Meetup and Pride Nails

I mentioned in my last post that I was meeting up with some nail polish friends in Michigan, and I did indeed do that, this past Saturday. Since it's Pride month, I decided to do a rainbow manicure. Since I'm good at leaving things until the last minute, I finished painting it in the parking lot of the place we were meeting. I snapped a few shots in the car just before I went in:







Because there are six stripes on the Pride flag and I have only five fingers, my thumb had to do double duty. I used all Sally Hansen Crayola Insta Dri shades for the colors: Scarlet, Sunset Orange, Dandelion, Granny Smith Apple, Bluetiful (bought on this trip and so new I haven't posted the display photo yet), and Vivid Violet. To tie the rainbow together and add more color and fun, I topped them with Salon Perfect Silver Sparkler (another new one this trip, though I believe it's not a new polish for the brand). My base coats were Sally Hansen Nail Nutrition Green Tea + Bamboo and Salon Sciences Starting Over After Artificials, and my top coat was Orly Sec 'n Dry.

After a delicious lunch and much chat, we did remember to take a group nail photo. Starting at top left, it's Melissa from honeybee_nails (she recently started a blog, too), Becki who doesn't Instagram right now, me, and Jamy from jamylyn_nails.



I didn't bring my lightbox with me on this trip, so need to be on the lookout for natural light opportunties, like this one by my hotel window later that day.

Karen's First Polish Convention

If you've seen my Instagram over the last couple of days, you know I've been in Toronto for the inaugural Indie Expo Canada (IEC). Ever since Pam of Girly Bits fame announced the idea, I wanted to go. I like indie polish (well, all polish really, as you know), and I like Pam, and I like Toronto, so I bought a VIP ticket when they went on sale even though at that point I wasn't sure I'd be able to make the trip from Idaho. Obviously, it turned out that I was able to, making this weekend a feature of another long road trip.

I left home the Monday before Memorial Day, drove to my mother-in-law's house in Illinois over three days, then spent about a week in the Land of Lincoln, including a craft conference over the holiday weekend. The night before I was to depart for Canada, I did my nails, choosing a shade from the small selection of polishes I'd brought with me. Finger Paints DIY Diva is a summery orchid with blue shimmer, very pretty and very well coordinated with the outfits I planned to wear at IEC. Unfortunately the polish in the bottle I got was thick and goopy, so I had to thin it despite it being a recent purchase and never used before. It also really didn't get along with the first topcoat I tried on it, wrinkling up to the point that I had to take it all off and start over (a smarter and/or less stubborn person might have decided to switch to another color at this point). It did better with the second topcoat I tried (Diamond Dry) but still wasn't leveled as well as I'd like, so I added a layer of Sally Hansen Diamond Flash the next morning, and still wasn't happy, so put China Glaze Fairy Dust over the top the morning after that, my first full day in Canada. Here's a shot in natural light (in my car, which is where I added the Fairy Dust):



And here's the proof that my manicures don't always work out: attempt number one with the incompatible topcoat (in weird light at my MIL's house):



My IEC experience started with a polish making workshop on Saturday morning. Actually, it started a bit before that when Melanie and I took turns trying to get the pay station in the parking ramp to take our money. It didn't like her card, then it didn't like my card, then it did deign to take her other card, and I found enough change in the plastic bag of Canadian cash that Mr. Karen gave me to cover the fee. Then we were both able to go upstairs and take our places in the conference room for three hours of fun with suspension base and colorant and shimmer and glitter and flakies and such.

I had some inkling what we'd be doing, since I was fortunate to have done the workshop at Pam's studio a few years back, so I came in with the idea to make a polish inspired by the woods that surround me in Idaho, and pretty much managed to make that vision a reality with Lost in the Forest, a green jelly glitter topper that was my first creation at the workshop.



I couldn't wait to use it, so I put a coat of Lost in the Forest over my existing mani, even though I wouldn't usually put green over orchid. It didn't look too bad.



My second polish was inspired by a pen that Melissa loaned me that morning.



I had to try that one, too, but limited myself to an accent nail of the newly named Flair Purple.



After I finished my second polish, there was still a fair bit of time left, so I decided to use the leftovers in my mixing cup to make a bonus color, adding random stuff as I walked around the room looking at what other ladies were doing. Thus Bonus Flakes was born. There were leftovers from this, too, but no more time to keep creating.



After polish making, I had lunch with mrsrexy, then we returned to the hotel for afternoon seminars on blogging and marketing, after which we strolled around the city for a bit and continued to catch up with each other.





I ended the day back at my hotel tired and happy.



I wasn't too tired to do a new manicure for the main event on Sunday. I used Essence When Tomorrow Comes (taupe creme) and Chrome Paradise (charcoal duochrome shimmer) as a base for Bonus Flakes.









Sunday I donned my nail polish print skirt and headed downtown. I allowed myself plenty of time to deal with the effects of a freeway closure between my hotel and the host hotel, so was feeling pretty good when I pulled into the parking garage ahead of schedule. That feeling went away quickly when I realized I'd left my Canadian cash back in my room; fortunately the garage was attended so I could pay with my card that way. Digging around in my purse, I later found the coins I'd intentionally gotten the night before to pay for parking, but that wasn't going to buy any polish. Ah well, that's why we have Paypal and credit cards.



Check-in went smoothly and soon I was sitting in a comfy chair going through the pretties in the VIP bag. Jj happened to sit down nearby and we ended up chatting for a while and even did an impromptu swap of one shade of Fiendish Fancies for another since we each liked the color the other got better than the one in our own bag. Then we lined up to get into the ballroom and it was off the races. I hadn't done any planning as far as making a wish list or even studying the layout, so I just wandered from table to table in no particular pattern, picking up things that looked most interesting and putting many of them down again because my retirement budget is a thing. A thing that I stretched rather a bit as the day went on. Maybe I'll do a haul post at some point; that might be frightening (or impressive, depending on your perspective).

In addition to the shopping, there were tutorial sessions. I signed up for two: Advanced Stamping with mrsrexy (I decided since I'd graduated from the turtlechick school of stamping, I could be advanced) and Nail Art with Candace and Katherine. They packed a lot into these short sessions, and I learned some things you may see show up here on the blog before long. There was also a panel discussion in there somewhere, but I didn't see much of that as I needed to step out and have a snack lest my blood sugar do bad things. I unfortunately can't blame blood sugar on the two most embarrassing parts of my day: knocking over a cup of water during the nail art tutorial (not just into my lap but into that of the woman next to me) and flashing my underwear for an unknown number of attendees when I failed to notice my skirt getting caught up under my tote bag when I bent over to look at polish. Ooops.

All in all, it was a fun time and I hope I can return for future IECs. Perhaps by then I can figure out how to have more energy so I can go out and socialize at night instead of crashing in my room. Or perhaps I'll learn how to drink espresso. Time will tell.

IKEA Mini-Meet the Second

While I have not recovered my blog posting mojo, my motivation to meet up with my nail polish ladies is unabated. This past Saturday, I went to the second Michigan Nail Girls (and Guys, though we're still waiting for our first guy) IKEA meet. Yes, IKEA on a Saturday. It wasn't nearly as crazy and crowded as you might be thinking.

As I had when I met up with Julie, I did a mani for this event inspired by the colors in the shirt I planned to wear. Because I am still not back into the swing of things, I only have room light photos of this combination.



My index finger has SinfulColors A-Crush (from one of the fall displays I haven't even done a post about yet) topped with CinaPro Nail Sugar Jelly Bean (which I bought at a Sally Beauty in Florida when I was with Julie; I've not seen this shade up here in Michigan). My middle and ring are Pure Ice Grape Crush (purchased on my drive to Florida) topped with Jelly Bean. Pinky and thumb got Morgan Taylor Sapphires, Rubies, and Emeralds, Oh My (bought at one of the nail supply stores Julie took me to; I don't see any emeralds in it).







Again because I haven't quite settled into a new routine, I didn't write down how many coats of each polish I used. I did at least take the worst bottle shot ever so I'd be able to remember what I used: Tratamiento Curativo de Uñas, OPI Ridge Filler, the colors, and Diamond Dry topcoat. I do know it took two coats of topcoat to smooth the CinaPro.



I put that second coat of topcoat on just before I headed out the door to IKEA to meet up with the ladies. As usually happens with events like this, the number of people who RSVPed as attending on Facebook was more than the number who showed up. Still, attendance was up one from the first IKEA meet, so it's gaining momentum as a meetup location. Despite it being Saturday at lunchtime, we were able to get a table in the cafe (thanks, Tracey!) and eat and hang out and chat for a couple hours. My hand (@thekarend on Instagram) is at bottom center in the group mani shot below; moving clockwise, it's @kzoobeergirl, @honeybee_nails, @nailsbymercedes, Mercedes' adorable little sister who is only three so not yet on IG, @jamylyn_nails, and our hostess this time, @traceyloveslacquer.



I wasn't organized enough to have brought any polishes to swap, yet I still managed to come home with some thanks to the generosity of several of the ladies. And yes, that is Zoya Monet you see there, so I don't need to be sad anymore that I broke my bottle.



I've yet to have a bad time at a nail polish meetup, so whenever I can fit one in, I will. I'm looking forward to IKEA round 3 one day; people always need more Helmers, right?

A Friend I've Now Met

Well, so much for getting back to a more regular blogging schedule! Retirement has been way busier than I ever anticipated, even after we got past the family reunion preparation and hosting. Now that I don't have to sit in front of a computer five days a week, there are some days I don't even boot up my laptop. Mr. K and I have been working on getting the house ready to list for sale, which has taken up a lot of time, but I took a break from all that and spent more time offline traveling to Florida to visit Julie of Turtlechick's Nails 'n' Tales (currently on hiatus), one of my best "friends I haven't met in person yet"—though now I have met her in person, which was the whole point of the trip. Those of you who follow me on Instagram (@thekarend) got some glimpses into my travels along the way, and now I'm finally managing to take the time to sit down and do a proper trip report.

I set off with my rainbow bear buddy and bare nails. The car was packed with way more stuff than I'd need for a week long journey, including more nail polish than most salons have.



My first night on the road I did a mani with some of the no-light gel polishes that every brand seems to have come out with this year. Because it was very late at night, I didn't take the time to setup my lightbox (not that my lightbox takes much time to setup, but I am very lazy sometimes). The lineup: Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Flashionista (a gift from my mom), China Glaze EverGlaze My Slate of Mind, FingerPaints Great Graphite, and Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Top Coat (I have so many topcoats already I wasn't about to buy a special one just for every different brand's no light gels).



Over a base of Salon Sciences Starting Over After Artificals, I did three coats of the Sally Hansen on my index finger, two coats of the China Glaze on my middle and ring fingers, and two coats of the FingerPaints on my pinky and thumb (this one was nearly a one coater). I topped them all with the Sally Hansen topcoat. These polishes have a different smell than the regular ones from these brands; not objectionable, just different. The Sally Hansen topcoat seemed to get along just as well with the other brands colors as it did with its own. It dried to the touch fairly quickly, which pleased me since I wasn't sure that would be the case. The layers did stay ding-able for longer than I'm used to with the quick dry toppers I usually use.



The Sally Hansen has a beautiful lilac/pink flash in the bottle that I spent the rest of the time I wore this mani trying to capture on the nail. It showed up fine to the naked eye, but both my point and shoot and my phone were not able to see it.



I did setup my lightbox a couple nights later. The tipwear after two days didn't seem any better or worse than I get with regular polishes.



I did a fresh mani the night before Julie and I were meeting up. (Our other south Florida online nail buddy was sadly not able to join us as planned.) For a base, I used the Quimica Alemana Esmalte Endurecedor de Uñas, which Julie sent to me way back in 2012 (see this post for more on that) and which I've been rationing ever since. I topped that with Salon Sciences Instant Artificials, then added the colors. Index was Pure Ice Honey Dew (which I'd bought on the drive down), middle and ring got Funky Fingers Check Meowt, and pinky and thumb were Sephora Formula X Whirlpool. The cremes were two coats; the shimmer three. Top coat was Diamond Dry.



This color combination makes a lot more sense when viewed with the shirt I'd chosen for the meetup (the square pendant is one I got from Julie's storenvy store when it was open).



Julie came to pick me up at my hotel, and it was like we already knew each other, because of course we did, what with hanging out on the same nail board for years and emailing and messaging and such. She took me to a couple very nice nail supplies and we also hit a Sally Beauty which had slightly different stock than mine here in Michigan. Between the three stores, I blew my polish budget for the next couple/few months but it was so worth it. We stopped for lunch at a Cuban restaurant and finally remembered to take a nail shot.



After a quick stop at Walgreens, it was time for me to meet famous cats Bruce and Neil, as well as their canine companions. Mr. Neil was perfectly happy to let me hold him and coo over how tiny and fluffy he is. Mr. Bruce let me pet him a little, then sniffed up my arm into my face, and hissed at me. I had been judged and found wanting, apparently. I loved seeing their personalities!

Bruce glares at me from a safe distance:



Neil is done with me at this point and ready to go back to the nap I interrupted with my arrival:



We then adjourned to my hotel room, which had a desk accessible from both sides that was perfect for playing with polish. Julie had brought over a bunch of her stamping stuff, and within just a few minutes, she had me stamping better than I'd ever managed before. Detailed plates with tiny lines? No worries! Apparently all I needed all this time was a squishier stamper.





The above designs were all done with Julie's stamping polishes, but the squishy works just fine with Wet 'n' Wild black creme, too.



She generously gave me not only two squishy stampers but also bottles of the Bissu Stardust polishes I'd gone crazy for when she posted swatches. These aren't just neons, they're textured glittery neons!



I wasted no time Skittling the Stardust colors onto my nails. Top to bottom: Delicia de Mango, Amarillo Tucan, Copa Cabana, and Verde Brasil. All were two coats.





Since I was a stamping fool by this point, I stamped on the Stardust with Wet 'n' Wild black and Born Pretty plate BP-65. I also topcoated this to see what that would do; I think I like the Stardust better textured rather than shiny.



At the end of the night, after a dinner break at a Columbian restaurant that felt like we'd actually traveled outside of the US, I tried one of my purchases, a Tratamiento Curativo de Uñas I'd picked up at Walgreens.



I was very interested to read that this product, applied to the nails, can "...increase their resistance to the weaknesses that cause humidity". I can't say I've ever tried that sort of treatment before; maybe it's the secret to healing my nails for once and for all. (I sort of hope not, as I will probably never see this again.)





All to soon it was time to head back north. Rainbow bear and I stopped at the beach for a bit on the way home.



It was a great trip, and I had such a good time! Big thanks to Julie for being a wonderful hostess and tour guide. I only wish I could have snuck a few more polishes into Julie's stash while I was there.

HPB Presents Surely There's Beach in IKEA Somewhere

I had such fun doing last month's Hobby Polish Bloggers challenge, May Flowers, I decided to do this month's beach theme, too. I thought about using Zoya Tomoko or Zoya Godiva to mimic sand on my tips, or a jelly sandwich of some sort that would be like looking down through the water to fish or seaweed or something, but in the end I found my inspiration in a shirt and some stickers and created this bright dotted and decaled Skittles mani.



It was a full mani, too; here's my reclusive right hand:



I took the color scheme and dots idea from this shirt I got at Rainbow, a store where it feels like at least 90% of the merchandise is aimed at people who are not me but I still go into because sometimes they have very fun stuff in my size, like this shirt.



I'd originally planned to just copy the dotticure outright, wear it and the shirt to meet up with some of my nail polish friends at IKEA and do my beach mani later, but then I noticed the palm trees on the shirt and remembered some nail stickers I'd gotten at Five Below, the Tropical Smoothie set.



To pick the base colors, I took the shirt over to the Helmers that have the creme polishes sorted and waiting to be put on nail wheels and just pulled bottles out until I found shades that looked close to the ones on the shirt. The final product lineup for this mani (even without the stickers) was too big to fit into my lightbox comfortably. Left to right: Qtica Natural Nail Growth Stimulator (which I found on clearance and have been alternating with Duri Rejuvacote), my old favorite Salon Sciences Instant Artificials, Funky Fingers Alex's Lemonade (2014 version), Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Red Rebel (it's a rebel because it's actually orange), L'Oreal Red Robin (oh how I love my old L'Oreals), Sally Hansen Triple Shine Dive In, Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Pink of Punch, and Diamond Dry (which has become my go to quick dry topcoat, so that's probably why Sally Hansen hasn't yet discontinued the Insta Dri one in the red bottle—they know I won't be sad like I was when they yanked the Age Correct base before I'd found something I liked better).



I was so excited to get to the arty part that I completely failed to write down any notes about how many coats of the creme base colors I used. I think it was three for the orange and red and two for the others, but I've really no idea.



And here's how much I love my sensitive-nosed husband: I painted this mani standing up on our back patio, using our electric meter as a shelf for my bottles.



The stickers went on next. I really should have waited a bit longer for the base to dry; I slicked on a layer of Diamond Dry to speed the process but even that wasn't fast enough for me. Some of the decals wrinkled ever so slightly as the layers underneath completely dried, but it wasn't too noticeable.



Some dots with Wet 'n' Wild Black Creme and another layer of topcoat and I had a mani to match my shirt.



One last check in the car before I headed in to meet up with the ladies at IKEA—looks like I need some cuticle cream:



The ladies and I (and two patient husbands and one adorable little daughter) gathered in the IKEA cafe for some sustenance before we headed out to trek through the store inspecting items for their suitability for use in our nail polish hobby. I'd brought one of my tallest bottles (Bourjois 1 seconde) and a standard size (Orly, same height as OPI and China Glaze and so many others) to try out in various drawers and such.



Along the way, we looked at Helmers (they come in orange and green now!) and Alexes in all their many configurations and carts and shelves and cabinets whose names I do not know. We looked at lamps and mats and containers and chairs. We took a wrong turn and missed a whole section and had to backtrack. We temporarily lost one of the husbands near the end of the maze before the cash registers. After all that, we posed for a group shot with the cinnamon rolls that they stragetically place by the exit to snare tired and hungry shoppers. Clockwise starting from my hand in the lower right, it's @jamylyn_nails (who has just moved to Michigan and doesn't have her stash yet, so she can't do the all the crazy great manis she usually does, which is why I've given her MS Paint star Skittles), @traceyloveslacquer, @honeybee_nails, and @paintmewithpolish.



I had such fun hanging out with these ladies, and also fun doing the HPB challenge again. Click through the links at the bottom of this post to see what the other bloggers participated did for their beach/ocean manis (links will continue to be added for the next week).

An InLinkz Link-up