Nail Polish: Butter - Artful Dodger

I never considered myself a blue nail polish person -- they were all overshadowed by a bad stint with some shimmery cobalt in high school. Apparently, my BFF knew better than I did when she gifted me this hue for Christmas - I adore it! It's a muted shade with a yellow undertone and smooth creamy finish. It has garnered many compliments from strangers and has managed to remain at the top of my polish basket.

Butter - Artful Dodger

Nail Polishes: The Length of my Obsession

If I was down to ten dollars with a week yet til pay day and no food in the house, I would likely spend $8 on a new nail polish and the remaining $2 on ramen...aaaaand be perfectly content with that decision. I'm not quite sure what it is, but with all the polish I have I still feel a burning need to acquire more; this shade but with a touch more red or this shade with a little more grey - less purple - no sparkles - more muted....and on and on and so fourth. The worst part is, these options are out there! The colors that you seek and more keep coming every season. There are new colors and trends, but then you also use up all your classics and favorites and need to replenish.  It is truly an endless cycle. I decided to put my love to the test and measure out my nail polish basket. This basket is where I store all of my nail care items and polishes. Whenever it is too full, I force myself to purge and share or toss to make room for the new additions. If I did not have this measuring tool, my habit would easily double and triple and I would likely die of a heart attack from the over does of sodium on a ramen diet!

Here she is...for reference this table is 8' long:

Effervescent Nails!

Base Color: Essie Marshmallow
Grey Spots: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Wet Cement
Gold Spots: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Time to Shine (which appears to no longer be available, any gold will do)
Top Coat: Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat

I just used the tip of a pencil to dip in nail polish blogs that I dropped on a piece of paper...very low tech operation here in the fox den.

Colors!: 2013 - Emerald

Apparently, Pantone has been checking my searches because they totally stole my current color interest when they chose Emerald as their color of the year (literally, I even used "emerald" they didn't even try to hide it!). So get ready to see green everywhere you go, thankfully it's a pretty universally flattering color to all skin, hair, and eye colors. As a result of my already piqued interest, I have a bunch of cute ways to incorporate this hot hue into your look.

1. Green Colored Pencil

2. Emerald Shadow in an Emerald Case - Seriously Emerald
3. Maybe Dorothy Should Have Worn These to Meet the Wizard
4. Two Trends for the Price of One! Emerald AND Lace
5. Aaaaaand it's on Sale!
6. British Racing Green
7. Emerald as Emeralds
8. Year Round Emerald
9. A Lot for a Little

The Under $20 Gift Guide - For Her

Whether youhave a tight budget, or a bunch of ladies in your life to buy for, these are a few budget friendly options that will bring a lot of cheer. The Seche Vite Top Coat (1) is a must for any manicure if you pair it with a color polish (2) selected to suit your girl it can be useful and thoughtful gift. Most girls and ladies are obsessed with colorful pens, we love to write out cards and maybe some still even right checks, or add a little color to doodles, this pack of Le Pens (3) class it up a bit with there chic nimble design and your lady with have a year full of colors to choose from. An affordable, casual, and stylish scarf (4) that goes with most skin tones and personalities never goes to the Goodwill bin. I grouped ModCloth accessories (5) into a bunch because they have a lot of fabulous options that will definitely afford you the opportunity to watch your pennies while getting a completely personalized gift for your gal. The best parts of the ASOS belts (6) is there are tons on sale so you can pick two! Maybe choose one neutral and one vivid for a well balanced gift.

Golden Girl

Be brave! Add a little golden glitz to your day! Keep these pants (1,4) and skirt (8) casual with a chambray shirt or dress them up with a classic fitted black sweater. Throw on these metallic shoes (2) or tote bag (7) and add a touch of glam to everyday errands. For an even subtler approach put on a slash of golden eyeliner (5) or a slick of metallic polish(6) for some surprise shimmer. This snazzy collar (3) infuses an elegant cuteness over a simple blouse or crewneck. Go ahead, you can do it!

1. Go for Baroque
2. Midas Toes
3. Hardware Neckware
4. Golden Gams
5. If Cinna can do it, so can you!
6. Good as Gold
7. I have a couple of these in different colors, no cute name, just facts
8. "Flash" Some Thigh

Nail Polish: Essie - beyond cozy

What a lovely way to welcome winter with a bit of comfortable glam! I suspect this bottle will be used up by February.

Essie - beyond cozy