Mardi Gyaru

Hey Guys and Gals!

In February I went to visit New Orleans. Specifically to enjoy Mardi Gras in Gyaru style - Mardi Gyaru! I spent the weekend with Robin and was finally able to meet Coco. I was so impressed by  drive thru daiquiri shops... wow.

On our first night, Coco and I hit the streets. It was a Thursday, and we caught the last half of a parade. I'm such a dum-dum, and left my wallet at the apt! However, we didn't allow that small fact to stop us. We went to Harrah's Casino, and I managed to get through the front door. So for the rest of the night we played slot machines, ordered free drinks, and lazed in the dance club. Haha, it went really well for such a rocky start!

The next day we decided to go down Bourbon Street to experience the full festivities. It was very crowded! We saw another parade and caught beads from the floats, and then wandered down the road to find a drink shop. Cafe Du Mond was our first resting point, and we all shared some awesome beignets and coffee. We hit up a great dance club where Matt won a twerking contest and pocketed some prize money! After dancing for hours, we finally called it a night in the early morning hours.

One of the best parades was just outside of NOLA city limits. It wasn't crowded and we caught tons of beads! We all stood just in front of a really excellent daiquiri shop.

Sorry for the delay in posting this, but I really needed to go through the tons of pictures I took first. It was tons of fun, and I hope we can do it again next year. Maybe Mardi Gyaru will become a tradition?

Japan Festival 2014 Houston

Hello guys and gals! A couple of weeks ago was Japan Festival in Houston. I go just about every year, and it is very enjoyable! They have a martial arts stage, lots of booths with games and goods, food stalls, and a main stage that hosts many events.

I particularly enjoyed the comedy show (Rakugo). They also had dance, music, and fashion shows (Lolita and Cosplay). The Taiko Drums were very awesome, as always! The winner of the Cosplay Contest won a round trip to Japan - WOW.

This was Kaiya's first time, so we spent most of the day playing games and exploring.

My first "successful" attempt to suji my hair

Yay, I found Maya

My goldfish yukata is so comfortable

My lovely nails to match my yukata

Kaiya loved the pond at Japanese Gardens

Mark's first time wearing yukata.

Kaiya was very adorable in her bright yukata

I'm glad that I was able to go this year and focus on my family instead of trying to juggle a gyaru meet at the same time. On the other hand, I wish I could have seen some more gals besides Maya and Amber. There is always next year to make more memories!

Nails from Japan Fest and Anniversary

Hi Gals! I wanted to show you the nail art I did myself to match my Yukata for Japan Fest. I used gel nail polish from Sally's and some lavender flat back pearls from Ebay to match the bubbles.

I also got a french tip set to go out on my anniversary with Mark. I opted to have them do an elongated peach colored nail bed so that my whole nail wouldn't be over whelmed by the long white tip. I was nervous how it would look, but I think it turned out great! I added a 3D part I bought on Ebay.

Right now my nails are short :( but that won't last long! I'm giving them a rest in between sets so my nails don't get too fragile and thin.


Lots of Love,

Short Gyaru Nails

I've been going crazy with acrylics lately, and all the filing has made my nails weak yet again. Always a vicious cycle with false nails!

But I think you can still have cute nails even if they are short! As long as you don't go overboard with colors or deco pieces, short nails can be lovely too.

I used one color, a drop of nail glue to secure the stud, and then a clear gel top coat.

Do you think these are Gyaru, or just meh? I personally like to have options when letting my nails rest from acrylics.

Lots of Love,

Black and Blue Nails

Here are some nails I did quite a long time ago (January I think) but I forgot to share! I used black polka dot tips and painted the rest over clear tips.

These do not have acrylic, but they were quite lovely! Unfortunately, they lasted less than two weeks!! :( Maybe that's why I forgot about them?

Lots of Love,

Purple Nails

Here is another set of acrylics I did myself. I tried to do Hime style nails, haha but I think I went over board with the glitter!

What do you think?

I've been busy with school lately! We just finished up midterms, and I did very well. I made a few A's and one B, so I am very pleased with these scores. :D

Also, I've been learning a lot from my nutrition class. For a year I've been striving to eat healthier. During this class we track our food habits, and I've learned to adjust my diet to exactly what I need. Its very hard to make the right choices when so much bad stuff is everywhere, but I'm doing very well! Surprisingly, I was lacking dairy... I guess that was something easily overlooked.

In a couple of weeks my biology class is taking a field trip to a nature preserve to do some restoration work. I'm really excited to do something outside of the classroom! I will take some pictures and share with you in a later post. :)



Lots of Love,

Pink Nails

Here are some of recent nails! I did a pink glitter base, and then I added some 3D parts.

I've been quite busy with school, so this is a short post...
However, I have been getting stuff together to do a giveaway on my blog! I'm really excited since this will be my first giveaway. I have some really great stuff to gift out, so look forward to the giveaway post in a few weeks!


Lots of Love,

Mint Stilleto Nails

I have finally started to do my own acrylic nails! It took a while to gather all the supplies, and now I finally have everything.

They broke off after only a week, but I am steadily getting better!

I hope I can continue to get better at doing my own nails. :)
Nail salons tend to be very reluctant to give me the nails I want, so I think this might be my best option.

Recent nails - red and silver with zipper detail

Here is a quick pic of some sparkled red and silver nails I have. I used the Sally Hansen stick on nail polish designs for the zipper nail.
I imagined my nails to be edgy looking, lol.

For some reason, going to any nail salon it seems, they have a hard time or are unwilling to do any type of different design. The nail techs also give me grief when I ask for longer nails with any type of finish other than square. Sigh... 

Also - another comparison of the app vs. uploader. Huge difference!

update your nails!

Updating your nails is fun and easy! You can do it at home with polish you already own, and jewels and charms that can be bought online (my fav is FullMoon Deco) or at a craft store like Michael's.

I started off with my nails at basic color, then added a top coat of Essie shattered pink diamond glitz. I finished by using a small drop of super glue to add a silver metal star stud.

Here are the polishes I used:

In a New York Color Minute - Manhattan
(248)

In a New York Color Minute - Park Ave
(246) 

Essie - shattered pink diamond glitz

Anytime you want to update your nails, don't waste money going to the salon often. Just look at what you have! Common household items (like toothpicks, hole reinforcements for binder paper, stamps) can be used to make nail designs if you're feeling creative. ^_^

Messina Hof and Nails

Here is a quick pic of some adult style nails I tried out. Very plain from what I usually do, but I felt pretty in the setting I was in. For a couple of days at the beginning of Spring Break, I spent a couple of days and nights at Messina Hof winery B&B.

I used a slate gray and a dark wine color for these nails

Here is a picture of the room we stayed in called the Venus room. It was quite lovely! All the furniture is antique and absolutely beautiful. Our room has a balcony overlooking the side of the forest. The bathroom had a large relaxing hot bath and a separate shower. It was wonderful!

The outside of the villa has a huge rose and herb garden. Walking by is so fragrant and relaxing! The wine sure helped my mood too. ;)  I didn't want the trip to be over, but I feel recharged after such a relaxing trip.

Pastel Pink and Blue

Just a quick post to show my new nails :)

I let them rest in January, and they are back now for the time being!

I get all my 3D plastic parts from Yuki Campbell's Fullmoon Deco Webstore and I buy the swarovski crystals on ebay or at Micheal's. I use a drop of super glue straight on the nail and place the crystal or nail deco on using tweezers.

Super glue offers a strong hold, but it dries quickly so you have to act fast! Also, be careful not to get the glue on other parts of your nail as it will look cloudy and detract from the shine of your polish or acrylic finish.

I do nails myself in an effort to save money. :) Does anyone else DIY their nails?

NAIL ART GALORE

Hello there gals! I've been very busy with school, but its Christmas break time! I'm so happy and relaxed. ^_^ I've not been taking very many pics lately, but I will start more soon!

Anyway, I'd like to share what I've been doing with my nails recently. I've been feeling creative the last couple of months and feel like my nails have been looking pretty good as a result! These are my nails from August and forward through this month.

Please comment and tell me what you think. :)

AUGUST - HOT PINK BASE WITH ORANGE CRACKLE TOP

SEPTEMBER - PURPLE GLITTER POLISH WITH SWAROVSKI JEWELS AND 3D PARTS

OCTOBER - BLACK AND RED POLISH WITH PAINTED CROSS DETAIL

NOVEMBER - LOUIS VUITTON TIPS WITH GOLD JEWELS, GOLD POLISH NAIL WITH RED HEART

DECEMBER - WINE POLISH, ONE GOLD POLISH NAIL WITH GOLD METAL RHINESTONE HEART, THUMB WITH GOLD METAL STUDS

Nails - Simple HK Pink and White

A simple and easy to do yourself nail design. Lots of people ask me how I do my nails - and its actually very easy. A tutorial is in the works! I will do a picspam with easy to follow steps.


Anyway - hope you like my Hello Kitty design! Not very elaborate, but I was craving something clean looking.

Pink Glitter Nails

Just a quick update. ^_^ Here are some recent nails I did. I got the pink glitter acrylics done at a salon and deco-ed myself.

:( Unfortunately this was after the scooter accident I had in Mexico, so I'm hiding the nail that got chipped off on that hand. LOL... the other hand didn't survive as far as nails go! But the right hand mirrored the left as far as the deco is concerned. ;) You get the idea!

I've got quite a few pictures from Mexico I will share in my next post. :)