ANNOUNCING: MAC Box of Chocolates Giveaway!

Hello there, lovelies! 

Myself and 29 other bloggers have gotten together to show our love to our readers with a special giveaway treat. An eyeshadow palette is like a box of chocolates - but this one has 30 different flavors inside each one chosen by a different blogger! 

We've put together a special blogger-curated palette filled with 30 of our favorite MAC shades in a MAC Pro Large/Duo Palette for one of our readers to win! The shades include our favorite neutrals to fun, bold colors and everything in between - but you'll have to win to see what they are! All you have to do is enter via Rafflecopter. 

US only! Giveaway starts February 14 - February 28th! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Nail Rehab: Week 1

I was really overwhelmed by the amount of interest in my Nail Rehab series and decided it would be best to do a weekly post while I go through rehabilitation.

Here's what my nails look like now, about two weeks after having my gels removed:

As you can see, my cuticles are heavily dried out from the removal process and there are file marks all over my nails.

You can see the ridges here and also just how thin and brittle they are. *Sad face*

From this angle, you can see the major ridge in my nail from where the gels were and where my nail has grown in. I'm about 1/4 of the way of having them grow out altogether and am getting anxious!

This week's regimen consists of two main aspects:

The first, as recommended by numerous bloggers and nail techs, is to constantly moisturize! Not just for the cuticles and skin, but also for the nails. The better moisturized they are, the healthier they are.

The second:

 

This came highly recommended to me by a friend of mine and I'll be applying it once a day for a week to see its effect. This is a nail hardener that is supposed to help toughen up nails and prevent them from breaking. We shall see!

What products would you like to see me test as part of Nail Rehab?

Nail Rehab: A Confession

Hello, my lovelies! I'm sure you've been wondering why there's been a lack of swatches lately. Well, here's why.

I have a confession to make. Since 2009, I've had gel nails. I knew they weren't great for my nails when I got them, but I'm a person that likes to work with her hands and breaks her nails frequently.

But paying $40 every two and a half weeks for a fill and not being able to swatch when they'd grown out just too much was starting to bother me. So I took the leap and had them taken off.

Now, my nails are exceptionally brittle from the years of damage. But I'm working to strengthen and rehabilitate my nails.

I'm sure a lot of you have gone through this, are going through this, are considering going through this, or just will. So I figured that I'd document my journey through what I'm not-so-affectionately calling Nail Rehab.

I'll be starting with a before picture in another few days, along with my current rehab regimen. I promise, nothing will be gross. There aren't any infections or cuts or anything. Just very short, brittle nails that I'm working to strengthen.

Hope this is something that you'll all find informative and helpful to you!

Get the NYFW Look: Jin Soon for Tess Giberson

Runway Inspiration:

Tess Giberson Fall/Winter 2014 collection is based on the transference of classic rugged American sportswear into contemporary, effortless, luxurious style. Manicurist Jin Soon Choi used this same idea and created a modern interpretation of the classic French manicure.

Jin Soon Nail Products Used:

• Dark gray/metallic black nail polish
• JINsoon Kookie White
• JINsoon Top Gloss
• JINsoon Power Coat 

Get the look:

1. File and clean nails, removing all traces of polish.
2. Apply JINsoon Power Coat base coat.
3. Next, apply two coats of dark gray/metallic black nail polish (the shade Jin used from her upcoming JINsoon Fall/Winter 2014 Tess Giberson Collection), let dry.
4. At the tip of the nail, apply a thin arc of JINsoon Kookie White.
5. Finish by applying a single coat of JINsoon Top Gloss.