AUSSIETIGER29

Happy New Year!

2012-01-07T07:58:00.001+10:00

Happy New Year everyone!!

I know my Youtube videos and blogposts have been few and far between in 2011, but I'm hoping 2012 will be a better year for it!

There's only one little issue, I'm not sure what you guys would like to see!

Comment below or send me an email (aussietiger29@hotmail.com) with ideas or suggestions you'd like to see for videos or blogposts!!

French tip with a twist!

2011-10-23T07:02:00.000+10:00

I just wanted to share this nail look I did yesterday and am loving! It's a French tip with a twist - instead of your standard white French polish, I've used two different colours and alternated them :)

Hope you like it :)

The nail polishes I used were:

- L.A. Girl Metal polish in Millennium

- L.A. Girl Metal polish in Alkaline Blue

Nail Stamping - Fail or Success?

2011-10-16T20:21:00.000+10:00

First of all, I want to start with the fact that I had given up....You may ask on what, let me tell you - I had given up on my nail stamping image plates and all that goes with it!

Around May this year, I got hooked on Youtube videos and blogs that reviewed/gave tutorials/showed photos of anything to do with nail stamping. I thought it was fantastic, as my freehand drawing is not up to par with the professionals. The concept of the stamping is great, so I purchased a BUNCH of stuff related to nail stamping including:

- Set 1 of Bundle Monster image plates (21 image plates)
- Set 2 of Bundle Monster image plates (25 image plates)
- Several Konad image plates
- Stampers and scrapers
- Special Konad stamping polishes

Now I bought all this because I loved the concept of nail stamping. I was so excited when my packages arrived in the post!! I couldn't wait to get home and try it all! I took photos of everything (let me know if you'd like to see them!) and then tested out a few images...

Well, I wasn't impressed. The images weren't transferring from the stamp to my nail. If they did, it placed less than half on my nail, and the colour was faint. I watched Youtube tutorials and read blogs about how to fix the problem. One popular solution was to file the stamps down before use to help pick up the images...FAIL! It didn't work. I just used a standard nail file from the shops.

Over the past few months, I've been busy with wedding and honeymoon planning, so the nail stamping was put on the back burner...Now that time permits, I decided to try again last night. Without fail, the images still didn't transfer probably.

My one last attempt was to use a white buffer block (purchased from eBay a couple of months ago) to file the stamp. I went through the steps again: polish on image, scrape, stamp image and place on nail....I nearly fell off my chair when it actually transferred to my nail with 100% colour - SUCCESS!!

Not completely believing my luck, I tested different images, different plates, different polishes and different scrapers and they all worked too!!!

Now I can't wait to play with my nail stamping tools and experiment with different looks! If you've had a similar experience, use my motto: if in doubt, eBay has the answers!

What I've Been Loving Lately...

2011-10-02T07:11:00.001+10:00

10 Things I've Been Loving Lately!

Here are several things I've been loving lately!

(in no particular order)...

1. Painting my nails & experimenting with nail art - during the first 6 months of the year, I wasn't painting my nails as much, as I was trying to prevent staining because I was going to have natural nails for my wedding - however, 2 weeks before the wedding, my nails starting breaking (argh!) and I had to get acrylics :( However, when on our honeymoon in Canada, I stocked up on polishes and here I am again - with time to paint my nails and try new things with my nail brushes and nail art! It must be working, because I'm getting quite a few compliments :)

2. Bargain shopping - Last weekend, we went to the Gold Coast for a weekend away with my family...the boys 'convinced' Mum and I to go to the shops - well, Mum and I found some great bargains together! I found some L.A. Girl Disco Brites polishes, a lip colour remover (for long wear lipsticks), coconut shampoo and conditioner (yum!) and 2 hair masks :)

3. Being an enabler (lol) - Since I've gotten into nail polish a couple of years ago, none of my friends share the same interests, and they don't really understand my obsession! However, in the past few months, my friends have been noticing the polish that I'm wearing and asking lots of questions! So far, I've 'enabled' three friends to start their own nail polish collection :) Love it!!

4. Vouchers & coupons - There a lots of sites floating around the internet with cheap vouchers/coupons for meals, body treatments, courses etc...and I've joined a couple! I've bought meal deals, manicure/pedicure and just yesterday, I had a massage, facial and eye treatments...it was amazing! Such a cheap way to relax :)

5. Swatching nail polishes - Since buying all my new polishes in Canada, I've had some swatching to do! So relaxing and I love seeing how the polishes look like out of the bottle! (I've even started a new swatching method with the round palettes)

6. Words with Friends - If you have an iPhone and haven't checked this out, it's great! It's like Scrabble but you play against your friends that have the same app!

7. Hanging with Friends - Same concept as Words with Friends, however, it's Hangman :)

8. Finding new polish blogs - Lately, I've been reading so many polish blogs!! I've found some great ones, that update frequently (it motivates me to write more blogs!). I love looking at all the pictures and there is so much inspiration for me to try new things :) It's amazing to see the talent some people have :)

9. Splurging on pretty shoes - Now, I've never been a 'shoe girl' - I'd rather buy polishes or books, however my sister-in-law, bought new, expensive heels and they were so pretty! (Now who is the enabler! Lol) I splurged and bought a few pairs of gorgeous heels :) One pair of bright blue suede heels, a pair of light emerald heels and a pair of stone/beige wedges!! Beautiful!

10. TV shows - It's that time of year again! All of my favourite TV shows are back on air! Also, I've gotten hooked on the Kardashian show + spinoffs! Silly I know, but oh so funny! Lol.

I'd love to hear your comments and let me know what you've been loving lately!!

Any requests for blog topics, I'd love to hear too!

Nail Love: Spots, Spots, Spots...

2011-09-10T09:02:00.001+10:00

I've been loving wearing polish lately, and changing it up with my dotting tools! I've been getting lots of compliments, as well as requests from friends about colours and such that they'd like to see...here is the first look I did on Monday:

For the above look, I used:
- love & beauty in Teal (from Forever 21)
- Wet n Wild in Black Creme
- Wet n Wild in French White Creme

Everyone at work loved this and I had a request to do orange and yellow nails...Now, I don't actually have an orange polish, so I used a coral instead. This is what I created:

For the above look, I used:

- Piggy Polish in Coral Reef

- OPI in Fiercely Fiona

- L.A Colors Art Deco in Black

I hope you guys like these two looks...if you have any requests with colours you'd like to see, let me know!!

Got to love puppies!!

2011-08-18T21:48:00.000+10:00

Instead of a beauty related post, this is an animal/pet related post :) Hope you animal lovers like it!

Now I'm a pet lover, no doubt about it...I grew up with cats, a dog, birds, guinea pigs and fish! I always have pets, no matter what :) I have a big heart, especially where animals are concerned!

My husband and I were on our way home when I saw a sign for a pet store that made me squeal and made my husband jump! The sign read 'Keeshond puppies'...Now, if you don't know what a Keeshond looks like, then you're in for a surprise...they are the cutest little things! Now, I might be biased as the puppy dog I had growing up was a Keeshond and he was the best dog ever :D I knew I had to see the Keeshond puppy when I saw the sign...so in we went :) Here's a photo of me cuddling the cutie!

Isn't he adorable?!

I thought I might add a few photos of my puppy dog, Kobi :) Super cutie from puppy to adult, don't you think!?

Hope you guys liked this blog - love to hear from you :)

Long time, no read!

2011-08-10T06:45:00.001+10:00

It has been LONG overdue for a blog post and I'm here to say, here I am!

What have I been up to since my last post....
- working full-time
- planning my wedding (every weekend - hence the lack of posts),
- organising the honeymoon,
- the wedding day arrived (June 18th),
- the honeymoon arrived (June 22nd - 6 wonderful weeks in Canada!) and,
- we got home a week-and-a-half ago, and time has been hectic since seeing family and friends, the wedding photographer, working, unpacking and organising everything I bought!

Which brings us to today! I'll leave you with a couple photos to look at....

I used nail polish strips to create this look!

Milani '3D Holographic' polish in 'Hi-Tech'

Hello Hello!

2011-04-27T20:49:00.000+10:00

Well it scares me to even look at the date of my last blog entry...and as it is the same with my Youtube channel, I've been extremely busy and neglected both my blog and my videos! It seems that time is flying by and not giving me a chance to blog or film! But as luck has it, I have a spare 5 minutes tonight to write a quick blog entry!

I've been busy planning my wedding, working and more of the same! Every weekend it seems I'm out and about, and only home with enough time to do the cleaning and washing...does anyone else feel this?!

I had the chance to read 'The Hunger Games' series by Suzanne Collins. This series was recommended several times to me and after reading the blurb on the book, I was skeptical...but nevertheless, I purchased the books. Let me say, I finished the books in about four days (if only I didn't have to work, sleep or eat, I could've done it in two!)...This series is amazing! The books are so easy to read, I had trouble putting the books down! I'd love to hear if you've read these too :)

I finally cracked and purchased LOTS of books from www.bookdepository.co.uk. It's been a long time coming, but I was actually quite happy with the service and delivery time.

A more recent purchase (in the last couple of days!) has been making me want to share this with someone...and none of my 'real-life' friends understand my nail polish/nail art and overall nail obsession, but I finally caved and purchased both sets of the Bundle Monster nail stamping image plates! Very excited! I also ordered some Konad polishes :D I can't to receive my things!! I'd love to hear if you've got and wish you had these!!

On the other note, if you have any requests of what you'd like to see in my blog entries, let me know :) I don't have a lot of time, but I'd love to keep up on my blog...I haven't been wearing polish regularly at the moment (I don't want to run the risk of staining my nails yellow before my wedding!), but I'm open to ideas...

Hope you're all well! I'd love to hear what you've been up to!!

Small Book Haul!

2011-03-06T14:10:00.001+10:00

Small Book Haul!

It's book time!! I've bought some books lately and I thought I'd share them with you...

These two are a new series that has been recommended to me a bit. I saw them in Target and thought I'd buy them :)

These next three are all books that are apart of a series...

'Sookie Stackhouse' series

'Undead' series

'House of Night' series

This book is from an author that I've previously read and loved her work...

This is from the 'Little Black Dress' brand...

These two books were a set, Two for One...

I'd love to hear what you're thoughts are, if you've read any of them!

Nail Love: Black Crackle French Tip!

2011-02-20T16:14:00.000+10:00

I know it's been awhile since I've posted on my blog. Life has gotten very busy, but time is slowing down a little bit...

I wanted to share this look with you that I loved!! I thought it was awesome myself! I had lots of compliments on it too...

To create this look, I used:

- OPI Teal the Cows Come Home

- BYS Black Crackle

- L.A. Colors Art Deco in Silver Glitter

- plus a basecoat and topcoat!

Since I've been MIA for a little, I'd love to hear any blogs you'd love to see :)

10 Things I've Been Loving in January!

2011-01-18T21:07:00.000+10:00

Here are several things I've been loving in January!

(in no particular order)...

1. Candles - loving my vanilla scented candles from Ikea!

2. Nail art - I love experimenting with different nail art, especially my rhinestones.

3. Books - I've finished reading the 'House of Night' series...very different and unique, but good.

4. Friends - I've got some great friends that have been very supportive and caring, but have been there for me 100% :)

5. Dotting tools - I think using my dotting tools to create different manicures looks cute :)

6. Wedding planning - I love planning my wedding! There are so many things to do, yet, it seems to happen so quickly!

7. Photos - I've realised the importance of photos this month. They hold so many memories, and can bring laughter and happiness :)

8. iPhone - the thing I love the most about my iPhone, is the ability to take photos at any time!

9. Painting my nails - I find it so relaxing. I love the look of polished nails :)

10. Scrapbooking - I haven't had time to scrapbook for a long time, but I've decided to get back into it..I forgot how fun it can be!

Comment and let me know what you've been loving this January!!

Nail Love: Dots and Rhinestones!!

2011-01-12T08:19:00.000+10:00

Yesterday, I removed my nail polish. Now I know that doesn't sound too exciting...but the thing that amazed me was the length of time that the nail polish stayed on AND looked good! Minimal chipping - hardly noticeable at all! It feels like I haven't worn a nail polish that has that sort of 'staying power' in a long time....

Here's a photo of my nail polish look that stayed on for FIVE days (and I believe it could've stayed on longer - except I wanted a change!!)

I've had so many compliments on this look! It's simple to do, and looks fantastic! The nail polish I used for the base was Sinful Colors Mint Apple, while the nail polishes I used for the dots were Sephora by OPI Teal We Meet Again and Avon Mystic!

Another look I just created involved my dotting tool AND rhinestones this time! I've been wanting to use my nail tools and nail art in different ways...This is what I came up with!

This picture is BEFORE I added rhinestones...

With rhinestones for more jazz!

In sunlight!

That nail polish that I used for the accent finger and french tips was OPI Ogre-The-Top Blue, the glitter polish was Sinful Colors Suede Shoes and the dots are OPI Fiercely Fiona and OPI Yoga-ta Get This Blue! I also chose blue and yellow rhinestones to place over the dots on my accent finger - these are completely optional!

I did start with only three rhinestones on my accent finger...but I felt it looked lopsided, so I just continued to place them on until the whole nail was covered!

I hope you like these looks!

Nail Polish Swatches!

2011-01-01T12:15:00.001+10:00

If you liked my swatches from my Cherry Culture Haul, check out my nail polish swatch video!!

Swatches of Products from Cherry Culture!

2010-12-24T08:52:00.007+10:00

WARNING: Photo overload below! Lol.

Recently I ordered some nail polishes, lip products and eyeliners from Cherry Culture! I also uploaded a Cherry Culture Haul! to my Youtube channel. If you'd like to see my haul video, watch below :)

I wanted to show you swatches of all the products so that you can see what the colours look like compared to just seeing the product for a second in a video! I swatched all of the products on white paper, so that my skin didn't change the original shade. I hope these swatches help you out!

Click on photos to enlarge!

Nail Polish Swatches

(The brand is under the colour name)

L.A. Color Art Deco Swatches

NYX Lip Product Swatches

L-R: Dusty Rose, Heather, Peony, Milan, Tea Rose, Thalia, Goddess

(Sorry about the lipsticks - I took these photos after I swatched them! Some of them look a little funny!)

L-R: Dusty Rose, Heather, Peony, Milan

L-R: Tea Rose, Thalia, Goddess

Lip Product Swatches

(The brand is under the colour name)

L-R: Fling, Rendezvous, Secret Admirer

Eyeliner Swatches

(The brand is under the colour name)

I'd love to hear what you guys think of this entry and if you liked the swatches :)

Do-it-yourself manicures - easy and elegant!

2010-12-15T13:35:00.000+10:00

I've gotten into a habit of taking photos of ALL my nail looks that I do - even if it's just painting my nails one colour (like a normal person lol!). I've decided to do this so I have a record of what colours look like with my skin tone, as well as to look back and add/change to the look....so I thought I'd share some of these looks with you, they are so easy to do, and look great!

#1 Polka dots

I love, love, LOVE my dotting tool (well now I have more than one!).

#2 Nfu Oh 'Flakies'

These 'flakies' add that bit of 'jazz' to any polish!

#3 Different French Manicures

I love French manicures, so creating different looks by using different colours and adding a little glitter or rhinestones is perfect!

#4 Glitter

Whether it's glitter polish or nail art glitter, I love using them to create some depth to a look!

Easy and Simple Christmas Nails!

2010-12-06T17:15:00.003+10:00

Here's a nail look that I've been wearing to help bring in the Christmas season! It's very easy and simple to complete, and looks great on any length nail! I've been getting so many compliments - even from strangers!

The products I used were:

Essie Sensitivity Basecoat
China Glaze Ruby Pumps
L.A. Colors Art Deco - White
L.A. Colors Art Deco - Silver Glitter
Green Nail Art Rhinestones + IBD Nail Glue
Seche Vite Topcoat

I've really been loving experimenting with different french manicure looks. They always look elegant and sophisticated, plus if you use coloured nail polish, it creates a different look! Adding glitter and rhinestones just adds that pit of jazz to your nail look!!

Book review: Marley and Me by John Grogan

2010-11-30T15:49:00.002+10:00

Marley and Me: Life and Love with the

Word's Worst Dog

Are you a dog lover? Are you a sucker for stories that involve feel-good moments? Well then, Marley and Me is for you!!

If you have ever owned a dog, or any pet for that matter, or you are just an animal person, you need to read this book! It made me laugh, cry and laugh and cry some more!

Marley and Me is the story of a neurotic Labrador dog, who causes mayhem and destruction wherever he goes! I don't feel the need to explain the story, but if you are interested, read the blurb ------->>>>

Marley and Me is a true story about the relationship between John Grogan (yes, the author!) and his Labrador, Marley. The way that John Grogan writes makes you feel as if you are there with him, experiencing every moment of Marley's madness! Man's best friend really can be a dog!

I loved the fact that this book was so easy to read, simple and wonderful. This is definitely a family-orientated book, with different versions of the book available, including a picture book!

Beware: you will cry!!! You will laugh! You will shake your head at Marley's antics! There is no other dog like Marley...

Blue Polka Dot Nails!

2010-11-27T08:01:00.003+10:00

Is anyone else a bit scared of wearing blue nailpolish? I know I was! I only bought my first ever blue nailpolish in 2009! (For whoever is wondering, it was OPI Absolutely Alice - prettiest blue glitter!). However, I think I only wore it a couple of times because it was full-on blue! And let's face it, there are some colours out there, that might be a bit daunting to paint your nails with, because they are not your 'typical/ nailpolish colour!! I'm thinking of blues, greens, yellows and even some purples!

I'm here to show you a really elegant, but simple look to show you how to wear two different blue nailpolishes together! So get your blues out of storage and watch this tutorial to find out what you need to achieve this look!!

Hope you enjoy!!

Homebrand Beauty Products: My Thoughts!

2010-11-24T09:41:00.000+10:00

What I wanted to know: are homebrand beauty products cheap and nasty, or cheap and awesome!?

To find out, I set out to compare and use similar products, but that catch was: one of the products was homebrand and the other product was from well-known brand. Over the years, I always used products that were well-known brands, because I thought that homebrand was just a cheap knock-off of the brand products! I thought that:

Homebrand = cheap price = low quality = bad product!!

Also, when I lived with my parents, I didn't really think of the price (naughty I know!), but I just picked up the product that I always used. In saying that, I was aware that it was my parents who paid the grocery bill, so every so often, I would try homebrand products...Back then, the homebrand beauty products were not up to scratch.

Homebrand products a couple of years ago...
Make-up removal pads

The make-up removal pads fell apart as they didn't have sealed edges (so instead of having one pad, you had two!)
When the pad fell apart, the fibres went everywhere!
They weren't the softest thing around...
If you had dry skin, the fibres would cling to your skin!
Trying to use a pad to remove nail polish was useless, because after one nail, the pad became flimsy and useless!

Cotton tips

The cotton tips were inconsistent in size (some were tight, while the other end was fluffy!)
As soon as I place it in nail polish remover, the tip swelled to double the size, which meant I couldn't clean around my nails as well,
The quality was shocking...I remember the tip fell off a few times! (for no apparent reason! I didn't pull it off either!)

Nail polish remover

The nail polish remover wasn't moisturising and it made my skin feel drier after several uses
It didn't clean my nails properly!
It would take several make-up removal pads and lots of nail polish remover to take off my polish!

Needless to say, I went back to buying brand products, which was normally Swisspers or Cutex. I found that these brands had great products, that never did any of the above...however, the price tag was higher! It was only once I moved out of my parents place, a couple of years later, that I began to think about what I really used the products for! I mean, it's not like I was using these beauty products to eat off...and after one use, they went in the bin! Therefore, I decided to give homebrand another try...

Most of the time, I shop at Woolworths (a supermarket here in Australia), and everytime I reach the beauty aisle, I smile! That day, I made my way to the nail section and picked up the Woolworths Select nail polish remover, and from memory, there are three types to choose from: moisturising, nourishing and acetone-free (don't quote me on that though!). I decided to buy the moisturising type! I then went to the make-up removal pads and cotton tips, and picked up the Woolworths Homebrand of each.

Homebrand products now...

Make-up removal pads

The make-up removal pads now have sealed edges, which prevent them from falling apart
No messy fibres!
Doesn't cling to any dry skin!
When using with nail polish remover, I only need two pads!
Also, they are soft and very easy to use!

Cotton tips

The cotton tips are consistent in size, small and tight!
No fluffiness (if you like fluffy cotton tips, these aren't for you!)
When putting it in nail polish remover, the tip stays the same size, so it is really easy to clean around and under the nail!
Best of all, the tip doesn't fall off!

Nail polish remover

Given that I chose the moisturising nail polish remover, it actually moisturises my skin as well! It doesn't make my skin dry :) It has almond oil and shea butter in the ingredients!
It cleans my nails well and I only have to use a couple of make-up removal pads to take off my polish! (Unless I'm wearing glitter polish!!)
For a nail polish remover, it actually smells nice! Not your typical chemical smell!

You can tell how much I love this...
It's virtually empty!!

Needless to say, I now re-purchase these homebrand products constantly! I don't even look at the brand products anymore! Another plus of these homebrand products is the price! These are at least a few dollars cheaper, and are usually less than half the price of the brand products!

My verdict:

Homebrand = cheap price = great quality = awesome product!!

I hope this helps anyone who is a bit iffy about the quality of homebrand products! I'd love to hear what your thoughts of homebrand products are and any experiences you have!

Piggy Polish - Coral Reef: Review and Swatches!

2010-11-22T15:30:00.003+10:00

If you haven't heard of Piggy Polish before, it's a small boutique brand of polish. All of the polishes are marketed for your very own little piggies (the tagline is: 'Goes on toes!), however, I believe that these polishes look amazing on toenails AND fingernails!

Coral Reef is a soft, but bright coral colour, and is a creme formula! When I saw this bottle, my first thought was 'WOW!"...The colour was gorgeous in the bottle, and it proved to be even more so on my nails!

Coral Reef has a MEGA shine factor (and it doesn't fade either) and it is super durable...The formula is fantastic, and although the polish is quite sheer, after two coats (possibly three?) you have the desired look :) Even if you need three coats, the formula is thin and smooth, so your polish doesn't look chunky, but smooth and shiny!

Lastly, not only is the colour gorgeous, the formula smooth and the end result shiny, but the drying time was fairly quick. Plus, Piggy Polish has the cutest bottle which comes with your very own toe ring!

Welcome to my blog!!

2010-11-22T09:41:00.000+10:00

Thanks for coming to check out my blog!

As you can probably tell, this is my first entry :) I thought creating a blog would be a great way to share photos of things I love with you all (lots of nail polish swatches!), as well as fill you in with what I'm up to! Apart from that, I'm not 100% sure what I'll be writing about, but feel free to keep coming back and checking!! I never thought I'd create a blog, but here I am...Hopefully, you guys will keep coming back to make me feel loved! Lol.

Let me start with a little about me (you may or may not know!!)...

I'm obsessed with nail polish and reading!
I secretly enjoy swatching my polishes! (Anyone else??!)
I'm pedantic with my books (and my bookcase!)
My favourite flowers are gardenias :)
I make Youtube videos :)
I love meeting new people from around the world!
I prefer to watch TV shows on DVD - less ads lol!

Umm, there's lots more of course, but I don't want to bombard you with a full list straight off the bat!

If there's anything in particular that you'd like me to write about, let me know! I know there's some 'tags' that go around the blog world, so if you know of any, send them my way! I think they are so interesting!!

So, that's it for now!

Bye everyone!