them my first time and it was a glitter. Some tips I picked up from round 2:

• Use your fingers to ensure the strip is thoroughly adhered - avoid using the stick if you can!
• In order to get the design on the caps of your nails, it works best to fold the design in towards your fingertip rather than just pulling the design over the top. Then file downward!
• Do NOT use base coat. Dry, natural nails here. Go over your nails with polish remover before application to be sure (this is also in the instructions - but it's important!)

I'm trying to see how well this set will wear, so I'll post an update with that.

As a follow-up on my Holiday Hair Idea post, look what I spotted at CVS! Man, I should cash in on that.

And last but not least, who doesn't love kitties?

Thanks for reading!


12/22 - EDITED: Correct the name of L'Oreal HIP Duo. Sorry for any confusion!