Blerg.

Maybe it's me, maybe it was the product, but this manicure was frustrating.

Today I have the liquid latex tape from Born Pretty Store. If you don't know what that is it's liquid latex that you place around your nails to make clean up easier. The first thing I noticed about this product was the smell. It smelt EXACTLY like lemon Pine-Sol which was a bit unsettling because I couldn't find an ingredients list on the bottle or the website.

ETA: When they read my post they immediately sent me a list of ingredients :) The only thing in it that is potentially "harmful" is the latex if you have an allergy.

  Applying it was easy, but unlike some other brands specifically meant for nails that change colour as they dry, this one looks exactly the same from the minute you put it on till the minute it dries.

For the review I did the most annoying manicure to clean up. The watermarble. Now I've actually tried this 3 time. The first time I did it with the watermarble and I only ended up using it on 2 fingers because removal was such a pain. It pretty much just came off in small pieces, slowly. The second time I did a thicker coat on a few fingers w.o even doing a manicure, just to play with it, and removal was fine and for the most part peeled off in one piece. So when I did this manicure I took note and did a thicker coat. It again was a pain to get off despite the fact that I did a thick coat. It would have taken me less time to take off the polish from around my fingers with a cotton swab. On the bright side I did love my manicure in the end.

Honestly I wasn't a fan of this product, but maybe I did something wrong. Maybe I'll give it another go because it seems to work for the other people on their site and it worked fine when there was no polish on it. It would be fab if I could get this to work. If you would like to give this a try you can find it here currently on sale for $2.99 USD. In addition you can use our 10% discount code 'EAL91'

Have you used this? Did it work for you?

Ps. This manicure was inspired by what's left of the boys of Take That and one of their outfits from their recent III tour.  I used Joe Fresh polish in Bloom, Sinful Colors Amazon and Sally Hansen Pacific Blue(Old version) and topped with China Glaze Fairy Dust.

:D

 

*Product sent for honest review

I need an affirmation

Hopefully I will have a light box this weekend because I hate taking so many pictures now.

Today I have some Take That nails for you guys. I haven't done any in a while! I know how you all missed them. My friend and I were actually going to go and see them, but Jason left so what was the point. That being said we did see them in Cinemas. Overall it was a fantastic show, but you can't really beat a bunch of middle aged men dancing. These nails were inspired by the live version of the song Affirmation from their last album Progress. Watch the video below. I was telling my friend their costumes reminded me of a cult. Just something I though of.

Also fun titbit: I don't think Gary Barlow sweats. Moist at points, but never a full blown sweat. Witchcraft.

A-Z Challenge - Inspired: Tonight, we gotta live for, we gotta live for, these days! + 500th POST!!!

So after a break I didn't forget to do the A-Z Challenge, I was just really tired yesterday and made an executive decision not to do my nails.

I've had quite the week. Remember how I said this year I was going to do more performing and whatnot? Well this week I did 2 shows and 1 audition :) And in an effort to motivate myself I have decided that for every show, or audition I do, I will have a chocolate from my tin of Quality Street chocolate. And that is the only time I can have those chocolates! Huzzah! Also this is Varnished Valkyrie's 500th post! Double Huzzah!

Back to nails! My inspiration today is my favourite boy band in the history of everything, Take That, and the outfits they wore when they performed their first single 'These Days' on the X Factor in November. As well as their logo, and the number III(Which is the name of their new album, because now there is only 3 of them). And you know what? While I do miss Jason and dynamic he brought to the group, TT3 is growing on me. It's a slightly different dynamic, but different doesn't have to be bad.

All I used for this manicure was Orly Liquid Vinyl and white acrylic paint.

 

Who here loves Take That? Or am I the only one here :(

Take That - These Days (X Factor performance 23... by ilabarlowed

Check out more fab A-Z Challenge manicures!

An InLinkz Link-up

Robbie Williams Spotted!

I don't know what it is with spots, but I just love how they look in a manicure. So when I saw Robbie Williams spotted outfit in his Swings Both Way Tour, I just knew I had to turn it into a manicure. This whole mani was done using polish(Orly Liquid Vinyl and Sinful Colors Snow Me White).

Ps. Speaking of Robbie, WHO ELSE IS EXCITED FOR NEW TAKE THAT*!!!

*Yes I know Robbie is not involved in this album.

Happy Birthday To MeeeeeEEeeeeee!

Over the past few years I have grown to hate birthdays. I always used to wonder why people stopped thinking getting older was awesome. It was amazing going from 8 to 9. I assumed it would be like that forever. Turns out it's not that way. Anyways I have never been one for proper birthday manicures(Cupcakes, divulging my age, that stuff). Even if I was a fan of them I don't think I would do them. So here are some nails that have nothing to do with my birthday!

So today my manicure is sort of Take That related(LEAVE ME ALONE! IT'S MY BIRTHDAY AND I DO WHAT I WANT). It's actually Jason related, because as some of you may know he left Take That two days ago. And I'm all sorts of sad because he was my favourite member. Is this what 1996 feels like? Anyways this mani is a nod at his performance from Take That Presents The Circus Live. At one point he wears some dandy striped trousers while singing the song Wooden Boat. Part of the lyrics are:

We go from green to blue to gold to black.

Breathe deep, who knows how long this will last. 

Oooooooo and here is the performance! I suggest you watch it for you own health!

Now off to go drinking! I'll never say no to a Friday Birthday!

Let's celebrate the first full day of autumn with new nails, stinky polish, and a dusting of sadness :'(

You guys know I love Take That right? If you don't, get out now. Well today my Favourite member Jason Orange left the group. Now I know most of you are rolling your eyes, and that's fine. We all have out things that we like and others don't really understand. And let's be real, if you are a nail polish addict you probably know exactly how that feels. Anyways Boybands as a whole, but especially Take That, is my thing. They can come out with the worst album and I will still stand by them(face palming the whole time, but still). So while I am addend by Jason leaving I wish him and the rest of the band well as they move forward as a trio. I look forward to seeing what new stuff they make me throw my money at.

To make matters even worse(One hell of a first world problem day) I decided to wear Revlons Autumn Spice. First let me say that the formula was fantastic at just 2 easy coats. The colour is amazing! It's a chocolate brown, with golden brown flecks and I'm pretty sure there's also so pink flecks in there as well. Now as you know this is from their line of scented polishes. I was a bit iffy about getting it at first because of that, but I decided to just go for it as the colour was beautiful and it was a sale. It honestly smells like baby powder with a bit of spice. I can't tell you a specific spice as I'm not a spice connoisseur. It just really bothered me to the point where I started to feel a bit queasy. It was almost as bad as the "fresh" smelling feminine pads I accidentally bought.

 FLASH*Ah-Ha*(Only way I could really show off that sparkle)

First world problems aside, I did get a new macbook the other day. And I broke my iPhone5(battery expanded) and Apple replaced it for free! AND I have new nails! So not all is bad in the world!

Ps. Here are some videos of Jason you should all watch:

The Art of Doing Nothing

So as you probably know I sort of like a group called Take That.  Or have I not mentioned that?  Oh yes I have.  If you didn't know this chances are you are new here.  But I'm also a fan of the stuff the members do on their own.  Case and point Mark Owen.

I decided to use some art work from his up coming album The Art of Doing Nothing.  Which is due for release on June 10th of this year.

 

I like how it's one of those manicures.  Where people may not understand what it means so they have to ask.  I like conversation starter manicures.   And it was really easy to do.  Who doesn't like a simple mani?  Horrible, soulless people, that's who.  Elizabeth Bathory would hate this.

Check out his first single Stars off of The Art of Doing Nothing. 



Also...

 

Stay tuned tomorrow for part 2 of my NCLA Nail Wrap review.

Butter London Two Fingered Salute: Finally the PERFECT opportunity to use this gif!

So today I have the gorgeous polish for you!  I'm sad that I only wore it for just over a day :(  Don't worry, it had nothing to do with wear time.  It's just that I may be going out tonight and it wouldn't go with my outfit.  And by outfit I mean shorts and a bright pink, shimmery, snake skin patterned bandeau.   I will look smashing and be as classy as a 1947 Château Cheval Blanc that has been opened.

Two Fingered Salute is a dusty seafoam green, filled with coppery pink micro shimmer.  This polish was good for the most part in 2 coats.  Although a 3rd was need on 2 fingers.  I found it didn't self level perfectly but it wasn't so much so that the top couldn't fix it.

Fun fact:  I painted the boys nails with this.  It worked really well with his skin tone.

 

 

WINNER!!! + Your Answers (Why have you answer all those questions if we're not going to share any of them?)

Yay! Congrats to Penny!  See doing the essay question paid off! She has been contacted.  And has 24 hours to respond  to our email which was sent a few hours ago And she has responded.  No Chanel Peridot why wont the winners get back to us incident this time!  Congrats to everyone who participated!  If you didn't win it's all good.  Because guess who is celebrating their 1 year blogiversary next month?

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 
And now just for fun let's see some of your answers since you never really get to see them.

Favourite Baked Good
Because I can I added some recipes!
"My homemade biscotti :D"
"Passionfruit center muffins. oh. my gosh."
"Raspberry Cheesecake COOKIES!"
"Pastel de Nata! Google it if you don't know!" Give me pastries any day!
"My mom's chocolate chip cookies" Are they chewy?!?!?!
"Pink lemonade cupcakes"
"I have no idea what the name is in English or if it even exist outside Sweden. Budapest Cake"
"toffee blondie. is mouthgasm." I'm all for mouthgasms.  Especially multiple mouthgasms.
"creme brûlée, they bake that shit right?" Gurl, you bake and blowtorch that shit.
"vegan pumpkin cinnamon bread" Vegan food is amazing when done properly!  You should all try it!
"Oh god... ALL THE BAKED GOODS! Ok. If I have to choose. A really perfect croissant. It's the ideal pastry, and a perfect vehicle for numerous other tasties (chocolate, jam, bacons and eggs, cheese). Also perfectly good in it's own right. What were we talking about again? "  I feel like you would be someone who also like Crêpes. DO YOU?
"Lasagna" It's baked, and it's good.  You can't argue that.

Best Animal (Can be mythological)
Phoenixs, unicorns and mermaids were the big ones!
"box jellyfish" Fact: They make the best pets.
"Red Pandas. seriously. not sure if you read all of these, but look at this gif. do it.
This is the gif that was attatched:

"DINOSAURSSSSSSSSSS"
"I don't discriminate. I love all animals"
"magical flying rainbow unicorns :)" Not a just any unicorn.
"The stegosaurus is the most noble of all creatures." I agree.
"cats, dragons"
"direwolf"  The Game of Thrones fangirl in me got all excited!
"Lavender colored unicorns"  We can't all like Rainbow unicorns.
"my hubby (lol)"

Favourite member of Take That
Only one Mark Owen.  Jason and Howard had more.
"Gary Barlow he is the hottest one of the group!!! "
"I had no idea what Take That was until just now... Um... No comment? Feel free to invalidate this entry if you want LOL" At least you know now.
"uuuhh...Wiki informed me that Robbie Williams is a member and I have at least HEARD of him, so yeah. Robbie Williams." Props for looking them up.
"Jason Orange, because I like his name" I like his torso. 
"who is take that? lol" You must be new here :P
"Helena"...
"back for good" That's my favourite member too.  Also my favourite member of queen is Don't Stop Me Now. :P
"None... :-S"  Get out.  I'm just kidding :D
"Jared Leto <3" I see what you did there.
"i don't even know who that is. am i old, now?" You might just be too young.
"What's a Take That? <3" Mythical creature. 

Study Sheet(Because this will be on the test next time)
Mark Owen:

Howard Donald:

Jason Orange:

Gary Barlow OBE/Space Cadet Extraordinaire:

Robbie Williams:

Favourite Shakespeare Play
It was mainly Romeo and Juliet,  A Midsummers Night's dream, Hamlet and Macbeth.
"Hmm Othello was pretty scandalous!"
"Midsummer Night's Dream. without a doubt! I don't find Romeo and Juliet very romantic at all :/"
"I'm sad to say Romeo and Juliet is the only one I've actually read..."
""Hamlet... the Musical" (1988). Epic hilarity."
"The Tempest, because I got to see it performed in The Globe Theatre in London when I was 15, it will always hold a special place in my heart"
"Merchant of Venice (I adore Shylock's speech Act III Scene I)"
"Much Ado About Nothing! (It's even funnier when you find out that "nothing" was slang for vagina!)"
"I was going to say Beowulf...but I don't think that's Shakespeare. I will be unoriginal and say Romeo and Juliet..."
I didn't comment on this because I don't know Shakespeare very well.

Favourite Doctor (Doctor Who?)
Every doctor got at least one vote minus William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton and Paul McGann.
"Lololol My mum actually loves Doctor Who but I've never really watched it. " WATCH IT!
"I've never watched the show but David Tennant is so adorable to me."  That's a good enough answer for me!
"I have a general love for all things Dr. Who since that's how my dad and I bonded, so I'm going to have to go with Dr. #4 (Tom). Those are the earliest episodes I remember watching with my dad. Which reminds me, I need to search for the latest complete season for my dad's Christmas present...." Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.
"Dr Oz" No.
"Rory Williams" He is not the doctor despite the fact that he liked to die and come back.
"I've actually never watched it, maybe I should.." You should... GO!
"John Pertwee (showing my age!)"  More like showing your amazingness.

Ripping Out My Wisdom One Tooth At A Time

So I'm getting all four of my wisdom teeth pulled today!  Huzzah!  While I'm not looking forward to the next few days I'm excited because, if it means no more constant pain I'm all in!

Anyways I couldn't decided what I wanted to do so both my hands are worlds apart (and I don't care). 

I guess my right hand is Halloween/teeth themed.  Each finger was originally going to be a bloody mouth.  But after I did the splatter I decided to leave it as it is.  They still kinda look like individual bloody teeth right?  It also doubles as general murder blood splatter. Double duty nails!  Also after I did the blood splatter (which as you guessed is a tad messy) I looked at my thumb and there was a smiley face on it.  Cool, or creepy?

 

Next up on my left hand I have my Take That nails.  Each nail represents a different song in some shape or form(Lyrics, music videos, tours). The songs are (T-P) Fun Times, Blurred Vision, Crossing, Innuendo, Higher Than Me. I really liked this mani so I had to post three photos of it.  Well that's sort of a lie.  I think the nails are ok.  The reason I posted it three times was for the surprise giveaway so you can see some of the nails better.  First off all the song titles I listed aren't real. I made them up.  If someone can tell me the real songs in the comment section you'll get your choice of any polish off ninja polish dot com. This is open internationally for the most part.  You know minus places that have rules against shipping polish.  Finally it closes at eleven fifty nine eastern standard time on Thursday night.

So I'll see you guys in a couple days!  Wish me luck!

Candy Nails - See! I can be flippin cute (｡◕‿◕｡)!

Well look who's sporting a simple, super cute, fun, non threatening mani.  Me.  My nails are fuc*ing adorable.  I even have a pink background!  What more can I say?

This is what more I can say(????????).  These are actually inspired by the Cover for Robbie Williams new single Candy from his upcoming album Take The Crown.  The song kind of makes you want to skip around with a giant smile of your face. Well it makes me want to.

It was SUPER easy to do(like 90% of the nail art I attempt to do).  3 coats of Essie's Moonstruck and then dotted my nails with dots of varying sizes using Essie's Fishnet Stockings, Essence's Ultimate Pink, and CND's Rose Bud.

Boom.  Done.  Nail art master.

 Essie - Moonstruck, CND - Rose Bud,  Essence - Ultimate Pink and Essie - Fishnet Stockings

The cover for Robbie Williams single Candy

And did you think after going on and on about the song I wouldn't post it?

 :D

How I get my nails so damn sexy (using only a really expensive assortment of products including dragon elixer and pure magic). I'll also show you some n00dz!

So I really didn't have a post today so I just decided I would show you some naked photos...of my nails!  And just write a bit about how I take care of them.

Now before you read any farther keep in mind what I do works for ME.  And just because it work for me doesn't mean the same will work for you.  I am not a professional nail tech,  I'm an actor and writer.

Now I've seem other bloggers do post like this.  And most of them contain, oils, sticks, creams, and what I can only assume is something expensive created from the breast milk of Aphrodite. Mine contains none of those.  When it comes to nail care I'm kind of a hippie.  But I've been doing my thing for years now and it works like a charm.  Let's begin. I'm going to do this in list form.  I don't do enough lists.

1. I only buffer my nails for one of two reasons.  If I have a break and need to repair it with a tea bag.  Or if I stumbled upon a polish that I didn't know stained and can't get rid of the stain.  I don't find it prolongs the life of my polish.
2. I rarely cut my nails.  Generally I file them a tad using an emery board every time I do my nails.  About once every 7-10 days I use a stainless steel file and file a bit more than usual.  Then I soften the look with the emery board. NOTE: Some people say not to use a stainless steel file because it makes you more prone to breakage and peeling.  I don't have that problem. Never have.
3. I have NEVER used cuticle remover.  90% of the time I don't think I need it.
4. Vaseline or any other brand of petroleum jelly.  Now the palms of my hands do tend to get quite dry(mainly in the winter).  And my fingers get dry too (but not nearly as dry). So I use Vaseline.  I use it after I shower.  So once a day.  That's pretty much all I do to keep my hands from not drying out.  No special creams.
5. Base coat, base coat, base coat.  I always wear it.  I use Sephora by OPI Strengthener. Which is also a base coat.  It's the only base coat I use. 

If you were too lazy to read that let me sum it up for you. I don't buffer of do anything to my cuticles.  In my opinion I have no reason to.  If file my nails.  I use Vaseline.  And I always use base coat.

Questions?  Comments?  Take That?

Ps.  There should be a bloggers n00dz week.  Where everyone posts their n00dz (nails). :P

NOTE:  All these photos were taken soon after I removed my nail polish.  My nails are as naked as they get.  This is what they look like most of the time(without polish). As you can see they are a tad stained but really not that bad considering I almost always wear polish.

 Nothing fancy to see here folks!  Just my Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat (I use this 90% of the time).  My Sephora by OPI Strengthener. My Revlon stainless steel nail file and my 4-way buffer (File, buff, smooth, shine).  And my Seche Vite top coat (which I use maybe 10% of the time).

London 2012!

So as you know the opening ceremony for the 2012 Olympics are tonight.  I will not be watching it because I have a rehearsal to go to.  At least it's not the all important closing ceremony featuring TAKE THAT!

Even though I'm not a huge sports fan I decided I wanted to do Olympic nails.  Originally I did the Union Jack in gold, silver and bronze.  But the shades that I had in each were BLAH together.  So I ended up with this.  On my left hand medals using microbeads. And London 2012 written on two of my fingers.  On the other hand I just painted my hands the colours of the the Olympic rings and added glitter.

And you know what?  Since I don't care all that much for sports I wish everyone participating the best of luck.  I hope you all win :) Even though most people there will in fact lose... #REALITY.

I used Essie - Moon Struck, China Glaze - White Ice, Sephora By OPI - Just a Little Dangerous, Sally Hansen - Pacific Blue, Orly - Hook Up, Essie - Pretty Edgy, Essie - Fishnet Stockings, OPI - Black Onyx, China Glaze - Medallion, acrylic paint and a roller ball pen for the text.

Take That Part 2

This post was inevitable.  And in case you didn't know I have a mild love for Take That.

I got my inspiration from Take That Presents:  The Circus Live.

This is my right hand.  I'm surprised by how much I like it. 

 

My right hand is based on the Clown Medley.  At first I did colourful french manis in the colours of their hats.  But it didn't look all that interesting to be honest.  So I did it again and used the colours of their hats but used dots instead.  And my thumb is their jacket/pants. The horizontal lines look kind of shaky.  I find they are much harder to do than vertical for some reason.

 

Mark, Jason, Gary, Howard :D, (Robbie had yet to rejoin the band at this point).  Now you can fill out the Take That question in our giveaway!

If you want to know what colours I use feel free to ask.  I would put them but I don't remember all of the right now.

So I'm going to go now.  I had too much to drink last night.  But I'll leave you with the the Clown Medley, and a BIG yay for all our new followers.  Almost 200! Anyhoo...I sleep now.