A Polish That Really Lasts?

For Christmas, my cousin got me some Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail polish strips.

These are little boxes of one time use, pre-measured nail polish strips that you apply to your nails, no dry time required. They advertise that they last up to 10 days. Now, I've used a lot of nail polish in my time. Most of them have promised not to chip or shine really beautifully or mop the floors or made some other outrageous claim at one point or another. Very few have ever lived up to their promises, so I wasn't really sure how well this product would really last. I was afraid that after a couple days, they would be peeling off and there goes my $9.00 instant manicure.

I decided to give them a try since a) they were a gift and b) they couldn't be any worse than the nail polish I usually use. I am exceptionally hard on my hands. I have never been able to resolve the fact that I am constantly working with my hands with the fact that I like to have nicely manicured nails, short of getting acrylic nails, which are not an option for me.

So last Saturday, I sat down and read through the directions and started applying the strips to my nails. About 40 minutes later, I had a pretty decent looking manicure. The only problem that I had was that I wasn't too thrilled with how weak my nails still felt. My nails are fairly thin to begin with, so I added two coats of Gelous top coat and let it dry. This was the result.

Not perfect, but not bad for my first time. I was pretty happy with the results.

Now here it is, almost 5 days later. I have been to the gym 3 times, crocheted on a scarf, hammered on a piece of art, painted, typed, showered (which is a death sentence for my usual manicures) and this is what my manicure looks like tonight:

Almost no difference! You can see some nail growth, but no chips that weren't already there (had a few boo-boos from when I put them on.) 

The product says it lasts up to 10 days. I am going to see how long they go without chipping. Stay tuned!

Til next time. -Erika

Making Art on a Budget

I have been making art since I was knee high to a grasshopper. I loved making art so much when I was a kid that I even pursued a Bachelor's degree in Fine Art.

One thing I learned quickly about making art is that it is expensive. Art supplies are not cheap. I firmly believe that this helps contribute to the "starving artist" phenomenon. This is where it's important to get creative.

In one of my recent thrift shop excursions, I found some 8x8 kid's room art canvases that were $0.97 each.

At an art store, these size canvases will run you starting at around $3 each. If you have the tools, you can save yourself a bit of money by using second-hand canvases. This is also good if you have canvases that you've already painted and maybe you aren't that thrilled with.

If you get a canvas that you want to paint over, you need to prime the canvas to ensure that the first painting does not show through. The canvas on the right shows how the printed image shows through the purple paint that I laid down. If the paint is thick enough, it's possible that this might not happen, but why take the chance?

To prime your canvases, you'll need every artist's friend, gesso. This tub cost me roughly $8 with a coupon. Regular price, it's probably about $15 or so. This is good item to have in your studio. In addition to priming canvas, I also use it for an image transfer technique using magazine images.

Priming canvas is simple. Use a broad brush to apply two coats, one in each direction. Let the coats dry in between.

There you go. Simple, saves money AND reduces waste by reusing canvas that might otherwise end up in the trash. Bonus!


Til next time! -Erika

What to Watch When Your TV has Died

Yup, it's true. My second-hand TV that my neighbor gave me when I moved into my house has kicked the bucket.

I'll be honest, I'm fairly lazy when it comes to watching TV (this should not come as a shock to anyone that I can be lazy about things.) I have never had cable in my house, so when it went, I just kind of shrugged my shoulders and went on with life.

Problem is there are those moments in life where all you want to do is curl up and vegetate in front of a good show. I've watched all of my DVDs more time than I can count. In light of this fact, YouTube and Hulu have been getting some more hits than usual from me.

The fact that I have found Star Trek: The Next Generation on Hulu makes me incredibly excited! I may have found a replacement for my TV that is going to suddenly make me a little less lazy about watching my shows.

Til next time! -Erika

My Apologies

Between work and just generally not feeling well, I have not been able to sit down and write about my latest thrift shop hauls or my organization efforts in the studio.

I feel like a lump. Once this passes (hopefully quickly) I will be back to enthrall you all. I have an awesome jacket to share with you all!

Til next time. -Erika

Weight Loss Check In

My last check in was on November 4th, well before the holidays. Since then, we had Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and New Year's, all of which are dieting pitfalls.

Back in November, I weighed in at 195 lbs. I am happy to report that I made it through the holidays unscathed and managed to drop another 10 lbs. I am only 15 lbs from my goal weight, coming in at 185 lbs. It is an amazing feeling to have come as far as I have in my weight loss!!

For Christmukkah, my sister got me a subscription to Runner's World magazine. I haven't done any real running in about a year since our last 5K together. My weight loss makes me hopeful that I might be able to improve my form and my speed and maybe finally finish the half marathon that I've been wanting to compete for the last THREE YEARS!

At the moment though, I have hit a bit of a wall. Just before Christmas, I managed to bang my pinky toe into a weight that I had moved while I was cleaning. It swelled to Hulk-like proportions and hurt like the Hulk had smashed it, too. After icing it for a bit, I buddy-taped it for a couple days but I was right back to working out and walking on it without letting it heal properly.

So, here I am three weeks later. It still hurts. And now, because I am stubborn, I have to take some time off from cardio so I can give my foot a chance to heal.

I'm sorry for being stubborn, pinky toe.

Til next time! -Erika

Last Thrift Hunt of 2012

Way back in 2012 (because it was so long ago, it was actually just two days ago), I decided to do one last dash to the thrift shop in an effort to clear out some stuff from my house and to look for some much needed jeans. My success in losing weight has left me with one pair of jeans that actually fits properly. Given the choice between buying some new (to me) jeans and being arrested for indecent exposure when I inadvertently leave my pants behind me, I'll take going shopping for new jeans.

First, I need to pass along another rule of bargain shopping. Actually, this is a rule of shopping in general. Know your store hours. I ended up running out of time shopping because I was sucked into the pretty dresses first, not realizing that the store closed at 5 instead of 8 as I thought it did. I left with two amazing dresses...but no jeans.

Before I settled on the dresses that I did, I tried on about eight different ones. From those eight, I whittled it down to three contenders.

Can you guess which ones made the cut?

If you guessed the first two, then you would be right! You win happiness in the knowledge that you have good taste. The third one I liked the shape of, but the pattern left a lot to be desired. It was one of those dresses that looked fabulous on the hanger, but once you get it on, you realize what a horrible mistake you made.

By the way, don't you guys just love my striped socks?

So, for $20, I got two brand new (yes, right from the store with the tags still on it!) dresses and a pair of turquoise faux snakeskin loafers (again, brand spanking new.) I love how cute they are!

What a fabulous way to close out 2012! Here's a tip for you guys: keep an eye out for thrift shops that take clearance close outs from major retailers. The Goodwill that I usually shop at gets stuff that was on clearance from some big box stores, so the stuff still has price tags on it and has probably never been used. It might cost a little more than the "regular" stuff that is on the rack. The dresses I bought were $7.50 instead of the regular $5.00, but the blue dress I got had an original retail around $50. The clearance price was $16. Either way you look at it, I am still way ahead.

I hope you all had a very happy and safe New Year's! Here's to a wonderful, prosperous and creative 2013 to you and yours! Til next time. -Erika