Liebster Award Nomination

Angela from http://olderladieslikecolortoo.blogspot.mx has nominated this blog for the Liebster Award.

NOMINEE

I am grateful for the opportunity she has given this blog with the nomination, it will serve as another way to create consciousness about the fact that nail polish is for everyone to enjoy and is not exclusive to women.

She gave me 11 questions to answer, so here they are:

1.- What was the inspiration for the name of your blog?

Since I am very straight forward guy, the name of the blog says it all I guess.

2.  Do you have a dedicated nail/beauty room or just a small space?

small space I guess, I just do it at my home office desk or go to my friends nail salon.

3.- What is your favorite mainstream polish and your favorite indie polish?

Mainstream OPI, I find the quality and colors to be outstanding, as well as the price. Indie, I have yet to purchase one, though I have several Generic Brand or No Name polishes.

4.  What are some of your hobbies?

Nail Polish of course!

I have been getting into nail art/designs lately, sandal shopping and studying about the origins of humanity and its behavior.

5.  If you could vacation anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

Montreal, Canada. I just have to go there, don’t know why, I just need to go.

6.  Do you see yourself blogging 5 years from now?

Yes, creativity and imagination are things you just don't shut off.

7.  Do you like it quiet while you blog or do you need background noise?

Neither, I find it easy to adapt to any circumstance. I do like background music however, I choose the kind of music depending on what I am blogging about.

8.  What do you want to be when you grow up? (I believe we are all kids, at heart, and it's never too late to be what you want to be!)

Not to sound pretentious, I think I am and do what I like and what my heart tells me to do. I like to constantly push boundaries. I am a Professional Photographer, A web marketing specialist, a Certified Network Engineer, a Small Business Owner, Entrepreneur, a Nutrition Counselor, Tech Support Specialist and Lecturer. I think I can even handle more, but I have yet to find something else that I feel passionate about to do. As humans, I have found that our potential is limitless.

This is the kind of work I do in Photography

9.  Morning person or night owl?

Night Owl, I can do more when the kids are sleeping.

10.  Any special plans for the summer?

Nothing Special planned for this year, but things can change at any given time.

11.  And last, but not least, what lead you to starting your own blog?

My own experience. 

I have always kept my nails groomed, both fingers and toes. 

I have always liked pampering. 

As a male, when I stated to contemplate wearing color, like many men, I searched the internet and found very little information on the subject. 

I had been looking for an excuse or a solid argument for me to wear nail polish. Then I realized that the only thing keeping me (and other men) from wearing nail polish was fear. I really didn’t need any ones approval to do it. To me, fear is a choice, it is a negative emotion about a future event. As far as I have concluded, the future does not exist, we construct it ourselves in our present.  So I decided to be fearless. To live the now. 

I started the blog to create consciousness about it. As I have stated many times in my blog, painting our nails is an emotional form of self expression. As men, we are programed to suppress our emotions/feelings because we are mentally conditioned that doing so makes us vulnerable, especially if those emotions/feelings are so called “soft” emotions/feelings, like crying, compassion and self expression (among others) unless it is what a society/group deems "acceptable".  
We are thought that it is OK to “fit in” and not “stand out”. We are thought that it’s OK to be part of a group and not stand out as “individuals”. Because when we do, we are “conditioned” that acceptance by others can be cruel, so we tend to hide our insecurities within a group. We tend to "blend in" to hide.

Another thing we are mentally programmed/conditioned into is that, we are “given” choices to choose from, but we are not allowed to “explore” other choices other than those “offered”. 

As humans, we have the right to express, explore, think and act with freedom as long as we do not attempt on others rights and freedoms. When we respect others choices and/or right’s, peace reigns. When we try to impose or violate other choices or rights, there is conflict. It’s as easy as that and you can take that to any level. 

Well there they are. Feel free to comment, ask, elaborate, interact or comment on this post, that is what is all about.

I will list my nominees in my next post, so stay tuned.

Cheers and Happy Polishing!

L.A. Colors "Aquatic"

Spring is in the air, sunny weather, easter eggs, chocolate, swimming pools. I rarely post twice in a month, but this time I just could not resist this blue. It reminded me of some blue shirts that I have. I also have a blue watch, some blue shoes and many blue ties. 

So I was walking down my local drugstore and this shiny blue bottle caught my eye. My first impression was that it was too bright a blue. I usually don’t go for bright colors on nail polish, but this time, there was something about this blue that begged me to try it on. 

With the easter festivities coming I thought, why not!. I mean, we paint our cars blue, we wear blue clothing, so why not paint my nails with this blue. After all, blue is a color for boys right? Riiiiiight…. 

Anyway, I have to say that I just love it! I think I have not had so many compliments on my nails since I wore Malice from Chanel.

The brightness on this tone is an attention getter, but in a good way. It is the kind of color, that even though it is not a holographic, metallic or shimmer, you can contemplate it again and again. Several people even thought I was wearing Gelish.  This cream based blue is called Aquatic from L.A. Colors, it’s from their color craze line. I have to say, until now, I have not had an L.A. Colors nail polish that I do not just love.

It is a three coater, goes on smooth and does not streak, as you can clearly see from the photographs. It is a keeper for me, I am sure you will love it too. Until next time! Happy Polishing!

Nail Designs for men? You Bet!

I have been wanting to get some nail art done for some time now, the only thing that stopped me from doing it is the fact that most nail art designs I saw, were not appealing to me. 

I like subtle yet elegant designs. Something with meaning that at the same time will capture attention but won’t be a distraction. Something that would express my style and personality, and not something that I would just have done just for the sake of following a trend.  

If you are a guy and are new to nail polish or are exploring the idea of painting your nails, think of it this way, If you were contemplating getting a tattoo, would you just pick any design? Of course not!. 

I get that a nail polish design is not permanent, but still, having it done just because I could, was just not me. I like things with meaning. 

Liking symbols and their meanings, one of the most influential symbols I love is the “fleur de lis”, so I got inspired for blue and gold from a picture I saw that let me to other blue/gold combinations, like a neck tie and a Rolex watch, like I said, capture attention yet not distracting. 

I also like medieval themes, I like medieval clothing, the fabrics and designs with embroidery. Being Easter time, I decided to have this design done to be in sync with the carnival festivities around the globe. 

I used three different nail polish colors to achieve this. Orly “Lux”, L.A. Colors “Blue Lagoon” and OPI “Alpine Snow”. I wanted something that looked modern, medieval, carnival, kind of a harlequin design and elegant at the same time.

I first applied all the colors on their respective nail and went thru all the drills, you know, file, buffer, prime, base, color and top coat and waited till next day. 

To achieve the design, I used some strips with adhesive to form the diamond design and I painted inside each diamond with the respective colors, Orly “lux” and L.A. colors “blue lagoon”. I let it dry and removed the strips, revealing the white under it. I then applied two layers of top coat to seal it and enjoy it for at least two to three weeks. Remember, decision is the power that you have over anyone and is what determines our destiny. I have worn this for the past two weeks and have gotten only compliments. The feeling you get when you look at your painted nails and nail design is pretty difficult to describe, I would just encourage you to try it. Forget about what people think, forget about what people might say, believe me, It is a pretty awesome feeling. Don't miss on it!

ORLY - LIQUID VINYL

I am anxiously waiting for the fourth season of my favorite TV series. One of the things I like about Game of Thrones is the contrast that exist between the different kingdoms.

From the desolate ice wall near Winterfell, to Kings Landing or Qarth’s grandeur to the darkness of Harrenhal. With a few exceptions, Game of Thrones is as dark a TV show as they come. Crude, Rude and to the bones. And as always, the books are better. 

This is the first time I have worn pure black nail polish. I chose Orly’s “Liquid Vinyl” because I wanted to somehow look a bit dark without having to look like a rock star or an emo, I thought I could achieve this by wearing very glossy instead of matte. This was to pay homage to my favorite TV show and the black three eyed crows. This polish wears more like a rubber cat suit, goes on very nicely, with a creamy wet finish. As always, I topped it of with Seché-VIte Top Coat. Looks very edgy.

I paired it with my Game of Thrones sandals and love the look. Two coats will do to cover well but three are much better. I seldom wear cream colors, but this black is a cream that I can wear many times over.

Orly polishes are professional grade, they apply very well. This nail polish, based not on color but on consistency, brush, and finish deserves a 5 bottle rating.

Love the finish,  It should work great as a base for nail art or to combine with other top coats with sparkles or shimmer as well as for stamping, the kind of must have for all occasions. Until next time, Happy Polishing!

OPI - "Inni Minni Mighty Bow" Niuton Chavez Felix

Hello Again! As promised, here is the second post for this month.

To celebrate February, the love and friendship month, I went back to red. This time with a little more sparkle. This is OPI’s “Inni Minni Mighty Bow”. I have been wearing this since my last post. 

By far reds have to be my favorite shade, I love reds because not only can you dress it up or dress it down, but it goes well with almost anything. You can wear red with brown earthly colors, you can wear red with white, blue, black, you name it, it is very versatile color. Red also has very much significance, it can project power, ambition, romance, I mean, I can go on and on about it. 

Of course there are different kinds of red shades and in nail polish, different kinds of finishes, but all in all, you can't go wrong with red. If you like reds or deep jewel tone colors like me, this is a must have for your collection. 

Just for fun and for the sake of Valentines, I picked this color which has a nice rich red base with a bright pink shimmer on it.

Depending on the light source hitting it, this shade will either seem kind of raspberry red or kind of candy apple red. It reminds me some of Sally Hansen’s “Unbreakable Heart” when it tends to look more candy apple. As with all OPI polishes I have tried, it goes on smooth and it is just right, not to thick or not too thin. It applies very well with two coats, but as always, I applied three coats on top of my base coat and primer, topped it off with Seche Vite for a long lasting two chip-less weeks of wear. I will end it on that note just to keep it shot and sweet.

ORLY - Sea Gurl

Hi you all! It has been a long time since my last post. Sorry for the delay, no excuses here. Just been putting it off for other stuff. January came and went by and I did not upload my start of the year polish. I will make it up by doing it this month and posting twice, and since I already had the photographs from last month, here they are.

I got the inspiration for this color from fashion magazines. I saw that metallics are trending, specially silvers, golds and coppery colors in shoes (I got a couple of metallic sandals I am dying to wear once the weather permits by the way), bags and accessories are also trending silver and gold metallic, so I had a good pretext to use a color I was given as a present over the Christmas holidays. 

This is ORLY - Sea Gurl. It is a very interesting color. It looks kind of metallic silver, but it is actually a greenish grey that has silver shimmer on it. I thought it would be a great color to wear in January, kind of wintery grey.

This is one color shade that does not vary much from light source to light source. It looks exactly the same when the sun is hitting it directly, or if you are looking at it under ambient or fluorescent lighting. 

It is very much like any cream color when it comes to color consistency under different lightning conditions, but the difference with this color, is the silver shimmer they added to it. 

It goes on very smoothly, Orly polishes are professional grade, not very thin to be a shimmery polish. As always I went with 3 coats for a good 2 week chip-less application.

I give this Orly color a 5 bottle rating, I think this neutral, kind of metallic look and shimmery color is great not just for winter, but for any time of the year. 

It can look edgy with a leather jacket and you can dress it up with a tuxedo, or dress it down with an untucked sleeves rolled up dress shirt. A very good color to have on any collection, you will not be disapointed.

Until the next post, happy polishing!

CHANEL - 637 MALICE Niuton Chavez Felix

We are just days away from thanksgiving. Once we leave that celebration behind, the Christmas countdown begins. Away with the orange, brown and autumn colors. It is time to express the Christmas spirit and celebrate the holidays that mark the year end and new beginning. 

Reds have to be my favorite shade. Lucky for me, there is an abundance of red pigmented nail polishes. I had been putting of wearing what has to be my favorite shade of red for about a year now. Although it is not a new color, it is an everlasting classic by now that many nail polish manufacturers have tried to emulate unsuccessfully.

Even though some have come very very close, there is still nothing like Chanel’s “Malice”. A special limited edition color from Chanel, “Malice” is simply stunning. It is a deep jewel tone burgundy red color that ads enough shimmer to make it stand when put under the sun.

It is elegant, the kind of color that screams “chic” and is the perfect color to wear all thru the holidays.

Under ambient light it tends to look deeper with more brownish tints. This polish has something unique to it. Instead of the usual shimmer it gives of a “velvety” look. Malice is definitely not for everyone, aside from the steep price, it seems engineered for the counselor or demanding nail polish wearer, It applies nicely in two coats with a shiny finish. Of course I applied three coats as usual and even though this particular nail polish does not need a top coat to make it shiny, I applied Seche Vite top coat for a long chip-less 15 day wear.

This is definitely a 5 bottle rating nail polish, a very nice addition to any nail polish collection. It is hard to find at the regular selling price these days. If you find it a half decent price, grab it, you will not be disappointed.

Happy Holidays and Happy Polishing!