Stocking Stuffers

1. Essie Nail Polish $8.50 (Belugaria and Sparkle on Top pictured)
2. Socks – Penguin Shea-Infused Lounge socks $8.50 (Bath and Body Works)
3. Alex and Ani Bangles $28 (starfish pictured)
4. Revlon Lash Potion Mascara $5-7
5. EOS Lip Balm $3
6. Josie Maran Argan Oil $14 (.5oz)
7. Josie Maran Argan Balm $42
8. Soap and Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Gloss Stick $16
9. Real Techniques Brushes $7-10
10. Hair Accessories (Berry ‘Alicia’ Bobby Pins $16)
11. Urban Decay Naked 3 $52

These are just a few items in a range of prices that I think would make great stocking stuffers!

I love getting new nail polish and there are so many to chose from. Socks! – I really enjoy cute festive socks but I found these shea-infused ones online and thought they looked nice. I love Alex and Ani and there is literally something for every girl. Mascara can be personal but this Revlon one is one of my favorites so if you know what someone likes you can toss that into their stocking! EOS lip balms come in a few different scents and are lovely. The two Josie Maran products I got in a box set last Christmas and they were my favorite from the set. Soap and Glory makes really nice lip glosses that are not sticky and nourishing.  What is great about this S&G gloss is the scent is amazing and they have three colors. If the girl you are shopping loves makeup or needs new brushes, Real Techniques are not only some of the best brushes I have used but they come at an amazing price. My mom has always given my sister and me various hair accessories in our stockings since we were little. It can be something as simple as a new pack of hair ties or you can step it up and get a fancy headband or bobbies. Lastly, Urban Decay Naked 3 is the new popular platte from the line. It was recently released so if you wanted to splurge a bit on a stocking stuffer this is it for a beauty lover.

Another fun thing for a stocking that is not pictured – if you bought someone (even the men out there) a small but rather expensive gift, like earrings or cuff-links, you can wrap that up and stick it in the bottom of their stocking. It makes for a really nice surprise once they get to it. (that is another one from my mom!)

Enjoy!

Favorite New Nail Polish

I had been looking all over for Essie ‘s For the Twill Of It nail polish since I saw it in a fall ad. I finally found it about two weeks ago in my local Target. I am in love with this color. I tried so hard to really capture how gorgeous it is on my iPhone but never really did it justice. The color is so interesting – Essie describes it as a “maple lacquer with reflective olive shimmer”. I found that sometimes in certain light it was a gorgeous Olive color – totally, other times it appeared to be purple and then sometimes it was a lovely mix. Every time I noticed the awesome color switch I seemed to be on the go and then my iPhone never caught it to be as beautiful as it was in person! At any rate – here is a picture of my latest Essie obsession! 

here is it a cool purple shade

Either way – I highly suggest this color. While on the Essie site I found a few new colors that I just have to get my hands on! The new line from Essie called Encrusted looks absolutely stunning. What is more exciting is that you can now order right from essie.com!

How GORGEOUS is this?!
On A Silver Platter from the new Encrusted line

I have to get my hands on some of these and then I will post new pictures once I do!

Sally Hansen Hard as Wraps – First Impression

Four years ago I could not paint my own nails. Being a righty, painting my own right hand proved to be the HARDEST thing ever. I am not the type of person who goes to get their nails done often either. Don’t get me wrong – I enjoy it, I just never have the time and I felt that I could and SHOULD be able to do this myself. So, with lots of practice I am now pretty good at doing my nails at home. Confession – I am a nail polish junkie and when I read online that using Sally Hansen Hard as Wraps Acrylic Gel as a base coat to get a quick at home, close to gel mani I was interested.

So off I went to CVS and I bought this product.

Basically, I used this as my base coat and then being a nail polish addict as I said I purchased this gorgeous blue polish from Essie in Aruba Blue.

The post I read said to use Sally Hansen top coat but I chose to use my favorite top coat – Essie Good to Go.

I am going to have to retry this method with the Sally Hansen top coat because my first impression was not good. My nails have never chipped so fast!

I painted my nails on Saturday and this was them on Tuesday! Overall, my first impression was not impressed at all! Though I believe in fairness and will try this base coat again paired with the Sally Hansen top coat and see how that works!