Weekly Manicure: Ombre

According to one of my fab friends who works in the magazine industry at very well know beauty/fashion publication nail polish is the new lipstick! What do I mean by that? Well, back in earlier recessions Leonard Lauder (chairman of Estee Lauder), consistently found that during tough economic times, his lipstick sales went up. Basically, we as consumers turn to less expensive indulgences, such as lipstick, when we feel less than confident about the future. Therefore, lipstick sales tend to increase during times of economic uncertainty or a recession. It has been a reliable measure over the years but, in this current economic mess that we find ourselves in it’s not lipstick that we are splurging on it’s nail polish and other manicure tools AKA the "lipstick effect" Do you think you are part of this phenomenon?

I can say that I am part of this trend without even realizing it. More recently I have been putting time and a little monies into my own mani/pedi fun. I am consistently disappointed when I splurge on a manicure at the salon only to have it chip within a day or two. Why bother spending the money on that when I can do it myself? And why not share it with you? I am always trying to spice it up so there will hopefully be some things that help/inspire your own manicure fun.

This week, I decided to take some inspiration from the official start of spring and do a manicure with one of my new fav warm weather colors, lilac! This is also in keeping with what my mother had planned for the family’s Easter ensembles, more on that later... I wasn’t sure if I should keep it simple or try something fun with it… I decided to try something new and attempt an ombre manicure. As I’m sure you know ombre is one of my favorite things and I’ve been watching video after video on how people make it happen… why can’t I? I used this ombre manicure tutorial from lizzypunch, it was the simplest to follow in my opinion and didn't require lots of polishes, sponges, etc.

The first step to a good long lasting manicure (ombre or otherwise) is starting with a very clean slate. It helps the polish to adhere to your nail.

I followed the steps that had been lined out in the tutorial but, there were a few tweaks that I would definitely stress. One of two drops of clear nail polish with a little color will work for every two/three nails but, I had to mix up a a few batches while I was in the process of doing the manicure. Also, a piece of aluminum foil works just as well as a small plastic container for your palette. 

This is the first layer which is 4/5 drops of clear nail polish mixed with 3/4 drops of color polish. One of the reasons why I might have had some challenges with this was because the polish is already a little sheer. You have to play around with your polish until you find the level of translucency/lightens that works for you.

 

For the next layer I used a few more drops of the lilac polish to deepen the color on top of what I had used for the first layer. I only painted that shade on half of each nail to give the fading ombre effect. It didn't really come out as definitively in this picture but, you can definitely make it out in the right light.

This is the finished product. I just used the lilac color without any additional clear nail polish for the tips. I also put a top coat which really helped smooth everything out but, only for the nails where I was able to go through the process quickly.What do you think of my ombre manicure?

Some nails came out more blended than others but, this was my first attempt at the ombre manicure. Have you tried it before, how did it work for you?  What do you think of my end results? Yes, I also did my toesies but, not in the ombre fashion. I don't think there is enough "canvas" to work with for that. They had to settle for a coat of Dr. Remedy's Lively Lilac.

June 8, 2012: Ombre Friday

There is no secret that I love ombre, I gravitate to it even if I try not to. That being said I haven't added any new ombre pieces to my wardrobe in quite a while, this skirt was the last piece. I think it might be time to add (even) more ombre to life wardrobe. I wonder how I can do that without shopping, thoughts?

• Top: black short sleeved sweater, LOFT; black cardigan, Merona via Target 
• Bottom: gray and blue ombre skirt, GAP
• Shoes & Accessories: black peep toe shoes, Payless; black headband, suunci via CVS; silver bead earrings, Tiffany & Co.; Neverfull GM, Louis Vuitton/gift from BF    

Items from this outfit are previously seen and remixed here, here, and here.

December 16, 2011: Jeans Day

This month there was a welcome casual Friday at my job. While I was excited to dress down I still needed to keep it professional, enter blazer and fab blouse. Did I mention I'm a sucker for anything ombre? Yeah, I know you know... 

• Top: gray ombre blouse, Trulli for LOFT; black blazer, Ann Taylor Loft via Melissa
• Bottom: double waistband denim trouser, tailored by me via LOFT/Christmas gift 
• Shoes & Accessories:  black ballet flats, Xhiliration via Target; moonstone earrings, V'ta jewelry; dusty mauve butterfly tote, GAP

Items from this outfit are previously seen and remixed here, here,here, here, here, here, and here:

January 19, 2011: She Paints Me Blue

I have a confession to make, I didn't get to work yesterday. The rain/ice/snow/sleet that was falling out of the sky encased my car in a sheet of weather stuff. I should have taken a picture it probably looked pretty but, I digress... I spent forever cracking the ice with my trusty scraper and cleaning it off only to start slipping and sliding and I tried to drive to work. I made it about two blocks and decided it would be better to head home. All while wearing my leopard print flats... Crazy? Definitely! I couldn't feel my feet. I guess that outfit can be saved for another day since I didn't actually wear it to work; one when it's not "weathering". After checking the forecast I am sad to say it is a week of boots, except for maybe tomorrow. It's supposed to be sunny with snow again on Friday. Yes, style blogger and meteorologist.... eat your heart out Bill Evans.

Can we just talk about this skirt for a minute? I had spotted it in the GAP while shopping at full price ($46.50) and instantly fell in love. I am a sucker for anything ombre. For a bunch of reasons (my poorness, it's expensiveness, acheiving another month of no purchases) it didn't come home with me that day. But, many weeks later while actually Christmas shopping  I found one left in my size on sale for $13.00. BF told me to throw it on the pile of Christmas goodies for everyone else... love him! How else would you style this fab skirt?

• Top: yellow short sleeved sweater, GAP outlet; white polka dot button down, Merona for Target
• Bottom: blue and gray ombre skirt, GAP/gift from BF
• Shoes & Accessories: black Madison Heights Tall Boots, Timberland via Zappos (not orginally pictured); black tights, Just My Size via CVS; pearl earrings, birthday gift from Mom via Macy's; black Spy Bag, Fendi

Items from this outfit are previously seen and remixed here, here, here, here, and here:

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Purchases & Acquisitions: June 2015

There was shopping/swapping this month, so much shopping/swapping! Well maybe not so much with the shopping but, definitely with the swapping... let me explain. I have been feeling the urge to shop in the recent months but, after my extreme closet purge that increased exponentially. I sent my Mom the picture of the finished product and she took pity on me bringing over some things form her closet that no longer fit her last weekend. Then we scheduled a time to go see the local tailor by her so that I could salvage some of my favorite items because tailoring is a great option instead of heading out and buying all new clothes. 

Unfortunately/fortunately, we didn't make it to the tailor because I was raiding my Mom's closet for things that no longer worked for her. I made out like a bandit (kinda literally) with bags of sartorial goodies. Ironically, many of those items had previously been mine going as far back as high school, for serious. It's a good thing that my mother doesn't have my penchant for closet clean outs but, I digress...  Even though the tailor was closed we consoled ourselves by heading over to one of my favorite second hand stores and she bought me a few things because she's super nice. The "damage"  is as follows... 

Goodwill $20.48 Amazon Local Deal

• red dress, Taylor 
• brown striped dress, Bailey 44 

Current Consignment $15.64

• eggplant suite, Nanette Lepore
• cream pants, Vanessa Bruno
• gray tank top, Bailey 44

Unique Thrift Store $45.22 c/o Mom

• beige pinstripe capris, New York & Company
• brown plaid pants, New York & Company
• khaki green bermuda shorts, Forever 21
• black pinstripe suit, Anne Klein
• retro inspired polka dot pumps, Bakers

Mom's Closet Raid Cleanout

• red dress, eShakti.com
• blue floral lace dress, eShakti.com
• black and white houndstooth faux wrap dress, eShakti.com
• gray scoopneck t-shirt, New York & Company,
• red scoopneck t-shirt, New York & Company
• black sheath dress, Books Brothers
• black sleeveless polo shirt, Lacoste
• white sleeveless polo shirt, Lacoste
• black polo shirt, Lacoste
• black capri leggings
• black embellished t-shirt, Merona
•  khaki skirt, Ann Taylor
• white linen pants
• denim skirt, LOFT
• black lace dress, H&M
• black sweater dress, Pink Rose 
• lime green scoopneck sweater, LOFT
• ivory scoopneck sweater, LOFT
• hot pink scoopneck sweater, LOFT 
• yellow scoopneck sweater, LOFT 
• green scoopneck sweater, LOFT 
• black scoopneck sweater, LOFT 
• green cardigan sweater, New York & Company 
• purple cardigan sweater, New York & Company
• light brown plaid suit, Sweet Suit
• brown polka dot suit, Donna Sands
• purple tweed skirt, Norton
• black and gray plaid skirt, NYCC
• ivory and beige skirt, Theory
• gray pencil skirt, Emanuel by Emanuel Ungaro
• blue and gray dress, Old Navy
• gray cropped blazer, I.N.C. 
• black and brown plaid skirt, Worthington
• black t-shirt, Chanel
• blue ombre tank top, Xhilitration

You were worried, weren't you? It really wasn't that bad after all, after all of the fun new things I added or welcomed back to my wardrobe I ended up only spending $15.64 at my local consignment store. We'll see how I do next month since I will spending time visiting my favorite shopping destination my cousin and you've seen how that goes...

Giveaway: $100 Shopbop Giftcard. Fan Shopbop? Yes!

I really am becoming the biggest Shopbop fan! They always have such amazingly covetable items and they are interested in giving back to the blog community with awesome giveaways like this. You should keep up with all of that and fan shopbop too!

If I won I would want to get a jump on spring shopping and check out lightweight skirts, sweaters, and jackets! I love the shape of this Ellery jacket. It looks beyond comfy! 

While there are alot of choices my personal (non-giftcard) purchase would probably come from the sale jackets section like this BB Dakota pick. There are tons of great choices for all price ranges!

Lastly I would need to take a look at their fab scarves because in the transitional times between seasons scarves are so essential. Infinty styles? Check! Great patterns? Check! This ombre is my fav...

This giveaway will be until February 20, 2011 and is open to ALL readers in USA and internationally! I will pick the winner via Rafflecopter. Here are the rules: become a follower in Google (if you aren't already) and leave a comment on this post letting me know what you would get with your $100 gift certificate. Check out the Rafflecopter widget for more ways to enter and keep your fingers crossed!

a Rafflecopter giveaway