Manicure Monday- blue edition

used to hate my nails growing up because I was a severe nail biter. I guess that's why I started putting on nail polishes- to stop me from biting them. I still put on polish whenever I can to keep me from biting them (I know, it's a bad bad habit…), but I love how pretty polishes can make my hand look. Now, I've amassed quite a big collection of nail polishes. 

I put Revlon's 320 Ocean Breeze as the base colour for this look. It's a scented polish,
but I'm not too crazy about the scent. It still smells like regular ol polish to me…
However, the colour is quite beautiful. It reminds me of a bluer version of Essie's
Trophy Wife. The colour goes on nicely and is opaque with 2 coats.

I topped off this look with another Revlon polish- 934 Blue Mosaic. It's a beautiful blue glitter
polish with tiny blue glitter and large silver glitter chunks. You can definitely wear this on
its own and I've gotten tons of compliments every time I've worn it, but I decided to
put this on top of Ocean Breeze. This is a much cheaper alternative to Deborah Lippmann's
glitter polishes.

Basics for my wardrobe

y closet was in dire need of basics. I tend to always purchase statement pieces- you know, clothing items with an interesting detail and ignore the boring basics. However, when I was decluttering my closet last week I realized I desperately needed basics. I noted in my head what pieces I needed and went out on a mission to fill that void. And here's what I got:

I bought 3 tank tops at Gap. They are sooooo soft. What I love about them are the length
and the skinny straps. The tank is also not too thick and very stretchy. 

I bought a medium in all three. The small size fit, but I wanted something a little more
loose. And I'm always scared that clothes might shrink in the wash.
Plus, I hate tight-fitting clothes now. I'm still a little self-conscious about my belly
after having my 2nd so the looser the better ;-)

Originally this tank was almost $20CAD, but I got it on sale for $9.99CAD.

Now for the styling part. I paired the tank with my Bobeau sweater, Paige Denims,
Dolce Vita boots and my J Crew-inspired bubble necklace that I got on eBay.

I took off the sweater to show you what it looks like on its own. 

So the next 2 tanks are the exact same as the previous light gray one, but I think these
are the new colours for spring. These were on promotion for 2 for $25. It also came in
a navy blue (which I was also eyeing, but didn't get), a pastel pink and a few other colours.
I ended up just getting the neutral colours as I think they will go with a lot of things in my closet.

I paired this tank with my Milly jacket/blazer, Forever 21 skinny jeans and my Gap booties.

This is the last tank. It's in a charcoal gray. I would have liked to get a black, but they
didn't have it at the store I went to.

Here's a close-up of the label. I highly suggest checking these tanks out at Gap.

As you can see it is $18.50CAD each, but there was a special promotion going on.
I never get anything regular price at Gap as they are always having promotions or sales.

I paired this tank with my Isabel Marant blazer/jacket, IT Jeans cut-off shorts, Gap booties
and my Amrita Singh necklace.

Here's how the tank looks without the jacket.

This knit sweater from Zara was so hard to photograph. It's my favourite purchase though.
It reminds me a lot like the Helmut Lang sweaters. 

Here's a closer look. The material is stretchy and thin. I can see myself wearing this with
a lot of pieces in my closet.

I got this for $39.90CAD. They also had a white version, but the white was very white.
I would have liked it if it was more of cream colour. So I ended up just getting the
black. The only downside is this material looks prone to snagging so I would be extra
careful when wearing this.

Here I am wearing it with my Marc by Marc Jacobs jean capri shorts, Nine West pumps
and my Gorjana star necklace.

I also paired it with my Club Monaco skirt, Roger Viver flats, a Burberry-inspired cross-body
bag and my Psalm 91:1 necklace.

Next, I picked up a basic V-neck tee from Zara. 

I got it in a medium. It's a little big on me, but they didn't have a small in the store.
I might try to shrink it in the wash.

It was $11.90CAD.
I love how soft this tee is. It is also a little distressed so it looks really flattering on.

I wore this with my Club Monaco boyfriend blazer, Marc by Marc Jacobs capri shorts,
Nine West pumps and my HRH Collection necklace.

Here's what it looks without the blazer. I would have worn a belt, but I don't have anything
in my closet that will go with this look. Maybe that's next on my shopping list…

I am pleased with everything I bought. I also filmed a video of me wearing all the pieces. I posted it on YouTube, but I'm unsure whether to make it live…

A little beauty haul

had to go to Sephora yesterday to pick up my holy grail liquid eyeliner- the Sephora brand Long-Lasting 12HR Wear Eye Liner. I've talked about it here in a previous post. Of course, it never ends up being a quick grab and dash whenever I go to the mall. I picked up a few more beauty items. Nothing too crazy, but I'm really loving everything I picked up. I also picked up a few clothing items which I will talk about in my next post.

I've been curious about these hair ties when I saw Kendall Jenner wearing them on her
wrist on Keeping Up With the Kardashians. I always have 1 or 2 hair ties on my wrist
at all times. I always end up giving 1 to my sister or friends when they need it. Also,
since I have long hair, hair ties are a must. Especially with 2 little ones to care for.

Here's what one looks like on my wrist. It's super cute. I've also tried using them to
tie a pony tail and it holds up pretty well. It was $10CAD for a pack of 8. They also
had a different colour set with more neutral colours, but I thought these were more me.

Although I have a ton of nail polishes I realized I didn't have any glitter polishes that are

gold or rose-gold toned. I do have a very fine gold glitter polish, but I wanted a polish

with chunky glitters. I've been obsessed with Amelia's nails on her blog and she loves using

glitter polish as a top coat so I immediately wanted to get this polish at Sephora. It's

the Sephora by OPI top coat called Traffic Stopper Copper. It's a rose-gold glitter top coat
with multi-sized glitters on a clear base. I was also eyeing the gold version called
Only Gold For Me and a purple one called Mauve-ie Star In The Making.

This was $12CAD. I wanted to try 1 before getting the others. I might have to pick up
the others now because I love it.

Here's what it looks on my nails. I did use a nude colour as a base. It's Going Nude, Eh?
from Sephora by OPI. It's no longer available, but a ton of other companies make similar
nudes.

Another view.

So this is what I went in for. It's my go-to liner. I'm sad that they raised the price.
I remember it being $12CAD, but now it is $15CAD. It's still cheaper than other high-end
liquid eyeliners so I'm fine with the price increase. I get the 01 Black. For those of you
who are interested this liner it also comes with a brush tip. It has something like 'High Precision
Brush' on the side of the tube. I don't like that one. Make sure you get the one that doesn't
have that on the tube. The brush on that one is very flimsy. This one has a felt-tip so
you have more control.

I didn't get this on my trip to the mall. I ordered this off of eBay. I normally get the Dolly
Wink liquid eyeliner at an Asian mall where I live, but it is quite expensive. I think it
comes out to almost $28CAD with tax.
I decided to check out eBay to see if it would be a bit cheaper… and it was. I paid $17.48USD
with free shipping. Here is the seller if you are interested- terry_yuen72.

They changed the packaging from when I last bought it. I don't like it as much.
Apparently the formula is better now? I'll have to test it out.

And here is the felt tip. It's very fine and well-made. The felt tip is much sharper than
the Sephora brand one. 

Here is the old packaging. Much cuter, I think.

Here's what it looks like on my hand. The top line is with a thicker stroke and the bottom
line is a thinner stroke. I like using this liner to make the flick on my cat eye because you
can make a very sharp and precise flick because of how fine the felt tip is. BUT,
I don't like using this to make a general line on my eyes because I don't find the black
is as intense and pigmented as the Sephora brand liner.

Here is the Sephora brand liner below the Dolly Wink liner. You can see how intense
the black is. I made a thicker line and a thinner line. The Sephora brand liner is not
that great making a wing because the tip of the felt tip is not that fine. I like my wing
on my cat eye to be very precise.

Stay tuned for my clothing haul. Hope you guys are enjoying your week!