Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, everyone!

Not a big update, but I hope you all have a wonderful and safe New Year's Eve/New Year's Day. Take care!

My First Julep Maven Box Arrives!

While wandering through nail art blogs and videos online, I've come across Julep nail polishes a number of times. I think it was watching videos by Elleandish (Janelle) on Youtube that really made me see how gorgeous Julep polishes can be.

When I came across Julep's offer for a free introductory box to   Julep's Maven Box Club, I jumped on it. I figured I could always cancel the subscription or skip months down the road if money remains tight. In the mean time, I could try out some new nail polish, right?

Today's Polish Haul - 12/28/13 - Sinful Colors, Sally Hansen, NYC

Imagine that you have been searching for a job for the past 4 months. You're down. You have little to no money. You're 32 and have been staying with family until you can find a job. You don't have a license and the majority of your friends have either moved away from the area , or are back in the country you just returned home from.

You find yourself in the nearby Walmart with $20 in your pocket. What do you do to cheer yourself up?

Splurge on a bunch of cheap nail polish, of course!

'Tis the Season....

So, part of what prompted me to begin this blog was my online wanderings after painting my nails for the holiday season. Posting a photo of my Christmas nails to Instagram made me wonder how many other people do exactly the same thing every day!

As a word of warning, I took the photos in this post before I had planned on blogging, so beware crappy iPhone photos in crappy lighting. Future photos will definitely be more composed.

Keep reading to learn more about this look...

Every Blog Has a Beginning...

Once upon a time (read: more than a decade ago), I loved doing things with my nails. In high school, when it wasn't softball season, I would often get my nails done at a salon. I owned a ton of nail polish - granted, of the cheapest drug store variety -- and took joy in painting my nails a million different colors. Wet n Wild nail polish was my partner in crime, and at $1 a bottle, I could afford to paint my nails wild colors while on a high schooler's budget. While the results were often rushed and messy, I had tons of fun showing my personality through my nails.

When I went to college and my time, interest and money went to different pursuits. Then, with a post-college career using computers all the time, I found that my previously long nails often just got in the way. This was followed by five years working in public schools in Japan, where it was heavily frowned upon - if not outright forbidden - to paint my nails. At one school where I worked, I wasn't even allowed to have earrings in! All but the piercings I got when I was a young child closed up during my time there!

The world of DIY nail art has changed a lot since my days of painting each nail a different color of the rainbow. In those days, you didn't have the wealth of knowledge and resources that the Internet provides. Now, there are all manner of examples and tutorials floating around. YouTube, Pinterest, any number of blogs, even Google Images, can provide direction and inspiration.

My goal in creating this blog is to map my progress as a fledgling nail art enthusiast, sharing my trials, my finds, inspirations, and - if I ever make it to that level - my own tutorials.

I welcome any resources you may have so please feel free to share any videos, blogs or links that you might find helpful!