Yeah, I Know ...

So yeah, I think I'm back for good now! I've been gone for a long time ... but now I think I am actually ready to get back to blogging. I want to get into the habit of blogging again because there are a lot things that I want to start documenting ... so hopefully this come back is for good this time!

Over the last month or so I have been accumulating a lot of new things! Online shopping will be the death of me! But the first thing that I am showing, I didn't actually buy ... I won it in a contest!

Everyone that knows me, knows that I am basically OBSESSED with YouTube. I am subscribed to a numerous amount of channels and check it on a daily (sometimes hourly lol) basis. So with that being said, I do have my favorites. There are some channels that I will go a couple of days and maybe weeks without having an urge to watch their videos. And there are others that I just CAN'T wait until they upload new ones.

Sooo anyways .. one of my absolute favorite YouTuber Lorraine Stanick started a newsletter and I happily joined the mailing list. And to my surprise a couple of weeks later she held a giveaway and I WON! When I found out that I won, I was super duper excited! lol The prize was my choice of a Lisa Taubes Chain Link Necklace. 

I ended up choosing the 5 ft gold fill chain necklace. The necklace retails for $168 and it is absolutely BEAUTIFUL! I love it! I can't wait to wear it!

 Lorraine and her family own a store called Exit Art

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 14

Day 14 - Something you hate

Seriously, there is nothing that I can say about this. Every time I think about the commercial for this particular product it makes me want to gag! Now I do need to clarify that I have eaten sour cream before, just didn't know that I was eating it. The main problem I have with it is the way it looks. If I don't see it then it's not really that big of a problem. The taste of it alone is also an issue ... ughhhh sooooooo gross!

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 13

Day 13 - Favorite board game

When I was younger my favorite board game was hands down Candyland! I absolutely loved this game! Today I can't really think of what my favorite board game would be, but if I had to choose then I would have to pick Scrabble.

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 12

Sooo now that I'm back, I'm going to continue the 100 Day Photo Challenge. I was so excited at the start of this challenge, that it's pretty pathetic that I only lasted to day 11. But any who, here it goes, day 12.

Day 12 - A prized possession

Nine years ago, on April 25, 2002, my Grandmother passed away. A few weeks prior was Easter. My sister and I decided to buy my Grandmother this Easter Bunny teddy bear and bring it to her at the nursing home where she was staying. I would consider this my prized possession simply because it is one of the last physical things that connect me to my Grandmother. I remember how excited she was when she received it and every time I look at it, it reminds me of her.

R.I.P. Grandma
12.1.1919 - 04.25.2002
R.I.P. Grandpa
01.23.1915 - 06.28.2008
.... may you both rest in perfect peace ♥ 

It's been a long time, I shouldn't have left you ...

The title of this blog is going to take on two roles ... first, my absence and second, my nail art.

Ok, so I'm back! It's been a while (almost two months), but I'm going to start getting into the swing of things. I really don't have and excuse as to why I haven't blogged. In the beginning, I could of said it was the rush of last minute school work that I needed to finish, but I have long been done with that! Sooo all of the time between then and now can simply be described as laziness. I just didn't feel like blogging! But now, I'm finally going to dedicate some of my time to this blog ... I mean it! lol

It's been an extremely long time since I did any sort of design on my nails. I can't even remember when was the last time! So yesterday, I decided I would bring back some flare to my nails and did leopard print. I forgot how much I love it!

Here are the products I used: 

Essie - Protein Base Coat

Essie - Guilty Pleasures

F21: Love&Beauty - Purple

Wet N Wild - Gray's Anatomy

Black Sharpie

Seche Vite - Dry Fast Top Coat

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 11

 Day 11 - Your favorite food

I don't have a favorite food .. but if I HAD to choose I would say sushi!! You can never go wrong with some sushi .. actually yes you can! lol I don't know when I started eating it ... but it sure is yummy!!

lol at this picture I found when I did a Google image search ... tooo cute!!

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 10

Day 10 - Your bedroom (In it's current state)

Tah-dahhh! Here's my room! Don't mind the suitcase ... I haven't unpacked since my trip to Atlanta. lol I'm just kidding! I'm going home tomorrow and I'm in the process of packing my bag! But anyways, here is the  best angle I could get of my room!

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 9

Day 9 - A talent of yours

Umm a talent of mine .... NAIL ART! lol Maybe it's not that much of a talent but I do enjoy it! If only I could draw pictures on my nails like the chick who writes The Daily Nail blog ... NOW THAT'S TALENT!!!

Here are a couple more pictures ... just because I like 'em!

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 8

Day 8- A picture of the best moment of your life

Every moment is the BEST moment ... period!

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 7

Day 7 - Something you love 

Everyone that knows me, knows that I have an OBSESSION with nail polish! My mom often says that I'm sick and need to be checked out by a doctor lol. I love nail polish ... but that doesn't mean that I necessarily like my collection! I often get bored with it and I don't think that there is a lot of variety ... that's why I just keep buying them! lol

After taking these pictures, I decided to count how many bottles I own .... The grand total is 126! That's all!!! I thought I had more ... I was guessing around 150! lol That just made me want to go get more polishes!

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 6

Day 6 - Your favorite quote, in your handwriting

This is virtually IMPOSSIBLE for me to choose! I have a weird obsession with quotes ... I seem to like them ALL! lol The qoute that I posted above is by Ishmael Beah, in his AMAZING book "Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Solider" (sooo mad I forgot to add this to my all time favorite book list!). As soon as I read that line, I wrote it EVERYWHERE! I absolutely love it! I think it speaks to everybody that seems to be going through a transitional period in their life .. actually, even just everyday life.

Now I had to add two more quotes ... 

Ever since I came back from Atlanta, I've been on this Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. kick. Two beautiful human beings. Everything that came out of their mouths is just truly inspirational.

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 5

Day 5 - A place that makes you happy

Soo, I had no idea what picture to use for today. And then I thought ... well my dorm room makes me pretty happy! People always ask me why I chose to live on the 17th floor and honestly I just really LOVE the view! I love looking out my window ... and when there are leaves on the trees it only looks better!

Perceptual Shift

I couldn't agree with her more. Beware of who we call our friends.

Perceptual Shift of Friendships

1. Occurs for a season and for a reason
2. Forgiveness
3. Be Civil

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 4

Day 4 - A picture of yourself 10 years ago

Oh boy! I wish I was at my house so I could upload a better picture ... but for now this is the best I can do! This picture was definitely taken 10 years ... back when I attended good ol' Cheverus! I really do miss that place! Some of the best memories I have are from there! I also met some of the MOST amazing people I know there! Some still around and others that are not ... but that's ok cause that place will always have a special place in my heart! 

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 3

Day 3- Favorite book that you own

Ok, so this one was pretty hard for me to choose! I have a list of about 10 favorite books. I just decided to include the lastest member to that list. "A Thousand Splendid Suns” by Khaled Hosseini is truely an AMAZING BOOK!. I've blogged about it before ... and honestly believe that everyone should read it!

Since this was a hard choice for me, I've decided to list some of my other all time favorite books!!

"Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert

"The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
"Milk in my Coffee" by Eric Jerome Dickey
"The Da Vinci Code" by Dan Brown

"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee

"What Becomes of the Brokenhearted: A Memoir" by E. Lynn Harris

Honestly, this list can go on and on ... 

100 Day Photo Challenge - Day 2

Day 2 - A photo that makes you happy

I can think of a lot of pictures that make me happy! There are hundreds! But for some reason this picture makes me super happy! This picture was taken the day of my cousin's First Communion, in 1994 I believe. My sister and I had been in the U.S. for about 5 months at that point and we were already fluent in English! It's crazy how time flys by! The youngest person in that picture is about to finish her first year in COLLEGE!! OMG! We are all getting soooo old!  

100 Day Photo Challenge

To get myself in the habit of constantly blogging, I have decided to start the 100 Day Photo Challenge. This challenge has been all over Facebook and I have seen various bloggers do it as well. I just thought that it would be something fun to do .. so I'm doing it! lol

There are various versions of this challenge circulating the Internet ... I just randomly picked one. Here is the challenge:

Day 1 - A picture of yourself taken on the first day of the challenge
Day 2 - A photo that makes you happy
Day 3- Favorite book that you own
Day 4 - A picture of yourself 10 years ago
Day 5 - A place that makes you happy.
Day 6 - Your favorite quote, in your handwriting
Day 7 - Something You love
Day 8- A picture of the best moment of your life
Day 9 - A talent of yours
Day 10 - Your bedroom (In it's current state)
Day 11 - Your favorite food
Day 12 - A prized possession
Day 13 - Favorite board game
Day 14 - Something you hate
Day 15 - Your childhood home
Day 16 – Something embarrassing in your room
Day 17 - Your pet(s)
Day 18 - Your favorite outfit
Day 19 - One of the best days of your life
Day 20 - Your Grades/Report card
Day 21 - A picture of your cell phone
Day 22 - Favorite CD that you own
Day 23 – A school picture
Day 24 - Favorite purchase ever made
Day 25 - A gift from a friend
Day 26 - A gift from your family
Day 27 - The shoes you wore today
Day 28 - The shirt you wore today
Day 29 - A pretty flower
Day 30 - Your breakfast
Day 31 - A picture of yourself taken today
Day 32 - Something you collect
Day 33 - Something you made
Day 34 - Something that makes you smile
Day 35 - Favorite movie that you own
Day 36 - A place were you spend a lot of time
Day 37 - The last restaurant you ate at
Day 38 - A useless trinket you own
Day 39 - Your favorite picture
Day 40 - An embarrassing picture from your childhood
Day 41 - Someone in your family
Day 42 - Something you did today
Day 43 - The weather outside
Day 44 - A hobby of yours
Day 45 - Your favorite food
Day 46 - A picture of your favorite state
Day 47 - A room in your house
Day 48 - Your best friend
Day 49 - A day your remember really well
Day 50 - Something you drew
Day 51 - Something passed down from your parents/grandparents
Day 52 - A picture of yourself celebrating for getting this far
Day 53 - The last thing you bought
Day 54 - A picture of yourself from middle school
Day 55 - What your wearing today
Day 56 - A drawing of your favorite cartoon character
Day 57 - Everything inside your purse/backpack/wallet
Day 58 - Your favorite animal
Day 59 - Your most used electronic device
Day 60 - Last movie you watched
Day 61 - School class picture
Day 62 - Last place you traveled to
Day 63 - Sports awards
Day 64 - Favorite childhood book
Day 65 - A picture of you and your best friend
Day 66 - A picture in your room
Day 67 - Something green

Day 68 - A magazine you like
Day 69 - Something Red
Day 70 - Something you borrowed from someone else
Day 71 - A picture of your favorite piece of jewelry
Day 72 - A stuffed animal
Day 73 - Your lunch
Day 74 - Something you found under your bed
Day 75 - You and a friend
Day 76 - Something that annoys you
Day 77 - The last thing that you bought
Day 78 - Your sunglasses
Day 79 - A ticket from somewhere you've been
Day 80 - Your favorite childhood movie
Day 81 - Something you baked
Day 82 - The most embarrassing thing in your closet
Day 83 - The moon tonight
Day 84 - Your favorite pair of shorts
Day 85 - Something Pink
Day 86 - Something your mom bought you
Day 87 - Something you hold dear to your heart
Day 88 - Your bathroom
Day 89 - What's in your fridge?
Day 90 - Your current school photo
Day 91 - Something that made you smile today
Day 92 - Something weird in your house
Day 93 - The view from your bedroom window
Day 94 - What your doing right now
Day 95 - Something yellow
Day 96 - A place you went today
Day 97 - Something heart shaped
Day 98 - Your favorite nail polish color
Day 99 - Something that makes you feel accomplished
Day 100 - The final picture of yourself

Sooo here I go …

Day 1 - A picture of yourself taken on the first day of the challenge

Hopefully I can keep up with this challenge … it looks like fun!

GET ON MY LEVEL

I wanted to post these pictures yesterday, but when I got a closer look at what my nails looked like .... I was not feeling it! But it was stated by MoreThanJazz that I needed to "get on her level". WHATEVVVAA! But anyways here you go ....

I've been pretty bored with my nails lately! Actually I take that back ... I've enjoyed the colors that I used in the last couple of weeks, I just feel like they have been blaahhhh! Maybe I need to get a new stash of nail polishes (which would be stupid since I've only used one color from my Essie nail polishes).

But any-who ... here they are:

Essie - Pretty Edgy,

This is how my nails looked before I went to the ATL. I've been looking for a PERFECT green and I think I have found it!

Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Extreme Wear - Pacific Blue

This is honestly one of my FAVORITE blues! I love this color!! (Sorry, I only have a thumb shot!)

N.Y.C In a New York Minute - Uptown

CoverGirl Boundless Color - Disco Dazzle

So this CoverGirl glitter nail polish is AMAZING! I've looked for it everywhere in stores, online, EVERYWHERE and it is nowhere to be found! It makes me kindda sad cause I'm almost done with my bottle! :(

Funky Fingers - Bizerk Turquoise

L.A. Colors Art Deco - Silver

Black Sharpie 

This is how my nails look like now. Nothing special ... just blahh! lol LOVE this turquoise though! The picture does not show it's true color. 

Maybe I'll do some funky designs on my nails next week ... we'll see!

MON COEUR NE BAT PLUS QUAND JE TE VOIS ...

I've been on this French music kick lately and I blame it all on my French teacher.

My absolute favorite has been the band Yalle. I've been playing this song like crazy … I LOVE IT! And my favorite song by them is Que veux-tu (I want you). Even if you don't understand I think that the beat is really catchy … sooo enjoy!

AYITI CHERI

It's official! I just booked my ticket to Haiti!

Well my uncle did … but I AM GOING TO HAITI!

This is going to be a trip of a lifetime! Words cannot not express how excited I am! What makes it better is that my ENTIRE family is going to be there! There has been talks for years about how in 2011 everyone was going to take a trip down to Haiti, but for some reason I never thought that it was really going to happen.

And now here we are and our flights have been booked. We are officially going to Haiti.

This is going to be my second trip to Haiti. The first time I went was 20 long years ago! (wow I just realized that it has been that long!) I vaguely remember things here and there, but the memories of the last time I was there are in a dark and deep corner of my brain.

I can only imagine it now! I really can't contain my excitement! However, the more I think about it, the more it make me miss my grandparents. Their absence is truly going to be felt. My entire family is coming together in the place that essentially started it all. If only they were alive to experience this moment with us.

I will cherish this trip for the rest of my life, cause there might not be another one like it!

I've been gone way too long ...

I'M COMING BACK ...

SOON! :)

YES ... I know that I'm addicted!

Last weekend I stayed up pretty late and found myself doing a little on-line shopping. I had just finished watching a Youtube video of a nail polish collection and realized that I did not own any Essie nail polishes. Each bottle is about $8 or $9 depending on where you buy them. I didn't want to spend anywhere near that price, so I decided to look around for different prices.

I went on Ebay and Amazon and found some sellers that were selling each bottle for about $4 to $6, including shipping. I bought nine nail polishes total and I think I spent around $36! That is a steal compared to the price I would of paid for them in stores (between $72-$81).

After I got all of the bottles I noticed that I picked colors that were similar to each other, but that does not make me any less excited to have them in my possession! I haven't tried them out yet, but I can't wait! I will definitely be buying more in the near future … super excited!

Colors from left to right: Pink Parka, Knockout Pout, Haute 

as Hello, Vermillionaire, Chubby Cheeks, Turquoise &

 Caicos, Pretty Edgy, Going Incognito, Mink Muffs

Also, during a recent trip to Sally's, I bought a bottle of Seche Vite and got a free China Glaze nail polish. I decided to get Re-Fresh Mint and I ABSOLUTELY love this color! I had it on my nails this week and I cannot tell you how many compliments I got. It is definitely becoming one of my favorites!

China Glaze - Re-Fresh Mint

Ohh and finally, I decided to get a rhinestone wheel. I've wanted to get my hands on some nail rhinestones for a while now and I don't know why I never bought one! I haven't tried them out yet, but I know it will be fun! I got a wheel with different colors in it and I think I'm going to purchase one with just clear/crystal ones. I can't wait to cover my nails in rhinestones!

GOING TRIBAL

I was browsing through a couple of blogs the other night and I happened to be on Nikole Crowe's blog, The Moptop Maven (I LOVE her hair). But anyways, she did a post on tribal inspired nails a while back, I thought it was cute so I wanted to try it out. She used a taupe and yellow as her main colors. I wanted to try it with another color, so I choose hot pink instead. Here is my attempt at going tribal lol.

Here are the colors that I used. The pictures are not the best quality, but oh well! I tried my best!

First I applied a base coat. Whenever you paint your nails a base coat is a MUST! I cannot stress this enough. My base coat of choice is Sally Hansen Hard as Nails.

Then I applied a taupe-ish color to a little more than half of my nail. I used Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Commander in Chic.

   

Then I added Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Fast Dry Nail Color in Flyin' Fuchsia to the rest of my nail.

The next stop was to draw a line in between the two base colors. I painted the line using L.A Colors Art Deco in black.

I then drew horizontal and vertical lines on the pink portion of my nails.

Then I drew dots along the taupe color. And then I finished using Sally Hansen Super Shine Shiny Top Coat.  

And Voilà! That's it! I'm not sure if I like it yet … if it's still on my nails tomorrow that means I can live with it.

WATCH CRAZE

Sorry! I couldn't get a better picture! 

For the past couple of months I have had this crazy obsession with watches. Every watch that I fall in love with … I HAVE to get. It may seem a little ridiculous but all of these watches are to die for and might I add all under $15! I want to be able to expand my watch collection, but not have to spend tons of money on them … not now anyways. These watches are not worn everyday (I have others that serve that purpose), they are just there to to make an appearance once in a while.

This watch craze started when I first saw this Michael Kors rose gold watch. I am completely in love with this watch. I fantasize about the day that it will be on my wrist … not really but y'all get the point, it's AMAZING!

It retails for $250 and I honestly don't think that that is a lot of money. I just can't see myself buying it now, SOON, but not now. The main reason I got my gold watch from Target, was because it kind of resembled it, well at least it has sort of the same affect. For now, this watch will just have to do.

The black and white watches are the same. I also got them from Target and I just thought they were cute so I had to get both!

The tortoise shell watch I got today at Walmart (sorry, I can't find it online). I only got it cause it reminded me of a watch that Josiebean posted a couple of days ago from ASOS. Although the watch I just got is pretty cute, I can't wait to get my hands on the one from ASOS … I love it!

I have a couple more watches that I would love to get in my possession in the near future, but for now I am thrilled about all of the ones that I have … they all make me happy! :)

<3 Jess

GOOD READS!

I cannot explain the feeling that I have when I am reading an AMAZING book! It is honestly one of the best feelings in the world! I get completely attached to the book, and dread the day that I finish it. I form a connection with the characters and feel as if I am going through the experiences with them. Basically, when I am reading, the world outside of the book is nonexistent (nonexistent to the point that I missed my train stop on the way to work a couple weeks back lol).

Once I finish reading a good book, I want everyone that I know to experience the same feelings that I did when I was reading it! I become that book's biggest advocate and support it to the fullest!

The last book that I read that made me feel this way was “A Thousand Splendid Suns” by Khaled Hosseini. I already expected to LOVE this book because I read Hosseini's first novel “The Kite Runner” a few years back and it instantly became one of my favorites! I have to admit however, I may LOVE “A Thousand Splendid Suns” a little more! I realized the reason why I loved it more after talking to my sister about. She read the book before I did and she simply said … “You like this book better because the main characters are women.” She's right! “The Kite Runner” focused on male oriented relationships, like that of fathers and sons and “A Thousand Splendid Suns” focused on female oriented relationships of mothers, daughters, and friendships. The struggles that they endured spoke to me on many different levels! I want to blab more about this book but I might ruin it for those who haven't read it yet!

Honestly both books are amazing! Hurry up and get yourselves copies of both of them, you won't be disappointed!

OBSESSION!

Everyone that knows me, knows my OBSESSION with nail polish! It is something that I am very proud of actually! I love everything about it, the colors, the smell, the time it takes to dry my nails, etc … When it comes to the brand of nail polish, I am not picky however. I don't go crazy for OPI, China Glaze, or Essie, because realistically, I think it's a little ridiculous to spend $8 dollars on a bottle of nail polish (this doesn't mean that I'm not guilty of doing so before!)

According to some people, I have a VERY large nail polish collection, (I personally don't think that I have enough!) but I can't help but fall in love with new polishes every time I enter a store! It's an addiction that I am not ready to part with!

Every time a new nail polish collection comes out (mainly from OPI), I check it out and way out my options. Do I have colors that look similar? Are these colors really worth the 8 bucks? And can I find a cheaper dupe for those colors? Most of the time I talk myself out of buying a single bottle of OPI nail polish for $8 and just buy a cheaper alternative.

However, I think I have met my match in terms of OPI collections. I have completely fallen in love with the Katy Perry Collection (out this month), and I am ready and willing to buy all of the colors!

The colors are: Last Friday Night, Not Like the Movies, The One That Got Away, Teenage Dream, and Black Splatter (i think black splatter is really the only reason why I am in LOVE with this collection) 

Seriously, what is there not to like about these colors? I'm getting excited just at the thought of having all of these in my possession! They are simply AMAZING!

Oh and I also need to get my hands on the first polish out from Serena William's Grand Slam Collection. LOVE IT!

The colors are: Simply Smashing and Black Splatter