Catrice Cosmetics Ultimate Nail Lacquer in Purplelized

Some times ago, I posted about the Archetype Cosmetics Mineral Pigment Eyeshadows samples I received from Delicate Hummingbird for winning her giveaway. The main prize was three Catrice nail polishes, and today I'm showing you my favorite, Purplelized.

It's a gorgeous charcoal purple with multicolour shimmer/sparkles and a slight holographic effect. I absolutely love it!

Tutorial: Newspaper Nails

I recently discovered this manicure "trend", and I was curious to see the results on me so I decided to give it a go yesterday. It was my first try so it's far from perfect, but I love the effect!

To achieve this look, you will need:

• some alcohol (I used Isopropyl Rubbing Alcohol 70% U.S.P. I've seen many people using vodka but I wouldn't personally want to "waste" such a yummy beverage for a manicure... I'm such a drunk, I know LOL)
• cup to pour the alcohol and soak your nails in it
• pieces of newspaper (the smaller the text, the better in my opinion)
• light nail polish
• top coat

Start by painting your nails with a light nail polish. I chose a pale pink but you can use any color as long as it's light, so the newspaper prints will show on it.

I used Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear in First Blush

Be sure that your nail polish is completely dry before proceeding with the next step. I was too excited and I completely messed up my right thumb because I didn't wait long enough. Just to be sure, you could even wait a complete day.

Dip your nails in the alcohol and let them soak for around 30 seconds. I'm not sure if it really makes a difference how long you let them there, I guess I will have to experiment.

I prefer to dip one nail at a time, even though that's not what I'm doing in the picture LOL.

Then place a piece of newspaper on the nail and press firmly for about 30 seconds. Make sure it covers your entire nail (curve and tip), and DO NOT MOVE or else the text will be blurry (unless it's the look you're going for).

Peel off the paper gently, and finish with a top coat.

TADAHH!

I personally think this manicure could look tacky on long nails, but it's up to you. I prefer my nails short anyway.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and please don't hesitate if you have any question (=

Don't forget to enter my Mary Kay Satin Lips Set Giveaway! It ends in one week!

NOTW + OOTDs + Wal-Mart haul

I had a calm week-end, as always. Saturday night, I went to Sara's house to have breakfast with her and some friends (we wanted to have a real breakfast in the morning but Sara couldn't, so we did it at night instead!) We ate eggs, toasts, bacon, beans, breakfast potatoes and breakfast sausages, and we drank smoothies. Yummy!

Friday and Sunday, I relaxed outside all day as it was warm and sunny. I read, painted my nails. Sunday, I ended the day by taking a bubble bath. I noticed that my father bought plain yogurt at the grocery store, but nobody eats plain yogurt in the family... I figured out it was a mistake so I decided to do a face mask with it. I will do a post about it soon!

Here, take a look at the bad sunburn I got on Friday (and a previous of the yogurt mask):

But not only did I got a sunburn, I also tanned a little - and I never tan usually!

Can you see the tan lines where my tee-shirt sleeves would hit? LOL.

For my NOTW, I searched through my mother's stash and discover a silvery nail polish without label. I used three coats to achieve the opacity I wanted as it contains more glitters than color:

with flash

without flash

I also painted my toenails with Annabelle Nail Enamel, but I have no idea of the name of the shade because my mother removed the label on the cap.

I'm really due for an at-home pedicure LOL.

I can't believe it snowed yesterday! And it was around 3°C... X_X

 Balou was almost begging to go play outside as he loves the snow so much, but he would have been all wet and dirty... Poor baby!

At least I let him go pee after his dinner =P

I shaved my legs during the weekend to be ready for shorts Monday, but although the day started warm and sunny, it ended breezy and cold. I wore sandals to school, but I'm glad I had pants and a vest on! As it was freezing and snowing Tuesday, I decided to wear my super warm leggings with boots (not sandals, this time LOL).

top: L'Aubainerie Entrepôt

cami: Stitches

leggings: eBay

boots: Giant Tiger

I also got my coupons by P&G and webSaver.ca in the mail yesterday.

What interested me the most was the $1 and $3 off any Clairol hair dyes (my favourite is Nice 'n Easy, and it's currently on sale for $5.98 at Wal-Mart) and the $1 off L'Oréal Go 360° Clean (I'm obsessed by the Scrublet!). 

If you don't know P&G brandSaver and webSaver.ca, you should definitely take a look. Sadly, the coupons are available to Canadian residents only.

So today I went to Wal-Mart to use some of those coupons before they expire (on June 21th, if I remember well?):

I got:

Clairol Nice 'n Easy in 123 Nautral Soft Black (left) and 131 Rich Dark Brown (right): I was a little lost because the look of the packaging was changed, but I figured out there wasn,t much of a difference between these two shades, so I decided to give a try to Soft Black for the first time.

123 Natural Soft Black (left), 131 Rich Dark Brown (right) 

with flash

123 Natural Soft Black (left), 131 Rich Dark Brown (right) 

without flash

Can you see a difference? I can't! (Please don't mind the red on the box on the left, it was a pink post-it reflected on the box)

Bonus pack of Pond's Dry Skin Cream (left) and Pond's Cold Cream (right): I actually cheated a little... We had the choice between three bonus packages: x2 Cold Cream, x2 Dry Skin Cream or x2 Deep Cleansing and Make-Up Remover, but as I haven't tried any Pond's cream before, I didn't wanted to buy two of the same product... so I ripped open two packages and exchanged products, and the cashier didn't notice LOL. I'm a real bad girl, I know =P But I'm happy because I've been looking for a cream cleanser for a long time now, and I also have dry skin, so I hope that Dry Skin Cream will works!

Topcrop Sun Crunch for Rat/Mouse: I usually buy the one for Hamster/Gerbil since it seems to contains more interesting things for my rat and my gerbil, but it was out of stock (as always).

Iams ProActive Health for Large Breed: We are supposed to feed the doggie wether ProActive Health Active Maturity Large Breed (because he is almost 11 years old) or ProActive Health Weight Control Large Breed (because the veterinarian says he is slightly overweight), but they are harder to find. Today, it's because the Active Maturity Large Breed was out of stock, and the Weight Control Large Breed wasn't on sale (the one I bought was a little less than $10 off). And anyway, Balou has been eating this one all his life.

This morning, I woke up to this:

Stupid snow! It's almost May! Go away!

I wore a scarf to go to school this morning, but when I came home around 1:00 PM, it was a little sunny and around 12°C. And look at the forecast for Friday to Wednesday:

(click to enlarge)

At least we will have some sun! Yey!

Here's my OOTD:

Barefoot! You can see my red toes (=

top: Stitches

cami: Jean Bleu

skinny jeans: Sirens

Balou loves the snow so much that he didn't wanted to stay inside! I let him go play in the little leftovers of snow. But the thing is, he didn't want to stay outside alone xD

I'm sorry, I chose the "compact" option by mistake, which lowers the quality to allow the video to be sent by email -_- I also tried not to talk because I hate my voice on camera xD Oh and I stopped the camera because Balou was about to poo LOL.

Oh yeah, and I have a little something coming up for you soon! Stay tuned! It's a surprise =P

Last week FOTDs + OOTDs + NOTW

Hello! I've been busy with school lately as the end of the semester is coming fast, and I won't have any rest because I'm starting summer classes on May 10 (the semester ends on May 7). I still have 3 exams coming in the following weeks, but one of them doesn't require study as it will be a simple translation from English to French, yey!

Monday of last week was my first real day at school since the strike finally ended after around a month an a half! Yey, I'm finally able to do some constructive things on weekdays LOL.

 This is not really a FOTD as it is the only picture I could snap before leaving the house. I don't even remember what makeup products I was wearing xD

cami: Stitches

vest: Stitches

leggings: eBay

heart-shaped earrings: Ardène

necklace: Giant Tiger
boots: Giant Tiger

I'm totally getting addicted to those leggings! They are perfect for this strange weather (not warm enough for shorts or skirts, but not cold enough for wearing a coat). They are even warmer than my usual skinny jeans!

Tuesday, I played with some of the new Annabelle mineral line products I received to test and review.

  (messy hair... I'm on a no styling tool regiment)

Face

Annabelle Mineral Powder Bronzer - Terra

Annabelle Mineral Powder Blush - Au Naturel
Annabelle Sattelite Pearl Powder - Celestial Pearl

Joe Fresh Duo Concealer - Light
CoverGirl CG Smoothers All Day Hydrating Make-Up - Classic Ivory 710 (used as concealer)

Eyes
Maybelline Great Lash Clear Mascara (used as eyebrow gel) 

Annabelle Mineral Pigment Dust - Myth

Maybelline Expert Wear Eyeshadow Single - Vanilla (used as highligther)

Maybelline Lash Stiletto Mascara - Very Black

Lips

nothing (I had allergies)

skull earrings: Ardène
vest: Stitches

• Myth is my favourite shades out of the three Mineral Pigment Dusts I had the chance to test. It's such a unique shade! It a gorgeous shimmery gray-brown, depending on the lighting.

• The Mineral Powder Bronzer is a little hard for me to apply since my CoverGirl Minerals Powder Brush is too large for the jar, but I'm doing better every time. Maybe I should get a Kabuki brush?

• The Mineral Powder Blush is perfect! Just like its name, it really delivers a natural glow.

• I'm still not sure how I'm really supposed to use the Sattelite Pearl Powder, but I use it as a highlighter as it gives a really subtle glow.

Friday, I experimented with another of my new Annabelle goodies: Mineral Pigment Dust in Violet Vibe. I had an exam and it was the last time of the semester that I had class on Friday. After school, I met with friends to have dinner at my house. We cooked meat macaroni (is that how you say that in English?) with melted cheese on top. D-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s!

(excuse my right brow... I over-trimmed it and tried to fill it with eyeshadow because I don't have a matching eyeliner LOL)

Annabelle Mineral Powder Bronzer - Terra

Annabelle Mineral Powder Blush - Au Naturel
Annabelle Sattelite Pearl powder - Celestial Pearl

Joe Fresh Duo Concealer - Light

Eyes
Maybelline Great Lash Clear Mascara (used as eyebrow gel) 

Annabelle Mineral Pigment Dust - Violet Vibe

Maybelline Expert Wear Eyeshadow Single - Vanilla (used as highligther)

Maybelline Lash Stiletto Mascara - Very Black
 Maybelline Unstoppable Eyeliner - Onyx

Lips

nothing (I had allergies)

sweatshirt: Giant Tiger

striped cami: The Bay

belt: my local flea market

jeans: Sirens

Violet Vibe is a greatly pigmented shimmery purple. I might try to use with a black base under it to make it appear darker next time.

I also attempted for the first time to achieve gradiant nails:

with flash

without flash

I used:

- Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear - First Blush
- Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear - Rockstar Pink
- Sally Hansen Ultimate Shield Fortifying Base & Top Coat

 Of course, it's far from perfect, but it's fun and so simple to do!