Saturday, March 19, 2011

TUTORIAL: Penguin Nails


What you'll need:

- Blue nail polish
- Black nail polish (nail pen works best)
- White nail polish (nail pen works best)
- Orange nail polish (nail pen works best)

** As always, I feel the need to mention that it's not necessary to use all the same colors that I do, my tutorials are just for a basic reference to help stir your imagination! You can also use acrylic paints as an alternative to nail polish because there are a HUGE range of colors and each bottle is under $2! BUT, in my personal opinion I feel that nail polish lasts longer and doesn't chip or peel as easy as acrylic paint. **

Happy painting!


Saturday, March 12, 2011

ManeMaxx Installation Guide: How to & Tips



! HAIR EXTENSIONS !

Now if you're anything like me, just the thought or sound of hair extensions is enough to get you all hot and bothered! Or is that just me? Hmmm...

I digress.

Anyways, if you are on the hunt to get hair extensions, I'm sure you've done your research and seen every type of extension method possible. It's a confusing world and there's so many varied opinions on each method that it feels like you're not making any progress in picking a method, trust me, I've been there, done that. I'd like to point out that I've really only tried two methods, the metal microlinks, and the strand by strand ManeMaxx (and dabbled in the clip-in world).

After many months...actually...what turned out to be roughly 2 years worth of research, I'd heard so many positive and so many negative reviews on strand by strand keratin bonds that I just couldn't make up my mind on what method to use. I had heard horror stories about the stylist taking out the extensions and entire chunks of hair falling out from the scalp! Definitely NOT something I'd look forward to when getting extensions! I finally stumbled across ManeMaxx by Googling "natural hair extensions." I ended up stalking Tiffany's website for well over 6 months umm-ing and ahh-ing over whether or not to get these extensions, I hadn't seen a single review posted on this method so I was very hesitant to say the least. I decided to take a leap of faith and test ManeMaxx out...and am I ever glad I did!

While I haven't tested out a ton of other methods, I am completely happy with ManeMaxx :) You may be able to tell after the numerous videos I`ve posted on YouTube about it!

I could honestly go on forever talking about ManeMaxx and why I love it, but instead...I`ll let you watch my videos and break it down to a quick pros vs cons.

Pros:

- Non-damaging extensions

- No chemicals to use when removing your bonds

- Virtually undetectable bonds

- Wears SUPER comfortably, can't even tell you have extensions in

- Affordable. After the initial investment, all you need to maintain or do continuous installs is the bond and new hair

- DIY means no need to schedule appointments or pay for maintenance

- Very natural look and wear

Cons:

- High learning curve

- Need to have lots of patience for installs

- Uninstalls a bit messy with all the bond fall out

As you can see I'm very PRO ManeMaxx, the method itself is great, the only "issue" I can complain about is the initial learning curve for installing, once you have around 30-50 bonds in, you start to get the feel of what-to-do and what-not-to-do. Yes, the first install is a pain, but if you intend on wearing hear extensions for more than one install, this method will save you oodles of money! And that to me...is worth it in the end...the more money saved means the more I can spend on hair products ;)

So if you're thinking about trying out the ManeMaxx method but still looking for more detailed information on the method, be sure to check out the rest of my ManeMaxx videos posted on my YouTube channel http://www.youtube.com/user/darkempriss?feature=mhum as well as the official ManeMaxx website and YouTube channel.

Nope, not affiliated or sponsored by ManeMaxx, just happen to love their products :)

Here are some before and after pictures of my hair growth while using the ManeMaxx extensions.






Happy styling!

TUTORIAL: Snowmen Nails



As the first snowflake falls, there is no question that winter is upon us...and while we can't do much about the weather and wish it away, we can certainly jazz up our nails and make this season a little more bearable!

What you'll need:

- Blue nail polish
- Black nail polish (nail pen works best)
- White nail polish (nail pen works best)
- Orange nail polish (nail pen works best)

** As always, I feel the need to mention that it's not necessary to use all the same colors that I do, my tutorials are just for a basic reference to help stir your imagination! You can also use acrylic paints as an alternative to nail polish because there are a HUGE range of colors and each bottle is under $2! BUT, in my personal opinion I feel that nail polish lasts longer and doesn't chip or peel as easy as acrylic paint. **

Happy painting!

Sunday, March 6, 2011

REVIEW: Goody Spin Pins


You gotta love smart, yet affordable innovations...and Goody Spin Pins my friends are exactly that! These spin pins claim to do the work of 20 bobby pins and they're not lying! It takes just two pins to secure your bun and holds it securely in place all day.

Now they're called spin pins for a reason, when you insert them into your hair and take them out of your hair, you literally have to spin/twist them in/out, once spun into your hair, you can try remove them by pulling them out but they will not budge!

I wore these faithfully during my trip to Turks & Caicos and wore them even during my ventures into the salt water. These pins stood up against the test of time and did not rust one bit. I'd have to say these pins have been a great investment for only $8 CDN...give up 2 of your daily lattes and you've got some great little pins to last almost a lifetime!


Happy styling!

REVIEW: EOS Adult Brown Circle Lens


Blue eyes, green eyes, brown eyes, hazel eyes...oh wait, I don't have hazel eyes...until now! *Insert evil laughter here*...wait...wrong moment...Aaaanyways, it's been awhile since I've switched up my eye color and I've gotta say, I'm kind of over the big dolly-eyed effect that my previous circle lenses gave me, I just want to change the color of my eyes! This is where the EOS Circle Lenses come in.

The diameter is a straight 14.0 mm instead of 14.5 mm (I think) and I have to say I like the overall effect! It feels like these EOS lenses wear more comfortably for me compared to the Geo lenses. This time around I ordered from www.ilovecirclelenses.com, the lenses were $20 and shipping was only $3.75, can't beat that deal! Have a look at the pics below to see what these lenses look like :)

Happy shopping!

TUTORIAL: Sunset Nails


This is my go-to nail look when I'm having a creative block. Hope you enjoy :)

What you'll need:

- Blue nail polish
- Pink nail polish
- Yellow nail polish (nail pen works best)
- Orange nail polish (nail pen works best)
- Green nail polish (nail pen works best)
- Black nail polish (nail pen works best)

** As always, I feel the need to mention that it's not necessary to use all the same colors that I do, my tutorials are just for a basic reference to help stir your imagination! You can also use acrylic paints as an alternative to nail polish because there are a HUGE range of colors and each bottle is under $2! BUT, in my personal opinion I feel that nail polish lasts longer and doesn't chip or peel as easy as acrylic paint. **

Happy painting!

I Don't Wanna Go To Jail!


Just a little vid about the exciting weekend that I had!

Happy viewing!