First full picture of me in aaaaaaaaages. I'm so proud of myself.

Hi lovelies,

So, following on from my previous post on bathers and bikinis (and steering away from the huge amounts of nail posts recently), I am proud to announce that I know have purchased one. Yay! While it is unfortunately not the one mentioned in the previous post, it is still pretty good. Or at least I think so.

Christmas Nail Art Challenge - Day 11

Woooo! Look at me go! Two posts in one day. :)

How about we ignore the fact that the only reason I'm posting two in one day is because I was so late in posting the first one of today..... That sound good?

Anyway, day 11 was Christmas sparkle and so I, of course had to do the bling-y-est Christmas nails I could think of. :) I was also excited to do this one because I got to use one of my (many) new nail polishes that I got for Christmas. :) Yay!

Anyway, this is what I came up with.

Christmas Nail Art Challenge - Day 10

Hello lovelies,

I hope you all had an excellent Christmas and if you don't celebrate Christmas, I hope you had a lovely day anyway. :) I had a really, really nice Christmas. We visited friends in Bunbury a couple of days beforehand, which was really nice, and then Christmas Day itself was very relaxing and low key. We went to the beach and had a brunch and generally kicked back and relaxed.

Anyway, because I was away and then I was feeling very relaxed, I am totally late with Day 10 of the 12 Days of Christmas Challenge. It was meant to be on the 24th.... Oh well.

The prompt was 'Santa and Friends' and I think that this one is potentially my favourite out of all of the challenges. Here it is...

Christmas Nail Challenge - Day 9

Hello lovelies,

Okay, so, I think this is becoming a habit. For each day of this challenge, I've come up with some great design, only to fall short at the execution of it... (Except for the presents, I really, really, liked those).

So, for the this prompt - Christmas decorations - you will get to see my right hand. Why, because my left hand turned out so horrific that there was no way I was going to post it. Mostly because I had red candles on the left hand and when I applied the top coat, the design was ruined... I need my new top coat. I've been using Poshe's Super Fast Drying Topcoat, which I get from here, and I really like it. Mostly because of the incredible drying time and I like the fact that it is 3-free. However, it ran out and I hadn't had the foresight to order a new one before then, so I've been using whatever's lying around, which, happens to be a Manicare Clear Coat that came as part of a French Manicure I got as a present once. Now I know that it is not suitable for nail art which is another strike against the kit. (I wouldn't recommend the kit).

Anyway, this is what I did in the end.



I went for candles because in my house, we have so many candles and all of them get lit at Christmas time. Also, Christmas time for me always has memories of sitting outside in the dark with only candles lighting the night while we talk tall evening.

I'm really sorry about the less than great photos - my photography with my left hand really needs improvement! :)

Check out the other's here.

For these, I used, OPI's 'My Boyfriend Scales Walls' (white), Mode's 'Blueberry' (blue), Chi Chi's 'Doris Day' (light yellow) and Ulta3's 'Honolulu' (darker yellow).

Christmas Nail Challenge - Day 8

Hi all,

Being the 18th, it is time for Day 8 of the 12 Days of Christmas Nail Art Challenge.

Today's prompt was snow and this is what I came up with.

Christmas Nail Challenge - Day 7

Hello lovelies,

Well, guess what? Today means that we have reached day 7 of the 12 Days of Christmas Nail Challenge. Yay! That means we are over half way through. While this challenge has been really fun and definitely something I would do again, I do feel my enthusiasm waning a little. It's hard to have to stick to a schedule of when I need to paint my nails - I'd rather just be allowed the freedom to do them when I want to. Although, saying that, I generally paint my nails every 2-3 days anyway. It's just occasionally that I really can't be bothered doing them. Today was an example of such.

Anyway, back on track, today's prompt was 'Inspired by a Christmas Movie'. I chose 'Sleepless in Seattle' , which might not be the most Christmassy of movies, but it was Christmassy enough for me. :)

This is what I came up with.

Some Science Behind Eating Disorders

Hi lovelies,

Lately, I've been feeling rather misunderstood. I feel often that I'm not taken very seriously by both my family and many people that I know. Recently, my mental stability has been teetering on the balance between 'Mostly Sane' and 'Fairly Unstable'. I feel a lot of this has had to do with the fact that my illness's that I struggle with are being undermined in their seriousness. While depression and anxiety are not too badly covered in today's society (although no where near as well as I'd like them to be covered), eating disorders are often and very badly understood. So I decided to pull together a little of the information I've learnt through my struggle with anorexia and maybe help you guys understand a little of the science behind these eating disorders - the actual brain chemistry.

People are often under the impression that eating disorders are a choice. That we choose to restrict, to purge and to over-exercise in the pursuit of our ‘perfect’ body. As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve heard anorexia be called the ‘Rich White Girl’s Disease’. Not because a high percentage of anorexia sufferers happen to be white females from developed countries, but because it’s seen as a choice – a way to seek attention and gain recognition in our world.

Christmas Nail Art Challenge - Day 6

Hello there beautiful people,

It's the 12th today and it was time for me to attempt 'Santa's List/Workshop'. I was not looking forward today - I was totally stumped as to what to do.

After much deliberation and many episodes of Torchwood, this is what I came up with.

Christmas Nail Art Challenge - Day 5

Hello lovelies,

Today, it's time for day 5 of the 12 Days of Christmas Challenge. Today's prompt was 'Christmas Song/Carol'. My nails for today were inspired by a very non-traditional Christmas song by Owl City called The Christmas Song. You can hear it here, if you haven't heard it (I recommend it, it's a lovely song). These nails were particularly inspired by the line

'It's Christmas, and we are in love, with the way that the soft snowflakes kiss us'

Christmas Nail Art Challenge - Day 4

Hello to you all and how are you today?

Me, I am exceedingly tired as Midget, my younger sister, thought it would be an awesome idea to wake me up at 7:00 this morning so that I could watch Phineas and Ferb with her. Urgh... Okay, maybe I might have said the other week that she should wake me up so that I could watch it with her, but I didn't know it was at 7:00!

Anyway, for the 4th day of the 1 Days of Christmas Nail Art Challenge, the prompt was 'Christmas where you live'. I live in Australia and for me, Christmas conjures up visions of sun, heat, sand, the beach, flies, heat, heat and more heat. For me, if Christmas Day isn't over 38 degrees, something feels a little off. :)

So, in true summer fashion, these are my nails depicting Christmas where I live.

Christmas Day Art Challenge - Day 3

Hello lovelies,

Today I'm back with Day 3 of the 12 Days of Christmas Nail Art Challenge. Today's theme was Christmas Candy and here is mine.

Christmas Nail Art Challenge - Day 2

Hello lovelies,

Right, it's the 3rd of December, meaning it's time for day 2 of the Christmas Nail art challenge. Today's theme was wrapping paper/presents, and this is what I came up with.

10 Random Facts About Me

Hello lovelies,

Following in the spirit of Cassie at TheReluctant Femme and Jes at TheMilitant Baker, I have decided to do a 10 Random Facts about me post. I think this is a great idea because while blogging is great and the internet is fabulous, the problem is that with blogs, you often only see the bits of people that are relevant to their particular blog (make-up, nails, photography etc.). You don’t get to have those tiny insights and those little facts that really make a person a person, rather than a personality. Also, because I’m just nosy and I’m hoping that my 10 Random Facts post might inspire others to do the same and then I can satisfy the little sneak inside of me. :)

1. I am the oldest of four girls and I love it. I wouldn’t trade my spot as the oldest for anything. Being the oldest means I can watch and see my little sisters grow up – I can see the transition from baby to child to teenager and to adult. I love that.

2. I love to change my appearance. If I could have any superpower in the world, it would be to be able to change my appearance at will – to be a metamorphmagus. As I cannot, I have to rely on wigs, contacts and make-up (or at least, I would, if I could afford to buy it all).

Source here

A little apology and Christmas Nail Art Challenge - Day 1

Hello there everyone!

Sorry about last week. I was away on holiday (yes, I had a lovely time, thank you for asking) and I thought that I would have access to internet - although, when I think about it, it seems quite obviously that I probably wouldn't.... Oh well. I'm back now and just in time for day 1 of the Christmas Nail Art challenge - Christmas tree. I'm sorry about my lack of creativity in this one - I was on a bus for about 9 hours today and so was feeling less than enthusiastic about this challenge. But I will forge ahead anyway and push forward through my exhaustion. :)

Christmas Nail Art Challenge + Giveaway!

Hello my lovelies,

This is going to be a rather short post, and maybe not particularly pretty or thought provoking, but let's get cracking anyway. :)

Jessie, over at Nailed It NZ, Anjali (From L&P To English Tea) and Hannah (AGirlWithSomeClothes), have created a 12 Days of Christmas nail art challenge that I will be participating in. You read more here and it sounds like it's going to be a lot of fun. Especially for me as it seems a lot more manageable than doing your nails every day like many nail art challenges. :) If you want to take part, simply put the button in your side bar and link up your post with Jessie's for each different design. :)

The second part of my post is for the massive giveaway that Jessie is holding currently on her blog for reaching 10 000 fans on facebook - an amazing milestone! She's holding two giveaways, one for everyone (New Zealanders and international people) one for just New Zealanders.

If you want to take part in this giveaway and maybe win some amazing stuff, check it out here and if you are lucky enough to win, please let me know so I can be simultaneously happy and jealous of you. :)

Until next time, 

Nails to Commemorate my Last School Social Ever

Hi all,

As you no doubt can tell, the nails that I had for my Dinner Dance last night is going to be the focus of my post today. :) Fun fact - these pictures were taken at 6am the morning after, as for some unknown reason, we had to be at school the day after at 7:15 for a breakfast. It was ridiculous. The dance didn't end until 11 and it was like a 30min drive home. I had like 5 and a bit hours sleep. :( That is not cool. Especially for me, who needs 9-10 hours nightly... But moving on and away from my lack of sleep.

OPI Nail Envy Review

Hi lovelies,

In case you were wondering, which I’m sure you weren’t but I’m going to tell you anyway, my nails are exceedingly brittle, soft and very prone to flaking and peeling and breaking. They are also so flexible that I can take the tip of a nail and bend it down so that it touches the top of my finger. It’s really gross but makes for a good party trick (‘Hey guys, check out what I can do with my nail!’). :)

Mostly, I have put this down to my (self-diagnosed) hyperhidrosis – which is excessive sweating in my hands. Now, minimising the amount of time your hands spend in water is one of the first suggestions to improve nail growth and general nail conditions, but that is a little hard to do when you hands are permanently sweating and thus, quite damp.

So (and I swear this post has a point) I began researching nail strengtheners and heard a lot of good things about OPI’s Nail Envy. So, off I trotted to find the best deal the internet had to offer me and my bottle arrived the other day.

I then thought, ‘I could do a post on this stuff and how it affected my nails’ and so, I have. Here is a not so beautiful picture of my naked nails in all their uneven length, peeling and splitting glory.

Why I Am Going to be Rocking a Bikini this Summer..

Hello everyone.

Well, so much for being a dedicated blogger and what not... I had exams and school was finishing and I was feeling pretty bad (no actually I was feeling like a fucking load of shit), so blogging took a definite back seat. But, I'm back and life seems to be looking up (but more on that later). This post I found from a couple of weeks back from when I was feeling a lot better, and so I thought I might post this, in the whole it might cheer me up a little.

***

Hey guess what everybody?

I can feel the summer arriving! Yay!

While winter is all well and good (no not actually, I don’t really like it but I know it is necessary for the survival of an ecosystem yada yada yada), summer is really where my heart belongs. The scorching heat, the dry days, the sounds of crickets chirping in the background, the balmy evenings, the hours upon hours spent in the pool, at the beach, just lounging and swimming. I just love the way life slows down for summer in Perth. People move slowly, the days pass slowly, everybody is lethargic, trying to remain as cool as possible.

Wait! Hold the Halloween!

Hi my lovelies,

I'm sorry these are late getting up and I know that there's nothing more pathetic than an after the event contribution, but here they are - my slightly late Halloween nails.

60s Psychedelic Nails

Hi lovelies,

Today I have some 1960’s inspired nails for you. It was my friend’s 18^th last night and so I obviously had to have nails that co-ordinated with her 1960s theme.

Homemade Nail Polish Remover

Hi lovelies

Today I have a recipe, but it’s not you would like to eat… Speaking of recipes, I have been so slack lately. I should really do some more baking or something.....

Also, the water bottle isn't actually water but nail polish remover. It was the only bottle I could find. :P

Hello and Welcome - A formal introduction

Hi lovelies,

A couple of days ago, I realised something. You might remember my post about make-up, photoshop and photos and this realisation was very much to do with this.

So, I was out at the zoo with my family and I was, as always, attached very permanently to my camera. I was snapping away happily, taking photos of everything from an interestingly shaped rock to some baby meerkats to my family and myself and realised – these are great photos. These are happy photos and I would be proud to show people these pictures. I look happy and healthy. I look pretty great in all of these. And that’s when I realised – I don’t have to post just one picture of myself. I can post as many as I want because this is my blog. And so, if I post lots and lots of pictures – I can build a more complete picture of myself. I don’t have to let people judge me on only one picture. I don't have to let the way people see me be defined by only one picture. By only one snapshot into my life. By one tiny porthole in a rather large ship. This is my blog and I need to remember that. So, that's what I'm going to do. :)

Hello Kitty Nails

Hi my lovelies

Today I have some really cute nails for you. They have Hello Kitty on them. I mean, do you even get nails that are cuter than that?!

Multi Dot Nails

Hello beautiful people,

You know what I love about the holidays? That fact that life slows down. Not just my life, but all of my family’s as well. With four children, my mum has a full schedule in making sure the household doesn’t fall apart and with so much homework and study, me and my sisters hardly get to see each other.

Depression and Anti-Depressants

Hi lovelies,

This post is going to be a hard one and one that you may not want to read about. In staying true to my policy of being truthful, I am going to be tackling the topic of my depression and namely, my methods of dealing with it. (On a sidenote, did you see my alliterations in that sentence? So many ‘t’s!).

Mental health is an interesting topic for me. It was never discussed inside my house, I never knew anyone that had an issue with mental health and all I knew about it was what they taught us in year 10 health. That’s was, until I was plunged head-long into it in yr 11, aged 16, with depression, anxiety and anorexia. I discuss my anorexia here and most of you probably know I’m in recovery from it. My anxiety is far milder than the others and generally only becomes bad when the others are also bad but my depression – that’s something I don’t mention much.

Caramel Slice

Hello there lovelies,

Guess what? Today I took a challenge and really challenged myself. (I think there was too many ‘challenge’s in that sentence…)

Today, I made caramel slice.

Glow in the Dark Tribal Nails

Hi lovelies,

This is a bit of an extension of my last post, I guess. Well, by that I mean that I still have the same nail polish but I’ve just jazzed it up a bit.

Glow in the Dark Nail Polish

To be honest, I think the post title says it all. :)

I got my first glow in the dark nail polish a couple of days ago and it was so exciting! First off, the colour was incredibly bright be itself - I swear I have never seen such a bright orange before. These pictures do not do it justice as all, the colour was just that incredible..... I got so many comments from people about how bright they were and when I told them they glowed in the dark, nobody was surprised. They really are bright.

Update on Life and some Acid Wash Nails

Hello gorgeous people!

After my recent AWOL, I have vowed to come back with a bang. I hope that you guys appreciate the 6+ hours I have put in for you guys today, drafting ideas, creating posts, taking photos, editing photos, taking more photos, binning them all in frustration… No, not the last part. Today is a wonderfully beautiful gorgeous happy sunny day in Perth, with the temperature probably around the mid to late twenty’s. Absolutely gorgeous and so what I love. I am over this stupid winter and cold weather so bring on the sun and hit me with summer! :) But really, it also means I just can take a ton of good photos because of the beautiful sunlight – evidenced in the photos in this post.

Fake It 'Til You Make It?

Long time no see - right?

Sorry about the long absence, I had exams and I was tired and to be honest, I just couldn't be bothered to do any blogging or posting. But I am back now. :)

This post took a while for me to write and a longer time for me to decide to post it. It might not seem like a big deal to some, but for me, this is a big deal. Body image is hard for me and it's hard for me to write about these fears and my insecurities. Also, I just don't want people thinking that I'm stupid for worrying over something as simple and as trivial as a photo... But, I decided to bite the bullet and go for it, as one of my aims when I created this blog was to be honest and to be truthful. Not only to you, to to myself as well. So, here goes...

Laura Nails

Hi lovelies,

Here's a little bit of background into my life. :) Music is quite a big part of my life. I did it as a subject in school from year 2 to year 11 and I have been in 6 different choirs in my lifetime. I have had 12 different conductors and each of them have taught me something new about words and about singing.

Why My One True Love Is Myself

Hi lovelies,

I watched City of Bones the other day and it was fabulous and brilliant and I love it so much – especially Jace! Oh my god, he was so hot and I love him so much!!

Okay, moving on from my fangirl squealing over Jace and the rest of the movie, there was one line that really stuck with me. At one point, somebody says something about love to Jace and he replies with, ‘Sadly, my one true love remains myself.’

That really got under my skin. Like, so much. It wasn’t the fact that he was his own true love; it was the fact that he started the sentence with ‘sadly’. I think that is absolute bollocks. My true love is absolutely myself.

Why? Well, when you look at what you know about true love, it’s pretty easy.

Leopard Print Nails

Hi my lovelies,

Just a note before we begin. I actually found out today the other definition for a purple nurple, which is: the act of grabbing and twisting a nipple of another person, oneself, and even occasionally other mammals to cause pain (Urban Dictionary). Hmmmm... Now the weird title of my last post is even weirder... I swear I only thought it was a drink! I promise!

Purple Nurple Nails

Hi lovelies

Okay, maybe that post title is a little weird but I was watching an old episode of Supernatural last night and Dean kept going on about Purple Nurples and when I painted my nails like this, it made me think of him and his alcohol. :) Oh Dean, why are you so beautiful...

Pink Bubbly

Hello my dearest lovelies,

So, I went shopping on the weekend and I sternly said to myself ‘Lissa, you are going to get your friend’s birthday present and that is all. You are not going to browse. You have a mission. And you are not going to get distracted in the cosmetics and nail areas.’

It didn’t work.

Best Pancakes Ever

I was talking to my friend the other day and I found out that she had never had pancakes made from scratch. Never ever… How is that even possible?! Pancakes are pretty much the food of my childhood. I have so many memories of my uncle standing in my kitchen making pancakes for us, getting half the batter all over the floor and bench top and me and my sisters wolfing them down at a much faster rate than he could produce them. I remember him teaching me how to flip pancakes properly – no spatula required. I remember making pancakes for family friends and one of them running around the dining table with a pancake on his head. I remember having competitions with my sisters over who could eat the most. I remember the first time I tasted a pancake with real maple syrup, not the maple-flavoured stuff. I also know that is just me, not everyone knows people that would wear a pancake as a hat but the point remains – everyone should make pancakes from scratch as least once. They are the easiest things to make, I promise. This recipe is for the novice of all novices – I have not assumed you know anything. Leggy – this recipe goes to you. :)

Hot Pink and Black Tape Manicure

Hi lovelies

How are you? I’ve had better weeks – one of my teachers, a really wonderful, bubbly woman – unfortunately passed away on the weekend. She was an incredible woman and so passionate about her work. She will be remembered fondly and her presence will be sorely missed. My heart goes out to her husband, young daughters and sister, who will be struggling through this terrible time.

But, her death has inspired me with a new desire for life and has reminded me how fleeting life can be. I am determined to live my life to the fullest and for the total amount of time I have been given on this planet – even though I sometimes I just want to give it all up.

Dear Society Part 3

Hi everyone,

Okay, I swear this one is the last one. I fully intended this to be just one post, but it sort of spread out and out and out and suddenly, it was three! If you missed Part One and Two and you would like to read them, you can find them here and here. Oh, and remember, I’m not an expert in the field of eating disorders, nor do I claim any scientific backing behind my words. These are my words and my feelings on my personal experience.

***

Dear Society Part 2

Hi my lovelies

Here I am on my second half of my ‘Dear Society’ rant. If you missed the first part, you can find it here. Oh, and I'm not a expert and certainly don't claim to be one - these are things that are true and that I have learnt through my battle with an eating disorder.

***

Dear Society Part 1

Hey lovelies

I have another rant today. Sorry, but I’m just feeling really rant-y (is that even a word) and angry recently. Actually, life has just been really sucky recently and I’m having a bit of a hard time. Which pretty much makes it ‘let’s be angry at everything’ time. :)

***

Why I Paint My Nails

Hi lovelies

I’ve got a very long, long post and it’s a bit of a rant in some parts… Love to know what you guys think on the topic (comment box is just below!)

Being into manicures and nail painting and nail art is something that seems so superficial, isn’t it?

Think about it – it seems girly and frivolous. It’s just about the epitome of girliness. In generally, I don’t seem like a very girly-girl. I like the outdoors and I like nature. I like mud and the ocean surf. I think that hair-washing should be an option, not a necessity. I love my martial arts. I’m proud of my muscles and one of my greatest achievements in high school was beating my entire music class (consisting of mostly 17 year old boys) at arm wrestling. I don’t consider myself all that superficial. And yet, painting my nails is one of my favourite things to do.

Tape Manicure!

Hi lovelies!

So about the quite extended leave of absence. School is a pain and I’ve been feeling pretty rubbish lately… So, no motivation to do anything… I’m sorry.

But, I’m back and I have another lovely manicure and this time, with a tutorial! :) Eventually… I know I keep threatening to do one and this time I’ve actually got around to doing one. It's pretty much a tutorial for this manicure, just with different colours. :)

Blue Flowers on Nails

Good evening my lovelies…

Just another quick post today, unfortunately… School has been such a bomb recently and I have been up to my ears and nose in studying, tests and assignments so no time to do anything. Which really sucks… Especially because I have many recipes to try and lots of nail designs to try…

Anyway, I got so many compliments on this design today, which totally made my day! For this design I used Royal by Revlon (pictured) and Silver Dollar, also by Revlon. While I remain super impressed by the drying speed of Royal, it unfortunately is not made to last as it is already chipping… After only one day. And it had three coats and a top coat. Oh well, I guess I’ll just have to do some more nail art. :) What a shame…

Gradient Nails

Hi lovelies,

Don’t worry – today’s post is short and nice and very friendly – unlike my last post. Sorry about that. But, I did promise to be honest and I want to be as open as possible with my recovery efforts so that (hopefully) I can be of so help to others in the same predicament.

Anyway, I attempted a gradient manicure for the first time today and I am soooooooo impressed with the way it turned out. Like seriously, super impressed. They look amazing and I am so in love and they also kind of look like sunsets, which is also really lovely. So, all in all, a very successful manicure. I used Fuchsia, by Urban Colours One Coat (shown in picture), and Social Climber, by Chi Chi.

No tutorial for you today, sorry, but I was kind of doing it as a stress release and a mood booster and I totally did not want to think about photos at that time… But I will definitely do a tutorial at some point as I can definitely see more gradients in my future. :) What do you think? Gradients: yes or no?