Go Pink Wednesday and a Celebration!

As October comes to a close so does our weekly Go Pink Wednesdays manicure. We have really enjoyed finding information to help you and those you love be more aware of Breast Cancer and how you can help yourself and those around you.

Image Credit: Paule Attar Salon & Spa

We wanted to end the month with a celebration of sorts. Every year there is a celebration of sorts in the form of Breast Cancer Walks. The number of walks done in the United States every year is immeasurable. There are several large groups that do yearly walks across the nation in major cities, namely The American Cancer Society is celebrating 20 years of walks and estimates they've had over 8 million walkers in those 20 years, with over 1 million in 2011 alone according to their FAQ page.

These Breast Cancer Awareness walks are inspiration as well as awe inspiring. Many survivors as well as their loved ones, co-workers, kids, pets and strangers come out to walk alongside each other in solidarity. The walk symbolizes many things to many individuals but the bottom line is hope.

Image Credit: expressnightout.com & Lea Pool

 Hope for a future without the disease, hope for a future with their loved ones, but truly and simply hope for more tomorrows.

A close friend of Dom's, Tiffany Kyees, had the chance to participate in the Team In Training Nike Womens Marathon event to run/walk for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society a couple weeks ago. While we have been focusing on Breast Cancer Awareness, cancer in general deserves to be known and fought against. Her personal journey to raise money, awareness and personal triumph is amazing and just as important. She celebrated her participation by wearing a purple tutu along with asorted purple gear. Tiffany shared some personal thoughts about her journey that you can read HERE. When asked about her experience she had this to say,

Tiffany running during the event!
Image Credit: Tiffany Kyees

"Such a beautiful and amazing experience. I highly recommend people doing a team in training event at some point in their lives. There was a woman there who ran and pushed her cancer fighting son in a wheelchair and a woman that spoke at our inspiration dinner who spoke of her bone marrow donor and how she got to meet him. They are like family now and he even flew out to San Francisco to run the race next to her! Such special stories!"

Jessica Mojica of Bakersfield pushes her son Nathan Garcia,
who is suffering from stage 4 brain cancer
Image Credit: Tiffany Kyees

We wanted to show this hope for tomorrow as well as the celebration and inspiration that the walks symbolize in our last manicures for October. Many walkers dress up in silly pink costumes, pink wigs, tutus and other outlandish and fun pink inspired outfits. These manis are our outlandish pink outfits... We hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoyed creating the crazy, over the top manis.


Dom created her everything but the kitchen sink mani with a base of Sinful Colors Snow Me White, Orly Artificial Sweetner and Rimmel London Posh Pink. She used a bit of flocking powder, some fimo hearts and flowers as well as some rhinestones and what you have is one heck of a celebration mani!

Sinful Colors - Snow Me White, Orly - Artificial Sweetner &
Rimmel London - Posh Pink

Sinful Colors - Snow Me White, Orly - Artificial Sweetner &
Rimmel London - Posh Pink

E created her outlandish mani on a bed of OPI - Kiss Me On My Tulips and an accent nail to include Dollish Polish - I'll Have What She's Having. The rest includes: loose glitter, rhinestones, nail decals, and star glitter.

OPI - Kiss Me On My Tulips (indirect sunlight)

OPI - Kiss Me On My Tulips (direct sunlight)

Hopefully you've enjoyed our participation in the Go Pink Wednesdays... Please don't let the Breast Cancer Awareness end with October. Continue to check yourself and remind loved ones as well. It really could save a life... one that you might cherish as much or more than your own.

with love and hope for a cancer free future,

and

Go Pink Wednesday and Male Breast Cancer Awareness!

In the past few weeks we've talked about why it is so important to be aware of how fatal and real Breast Cancer can be and the statistics involved. We also gave you step by step information on how to do your own self breast exam and how to be the most supportive person you can be to an affected loved one. Today we're going to discuss something you may or may not have known about; Male Breast Cancer.

The Mayo Clinic defines Male Breast Cancer as cancer that forms in the breast tissue of men. Though breast cancer is most commonly thought of as a woman's disease, male breast cancer does occur.

Furthermore, did you know that male breast cancer can occur at any age, though is most common in older men. The Mayo Clinic also noted in their definition that men diagnosed early have a good chance for a cure; however many men delay seeing their doctors if they notice a change, unusual symptoms or symptoms such as a breast lump. Because of this wait and see mentality many male breast cancers are diagnosed when the disease is more advanced.

That's right... our male loved ones are at risk too! Breast Cancer is already scary enough with a statistic of 1 in 8 women will be affected, but to add to that the men in our lives is just that much more tragic!

Through research I found that, according to breastcancer.org in 2011 there were 2,140 male breast cancers diagnosed. Which means less than 1% of all breast cancers occur in men. So from a statistical point of view a man's chances of male breast cancer are 1 in 1,000.

That statistic may seem more comforting against the 1 in 8 chances for women, but stop and think about how many men you come in contact with. I bet you've known or will know at least 1,000. Think of all your school buddies, friend's husbands/boyfriends, co-workers, neighbors... These numbers are very real and very scary.

So... what have we learned from the previous posts? EARLY DETECTION!!!

The Mayo Clinic lists these as symptoms:

• A painless lump or thickening in your breast tissue
• Changes to the skin covering your breast, such as dimpling, puckering, redness or scaling
• Changes to your nipple, such as redness or scaling, or a nipple that begins to turn inward
• Discharge from your nipple

Just like the other posts.... be aware and help your loved ones stay safe by asking them to examine themselves, stay alert to their body and be informed.


Now... on to this weeks Go Pink Wednesday Breast Cancer Awareness manicures!

It's seems that Dom went a bit CRAZY with the rhinestones this week, but it is all E's fault! She made a suggestion and Dom just ran with it. The base color is China Glaze Hang-Ten Toes which was a great pink for summer as well as Go Pink Wednesday! For the added sparkle she went a little drag queen-esq with the jewels. We like the final product and hope that you do as well!

China Glaze - Hang-Ten Toes

China Glaze - Hang-Ten Toes

This week E went pretty casual and cool with a dusky toned pink from Revlon called Cafe Pink and a pretty, sparkly holo glitter from Studio M called Magic Attraction. The ribbon stamping is from Vivid Lacquer's plate VL001 stamped with OPI Kiss Me on my Tulips.

Revlon - Cafe Pink & Studio M - Magic Attraction
stamped with OPI - Kiss Me On My Tulips, indirect sunlight

Revlon - Cafe Pink & Studio M - Magic Attraction
stamped with OPI - Kiss Me On My Tulips, direct sunlight

xo,

&

Football Season Officially Hit OHIO!!!

There comes a time in every football fanatic wife's life that she just has to jump on the wagon and cheer for her husbands team!  I am not a sports fan by any stretch of the word, but my hubby loves anything and everything sports related; therefore when it came to college football he is nuts for Ohio State University!  When I say nuts I mean that Byron is a total BUCKEYE!

It has been said that The Ohio State University has the largest fan base of any college football team.  Sure, we have had our share of mishaps but this season is proving to be a fresh start of sorts.  With the addition of Urban Meyer as our new head coach, my husband is more excited than ever about the prospect of a great season.  So far it is shaping up to be a good season! Let's hope the Bucks keep it up!

When I asked my husband what I should do to my nails this weekend he smiled and asked if I could do an OSU inspired mani.  Was I up for the challenge?  You be the judge!  I must admit that my model for this mani was Cheryl Cheryl at Polish2Times.com.  Cheryl did this mani (minus some embellishment) in December and I loved it so much I decided to try it myself!  You can see Cheryl's post here.

For this mani I used OPI An Affair in Red Square, China Glaze Recycle and Finger Paints striping polish in Hip Hip Hue-Ray and Ch-Art-Coal Black.  Using my dotting tool from M.A.S.H Nails and some cute little rhinestone accents my mani was complete!  I hope you like it as much as my hubby does!

CG Recycle, OPI An Affair in Red Square, FP Striping Polish

And now the mani that all of you OSU fan's have been waiting for!

Left Hand

 Left Hand

And just to prove that I can paint on my right hand... LOL!

Right Hand

Right Hand

So there you have it, my OSU mani!  Off to watch the game with my freshly manicured fingers crossed for a win!!!  GO BUCKS! 

Tell me what you think!  Who will you be cheering for this season?  

Venique So Chic! Polish review and swatches...

Don't forget to enter our giveaway celebration!  

This past Friday I did a post on my first Venique Lacquer and today I am going to continue with yet another Venique polish!  If you missed the last post you can find it here.  I really cannot say enough about how awesome this polish line is.

BLING BLING

Jamin' in Jellies is a really nice pinkish orchid creme.  With the use of the Venique sticky base coat, this polish is also a one and done!!!  The super creamy formula makes for a really nice even and non-streaky application.  I had a little fun with this color and after wearing it one full day added a little bling.

So here it is... Venique Lacquer Jamin' in Jellies!

w/Flash low back light

w/Flash slightly backlit 

Natural Light

I have a few more Venique Lacquers to show you, so stay tuned for my upcoming posts! Remember, if you can manage to get your hands on some... DO IT!  You won't be sorry.

Tell me what you think.  Do you like the idea of having a polish line specifically for natural nails?  

Ricans Gone Wild, Boricua Pride!!!

You could say that I am a proud Puerto Rican and you would be correct!  I take great pride in my culture and each year around the same time Puerto Ricans around the country gather in New York to show just exactly how proud we are!

 This year marks the 55th annual National Puerto Rican Day Parade!!!

Even though I cannot be there in person, I am so there in spirit and mani!  LOL!  

I will preface these post with a warning...  there is a ton of Puerto Rican going on in here!  So much so that E called my mani the drag queen of manis!  I will admit that I may have gone a bit nuts but ya gotta sometimes, know what I mean? There were just so many ideas floating around in my head and I think I used them all.

For my Puerto Rican Pride mani I used a base coat, one coat of China Glaze Ruby Pumps and my new Finger Paints Liners for the art.  Hip Hip Hue-Ray is the white liner and Royal Renoir is the electric blue liner.  I will say that I found them a bit thick but the colors are amazing and they weren't too terribly hard to work with.  I even managed to do my right hand with the exact same design and that is no small feat my friends! After completing the flags on all but one finger, I added my fimo stick Puerto Rican flags and blinged them out with some rhinestones.  Voila!  A Puerto Rican Pride mani that would make any 'Rican happy!  

I hope you like them!  

Woooooooohooooooo!

Bet you can't guess that I am 100% Puerto Rican from 100 miles away!  

Nothing like a drag mani to get the party started!  :)

I hope that the parade is a blast and if there are any NYC Rican's reading this blog... go and dance in the streets for me!  I will be rocking my mani, making some rice and beans and jammin' to some salsa all day long! Besos!

P.S.  I tried to get E to bust out her best 'Rican inspired mani for today (she is Puerto Rican too) but she decided to leave it to me since her fungal visiter hasn't left yet :(

Holy May Polish Haul! *pic heavy*

Hey there!  I hope you all enjoyed the Memorial Day Holiday and took some time to thank a solider!  With our interview with celebrity manicurist Kimmie Kyees being such an exciting post for us, we decided to let it run for a few days!  She really had some awesome tips for us and hearing some of her stories about her work was super fun too!  If you didn't get a chance to read it, it can be found here!

Now onto the business at hand! There is nothing like being able to come home with some new polish and share it with E.  She gets just as excited as I do when I find something I love and the month of May was chock full of some lovely finds!  I really tried hard to keep track of all of my May polish purchases.  So, here goes my attempt at a May polish haul post!

Faint of Heart, Artificial Sweetener, Jealous Much?

Passion Fruit, Orange Punch, Bailamos

Royal Velvet, Fowl Play, Androgynie, Space Cadet

Late Night Rendezvous, Art Dealer Teal-er, Beach Bound

Vermillion $ Painting, Guggen I'm Lime

Jamin' in Jellies, Full-on Brogue, Blue Suede Shoes, Shady Ombre, Step In My Blade!

Base Coat, Top Coat

Tinsel Town, Senorita Bonita, Tantalize Me, Ghoulish Glow

Splish Splash, Surfin' For Boys

Dragon Fruit, Acid Purple

Magnetized, Attract, Electrostatic, Magnetic Field

Awesome Magnets: Star, Chevrons, Multi Lines, Bullseye 

Wooooooooohooooooo!!! My march of the Studio M army!

Thunderbolt, Glitter Astral

Grape Escape, Total Wow, Blue Funk

Glitter Envy, Energy Star 

Orange Sunset, Psychedelic Scene, Neon Caution

De-Luxe-Cious, Ms. Haute

Pure Silver, Baby Pink, Marine Blue, Crushed Pearl

Number One Nemesis

Layla Hologram Effect Mercury Twilight, OutTheDoor, Northern Lights

MASH Fimo Sticks

Cheeky Rhinestone Set

Well, there you have it!  Now that I've finished the post I am sure that I have missed a few!  Maybe I should keep a drawer of the current months finds to make this process easier!  Hmmmmm... there's a thought!  LOL!

I'm loving my May haul and be sure to let me know what your favorites are.  Have you found any awesome deals or colors that you've been looking for?  Please comment below... I love hearing your thoughts!