franken-polish "Mo Duinne" {inspired by Outlander}

Mo duinne, "my brown one", as Jamie affectionately calls his Claire.  At least, as he calls her in  Book One, Outlander, and Book Two, Dragonfly in Amber.  After this, the phrase magically changes to the correct Gaelic translation, mo nighean donn.  Okay, so mo duinne as a term of endearment may have been an accidental fabrication, but it is still heart-grippingly sweet when bestowed upon the heroine by her adoring warrior husband.  So let's just suspend disbelief for a moment, and savor the sentiment.  Shouldn't be too difficult, really; after all, that's what romance is all about!

When I set out to create this polish, I decided I didn't want it to simply mimic the natural, obvious brown of Claire's hair and eyes.  I felt it needed to reveal Claire as Jamie saw her: with warmth, and passion, and radiant, rosy love.  I started with a rich reddish brown, and infused it with a haze of sweet shimmering pink, like rose-colored glasses.  Flecks of gold and silver, and a gossamer rainbow veil, emulate the nimbus radiated by a loved one in the eyes of their lover.  The face of a person you love always shines a bit brighter to you than the rest, does it not?  When Jamie says "my brown one", what he really means is "my everything".

>>> mo duinne <<<

 

frankenpolish "at last I see the light" {inspired by Tangled}

And at last I see the light
And it's like the fog has lifted
And at last I see the light
And it's like the sky is new
And it's warm and real and bright
And the world has somehow shifted
All at once everything looks different
Now that I see you

I for sure cried during this scene the first time I watched "Tangled"; thousands of floating lights over the water and one seriously great song, it's just too beautiful to be believed!!  I was a freshman in college at the time, and no, I wasn't drunksy-faced in the slightest.  I was seriously completely sober, crying tears of the purest joy over a children's film.  This is not an uncommon occurrence for me, if I'm being honest.  I cry all the time (ALL THE TIME), and I don't even know if I mind; feeling things strongly makes me feel awake and alive to the world, you know what I mean?

This might be my favorite franken yet; or at the very least, its easily top three!  I'm not confident that I captured it completely, and then there are some elements like the "Fairy Violet" flakes that almost over-express copper in photographs, but overall hopefully you get the idea!  I didn't actually have this inspiration in mind while I was mixing, just an instinct that these components belonged together. ♥️ 

I might not have been really seeing the light before but I'm certainly seeing it now!

>>> at last I see the light <<<

Flynn Rider & Rapunzel

franken-polish "Fireside Dreaming"

For my very first frankens, I relied heavily on creative prompts such as favorite books and Pinterest boards for inspiration.  I found that an image helped guide my selections amongst the hundreds of polishes that I've given up to frankening, a task which was rather overwhelming at first.  I've also found that it tends to make those frankens more complicated, with more components, which I wouldn't have expected.

Then, about a couple weeks in, something I'd hoped for starting happening: I started to flow into my frankening, making a polish purely from creative impulse.  They didn't come from anywhere, and yet they did: they reflected the amalgamation of my moods and memories from the day or week or month or year, a translation into color and sparkle.  I find it to be a freer, looser, somewhat more relaxing way of creating; there are no constraints, no benchmarks, no right or wrong answers!  Sometimes it's fun to create something just for the joy of creating it.  This franken was one of those. :)

>>> Fireside Dreaming <<<

OPI: Gwen Stefani Holiday 2014 Collection ["Rollin' in Cashmere" trio, etc]

Hello darlings, and Happy Monday to you!  What with school started up in full force once more (for the last semester of my life!!!) the posts will be fewer and farther between, most unfortunately, and despite a desperate backlog of swatches, holiday and otherwise :(  However, I just had to get this one up for multiple reasons: one, because all of these polishes were popping up for excellent deals immediately after Christmas at TJMaxx, Marshall's, etc, well in advance of when I would normally expect these to appear at discount stores (uh, usually next year!).  But indeed, the Rollin' in Cashmere trio featured here (incorporating "Rollin' in Cashmere", "Comet in the Sky", and "Snow Globetrotter") was snapped up at TJMaxx for *$9.99* by my savvy Auntie Deborah, who very kindly loaned it to me for swatching and news-sharing, before she tried them even.  Thank you oh so much, Auntie!!  You may consider this your bargain-hunting hit list, kittens.

Nail of the Day: Rainbow Honey "Siren Song" + "Pinkie Promise"

This is a bit cruel, but I'm sorry, these are too fabulous to keep to myself!!  The awesome Carolyn of Rainbow Honey surprised me with a few treats tucked into my giant RH haul package, and they just made me so happy :)  "Siren Song" of the Spring 2012 Chrono Cross collection and "Pinkie Promise" of the Summer 2012 Equestria collection are colors that I missed out on long ago and it was like a balm on my aching heart to see them in person!!  Sadly they are discontinued, so I will not torture you with descriptive odes to their gloriousness.  But can we just appreciate for a second the years and years of endlessly imaginative creations that the RH Lab has dreamed up??  Color me impressed.  And in love <3 

Rainbow Honey "Siren Song" + "Pinkie Promise"

For the curious, this is two coats of "Pinkie Promise" over OPI "Sorry I'm Fizzy Today" on my ring finger, and two coats of "Siren Song" on the rest.

Rainbow Honey is may be found online { http://www.rainbowhoney.com/ }.  I am SO UNBELIEVABLY EXCITED to see what's in the September Mystery Bag, and to try out my Limited Edition of choice, Calabaza!!!  I've been looking forward to this for WEEKS!!!! xxxooo