OPI Chic From Ears to Tail

For this manicure I used two shades from the Couture de Minnie Collection by OPI. The pink is Chic From Ears to Tail, and I used the glitter from Minnie Style for the accent line. I don't have many pinks in my collection, so to me Chic From Ears to Tail is unique. I want to love her, I really do. She has a lot of potential and could be great for nail art. But, sadly, she has a terrible formula. How does a polish manage to be thick and runny at the same time? I don't know, but she pulled it off spectacularly. I used three very even coats, and in some places it was still patchy. A good coat of Seche Vite top coat really helped to even things out, but I can still see some imperfections. What I do love about this polish is the color. I usually stay far, far away from Barbie-esque pinks, but this one is different somehow. It looks brighter in real life, but it isn't neon by any means. It has bluish/purple undertones which look great with my skin tone. My photographs don't quite capture the intensity and wash out the color a little bit. 

Outside in the shade. This is the most accurate depiction of the pink.

Full sun.

With flash. You can get a pretty good idea of the purple undertones in this picture.

Zucchini Bites with Hummus

Hello everyone! I have a simple and delicious recipe to share with you today. I am so excited to be a featured blogger on Fit Mom Diet. I post a monthly health eating recipe, and this is the most recent one. One of my favorite things about summertime is the abundance of fresh veggies. I can never get enough! The hummus is flavorful and full of protein, a perfect match for the roasted zucchini. 

Zucchini Bites with Hummus

Serves 4 as a side dish, 6 as an appetizer.

Ingredients:

• 1 can garbanzo beans, drained with liquid reserved
• 2 Tbsp tahini
• 2 tsp salt (optional)
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 4 zucchini
• 2 Tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley
• Salt and pepper (optional)

To make the hummus:

1. In a food processor combine the garbanzo beans, tahini, salt if you are using it, lemon juice, garlic, and 1 tbsp of the olive oil.

2. Process until smooth. If it’s too thick, you may need to add up to 4 tbsp of the reserved liquid from the beans.

To roast the zucchini:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Slice zucchini on the diagonal, approximately 1/4 in thick.

3. Lightly coat zucchini slices with the remaining olive oil and season with salt (optional) and pepper.

4. Roast on a rimmed baking sheet for approximately 15-20min, or until tender. How long it takes will depend on how thick you slice the zucchini.

Combine:

1. Let zucchini cool to room temperature, top with a spoonful of hummus.

2. Sprinkle chopped parsley and lemon zest on top of the hummus.

3. Serve and enjoy!

This dish is good warm, but I believe the delicate lemon flavor is more pronounced when it’s served at room temperature. The hummus is even better if you make it a day ahead of time, but making before you serve it works well, too. If you anticipate having leftovers, I suggest storing the hummus and zucchini separate and combining just before you plan to serve it. I had extra hummus so I served it to my son with raw carrots and broccoli. He loved it!

OPI Minnie Style and Zoya Ali

I have been so busy lately and have missed posting on my blog. I have been trying to meet a friend for lunch for three or four weeks now, and have intended to call my sister in law for I don't know how long. Each time it seems like something else pops up! I guess that's what happens when you have a ten month old who just learned to walk and wants to climb on everything. Time. I just need more of it! 

Zoya Ali is a retina-searing pink neon, and Minnie Style is a glitter with matte white hexagons and fuchsia hexagons. The first time I used it I thought the glitter was a mix of pink and red but since then I've realized it only looked  different because of the lighting. Anyway, it goes with a lot of the polishes I own and I love the versatility. Ali never translates well in photographs, it's one of those colors you need to see in real life. I love how bright it is, but sometimes it's almost blinding. Adding the glitter toned it down a notch.

Shade

Sun

Flash

Sally Hansen Fuzzy Coat

These just came out and I am so excited that I got my hands on them. I bought three, and I have two to show you today. A texture other than boring glitter? Yes, please!

First, the formula was good, maybe a little thicker than I'd like but nothing that a little thinner can't fix. Each polish has two different colored small bar glitters in a clear base. Maybe "glitter" isn't the best word to use, because they aren't shiny, but you get my drift :-) When you use multiple coats it looks like woven patches of yarn, or maybe shag carpeting. It appears very textured, but it is actually pretty smooth. One layer of topcoat completely covered any roughness. Fuzz-Sea was much easier to apply than Tweedy. I think next time I use Tweedy I'll have to add quite a bit of thinner.

This is Fuzz-Sea, it has aqua and pastel yellow in a clear base. I first wore it as an accent nail with OPI Jade is the New Black. I thought they were a perfect match. A few days later I chipped a nail and instead of fixing my mani I just added Fuzz-Sea to all my nails.

With flash.

This is in full sun.

The next one I used is called Tweedy, which is a simple black and white combination. One of my favorite looks is red, black, and white. I paired it with Innie Minnie Mighty Bow from the Couture de Minnie Collection. I loved this! I would have worn it longer, but sadly, it didn't stand up to a marathon dish washing session.

What do you think of these textured polishes?

Nicole by OPI-Miss Independent

I just picked this up at Target, it was on sale for $4 and I can't pass up a deal like that! I don't usually like straight metallics but this one is slightly pink and I ended up really liking it. The formula was good, nice consistency and it didn't show brushstrokes as much as I thought it would. I used three coats here. In the shade it looks like smooth chrome, but it the sunlight you can see little tiny flecks of glitter and it sparkles like crazy. I think this color would be flattering on any skin tone.

Outside shade

Full sun

Shade

With flash

Pineapple Rum Cake

My best friend requested I make a cake that had pineapple and rum in it and this is what I came up with. It tastes better if you make it a day or two ahead of time. Don't worry about it drying out, it's nearly impossible with all the rum its soaked in!

Feel free to use less rum if you want, but we like our cakes full of booze over here!  

Pineapple Rum Cake

Preheat the oven to 325

For the pineapple layer:

2/3 C brown sugar

1/3 C water

5 Tbsp butter

1-20 oz. can of sliced pineapple in juice

Melt the first three ingredients together in a small saucepan on the stovetop. Simmer for about 6 minutes, or until it has thickened slightly. Pour into a greased 13x9 nonstick pan. Drain pineapple and reserve juice separately. Arrange pineapple slices over the brown sugar mixture. 

Now, prepare the batter:

1-box yellow cake mix

3 eggs, beaten

1 C buttermilk*

1/4 C water

1/4 C olive oil

1/4 C melted butter 

*if you don't have buttermilk use 1 C milk+1 Tbsp vinegar

Mix all ingredients until just combined. Pour batter over pineapples and bake for 35 min or until done. As soon as you take the cake out of the oven, invert it over a serving platter or large, rimmed cookie sheet. Let it sit a minute or two and slowly remove the cake pan. If any of the pineapple sticks, you can just place it back on the top of the cake and no one will know! 

Mix together and pour over warm cake:

4 Tbsp pineapple juice 

3/4 C dark rum (use the good stuff!) 

Serve with pineapple whipped cream:

1 pint heavy whipping cream

4 Tbsp pineapple juice 

2 Tbsp brown sugar 

1 tsp unflavored gelatin 

In a small microwave safe bowl sprinkle gelatin over 1 Tbsp of the pineapple juice. Start whipping the cream, sugar, and remaining juice. Melt gelatin mixture in the microwave for about 15 seconds. When the cream forms soft peaks, add liquid gelatin mixture and incorporate well. Serve over cake and enjoy! 

OPI Pussy Galore

Pussy Galore. What can I say about you? You are pink....very pink. And full of sparkles. And I like you. 

This is the final Bond Girl I have to show you guys. I love this color, which is surprising. I'm not usually a fan of baby pink-way too girly for me! I think it's a combination of the texture and slight cool undertones that make this one wearable for me. It also has small dark pink glitter particles in the baby pink base. It adds some visual interest and I like that. Plus, I'm just waiting for someone to ask what I have on my nails so I can tell them the name!

The formula was similar to the other Bond Girls, perfect consistency and fast drying. No complaints there! I used two coats and that was good enough for full coverage. 

Inside, artificial light.

Outside shade.

Full sun.