NAIL ART | Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

How many sets of Christmas nails can I squeeze in this year? Holiday nail art is SO TOUGH because there are so many cute designs and there is a definite time limit! After the 25th, it’s all about glitter and celebratory NYE nail art which is a whole other type of fun. I have never done reindeer before so after pouring over what felt like dozens of ways to paint reindeer heads, I settled on these goofy looking guys with an appearance by the man himself – RUDOLPH!

NAILS | Mini Rudolph the Reindeers #CBBxManiMonday

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More than 10 years of nail art and I am feeling like a broken record when it comes to trying to be "creative" with holiday manicures even though they are my second favourite theme (Halloween is #1!). Now, that I don't have the same amount of patience as before, my manicures are simple and generally require no more than four bottles polish. Doing Star Wars, Grinch or Minions nail art usually had me bringing out 10+ bottles and even though I am so happy I have these manicures in my library, I'm not sure if I will be able to summon the energy to do nails like that again. For now, it's going to be about sweet and simple nails that anyone can do like these mini Rudolph the Reindeer nails!

NAILS | Hi, Rudolph! #CBBxManiMonday

We are one week into December and does it feel like the holidays yet for you? I am usually very anxious this time of the year stressing about whose house we are at for dinner, gifts to get and being alone for half of December as my husband usually visits his family in Montreal (I can never go because I work retail so this is obviously the busiest time of the year). This year is very different though and for the third time ever in our 15 year relationship, we will be spending Christmas together which is something I am looking forward to. 

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HOLIDAY | Massive LUSH Love Part 1 #LushChristmas

At this time last year, I was pretty chill. I chose to work part-time for the first time in my life and was using the excess energy to develop Cosmetic Proof. Fast forward to now and I'm back to 45+ hour work weeks and just breathless from trying to keep up with all of these AMAZING holiday releases! I have some pretty epic Lush stuff to share with you all and I have split it into two posts so that all of my wild ramblings are somewhat digestible.

Ah, Lush is not Lush without their work-of-art bar soaps! The classic Yog Nog* (100g/$6.95 CDN) is one that I bought last year and can never get over how comforting I find the nutmeg scent. It is a very festive scent and reminds me of marzipan and almonds. It also feel deliciously creamy against the skin. During the Lush Christmas event this year, we were all introduced to two new soap additions: Old Father Time* (100g/$6.95 CDN) and Reindeer Rock* (100g/$6.95 CDN) which again both smell fantastic! OFT is made with sage, thyme and redcurrant and be sure to grab a piece with the gold "cogs of time" on it. It just looks prettier :-) Reindeer Rock is made with lingonberries and smells tarte and juicy. It is the perfect Christmas soap!

NAILS | Black Widow Spiders #Halloween

Three sets of nails in one week is a lot even for me, but I am determined to go FULL Halloween before it becomes all about reindeer, glitter and Christmas trees. I should do religious nails this year since it's also about Jesus too, right? When I was asking people what sort of nails they wanted to see, someone suggested spiderwebs. Spiderwebs aren't any fun without spiders so I included the scary female black widow too. I know the red hourglass shape is really supposed to be on her belly, but this spider wouldn't look quite as fun if she were belly up because I think that would mean that she's dead...

NAILS | Have Yourself a Little Disney Christmas #CBBxManiMonday

Since it's the holidays, my work has decided to open up to 6 days a week as it used to be 5 due to the COVID situation, skeleton staff etc. We have more people back now there is a little more room to breathe especially during a busy season like this one, but I'm sure it comes as no surprise that this year is a different one. Never before has online shopping become so important which has resulted in the quietest retail season I have ever participated in! By this time of the month, I am usually run off my feet, grumpy at the level of social energy I need to exude on a daily basis and trying to figure out who to see and eat with each weekend until New Year's. A huge part of me is relieved that I don't feel any of this anxiety this year. I am almost ashamed to admit that COVID and its restrictions has fed right into my TRUE introvertness and I now believe that I am a true loner who just knows how to function socially when I need to!  

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HOLIDAY | All Things Lips from Hard Candy with Swatches!

Today is my weekend and I am taking a much needed break by staying in and surrounding myself with both my furbabies and my makeup babies. Christmas is THIS WEEKEND if you can believe it and though I am now done with my giveaways for the year I still have a couple more holiday items to share that are super cute, affordable and guaranteed to be loved by all!

I don't discriminate when it comes to makeup as there are some amazing and terrible products from both the drugstore and luxury departments and though Hard Candy has had some hits and misses for me in the past, their lip products have always been consistently good in both pigmentation, range of shades and longevity so if you haven't had a chance to try them out or know someone who loves their lippies, these box sets will have them as giddy as a reindeer! 

#BusyGirlNails | Week 5–Brown

I made it! The very last day of the week! For this last week of the #busygirlnails challenge, I started off with two coats of China Glaze-IX which is the richest, most gorgeous dark brown I have ever used! I then used some gold water nail decals from Born Pretty and then a blue vinyl nail diamond decal from Beyond the Nail which I am LOVING! I kind of went for a jewellery-inspired look and I cannot get enough of it!

I enjoyed every week of this mini challenge and of course seeing everyone’s designs! I guess now it’s time for those Christmas nail designs! Bring on the snowflakes, candy cane swirls and reindeer!

NAILS | Wintery Trees #CBBxManiMonday

This time of the month is what I think of as the "sweet spot" of Christmas where we still like the holiday music that is now playing in every store and there is still ample amounts of time to get things done and wrap up unfinished projects and goals before the year is out. Working in retail and especially the luxury retail sector means that reaching out to clients is the only name of the game until Dec.24th so I am waiting for the holidays to hit me like a ton of bricks around next week as it always does. Like on my wedding day, I am trying to stay "present" and calm so that I can think logically if a staff member or client has a problem as well as enjoy the season where clients shake your hands and wish you all the best for the New Year!

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NAILS | Emerald Christmas Trees #ManiMonday

"O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree" - greetings to the first holiday-themed manicure of the season! I had really wanted to start much sooner, but I honestly haven't been all that inspired. Christmas nails are probably my least favourite forms of nail art (weird, I know considering the type of season it is) mainly because I feel like once you have done one form of Santa or reindeer nails, you've pretty much done them all. I've done Christmas minions and Seasonal Stormtroopers to add some variety to the typical Christmas manicures and I think I may have to do the same this year so any suggestions are welcomed!

Nail Art | Christmas with Snoopy and the OPI Peanuts Collection

I found it a bit odd that the OPI Peanuts Collection was a Halloween release as I certainly do not associate Snoopy and the Peanuts crew with it. Christmas on the other hand? For sure! Watching Charlie Brown is just as necessary as watching “It’s a Wonderful Life” (which I’ve only watched once because it makes me TOO contemplative). I felt a little strange just painting my nails all yellow with OPI – Good Grief!*, so I decided to add a little Snoopy too.