Blogs to Love Friday #1

Welcome to the first post of the Blogs to Love Friday linkup. I was so excited when I first heard of this linkup and I'm even more excited now that it's time to share my favorite posts I read this week. But first ... if you want to join this linkup being hosted by My Beautiful, Crazy Life and Mrs. Monologues read this post and add this button to your posts.


 
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Now onto some of my favorite posts of this week. They may not have been posted this week, but I did find them and read them this week.

• These Mattified Splatter Nails by modnails may not have been posted this week, but I did find it this week. Be sure to check out her other nails because they are all amazingly awesome!!
• I use this Coconut Banana Bliss Smoothie recipe almost daily so that has to count, right? It doesn't really come from a blog. I found it on Pinterest though, which is kind of like a blog, lol. I made two very simple changes to the recipe: substituting the coconut oil with coconut water and the Sustain packet for 1 tbsp of yogurt.
• I look forward to every new post by Sensible Stylista and her newest outfit post has me wanting to rush out and buy some printed skinny jeans. Seriously? Her every post has me wanting to rush out and buy something! I know some of these things won't look good on me, but she makes them look so great that I want them anyway!
• There are many things to love about The Freckled Fox: her wonderful fashion sense, her adorable crafts, her yummy looking food, or even her amazing photos plus much, much more. However, I adore The Freckled Fox for her hair tutorials! The one I think most deserves sharing is the Posh Faux Hawk. OMG, I am so in love with this look. What odd and slightly weird girl has never dreamed of having a Mohawk at one time in their lives? I certainly have. Almost went for it too, but the reality of having to wear it day in and day out hit hard. This is one hawk you can love and leave and love again!! Still, if faux hawks aren't your thing, I'm sure she'll have a tutorial that is more your style. 
• This Double Saran Wrap Tutorial video by DullLikeGlitter is another very old post, but one I was super lucky to find on Preen.me this week! She also has a picture tutorial post on her blog. I tried this with light pink, white, and baby blue but can't wait for summer to try her bright red, yellow, and blue look!

I keep trying to expand my V-Day mani ideas to incorporate colors other than white, pink, and red. I decided to substitute the often used red for blue in this one, and I think it still has all the makings of a good V-Day mani.

U is for ...

You know how I said I like to think outside the box in the ABC Challenge?

U is for ... Undies.

My thumb is wearing very sexy, lacy red undies while my index is wearing blue and white striped thong style undies; my middle is wearing very sporty polka dot patterned undies. My ring ringer has black undies with a white waistband ... very Calvin Klein boyish style, and my pinky has simple lacy legged black undies.

I am so sorry! I just couldn't help myself; with a choice between umbrellas or underwear I had to choose the undies. ;)

Influenster Holiday VoxBox — Goody Quikstyle Paddle Brush

I just received the email from Influenster letting me know the Holiday VoxBox survey was up, and I realized I never posted a review for my Goody Quikstyle brush! This is definitely not a review I want to forget.

As you can see, I received the Paddle Brush version of the Quikstyle. It's not the one I would have bought for myself, but it's all I'll buy now! There's just something about it that I like better than the Half-Round Styler Brushes.

The Quikstyle is made up of the regular ball tipped bristles with the addition of absorbent microfiber bristles. They remind me of those microfiber hair wrap towels of the same color. The microfiber is antimicrobial so the brush stays fresh. I recommend hitting it with a bit of hot air from your blow-dryer if you use it on wet hair since they will start to smell a bit like mildew if you put them away wet. The vents along the sides of the brush will pull the air deep into the microfiber bristles and direct it out so don't worry about ruining the brush or causing overheating! The brush is also lightweight with a textured ergonomic handle for better grip.

The packaging tells us that these microfiber bristles are super absorbent and will help reduce water by 30% to help hair dry faster. My hair is fairly thin and dries well on its own, so I really didn't notice any difference in my dry time.

What I did notice was the brushes ability to detangle every knot on my head and leave behind frizz free hair! My hair is always somehow managing to tie itself into knots. Honest to goodness, tied in knots — sometimes big knotted bows that are literally impossible to unknot. I either have to attempt to unknot them, but really only end up yanking the hair from my head, or trim the knots out. Seriously, I would buy this brush for its seemingly magical detangling ability if nothing else!!

I'm loving my new knot-free, frizz-free, perfect hair day every time hair. There will be no other brush for me unless Goody comes out with a better version of the Quikstyle, but I'm not sure that's possible. I'm pleased with it just the way it is.

This will be my last Influenster Holiday VoxBox review since I wasn't one of the lucky few who received one of the Montagne Jeunesse Face Masques, and I still haven't tried the EBOOST. After much debating with myself, I really can't bring myself to try the Pink Lemonade energy/immunity dietary drink supplement I received. I would love to try it, but I really hate lemonade. It would likely be a really unfair review.

*All products were sent to me for testing purposes, completely complimentary, from Influenster.

Saran Wrap Valentine's Day Nail Art Tutorial

Hello again everyone! I missed my post yesterday, but I have a really great excuse! It was mentioned in an answer to one of the 1st Blogiversary Giveaway entries that one of you wanted to see a Saran Wrap tutorial. There were more than a few of you who wanted to see video tutorials. So, I was spending all day yesterday editing my first real nail art video. I have a whole new level of respect for video bloggers!

Here are the nails I'll be showing you how to create in the video. This is a very easy mani to do, and with pink and white polish it is perfect for Valentine's Day!

I don't really have the set up or the best software/know-how for this, but I gave it my best shot. Enjoy!

Candy Coated Collection — Frosting Coated Sprinkles

Welcome to the last swatch of my Candy Coated Collection.

Update: This polish and the rest of the collection are now up for sale in my Etsy shop.

This is Frosting Coated Sprinkles inspired by the Candy Castle. Depending on which version of Candyland you look at you'll find some of the Castles with frosting, some with ice cream, and some with both. This polish was mixed up to look like the bright pink frosting decorating the Castle.

Contained in this bright pink shimmery frosting is 'sprinkles' of various colors and sizes in squares and hexes. I think this polish is the essence of Candyland melted down and bottled. :)

This is two coats of Frosting Coated Sprinkles over white. You'll have no trouble getting glitter on your nails with this polish!

This is two coats of Frosting Coated Sprinkles over bare nails. You can really see the shimmer contained in the polish in this picture.  Both pictures were taken after I applied top coat. There is so much glitter in this polish that it does have a rough finish when dry ... top coat really is a must with this one.

Spun Sugar Gradient

Hey everyone! Sorry about the non-nail art related posts yesterday. There was a bit of an emergency Sunday that left me with no time to edit and type up posts. So, I went with what I did have. I do really hope to see a few of you joining me in the Blogs to Love Friday linkup. That said, today's post really is nail art!!

I have a few ideas for Valentine's Day nails and this was one of the first I thought of — spun sugar Valentine's Day nails done as a gradient.

Spun sugar nails are really easy. They are a bit messy but the wispy strings make it easy to clean up. I started with a base of two coats L.A. Colors white. This is Energy Source now that L.A. Colors started naming their polishes. The next step is probably the hardest and it's not hard at all! It just takes a bit of patience. I started at the tips of my nails and worked up using Sally Hansen Pink Blink first. Put a drop or two of your first color on a piece of paper, using a pin or a dotting tool mix the polish until it's thick. You can speed this along by blowing on it as you stir. You can start as soon as it's thick enough to start forming strings when you lift the pin out of the polish. I didn't wait long enough with my red polish and got some drips instead of strings, so make sure it's thick enough not to drip.

Once strings start to form you'll need to get your nail very close to the thick polish. Lay your finger on it's side angled towards the polish if you're having trouble getting the strings on your nail. Use your pin or dotting tool to quickly but smoothly pull strings across your nails, doing one nail at a time.

Continue doing the tips of each nail with Pink Blink. You may need to thicken more polish if you didn't start with enough or if it thickened too quickly. I used Sinful Colors Beautiful Girl next. I placed some of my strings over some of the Pink Blink strings to create a seamless fade of color. After Beautiful Girl, I used Sally Hansen Fuchsia Power and then finished with Wet n Wild I Red A Good Book.

Let the polish dry. It shouldn't take long! Then do a quick cleanup. I pinched off some of the wispy strings that were flying around my nails and then used some nail polish remover and a Nail Tee (a fancy pointed Q-tip) to clean up the rest.

Add top coat if you like and admire your new mani. Take into consideration when deciding whether to use top coat or not that, while it will make your mani last longer, it will smooth all those strings you just worked so hard on. It will likely take more than one coat as this is a very thick mani. It may also cause some bubbling if you're not careful applying your top coat.

That said, I did use top coat, two coats ... and I did get one large bubble that popped while the top coat dried and left behind a spot bare of top coat. It's really not noticeable though, even in my close-up pictures. I did kind of miss the stringed look though.

Influenster Holiday VoxBox — Sole Society

Hey girlies! The month is coming to a close and the Sole Society promo code I received in my Influenster Holiday VoxBox will be expiring on the 31st. Just use the promo code INFLUENSTER25 before January 31st and you'll get $25 off your first pair of shoes from Sole Society.

I really wanted to have this code out there sooner but I searched and searched, debated and talked myself into and out of half a dozen shoes and then finally used my $25 off code last Friday. I have been posting it like crazy on my Twitter account from the start though, so I'm hoping someone got some use out of it.

Aren't they gorgeous? I love the heel! The reason I bought these when there were so many amazing shoes to choose from? I recently purchased a summer dress, had another summer dress bought for me, and remembered I already have the perfect outfit to match these shoes. Seriously? To have 3 outfits made with these shoes and to get said shoes for $24.95 after using the promo code is awesome!!

This is a picture of the dress I recently purchased for myself with an Amazon gift card I earned through Swagbucks. It is an Allegra K dress sold by uxcell. I recommend checking out their Amazon store or just doing a search for Allegra K on Amazon because they sell some really great things at wonderful prices!! These shoes also match the dress bought for me which is a really pretty flowing beach style blue dress with a brushstroke pattern. I've paired this with a thick brown stretch belt and pulling the fabric up from the belt makes it the perfect shorter length beach dress. I also have a really gorgeous tiered brown mini skirt that I pair with a simple tank top and heels in the summer.

Like I said though, before deciding on Monica, I had picked out half a dozen or more shoes. Here's the ones that got a serious second look and actually made it into my cart before I talked myself out of them. Miranda actually made it into the cart more than once. However, I live in the middle of nowhere ... the middle of nowhere that gets knee deep snow at times. And honestly, I'm just not good enough walking in wedges to risk it. As for Vida ... well, I've been told I was made for heels. I'm like an elephant in flats — an elephant that trips over nothing.

Finally, here are the shoes I think deserve a mention because they're so darn pretty listed by heel height.

Remember that my 1st Blogiversary Giveaway also ends on the 31st. This giveaway is open to both my US and international followers. Click on the link, go take a peek, and definitely enter! You can't win if you don't enter. And if you buy yourself a nice pair of shoes from Sole Society with the INFLUENSTER25 promo code and you do happen to win one of the prizes in my giveaway imagine how great you'll look opening the package I send you!!

*All products (unless otherwise stated) were sent to me for testing purposes, completely complimentary, from Influenster.