Plant Growth

Holy moly, it is insane!

I don't remember if I posted the picture of the potatoes back when I posted my manicure, but if I didn't, the buds were tiny. They were just that, buds, no larger than my pinky nail. Thursday, we had a downpour. I wish I could say I was exaggerating since its the PNW but I'm not joking. We had thunder, lightning, the whole kit and kaboodle.

I forgot about the plants. I didn't cover them.

Anyhow, I walked out yesterday night for a smoke. (I know, I know, I keep falling back off the wagon. At least I'm not a heavy smoker, and its more like a 'once a week' thing now instead of the 'omg, I need one every day!' status.) I look over at my plants, half expecting them to be dead.

First, I see my onion. The sprouts are about six inches and beautiful.

Then I looked down at the planter/tub on the floor and just about shat myself.  Because of this:

I'm worried the planet will not be big enough for the potatoes now. Mind you, this is all from a single, red potato that I had in the kitchen that had begun to bud. I cut it up into three, stuck it in the ground and walked away. I've wtered them like once a week. 

Yes, that is a water bottle in the back. I cut the bottom off, capped it, drilled holes around the shoulder of the bottle and shoved it into the ground. That's how I water my plants. I just pour about half a pitcher worth of water once a week and walk away. The dirt is garden variety dirt, easy to drain and the tub has a bunch of holes drilled into it for more drainage. I found this way is easiest to water the plants without disturbing the seeds.  I have two bottles, one on each side for easier water distribution. 

Onion from scrap and a dormant carrot that decided to sprout after a year of hibernation.

Summer Solstice Trim

Long story short, I wanted six inches off. My stylist told me I was nuts when I explained I wanted all that gone due to damage and excessive layering. 

I somehow forgot my hair had been thinned 4 years ago... and that my ends are bleached... and that like, um.. the lighter color makes everything look thinner than it already would be. I really love this girl. She refused to let me do something so drastic because *she knew* I'd regret it, go home, cry, and be miserable. 

So, the sad part is I am no longer at tail bone. But like, Jacque says, I'll regain those two inches come October and they'll be healthier than before. Then I can go back to my regular 1/2 inch every other month trim. 

DIY Gel Mani thoughts.

Alright, its been a few days.

The previous post was a bit of a misnomer. While it felt like Monday to me, I'm still pretty sick and loopy. Turns out it was really Tuesday (or was it Wednesday? As I said, LOOPY). Anyhow, I had decided to change the mani because a) I really wasn't feeling the Inkwell and Asphalt scheme. b) I had a huge chip on my left forefinger. Despite all the abuse I put my right hand through, its always the left forefuckingfinger that chips first. -.-

Anyhow, I did my mani, dried it with the OPI Dry Drops (thank god, because Gelous takes FOREVER to dry otherwise). The next day I then put my hands through some brutal deep cleaning in the kitchen. I don't even know why the hell I forgot to put on gloves, but I didn't. Here's what I did:

1) While I ran a dishwasher full of dirty dishes through on a cycle, I hand washed sink full and a half of dishes   in the hottest water possible. The house really gets dirty as fuck when BOTH members of the Clean Team get sick.

2) Wiped down the counters with bleach to remove stains. Actually, I lied. It wasn't bleach. it was Lysol tile cleaner. I think that's stronger than bleach. -shrug-

3) Swept the floors.

4) Put all the dishes away.


I did all this before going to bed at 2 am.

Today, I found one, teeny, tiny little micro chip on the forefinger and another on the thumb of my right hand. I filed those suckers down with a regular emery board while at work. Then came home and washed my hair.

I got another micro little chip. More like a tiny little lift that I quickly filed away with a regular emery board then buffed away with a four-sided block buffer.

I then proceeded to slap on another coat of Gelous, dry that off with OPI dry drops and then proceeded to give my husband a pedicure. In which I (I am so sorry I am telling the whole world this, my love) removed the pearlescent pink polish I put on his toes about three weeks ago with pure acetone.

My manicure is still perfect. His toes? A lot less girly and with all the snarls filed away.

I adore my otherwise metrosexual husband whose fabulousness and girliness overshadows my own, (I swear that man can take LONGER than I do in the bathroom getting ready and frets more over his clothes than I do.) but fuck, he has some gnarly ass feet unless I do something about it. You would THINK he'd be more hand and foot orientated considering his mother is a nail technician but all that stuck out of her beautician days  have been all about hair, skin and overall grooming.

Oh well. I can't win them all. Again, I have a man with impeccable fashion sense, fantastic hair, perfectly groomed face and a delicious smell. But then again, there is something to say about a man who is so secure in his masculinity that he is willing to waltz around town wearing flip flops and letting the world see his pretty pink little toes.... all because his wife had a whim to test some polish on him since she already had a manicure  that was not ready to be demolished.


Anyhow, back on track.

DIY Gel Mani results? Fabulous. I think I can save myself a bit more money and not bother with the gel polish kit for a while yet.

But seriously.. the first time I tried it, I had considered it a failure because IT TOOK SO LONG TO DRY.

Mani Monday?

I usually do my Mani's on Friday but I got a horrible chip on my fingers, the colors were 'blah' (Its summer, damnit, I'm done with the greys and the blacks and the almost-blacks. My inner goth weeps!)

Also, my nails have gotten pretty long and pretty... and long. I'm not used to them being anything longer than flush to my nail beds. I *have* a free edge now

Finally, all those vitamins I've been taking, the oil swabbing and what not is finally paying off. Its amazing.


They're still bendy, but not so much. And they still flake the moment I get lazy and don't oil/moisturize them.

Anyhow, behold my pretties. These were inspired by LOVE4NAILS from Youtube. I did a pinterest mani and it was taking so damned long for things to dry, that I said 'fuck it' on the nail art.

Used: Gelous Nail Gel from Sally's as Base and Top coat
Essie's True Love for the pink, Sally Hansen's Mellow Yellow (27) for tip
Sinful Colors Call You Later (green) and Pearl Harbour (White) glitters.
Topped with OPI's quick dry drops. (That Gelous would not dry otherwise.)

We'll see how this DIY gel mani compares to Shellac. I'm seriously thinking about shelling out the cash for the at home kit.

It also was the first time I tried to do any form of 'gradient' with the glitter polish. Epic fail... but I like the yellow and the green. Its perfectly cheerful for this time of year. 

Oh, and BONUS!

Container Garden Experiments. 

White onion from scrap AND French Carrots. The carrot actually germinated from *last year's* epic failure of a carrot crop. I had planted those suckers in March, took care of them ALL summer and got nothing. This time I didn't even plant any carrots from seed and now I got sprouts!

And more bonus, a lovely bird I caught on camera on my birthday a little over a month ago. 

I really need to figure out how to play with my camera for optimal pictures. I'm using it as a point and shoot right now. :(

Nail Experiment

This happened on accident.

I got shellac about a month and a half ago. My nails grew magnificently and upon removing the shellac, there was no peel in sight. I'd been diligent in maintaining moisture on my nails as per Miley's strict instructions.  So twice a day I rubbed me some sweet almond oil on all ten nails twice a day.

Then I removed the shellac a month after the original application when I experienced my FIRST chip. I came home, did a mani, and that's when shit happened.

I somehow kept forgetting to moisturize my right hand. Adding the oil concoction is easy for me as I work at a call center. I kind of keep my bottle at work, do my thing between calls, blah blah. But we'd been so busy and I'd been trying to baby my right hand (carpal flare up) I kept using my left hand the most. I was hyper aware of what my left hand was doing while my right hand rested.

I often keep my right hand in its brace and on my lap when it gets this bad.

Anyhow, that meant I forgot to moisturize the right hand nails.

Two weeks later, lo and behold, SPLITS and cracks. I managed to file off all the damage on the pointer finger. I also patched up my middle finger from a break  (It actually cracked, then gave way at work.) and I had a pretty bad peel on my thumb.

So they're all patched up and now I'm working on nursing those babies back to health.

the more I look at my hands, the more obvious it is that my left hand is doing so much better. The cuticles are  sleek, smooth, not a hang nail in sight. All five nails are nice and strong, no peel in sight.

Right hand? Split cuticles, a few hang nails, peeling. -.-

Again, I should know better. After all, this is all basic hair care just on the nails instead!

Crochet Braid and Bun

Oh man, I am so glad I found this. Another LHC/Youtube find.  (I lost the video at the moment)


It is pretty much the same technique used on yarn, but with hair.

I can essentially get three loops out of my hair right now.

So you start by gathering the hair in a low or high pony, wherever you want the bun to sit essentially. Do not tie off with a hair tie, just hold on to the hair. If your'e holding onto the pony with the right hand, grab the loose ends with the left, twist the ends into a coil, counter clock wise (this is to just keep thing tidy). Take the  coil and wrap it around the hand clock wise. With the fore fingers of the hand holding the pony, thread the loose ends into the wrapped around coil, essentially making a knot.

DO NOT PULL THE HAIR THROUGH.  You don't want a knot, you want to simply create a chain loop.

Pull the hair through enough to create a second loop. Thread the loose ends through this loop. Repeat until all hair is gone. You can pull the last bit through to finish the chain just like you finish a crochet project. You can wear it down or you can coil it into a bun.

I'm going to have to do visuals on this aren't I?

Well, to those who can both crochet and the most basic of buns, let me put it into a pattern using my hair length as an example.

The Crochet Braid Bun.

Row 1:

Chain 3. pull through

Assembly:

Coil chain into a bun tucking in excess. Pin in place.

Congratulations, you're done!


Next up, the Long Hair Beehive! :D

Horrible blogger me

I consistently give myself some goals and deadlines but fail short of keeping them. I wonder if I'm afraid of success or I'm just simply too easily distracted into doing other things.

Probably a little bit of column A followed by column B.

I blame my current distraction in the form of LARPing. I fell into it back in March and look forward to each game. I'm missing this weekends event due to my allergies. Damnable, insufferable allergies that would be no issue if I were a responsible adult who stayed on top of her medication.

If only for the sole reason that doing so prevents hair sheds. -.-

LTDR; I was dumb. Didn't take either my thyroid medication or my allergy medication for about two months. Lots of things are kicking me in the ass right now. I've become quite a symptomatic hypothyroid. Starting from the alarming hair shed, to the inflamed carpal issues, dried skin and horrible allergies.

I'm sitting here with what feels like a horrible cold. The flu even. Except... there's no fever. Just the damanble cough, the congestion, the MIGRAINE that comes with the sinus pressure and the voice loss because of all the damned coughing caused by the nasal drip form the inflamed sinuses. (See, its a horrible cycle of suffering!)

I know its allergies because of the color of my phlegm. It is colorless and odorless. For a second there I thought I had strep again. (Yes. Again. I got tonsilitis to boot so I get strep throat yearly pretty much.) So. There's that.

I wish I could sleep. Everytime I lay down, I can't breathe and the cough gets worse... I actually fell asleep sitting up last night. My neck is sore.

Anyhow, the good news means since I have no character creation/work to distract me, I have been a little bit of a busy bee with my hair.

I'll let the following post explain.