Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Guest Nails: Tiffani

I did my friend Tiffani's nails :) I haven't really felt like doing mine but I had fun doing hers. 
No Flash
With Flash
I used China Glaze Limbo Bimbo and Art Deco art polishes in white, black, silver and silver glitter. I'm pretty happy with the way they came out, particularly the right hand. I generally don't try to do abstract stripes lol. Just a quick post today, I'm gonna do my nails soon, I swear!
As always, thanks for stopping by :)

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Guest Post on Frugal Polish!

Hi lovemuffins! Sorry I haven't been around much, lots going on lately. I did a gues post  on the amazing Alyssa's blog Frugal Polish today. So head over and check it out!

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Guest Post: Pinked Polish

Today we have a guest post from Melissa over at Pinked Polish! 

Hi Dolls:) This is Melissa from Pinked Polish, if you haven't checked out my blog you should!!! I have some really great things coming up in the near future!!!! I am super excited to be doing the guest post as it is my very first one:) I wanted to try something totally new for you guys, so I decided on gradient with a stamp. Well my hubby chose the colors for this beauty, and says if he ever gets that '71 chevelle ss he is gonna paint it this blue, China Glaze "Frostbite". I ♥ this color, it is the perfect Pepsi blue!!!!

 The green he chose is China Glaze "Cha Cha Cha" and it is equally noteworthy!!!! 

I then stamped Cheeky plate CH16 in Silver on all my nails :) 

All followed with a coat of SV (Seche Vite). Hope you guys like!!!! And a Special THANKS to Lena for letting me Guest post!!!!

I totally love it Melissa! Thanks so much for sharing with us! 

Monday, July 23, 2012

Born Pretty Store Update

So I promised an update on my issues with the Born Pretty Store and here it is! I wrote the last post (read it here) because I was SICK an TIRED of trying to get them to fix my problems. I had ordered plates from them and most of them were defective. After emailing them they gave me the run around and just kept sending me videos on how to stamp correctly. Well that, as you can imagine, only served to make me mad. I'm not a novice, I know what I'm doing and I had informed them of that fact. (I mean really, take the plastic off? No, I thought it was SUPPOSED to stay on there!) Ahem...sorry I still am a little angry lol. 
Where was I? Oh yes, they weren't fixing my problems and they weren't timely about emailing me back. Finally I decided to post about it which made me feel a little better but mostly I didn't want anyone else to go through what I was. I also did a review on their site and posted mine on their Facebook wall. I got so sick of everybody's sponsored reviews saying how great everything was when I kept hearing stories just like my own. 
As you can imagine, it didn't take long after that to hear back from them. They were "depressed" that I called the customer service horrible, they try to make sure they do everything they can for the customers, blah blah blah. 


Finally, after many more emails back and forth they said they would replace my defective plates. After I sent them pictures of the plates (what is a picture going to show? No idea.) But I took the pictures and even circled the working images in Sharpie lol. They agreed to send the plates out ASAP for me. It took quite a while (since they ship from China to the US I was expecting that  this time), but I finally got them. To my surprise I found they had replaced my whole order (12 plates and the scraper and stamper). I've tested all the images out and they seem to work good except for the Hello Kitty image. Now, I'm not sure why that image doesn't work, it IS better than last time for sure but it's still just really light and not great. I really can't say I care that much about one image though to raise another huge fuss. 


So, is everything forgiven? Not really. And it definitely won't be forgotten that's for sure. I know there are others who have never gotten their issues taken care of. I kind of feel they only fixed mine because I made a huge deal of it and I took it public. I know in the future I don't foresee taking the chance on buying something that is defective and having to go through this all again. 
Full disclosure: I did try to get them to let me review their new acrylic molds to easily make your own embellishments but they said I don't have enough followers (I need 500). I figured I woulda had fun playin with the stuff if nothin else lol. 
Overall the new plates work and my problem was (eventually) resolved. I still think the customer service sucks and I highly doubt I will buy anything from them again after this experience. 
As always, thanks for stopping by :)

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Gorgeous but difficult *pic heavy*

Today I have what I think just might be my favorite mani I've ever done! Its gorgeous but a HUGE pain to try to get good color accurate pics. Lets jump right in shall we?


















Inside sunlight
Inside Flash
Inside no flash
These are the most color accurate and the only ones I didn't try to mess with the colors. All I did with these was stick the text on there.


Kleancolor Metallic Aqua 
For this mani I used only Kleancolor polishes. I'm super in love with them can you tell? This is 2 coats of Metallic Pink. It was completely opaque in one coat but I did 2 only because I wanted to wrap my tips and fix a couple of my imperfections. I used Born Pretty plate M72 to stamp the super cute flower in Metallic Aqua. The little stones were sent to me by my friend Sherry (see posts here and here). And I don't think pictures do this justice at all. Its so pretty, I can't stop staring at my nails!
You might be saying what?! I thought you had all kinds of problems with your Born Pretty plates? I did and I will do an update post tomorrow :) But I'll tell you now they fixed the problems. 
Anywho, all my Kleancolor polishes (and I've got quite a bit) I have got from Copious (if you don't already know they are giving out another $10 in credits this weekend see here). Speaking of which, I am off to hurry up and spend mine before they expire ;) Come chat with me on Facebook if you feel so inclined. 
As always, thanks for stopping by :)

What?! More free Copious credits!!!

More free Copious credits!!!! For existing accounts use this link:Click here!


For new accounts use this link first: Click me for new account and $10 free credits! then the top one!!!!



If you don't have an account yet that's a total of $20 free money!

Friday, July 20, 2012

How'd you get here?

So I tend to like to check out my stats and one of my favorites to stalk is traffic sources. Not only does it show me how all of you get here it also shows me what people serch for to get here. Some of them are crazy and you may be as surprised as I was. 
 Um? Belly hang woman? Who the heck is searching for that lol. And the "you all know that i m not just" I have no idea where that came from but I googled it and didn't find my blog lol. 

 Never have I said anything about pot leafs or tattoos on this blog that I can remember. I've also never talked about Playboy Bunny girls. And who searches for the big toe has 3 colors though? 
 Yeah, perfect older boobs is something I search for all the time! Lol really? 
What exactly is a Playboy pot leaf? You got me, I have no idea! Not as amusing as some I have seen on other blogs, but they gave me a laugh or two and I hope they did for you too! As always, thanks for stopping by :)

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Quick Update

Hey lovelies! I swear I haven't purposefully been ignoring you. Its been crazy hot and I haven't really done anything with my nails :( They've actually been naked since Saturday! That's pretty unheard of for me. 

In the meantime I'm around hanging out on the Facebook page (and on Twitter every once in a while). I've been working on spreadsheets for my stash and impatiently waiting for all my new Copious buys to hurry up and get here lol. 

The good news is that it rained last night and it looks like today should be cooler, so hopefully I will do something with them today ;) I already know what I want to do its just a matter of doing it haha. As always, thanks for stopping by :) 

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Freebies and Fabulous Sites

I wanted to take a few minutes and tell you guys about some great sites that I love! I use these a lot and have got some really good stuff from them. 


Copious:
Now Copious is a fantastic site! I can't even tell you how many amazing polishes I've got so far not to mention my adorable ring you can see here in the Haul post and here in the post about the mani I did inspired by it. They also give out free credits about once a month. Sign up with your Facebook or Twitter (the more friends you have the better!) You can sign up here and get your first $10 credit free on me :) 


Sneakpeeq:
Another awesome site though it takes a little bit to get the hang of it. Basically you have 20 "peeqs" a day that you use to see what a price is on a certain item. They have new boutiques every day and sales usually last a few days. The one problem is they are a little more costly but there are ways to get around that ;) I've gotten 4 free polishes and 2 free rings as well as a free pendent necklace so far from them. You can sign up with Facebook here. The more you peeq the more you win. Typically the more you click on in a store you get some kind of prize usually (like free shipping or a % off). Make sure you share the store and hit love on the products to also help you. You can get free shipping on anything by clicking the pink "Earn Free Shipping" note that shows up when you are on the order page. Just agree to share with some of your Facebook friends and refresh the page. When you sign up you get a $10 off credit and usually a free gift (the gift changes every week or so).


Eden Fantasys:
This is only for those 18 or older! Its an adult toy site but they have so much more. Of course they carry any kind of toy you could ever imagine (and some you couldn't!) but they also have books, lingerie and bath & beauty products. Seriously they have some of the cutest lingerie I have ever seen! Plus every single item has multiple reviews so you can get real peoples opinions before you buy. That is a huge plus for me since I don't want to buy lingerie that is going to fall apart incredibly quick or bath products that smell like dirty unwashed feet. You can see my first post about them here and you can check them out here


Julep: 
Julep is fantastic! It's a subscription program where you sign up and get monthly boxes based on your personal style. The boxes generally contain 2 polishes and a product though July's box included a free patriotic polish. It costs $19.99 a month (US) and I know they do ship to Canada as well. You can pick a different box each month, skip the box for the month or even send your box to a friend. You can see my review post about them right here. They have great polish and great products. You can sign up here


FabFree:
A great site that emails you everyday (or you can just check it everyday) that lets you know about freebies and giveaways as well as sweepstakes. I've already got a few things from them including a year free subscription to Martha Stewart Living magazine and a ring sizer (cuz I can never remember what size each of my fingers are and it will be handy for getting more free rings from Sneakpeeq lol). FabFree emails also contain what the free gift is from SneakPeeq for new members. You can check them out here.


That's it for this post, as I find more I'll make sure to update! As always, thanks for stopping by :)

Monday, July 16, 2012

Where am I?

Hey there lovelies! Today I'm guest posting over at Dahlia's blog datyorkLOVES :) Click here to go there and see what I said! Hope you all have a fantabulous day :) And make sure that you are following me on FacebookTwitterPinterest, and Instagram (@LenaLovesNails). As always, thanks for stopping by :) 

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Lacey's Toes

If you don't happen to hang around my Facebook page you may not know that I have a niece named Lacey and she loves it when I do her nails. She's almost 4 and just adorable! The only problem with doing her nails is she always picks off the polish lol. No matter what I put on (I've even used Seche on her) she always ends up picking it off her fingers. So I found a solution and just do her toes :D So I give you some pics of her nails :) 
That is LA Colors pink (mine doesn't have a name) and she ended up picking it off her fingers within a matter of hours lol. 
More LA Colors pink this time with Pure Ice Busted over it. I did end up doing flowers and designs too but she was too tired for me to take pics :) And that is her mama's old phone that is hers now (no service or anything but people do seem to call for me a lot whenever we're together lol) Cuz you know when a kid hands you a play phone you better answer it!
This is LA Colors blue (again no name on mine) with Sinful Colors Hottie over it. If you don't know Hottie is a holo glitter and super cute in this combo. 
I took this one to show you a little of the glitter :) 
So there you have it, my baby's nails. Honestly I don't care if she picks it all off or not its just fun to do and she loves it. I hope you enjoyed seeing as much as I enjoy doing!
As always, thanks for stopping by :)

Friday the 13th Copious Credits!

Yay new Copious Credits!!!! Released for Friday the 13th: If you haven't signed up for Copious yet now's your chance! Click here to sign up and then Click Here!!! for an extra $10 credit!!! I am getting so many new pretties!

Friday, July 13, 2012

Guest Post: Top Coats by datyorkLOVES



Today we have the incredibly talented and sweet Dahlia from datyorkLOVES!!! She's sharing with us her favorite topcoat and least favorite. Read on for why she loves one and hates the other :) 


Boy oh boy am I nervous! This is my first time posting as a guest on a blog. Before I get started I want to thank Lena for being a great host and I also want to thank and hope I don’t scare away you, Lena Loves Nails followers.


Hello! I’m Dahlia from datyorkLOVES! I’m a ball of nerves and excitement but enough of the small talk and let’s get into it. I’m going to jump into the good stufftop coats. I started blogging a little over a year ago but I’ve been doing my own nails for YEARS! Throughout the years I have made endless amounts of mistakes and with those mistakes I’ve given birth to many successes, one of them being a top coat. I have found my favorite and least favorite, both of which I will share with you today.


Favorite
Pro FX
Quick Dry
High Gloss Top Coat
Seche Rapidement
(Can be found at WalMart!)


Why this is the ONLY top coat I use.
1. It dries fast and flattens all of your layers. This is HUGE if you do a lot of layering or nail art designs.
2. Perfect formulation!
3. It’s CHEAP, yes I said CHEAP! This 2.5 FL. OZ. bottle is under $5!! Ladies I don’t think it gets better than that.
One of the Cons of this polish is its size which doesn’t always allow it to fit in displays or stands, but that’s not THAT big of a deal, right?


Least Favorite
L.A. Colors Color Craze Nail Polish
Top Coat


Why this polish is going bye- bye!
1. Drying time iswell I’m not sure because it takes hours and even when you think it’s dry it’s not. For example when you put lotion on it will smear off your nail. I have noticed this happens in pool water, with soap, and salt water (beach). I am not sure why but I know why I won’t be using it anymore.
2. Sticky, unless you are looking for a polish that will stick to anything clothing, bedding, etc., this is probably one you should skip.


Have you tried either of them? What has your experience been?


Below you will find photos of the two.
Thanks again for reading and to Lena for hosting. I hope to interact with you and maybe even see you on my blog
datyorkLOVES or SassyNails.


Thanks so much Dahlia for sharing with us, I don't know about you guys but I want to try it out now! Make sure you pop over to her blog and Facebook and check her out :)
As always, thanks for stopping by :)

Thursday, July 12, 2012

My Stash: Embellishments

I decided I'm going to do a little series about my stash :) Mostly because I have a lot of stuff and if I did one single post it would be crazy long and I know the average reader might not find it as interesting as those of us living in our polish-tastic world ;) So I'm going to start with embellishments. I consider embellishments to be anything that you put on your nails that isn't polish. Particularly like fimo, rhinestones, microbeads and such. 
We'll start with stickers:


 I got the top ones at Dollar General for about a dollar and the other 2 sheets came together also for a dollar I believe. I know I was annoyed when I opened it and instead of 2 sheets of the pretty ones it had the others behind it. 
Glitter:

The NYX I got from Ulta and they were on sale something like 2 for $6. The left one is called Disco Ball and the other one is just called Blue. You can see the Haul post here. The other silver glitter in the bottom pic is from a craft kit from a long long time ago and I used to use it for hair lol. Now its migrated its way to my embellishment box ;)
Stones:



The very top ones I got in a temporary tattoo kit from WalMart. Don't judge me it was in the clearance section for under $10 lol. They're pretty much just blobs of colored plastic but still cute. The post I used them in is here. The next ones down I also got in the clearance section at WalMart and I think they were like a dollar. 
The other 2 sets were sent to me by my super awesome friend Sherry. She rocks and I <3 her :) 
Fimo:
The only fimo I have is from the fantastic Jen of Jen's Nail Files on Facebook. She sent me a sunscreen sample and included the fimo! I was so excited I may have actually squealed and thanked her profusely (which I later found out she doesn't like lol).
Now the other stuff. Some of it is glitter but you'll see why I'm doing it this way.
Bar Glitter
More Microbeads
Microglitter
So these I got at Dollar Tree all of them were a dollar a piece. Most of them I have 2 sets of though the shells I only have one set and the flakies as well as embellishments I have 3 sets of. I used the silver stars on this mani and some of the microbeads here. I also used the little purple flowers on my toes as you can see on this post. 
I also thought I'd show you how I store these teeny tiny bottles :) 
I got these little Tupperware containers at a Salvation Army thrift store. The bf and I like to go and look to see if we can find cool stuff lol. I think they were something like 69 cents and I got 7 or 8 of them together. I also got some matching ones for the same price and they are bigger square shaped ones that are the perfect size for holding stamping plates lol. 
Well that's it for this one, hope you enjoyed seeing my stuff ;) What kind of embellishments do you have? 
As always, thanks for stopping by :)