Hurricane Irene

Obviously this has nothing to do with nails, but it’s the reason why I’ve been away from this blog for so long. Living in Connecticut, we were hit by Hurricane Irene. Apparently when it hit my area, it was only considered a tropical storm. Ultimately, it still did quite a bit of damage. While flooding wasn’t a problem at my house or really with anyone I know, the winds that caused trees to collapse and wires to go down was certainly the worst of it.

We lost power for 4 days and I know a ton of people who currently still have no power, including half of our town. Our Internet was still down when I typed this (and a bunch of other upcoming posts) so I could get to posting as soon as the Internet was back up. Ultimately, we were internet/cable-less for just about a week. We are on the same grid as a shopping complex that has stores such as Walmart, Target, Kohls, Lowes, and Home Depot among others. Lowes and Home Depot were running generators, but all of the other stores had no power… including Walmart.

We had no damage done to our house or cars, so we were definitely lucky. I started classes during the time our power was out, so I had to shower at work before class. The worst parts were definitely not being able to flush the toilet without manually filling it with overflow from our well by carrying buckets of water from the basement to the bathroom, and not being able to have running water. We cooked on the grill, which also has a burner, so that wasn’t bad. We had a generator that allowed us to keep our fridge and freezer cold.

I just wanted to share some photos I took during and after the storm. All were taken on Sunday, the day we were hit.


This is just a small tree in our front yard getting blown about during the storm. I tried to get views of the tall trees blowing, but the photos did no justice to what was happening.


Our back deck covered in leaves.


The only casualty in our yard. It missed our shed.


This was right around the corner from our house. We live on a dead end, so the majority of our neighbors couldn’t get down the road. We would have still been able to if it weren’t for…



This. These are downed live wires on fire. They were on for 2.5-3 hours.


The end result of the downed wires. Burning and molten asphalt.


The culprit. Tree down, smoking/flaming utility pole near the tree, and wires snapped.


The awesome people in my fire department (who I volunteer for) takin’ care of the flaming asphalt. Kickin’ ass, guys!!



Boiling water in holes in the asphalt.

Even driving around today, nearly a week after the storm, there are still TONS of roads closed, downed lines, and trees on lines. I know other people had flooding problems they're still dealing with as well. And what's this I hear about Hurricane Katia? *sigh*

French Affair with Sticker Decal

Yesterday's mani was just simply Essie French Affair, and I wanted to do something simple to it today. I considered Konad, but wanted a bit more. Nothing flashy, though. I wanted to keep it fairly simple. So I ran down to Walmart and picked up some Nail Art stickers by Kiss for less than $2 and figured I'd give them a shot.





3 coats French Affair
1 coat Poshe
Sticker from Kiss

Well it's a good thing I got those few photos before I put a top coat on the sticker. The photos aren't the best because I had just gotten out of the shower, so my nails were a little swollen.
My first experience with the sticker was decent. It has a clear backing so even though it looks noticeable in the photos, it's not noticeable when you look at it in real life. The instructions mention using a Nail Art Applicator. I didn't use that, just used my fingers. The only problem I had was once it's down, it's down. One of them got about halfway stuck and I realized the placement didn't quite match my other nail. I tried to pull it back up, but it tore off the piece I was holding, so I just stuck it down where it was. I suppose that's a good thing when it comes to lasting, though. Maybe that would imply that it won't peel up within a day.

So, here's where things went wrong. I didn't initially use a topcoat, even though the instructions state that you should. I got home from the dentist and realized the little silver balls looked dingy and not really shiny at all anymore. I was going to say I used lotion, but I used it BEFORE putting on the sticker, so I really don't know why they became dull.
Once I got home (about 2 hours after application), I decided to use a top coat to make the silver balls shiny before I took better photos once my nails de-swelled... what a horrible mistake.





This is with 1 coat OPI Top Coat. The silver color from the balls smeared ALL OVER and left portions of the balls just clear. Wow I'm not impressed.

Here are the stickers I bought


Here are the instructions

Summer Neon Crackle

I hate Black Shatter. I keep trying it, and keep hating it. I think a big part of it is because it's summer (spring), and when I think polish for summer/spring, I definitely don't think black. Overall, though, I'm not a huge fan of the crackle trend. I haven't been tempted to buy the new OPI crackles... the Sally Hansen crackles... the Pure Ice crackles... you get the idea. (Though I may grab some of those new metallic China Glaze crackles when they come out).

In an attempt to jump on the crackle trend, I finally found a combination I'm satisfied with.













1 coat of an unknown super old neon pink Orly
1 coat China Glaze Lightning Bolt

I've been DYING to do this for months. Literally months. I had it in my head and just knew I'd love it.

But where's my pinkie you ask?


Busy being injured. Super bad break after slamming my finger into a door (not in a door, into a door). I don't even know what to do about it.
More about it later, but if you're curious and might have some suggestions on what to do in the meantime *cough*Loodie*cough*, please let me know!! (I'm thinking silk wrap but I don't know if the glue would be a bad idea because it broke to the skin).


Keep in mind there's strengthener on my nail that started to peel up near the break, too, so it looks kinda odd. I'm afraid to remove it because I think the remover might sting.

Please Don't Use This Product !! :(

I just have to warn you guys. I'm so, so sad about what happened to my nail, I don't want it to happen to yours. Two weeks ago, I posted about my broken left thumb nail. All was going well with my silk wrap until another traumatic thing happened. On my 16.5 hour work day, I FINALLY punch out, reach into my pocket to pull out my phone, and my thumb nail gets jammed and the silk wrap breaks.

Side note... Seriously?! Right after I punch out?? It lasted an entire freakin' shift carrying gear, carrying patients, opening doors, typing my reports, etc. but my dumb nail finally has to break AFTER I punch out and when I try to get my phone out of my pocket. Ridiculous.

Anyway, I've had this happen before. I just soak off the wrap and put on a new one. No harm done. Well, I had recently purchased Sally Hansen Insta-Fix Nail Repair Kit because it was 75% off at CVS.


It was rated pretty well on MUA (it was 4.6/5 and 100% would buy again before I added my rating and review) so I figured instead of putting on another silk wrap, I'd just use this.

It went on a THOUSAND times more easily than a silk wrap. I just painted glue over the break (I took off the silk wrap and started fresh), then sprinkled the acrylic powder over it. It dried quickly and I was able to buff it to a smooth finish. I thought I had found the greatest nail repair product ever!!

But then...

It became SO dry and brittle despite my frequent moisturizing. Finally, it cracked. And when a silk wrap cracks, it usually doesn't continue the crack in the nail. Oh my goodness did this Insta-Fix continue the nail break. Parts of the glue/acrylic started to crumble off and it looks awful. I got home and soaked and soaked and soaked the repair in acetone. I used the foil method and everything. It wouldn't budge AT ALL. My poor cuticles took such a beating being wrapped in acetone and tin foil for so long :( I tried my best to gently break off more of the repair, but it seemed like it penetrated into my nail. When it finally started to loosen, I was able to get it off... and it SHREDDED my nail and took a whole chunk of it with it. SHREDDED it. Like paper thin and shredded. No clean, angular break. It was like when you go to bite a piece of celery and it leaves all of those strings and jagged pieces. I wish I had taken a photo of it, but I was just so livid that I didn't think about it then. I just wanted to fix my poor nail :(

Wanna see the damage...


:( Needless to say, I'm not thrilled. I couldn't even get the rest of the repair off. I kept trying to soak it and it wouldn't work. And I'm too terrified to try to pry it off. It DESTROYED the part that came off, I'm not taking chances right now until I figure out some other way to get it off.

My girlfriends wedding is Saturday, and I really wanted my nails to look great. So it looks like I'll be using a press on nail for occasions like that until the nail grows out. No way am I cutting down the rest of my nails that short. No freakin' way. I can't even get my thumb nail even because the break was so low that I'd have to file my skin. Gross, and not gonna happen.

So ultimately, do not get near this stupid product, and definitely don't let it touch your nail. It's not worth it.

Does anyone have any idea how I can get the rest of the acrylic repair off? When I put on the press on nail, I'm going to need an even surface, so I have to get it off by Saturday. Help??

Broken Nail :(

This is NOT a fun post :(

I was doing laundry and the washing machine lid came down and I tried to grab it so it didn't slam, but instead it caught my thumb nail and caused a really low break. It started not too bad, but of course then it went into a full split. So this morning, as I'm typing this, I'm repairing it with a silk wrap. It is WAY WAY too low to cut my nail down. Wanna see the horror?

When it initially happened:


Halfway through my silk wrapping process:


Ugh this stinks!! Beneficially, I never use my thumb in swatch or nail photos, so this shouldn't affect the blog at all. I'm still bummed, though.