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,

&

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!

Studio M Skittles Style

Why is the Meijer store so close to my house???  My husband has been asking the same question, I am sure!  I mean, it just sits on the corner full of nail polish... needless to say, we HAD to run to Meijer the other night for some random non-essentials.  I left the store with a few "absolute-essentials" in perfect little bottles!

A Studio M display full of amazingly bright colors caught my eye on the way out of the store and I had to grab a few!  So I picked up Orange Sunset, Psychedelic Scene, Neon Caution, Glitter Envy and Energy Star.  I don't know about anyone else but, when I get home with new polish I cannot wait to try it all on.  The lighting in the store is never quite right!

So, I did exactly that!  I tried on all of the polish at once and it ended up being a pretty cute mani of sorts.  The Studio M polish line is really growing on me the more I use it!  The formulas are great and there is really no streaking issues at all.  Most of the colors that I have picked so far have been a one and done.  This shopping trip was a bit different because I ended up with several neons.  Neons are known for being thin and needing some sort of underwear to make the color pop fully.

With this mani THERE IS NO WHITE BASE!  Yes that's right.  These neons did not need a white base coat!  I did paint three coats with these for full coverage but I think they stayed really true to color on there own!  LOVE THEM!

So here it is... my Skittles Style Neon Mani!  All Studio M Nail Lacquer in order from thumb to pinky: Energy Star, Glitter Envy, Neon Caution, Psychedelic Scene and Orange Sunset!

Base + 3 coats of each polish + Northern Lights Top Coat + Flash 

Base + 3 coats of each polish + Northern Lights Top Coat + Flash

P.S. Glitter Envy is really awesome in person and has a bit of a Floam like texture.  The glitter in it appears almost white!  

I hope you like it!  Let me know what you think. 

Studio M... and the "M" is for Magnificent!!!

I recently posted an entry on my musings page about the infamous drugstore polish push and how I have fallen for these inexpensive alternatives to the high-end, high price tag polish lines.  One of the polish lines that I mentioned in that post is Studio M Nail Lacquer, available at Meijer Stores.  This polish was a accidental find on one of my many grocery shopping trips a couple of weeks ago and I have been back at least once since then to take a better look and grab a few more bottles.  At $2.99 a bottle, it is hardly a "break the bank" kind of polish and I love that!

The first two colors that caught my eye from this brand were Punked & Lust.  First of all, the names are amazing and I am a sucker for a polish with a good name!  LOL!  Punked is a really pretty matte fuchsia pink, well that is what you think when you look at the bottle!  Lust appears to be a violet shimmer and for the most part it is but both of the colors are a huge surprise in a bottle.

Let's start with Lust... I took so many pictures of this polish and every time I got something new!  The formula is a dream to apply was a nearly one and done application.  I did use a second coat just to fill in some spots but, I am not sure if that was polish issue or an application issue.  However, with the second coat, the polish was even steven and so juicy looking!  OMG!  I cannot get over what I got for such a great price!

And now,  some awesome pics!

No flash, under lamp!

Light from the window!

Flash!

Full sunlight!

Full sunlight!

Flash 

Ok, I know what you are thinking and I promise you that these are the same color. I used a base coat with two coats of polish and a quick dry top coat.  I love this!  It reminds me of flip flop paint!  Depending on the lighting the color really shifts dramatically.  This polish gets a big WOOOOOOHOOOOOO from me!

Now for Punked.  I didn't get as many good shots of this polish but believe me when I say, I loved this polish just as much as Lust.  Again, this polish went on like a dream and was, actually, a one and done.  It  had a super quick dry time and dried to a matte finish!  AMAZING!!  The color difference is pretty dramatic between the natural light shot and the flash shot.  To me that is what is so awesome.  I am sorry for the lack of a full sunlight shots, I live in Ohio and the weather is so unpredictable!  LOL  

Natural light, indoors

FLASH!!!!  

So, check out that color variation!  Makes me happy to look at!  LOL!  I did not get to check this one out in full sunlight but I will be wearing this again soon enough.  It really is a what I would call a year round polish.  It is bright and fun for summer but could really look awesome as a pop of color with a nice winter outfit.  The matte look is not for everyone but I love it.  When I called E about his polish all I could do to explain the sheen is say, "it so velvety!"  And it was!  For this mani I used a base coat but no top coat.  

I think it is safe to say that I love Studio M Nail Lacquer and I give these two a solid A!  Great formula, easy application and the final look is amazing!  

I hope you like it!  Let me know what you think.  (I think I may have set the record for how many exclamation points can be used in one post!  Hahahahahahaha!  I win!)