Mani Monday-January 30

Hello hello! Hope you all survived Monday without a scratch. I barely did...I had a case of the Mondays :/

But there's one thing that can make Monday better and that's a manicure!

This week's mani is brought to you by Nicole by OPI Khloe Had a Little Lam-Lam from the Kardashian Kolor collection.

This is with a flash.

Khloe Had A Little Lam-Lam is a blackened teal creme. The formula is great...nearly opaque in one coat, but I did two for good measure.

I received the Nail Perfect for Christmas, which is a device that protects the sides of your nails while you paint them, so there is minimal clean-up and it came with some nail decals. I placed two flowers on each of my ring fingers.

Under a lamp

my two loves-nail polish and Harry ^__^

Have a great week!!

xo, ali

5 Things Thursday!!

hello, hello lovelies!! happy thursday--we're almost to the weekend :)

it's thursday and that means I'm participating in 5 Things Thursday over at Five Days, Five Ways. This week's getting to know you theme is "are you for real?!" so you're gonna learn five little known things about me that you might have not known otherwise. Ready? Go!

1) I was a complete tomboy growing up. I didn't want anything to do with barbies. My favorite color was red. I loved playing softball in a summer league and having my dad pitch me the ball so I could hit it.

See? (I'm in the Florida shirt.) Plus, I was kinda chubby.

Now, however, is a whole different story. I'm such a girly girl, it's not even funny. It's so apparent that people I don't know all that well tell me how girly I am. I love it. I love picking out my clothes for work and my accessories and figuring out what makeup shades I want to wear that day.

2) I've never seen one single Star Wars movie. None. Not one. Maybe I've seen about 5 minutes of one but never a whole one. And you know what? I'm still alive and kicking ;)

3) I do not have any type of college degree. Not an associate's, not a bachelor's. I have the majority of the classes I'd need for one of those, but not a whole one. Someday.

4) My left thumb is double-jointed. I used to gross my sister out with it during church >:)

5) I never had a high-school or college sweetheart. Oh, my life.

What about you? What are things that not many people know about you? I'd love to hear all about them!!

Or, if you wanna join in the fun, click the "5 Things Thursday" button over on the right.

Until tomorrow!

xo, ali

wear-it wednesday--oscar predictions

hello, hello! happy wednesday to you, lovelies!! Halfway through the week :) and I'm actually doing a Wear-It Wednesday on time *gasp*

The Oscar nominations were just announced and the best actress category is filled with amazing women:

Glenn Close for Albert Nobbs

Rooney Mara for Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

Viola Davis for The Help

Meryl Streep for the Iron Lady

Michelle Williams for My Week with Marilyn

But with this honor comes a woman's toughest decision. What do I wear?

I have some thoughts!

for Michelle Williams:

Elie Saab couture, S/S 2012

a romantic dress for the lady that played a hopeless romantic

for Rooney Mara:

Rodarte S/S 2012

edgy, yet feminine. plus the color would POP against her porcelain skin and dark hair

for Meryl Streep:

Badgley Mischka

Fall 2011

(this would be my pick for when I'm nominated ;) It looks super-comfortable.)

for Glenn Close:

Dior S/S 2012

and finally for Viola Davis:

Yves Saint Laurent

I can't wait to see what these fabulous ladies actually wear...it's like the Superbowl for women!

have a great night.

xo, ali

Mani Monday-January 23, 2012

Hey lovelies! Happy Monday to you ladies! Hope you had a great weekend.
Posting two days in a row-that's a good sign! I have for you this week's manicure featuring Zoya Erika.

Zoya Erika is a baby pink with gold shimmer. It goes on pretty sure and it took me 4 coats to achieve the opacity that you see here.

This is directly under a lamp

This is with a flash...from my iPhone camera, which takes pretty decent picture.  In these shots, you can see VNL (visible nail line) so just ignore that.

I wanted to do something fun this week so I got out some scotch tape and went to it.

Scotch tape manis are great...so easy to do!! Just make sure that you stick the tape to your palm a couple of times to get some of the sticky off. I didn't de-stick mine enough and look what happened to my middle finger :(

For the black triangles, I just used Art Deco Black nail art polish with brush.

Like my pjs? I love Chandeliers! I think it goes along with my damask print obssession.

My sister, Ashley, is also hopping on the nail polish train and I'm definitely rubbing off on her. She did a fun little mani last weekend. Here's what it looks like:

And here's what she told me about it:

I used Ulta Mango as my base and Zoya Ashley for the tip. Ulta's Mango has a subtle gold shimmer which I liked, even though I am not a big fan of gold. This color, from Ulta's Salon Formula Nail Lacquer line, went on very easily and smoothly with no globs. I have found any color from this line goes on as such, hence why I'm a big fan of it. Most of my nail polish collection is from Ulta's line.. Zoya's Ashley is beautiful just like me >:)

(and like the person who bought it for her...ME!)It's best described as a lovely berry color and it complimented Ulta's Mango quite nicely. Me gusta. This color combination would be awesome in the summertime. Although I stumbled upon it in mid-January, it was still very pretty--just perfect to brighten up the dull winter outside.

I'm so proud of her :')

That's all from here. Hope you have a great day!!

xo, ali

Sigh

Oh lovelies, I'm terrible at this. I kept meaning to make a post but I got distracted. I finally got my iPhone and I cannot put it down. So, I decided to get the blogger app, which is where I'm posting this from.

Since I missed Wear-It Wednesday this week (again), I'll do it in this post for you guys.

Jason Wu is an amazing designer. His aesthetic is very ladylike but he's not afraid to make it modern and use some unexpected color. Clean lines with a touch of whimsy are his signature. I've mentioned him before when I was raving over the peplum trend that's gonna huge this spring. Wu has joined the likes of Zac Posen, William Rast (Justin Timberlake's lie), Missoni, and Alexander McQueen and partnered with Target for a collection, coming to stores in February.

Here are some of my favorites:

the cat bag will. be. mine.

I love the colors used. Navy and red are going to be big this spring and go hand in hand with the nautical theme that's been popping up lately.

I love the color of the last outfit. This mustard yellow is a great way to bring some color to gray February without making everyone put on sunglasses.

In addition to the clothes, there are also going to be accessories following the same color schemes and hearkening back to times when  silhouettes were simple and gave every woman an hourglass figure.

Among these accessories are scarves and bags such as:

Look for Jason Wu for Target and that adorable black kitty at your local Target, starting February 6th. Prices range from 19.99-69.99, so get it while you can!!

I'll be back tomorrow for Mani Monday!

xo, ali

that lovin feelin--thoughts from a single girl

"Some people are settling down, some are settling and some people refuse to settle for anything less than butterflies.”

-Carrie Bradshaw

Sex & the City, season 5, "I Love a Charade"

This is a quote I try to live by, romantically speaking. If the spark is not there, neither am I. There have been a few select guys that I've had that spark with, but lately, that spark is missing.

My last "relationship" ended in November and kind of did not give me any "closure." It's something I'm working on. Mostly by removing anything and anyone that reminds me of him from my life.

But there was that spark. Those butterflies crashing around in my stomach and that stupid smile on my face when I got a text message from him or we were just watching movies at his house.

Right now, that's what I miss the most. I miss having that spark with someone and those butterflies in my stomach. Honestly, it might be one of the best feelings ever. That anticipation before the first date. The first time he holds my hand or kisses me. To me, those feelings help make the world go 'round for me. Notice, they aren't the only thing, but those feelings are right up there with driving on a sunny day and sleeping in.

The lack of spark is not for lack of trying. There have been a few boys that have caught my eye and a few that I've given my number to, but to no avail. And I think, really, that when I gave those boys my number, I didn't really think they'd text or call me. Why did I do it? For the all-important spark (the all-spark, if you will Transformers fans).

Why is that spark SO important? Why are we constantly looking for it? Why are we so unwilling to let go of someone that treats us like crap just because we feel the spark on the good days?

Are we that desperate for sparks? Is it all it's cracked up to be?

When you find the right person that you have that spark with, though, it can turn out like the Fourth of July...from spark to fireworks.

Mani Monday-Jan 16, 2011

hello, my lovelies!! I hope you all had a relaxing weekend and that the beginning of your week went smoothly :)

Mine sure was. My sister and I work for banks so we benefit from government holidays, so that meant Ashley was able to come home for a long weekend which, coincidentally, was my mom's birthday weekend! Lots of fun was had.

We finally got our first big snowfall in the Buffalo area on Friday morning, but luckily it stopped by afternoon and Ashley was able to drive up that evening and there was lots of Sex & the City watching. 

Saturday was a big day...I got my dad tickets to see Van Halen for an early birthday present. They're coming in March and I am so excited! Ashley and I went to go see Beauty & the Beast in 3D and it was just like when we were kids, seeing it in the theaters for the first time. I love that movie so much :')

Volunteering Saturday night was a blast. I helped get my first cat adopted, a sweet little girl named Amber and we also got in a litter of 5 2-month old kittens. I can almost guarantee they will be gone by the time I go back next Saturday :(

Sunday was my mom's actual birthday and we celebrated by following a family tradition of going to Mass followed by breakfast at our favorite local diner. Later in the day, we went to dinner where I had AMAZING grilled salmon with herb butter. Om nom nom.

Ashley went back this afternoon and I miss her terribly already :( but we will most likely Skype soon and see each other on the next bank holiday. (Hi Ashley!)

I ordered my iPhone this weekend and it should be here tomorrow. I'm super super excite and can't wait to play with it. As much as I hate to say this, the first app I will probably download is Instagram because I am a closet hipster haha. Enough of that. Onto the nails!!

This week's mani is brought to you by Zoya LC and OPI Save Me from the Nicki Minaj collection.

This is 2 coats with Gelous base coat and one coat of Essie No Chips Ahead. I was very happy with how smoothly it applied...no streaks or globs or bald spots. And opaque in one coat! I am in love with the color, too...such a bright coral red creme and it wears really well, too.

But, of course, I got bored and anxious to try out some of my new polishes that I picked up this weekend, so I added an accent nail.

One coat of Save Me with Essie No Chips Ahead

Save me is a holo glitter with both flecks and bar glitter in turquoise and silver. LOVE.

My mom asked me why I only had one nail painted like that so I had to explain the purpose of   an accent nail. She told me that my grandma used to forget to paint a nail and that was her accent nail. Then, she noticed that Hanna had an accent nail on Pretty Little Liars and pointed that out to me. I love my mom.

I do not love that I have to go to work tomorrow :( 

How was your weekend? What's on your nails right now? Talk to me :)