1st BijouxbyMeg Etsy purchase

I have been watching Jen (OrganizedJen.com) on YouTube for about a year now.  One of the places she recommends for jewelry is a seller on Etsy ---- BijouxbyMeg.  BijouxbyMeg is a woman who makes handcrafted jewelry.. her jewelry is extremely "delicate" and "girly".  She focuses on personalization work, which I LOVE!!!

I had gone on to Etsy at several times in the past 6 months, but had never made a purchase.  Not because I didn't like any of the products, but because I liked so many things, that I just couldn't make a decision.

About 2 weeks ago, I stopped being so indecisive and chose a necklace that is hand stamped with the word faith on it!!  I am pretty sure that if you wanted to get a similar necklace, you can have anything stamped on it.  I actually wrote to Meg on her FB page when I placed my order, just to let her know that I was excited..and she was kind enough to write back, which is pretty important to me when it comes to independent business owners.  The more they interact with the community, the more I am willing to support them.

I don't know if all of her stuff comes packaged this way, but mine came in a simple box with a ribbon tied around it..  It is wrapped inside and also came with a card that tells you how to take care of your jewelry.

I have yet to wear my necklace, but think it is beautiful!!  Can't wait to pick out my next piece!  Don't forget to check out her Etsy website, BijouxbyMeg

In all things there is beauty, 

~~~~Michelle xoxoxo

 

Thought Provoking Thursday

I heard this quote at Brooke's college graduation last week and it just stuck in my mind.  As soon as the speaker started reading this quote, I had to grab my phone and look it up.

 A great lesson for all of us!!

Manicure Monday

This weeks manicure is sort of a failure, so while I will still post the pics, just know that I know that my nails look crappy!!  I was so tired last night and almost didn't paint them at all, but have been consistent for the past 3 weeks, and I didn't want to ruin that-- haha!

Don't worry--- I cleaned the area around my cuticles HAHAHA!!

I was drinking some pink lemonade before I painted my nails and used that as my motivation for this week. And yes, I still have accent nails- but I did do them a little differently this time around :)  I painted 2 nails on each had with a bright yellow color by Julep, called Abbie.  The other three nails were painted with a bright pink by Sinful Colors called Pink Happy Thoughts.  LOVE LOVE LOVE both of these colors, but really struggled with their application.  The bright pink, in the bottle, looks like it has muted streaks of yellow, but that didn't show up at all on the nails.  Sinful Colors formula is sort of hit or miss for me, but I don't mind because the polishes are so inexpensive.  This particular color was extremely runny.  In fact, more than once, it dripped off of the brush while I was applying it and got on my darn pajama pants....uuuggghhh!!!    I thought that after 2 coats, the color was completely opaque-- but as I look at my nails today-- NOPE, not so much!!  The bright yellow color was okay.  Julep happens to be a brand that I really like for nail polish.  I used to be subscribed to the Julep Maven nail polish box, but money got a little tighter, and I had to be mature and let that go.  But if you have the funds available, I would recommend checking out julep.com to get more information on becoming a julep maven and receiving 3 nail polishes a month.  I used 2 coats of this polish, and definitely could have done at least 2 more.

I did not use my ONM Out the Door topcoat and tried to just use my Nicole by OPI drying drops and after 3 minutes, my nails were dry enough for me to lay down and go to bed.  This morning when I woke up, my nails weren't smudged or anything!!  5 stars for these drying drops!!!

Thought Provoking Thursday

Need to remind myself of this daily.  I need to stop talking, wondering, dreaming about all the things that I had planned for my life that I have not completed...this doesn't make me a failure.  It makes me unable to realize what I have and all the things that I COULD be doing.  

We need to be able to embrace what is to come with the most open arms ever!! Part of my lifestyle change-- I am working on it!!

In all things there is beauty~~~

~~~~ Michelle xoxo

Manicure Monday

So, I spent some of my Sunday at Christmas Tree Shops and Five Below... I ended up picking up 3 new nail polishes.  Which also makes me realize that I should probably get around to making another nail polish rack?  But anyway-- 2 of those 3 nail polishes made into this weeks Manicure Monday.

On 8 of my nails, yup- I'm still rocking an accent nail, I have the Loreal nail color in Skinny Jeans. This nail color actually threw me off a bit. In Christmas Tree Shops, I thought it looked like an interesting purple color however Madison said it looked blue. I'm still having trouble figuring the actual color out, so I will let you be the judge.  I applied two coats of this polish...but definitely didn't need to for it to be opaque. I'm thinking these L'oreal colors may bump their way up my favorite polish ladder. What makes this polish even more intriguing, is that fact that it turned out to be a textured polish.  So I'm thinking now that the goal may have been for it to the have that "jeans" texture.  I'm not a huge fan of textured polish..but we will still how long this lasts. I think it looks nice, but it feels weird as my hand brush against certain materials.

My two accent nails are rocking a polish from Five Below.  It's by a brand I have never heard of called Funky Fingers.  The name of the polish is, Jawbreaker.  This name is very fitting because it reminds me of the super huge white jawbreakers you could by from the true candy stores that are speckled with different colors.  I have found that most colors like this, need at least 2 coats and this one was no difference.  But I am loving the way these two colors look next to each other.

As a little side note....with textured polishes, it is recommended that you not put a top coat over them. So for this manicure, I did not use my INM Out the Door topcoat and on,y used the Nicole by OPI drying drops.  Within 3 minutes, my nails were perfectly dry!  I love these drops!

Let me know what colors you have on your nails this week.  And remember-----

In all things there is beauty,

~~~Michelle xoxo~~~

Thought Provoking Thursday

I came across this quote about 2 weeks ago while Damian and I were in New York.  We were in a little shop filled with knick- knacks and things of this nature.  They had a whole bunch of Buddha statues and on one of the displays this quote was taped.  It immediately caught my eye and I snapped a pic of it right away.  And ever since, it keeps popping up in my mind and I have come across it by accident twice(once in a book and once while googling something else)

How powerful is this quote?!   It doesn't matter how many people you "beat" down or rise above if you haven't won any personal battles that you have within yourself.  

In all things there is beauty

~~~~Michelle

Manicure Monday

This post is going up late, but from here on out, every Monday I will be posting a short blog with the nail polish that I have chosen for the week.

I typically do my nails every Sunday night and then just wear that polish up until Friday night or Saturday early in the day. I like to give my nails at least 24 hours of "nakedness" each week.  I have extremely weak at brittle nails that break, and chip, and are extremely thin.  I probably should give them more time with no nail polish, BUT...... I have a mild obsession with nail polish, so that just won't happen.

My manicure routine pretty much stays the same and is actually not much of a manicure at all.  I don't push back my cuticles very often, because, quite honestly, it scares the bageezus out of me.

But I always use the same base coat, and top coat, and drying drops.  Maybe one day I will actually show a video of my process.

Basecoat = OPI Bonder

Topcoat = Out the Door topcoat

Drying drops = Nicole by OPI drying drops

This week I decided to go with Blues.  Since I am still one of those girls that HAS to have an accent nail, I went with a royal blue and light blue with royal blue polka dots.  For the royal/navy blue, I used the Rimmel 60 second nail polish in Blue Eyed Girl... the lighter blue is from Zoya and simply named Blu.

I have been a fan of the Zoya nail polish ever since hearing about them from one of my favorite beauty bloggers, Marnie aka Ms. Goldgirl on YouTube. Go ahead and check her out!!  I then went out to purchase one nude color, LOVED it and have been lucky enough to receive all the others in various beauty subscrtiption bags- mainly the Ipsy bag that is curated by Michelle Phan.  This particular shade is one of my favorites, completely opaque after 2 coats, and has a really good staying power.

The Rimmel 60 second line is new to me, but definitely not new to the stores.  I have looked at these polishes several times and never grabbed one before.  So in a recent trip to the beloved Walgreens, I figured it was time.. I grabbed this royal/navy blue.. and so far-- I am SUPER impressed!  Only 1 coat and this nail polish was completely opaque.  Looks like I will be taking another trip to the drugstore to grab more colors!!

Let me know what nail polish you are rocking this week!


People & Items mentioned above:

Ms Goldgirl's Youtube channel
Rimmel Blue Eyed Girl Nail Polish
Zoya nail polish in Blu



Ebates : http://www.ebates.com/rf.do?referrerid=ZAoYp5D3jH%2FpeFiAOBbXzQ%3D%3D

                                                                                                              In all things there is beauty,

                                                                                                                                              ~Michelle~