Llama Nails Holiday Challenge week 4: Veterans Day

Hey y'all!

I came to a bit of a conflict with this week's theme.  Being a 'merkin, of course Veterans Day is nothing new to me.  It's a day of remembrance for all those who served in the armed forces, marked on November 11 since 1947, when WWII veteran Raymond Weeks led the first national commemoration of all those who served our country under President Dwight D Eisenhower.  Prior to 1947, November 11 had been reflected as Armistice Day, having been proclaimed in 1919 by President Woodrow Wilson.  Armistice Day was, at that time, a day of remembrance of those who died in WWI, celebrated on the anniversary of the end of the first World War, marked by the signing of the Armistice Treaty between the Allied nations and Germany on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918.  While Armistice Day is still celebrated in many parts of the world, both it and Veterans Day are also celebrated at the same time as Remembrance Day, or Poppy Day, in Commonwealth countries.  The day has been officially known as Veterans Day in the US since 1954.  Confused yet?  Don't be.  November 11 has come to be known world-round as a day of remembrance for all veterans, both living and dead, who served their countries in times of conflict.

Remembrance Day is traditionally associated with the red poppy flower, which covered the graves of fallen soldiers on the fields of the second battle of Ypres, in the Flanders region of Belgium.  The poem, In Flanders Fields was written by Canadian physician Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae in honor of his fallen friend and the other soldiers who died on that battleground.  Since its first publication in 1915.

So, what's a trans-Atlantic replant to do on 11/11?  Well I had to incorporate both, didn't I?

Hey, Swatch It! - ILNP Holographics

Hey y'all!

This will probably be my last post before Wednesday's Challenge nails this week, because of course on Monday night I'll be at the elf Store Cardiff Grand Opening party.  Cannot wait!  So excited.  I'll be sure to take lots of pics and you might even get an outfit and makeup post from me!  My plan is to use as many elf products as possible for the night, which shouldn't be too hard because practically my whole makeup stash is elf!

One of my friends back home went to a Steve Wariner concert this week, and posted some pics and a video, and for the past 2 days I've had "The Weekend" stuck in my head.

"Couple of days isn't a very long time.  
Why can't I just walk away?  I used to be good at goodbye.  
Out on the water, under the stars
I let the moonlight play a trick on my heart.

You had some fun for the weekend
But I'll be in love for the rest of my life.
You took me out to the deep end 
And I fell right over; I didn't think twice.

I finally got something worth keeping
And if I can't have you tonight,
At least I had the weekend."

Hey, Swatch It! - ILNP UltraChromes, pt 2

Hey y'all!

So yesterday we looked at the first half of the ILNP UltraChrome collection.  Today I'd like to look at the other half.  I think I've saved the best for last on this one. 

As I mentioned yesterday, I originally ordered 2 and loved them so much I had to go back and get the other two.  The original order was for Birefringence and My Little Glacier. After wearing each of those colors for like, an hour, I realized I had made a grave mistake not ordering the rest of the set.  I'm hemmed and hawed over it because I knew I'd have to have them shipped to me before we left Texas.  Finally on the Tuesday before we left, I broke down and placed my order in the morning.  I sent an inquiry email to make sure I had selected the proper shipping type to make sure the polishes would get to me on time.  Within an hour, I had a very lovely email back from Barbra saying that I'd managed to catch her just before she went to the post office, and that she would make sure my order went out that day!  I was over the moon on that one.  So often when you order things online, you're never sure how long it's going to take before they process and ship your order (born pretty store, I'm looking at you).  So frustrating!  However, ILNP's customer service is definitely as top rate as everything else that I've learned about this company.  Just cannot say enough how pleased I was with these two orders.

Enough faffing, let's get to the polishes!  Please meet Cygnus Loop and Birefringence.

Hey, Swatch It! - ILNP UltraChromes, pt 1

Hey y'all!

So as part of my MASSIVE haul when we were in Texas, I broke down and decided to order some of the GORGEOUS UltraChromes from Barbra at I Love Nail Polish. ILNP is an indie brand based in Las Vegas, and while it's only a little over a year old, she has truly created a great brand for herself.  First off, all of her polishes are 3-Free, so there's no nasty chemicals to worry about.  Secondly, all of her packaging, including the shipping boxes and even the TISSUE PAPER are branded to match!  Totally made it feel like I was receiving something special.  In fact, I WAS!

So my initial order was for 4 polishes- two UCs and two holos.  I loved the two UCs so much that I had to go back and order the other 2 before we left the States!  In total, that means I have 6 polishes to show you, so I'm going to break this down into 3 posts.

Today, let's take a look at Mutagen and My Little Glacier.

Both of these gorgeous polishes have a kind of rose-gold shift, so I thought they'd be appropriate to swatch together.  Let's start with a bottle shot, side by side.  I should say that none of my bottles looked as nice as the pics on the website, however, the polishes all came out stunning.  I assume temperature may have something to do with it, and also maybe I need to hurry up and finish my light tent for photos.

Mutagen on left, My Little Glacier on right.

Llama Nails Holiday Challenge week 3: Diwali

Hey y'all!

This week the Llama Nails Challenge theme was Diwali.  I had no idea what Diwali was, so I had to turn to the little magic box to provide answers.

Diwali, also called Divali and Deepavali is the Hindu "Festival of Lights" that runs for 5 days, usually between mid-October and mid-November.  From Wikipedia:

"Diwali involves the lighting of small clay lamps filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil.  These lamps are kept on during the night and one's house is cleaned, both done in order to make the goddess Lakshmi feel welcome.  Firecrackers are burst because it is believed that it drives away evil spirits.  During Diwali, all the celebrants wear new clothes and share sweets and snacks with family members and friends."

It is also celebrated by Sihks and Jains, though for different origins.  Over the course of my research, I learned that Diwali's spiritual significance is that it marks the triumph of one's inner light (higher awareness) over ignorance in order to bring about joy and peace.  This resonates with me because I have been on my own path towards this kind of joy and peace for a few years now.  The more I learn about Hinduism, the more it seems that I should learn, because though it is a very complicated religion, it seems more of a philosophy and way of life that closely aligns with some of my own personal beliefs.

One of the most iconic images of Diwali is that of the ghee lamp called a diya.  It was from this image that I derived the inspiration for today's challenge mani.