On YouTube, I follow several make-up and nail polish ladies. But this AriZona Green Tea inspired nail art design by Cutepolish really caught my eye. AriZona ice tea always makes my taste buds happy and the cherry blossom bottle design is simply gorgeous. And, it picks up the pastel and color blocking trend for the spring and summer season of 2012! After watching the tutorial a few times, I attempted my own version of this nail art.

Used Products:

• Base Coat: “Grow Stronger” by Essie.
• Green polish: “Mint Candy Apple (No. 99)” by Essie (1 coat – can you believe it?!).
• Black polish (for the branches): “Back To Black (No. 320)” by Catrice.
• Dark pink polish (the first dot for the blossom): “Wrapped Around My Finger (No. 190)” by Catrice.
• Light pink polish (the second dot for the blossom): “Status Symbol (No. 26)” by Essie.
• Top Coat: “Good to Go” by Essie.
• Nail Art Brush by Kiko (Brush Nails 401). (a tooth pick does the job though, too!)
• a dotting tool. (*)
• a piece of paper towel.
• nail polish remover and pads

As always, choose those products that you have which are similar to the ones I used.

(*) Since I did not own a dotting tool (and did not have the time to buy one) I simply took a pencil with an eraser at one end and pushed in a straight pin with a rounded end. It worked beautifully and therefore I will not be buying any dotting tool soon. Creative solution – and I saved money (more money to spend on nail polishes!).

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Okay, so I am not totally into all the Valentine’s stuff, but since I have a boyfriend, it is nice to spend the evening of the 14th with him anyways. With nothing to do during the afternoon, I noticed my nails needed something new. So I grabbed a few polishes and did a V-Day themed nail design which I thought of the moment I decided to do my nails.

Used Products:

• Base Coat: “Grow Stronger” by Essie.
• Red Polish: “Red Carpet (No. 310)” by Rimmel London (2 coats).
• White Polish Design: “Snow Motion!” (No. 470) by Catrice.
• Top Coat: “Pro Shine Glitter” by Manhattan.
• Nail Art Brush by Kiko (Brush Nails 401).
• a piece of paper towel

Of course you can use similar products that you have in your nail polish collection! But do be sure to chose a classic red!

Continue reading “Valentine’s Day – Nail Art DIY”

Lately, I have not only been creative with words and photography, but also with my nails. The reason: a week ago I had my one-year anniversary of not chewing nails anymore! Ever since my nails had a decent length, I have been buying nail polishes non-stop. My first nail polish back in April 2011 was from Rimmel London, shortly after I ventured to Manhattan and Catrice. During the summer, I discovered the Italian brand Kiko and finally, my newest and strongest love, Essie. Even though I still enjoy my first nail polishes, the quality of Kiko and Essie are simply amazing – and they are reasonable priced as well!

So I had to figure out how to get use of the other brands more. The solution: nail art. On YouTube I have come across many wonderful designs, which I would love to try out. A week ago I did my very first nail art on the fly. Since it was snowing here in Germany, I wanted to sport my nails accordingly. I had seen many pretty snowflake designs, but ended up doing my own. For the background I chose a deep blue, to resemble the cold air. This nail art is really simple – if I was able to do it you can, too!

Used Products: 

• Base Coat: “Grow Stronger” by Essie.
• Blue Polish: No. 265 by Kiko (2 Coats).
• White Polish Design: “Snow Motion!” (No. 470) by Catrice.
• Top Coat: “Good to Go” by Essie.
• Nail Art Brush by Kiko (Brush Nails 401).
• a piece of paper towel.

Of course you can use your own products that are similar to these!

Continue reading “Snowflake – Nail Art DIY”

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“It’s a small world and Frankfurt is a village”, many people here say. When a street fair or some other bigger event takes place in Frankfurt, then I can be sure to meet someone, who I know. Although I really do not know hundreds of people. It does not only happen to me. At a comedian’s performance in the full Frankfurt stadium, only two rows in front of us, my friend discovered one of his buddies who he had not seen in months. On the way home, a friend met an old classmate, who had gotten married in the meantime. A few days ago, as I was on the way to a brunch with friends, I experienced a very special form of this coincidental reunion.

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(Photo: Garden and Castle, Stuttgart © CBMP)

Exactly one month ago, I surprised my knight on his birthday with a day trip to Stuttgart. Since there is no better present than spending time together and discovering new places, right?

We left Frankfurt very early, so that we first had breakfast at this wonderful café directly at the market place. The sun was shining at 10 am already, which promised that it was going to be a beautiful day. We had coffee and a breakfast special for two people, which was simply amazing. Croissants, rolls, meats and cheeses, melon and yogurt with fresh fruit. Especially yummy were the homemade jams: peach and strawberry. Only because of them, the café is worth a visit. But Stuttgart has more to offer than extraordinary breakfast.

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While browsing furniture stores for shelves, my friend and I discovered this shelf. Only a small side bash towards the big Swedish Store:

Wonderful weather, nice company and much time to lay in the sun – simply a perfect Sunday!

Lively Main river.

Just don’t move too much: Tree upside down.

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Finally, even if a bit shy and slow, spring is showing up. How? This is how it looks like here:

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This year I went against my traditions – I did not stay up late and rather laid in bed sleeping while the Academy Award ceremony took place. From what I have heard afterwards, it was a good decision, since the Oscars seemed to have been not surprising and some what even boring. But the good news was that I was fit enough the next night to go out with my university girls to the movies. As exemplary English majors we chose “The King’s Speech” in English, since we all figured it would win at least one Oscar. And how we were right: “Best Picture”, “Best Performance of an Actor in a Leading Role”, “Best Director” and “Best Original Screenplay”. Now it was time for us to see, if we thought the same way about the movie and if the Oscars were legitimate.

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Finally, the photos from my vacation in South Africa are sorted and (partly) edited. In the end, I still have close to 1000 photos in the folder. Oh well, that is what happens, if you are handling a Nikon D90 for the first time in length and detail. Yay! Here a small Best-Of South Africa Impressions for you taken during wonderful and interesting two weeks around Cape Town and Garden Route.

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