My surgery date is set!

Hello, Beautiful!

Just another update with my surgery journey :)

I'm so excited right now because my surgery date is set! It will be on March 2nd at 9am! It seems so far away, but it will be here before I know it.

There are still details I need to take care of - like getting my labs done and picking up a copy of the operating report from my ENT doc (regarding my septoplasty surgery). But besides those two things, I really just need to finalize the arrangement of when my mom and grandmom will be here to help out.

My pre-op appointment will fall shortly after Valentine's Day and from there it's only about 2 weeks until my surgery! WOW - it really will be here before I know it!!!

Only 41 more days until I get a new nose and a new chin! More surgery updates will follow as they happen.


On a side note...

I'm sick. I woke up with an awful sore throat and just that hit-by-a-truck feeling. A fever followed not far behind the sore throat and I quickly turned into a blanket zombie, hanging out on the couch.

I really cannot be sick right now. There are too many things to do! But I also know that sometimes getting sick is a blessing in disguise. It forces you to slow down and take a break - which is something I've desperately needed lately.

I have a feeling I got sick from the kid in my son's class that sneezed into my mouth. Yeah, that was probably it. Awesome.


Alright, gotta run for now. I just realized it's 10pm and my son is still up (he's been helping my husband build my custom nail polish rack, hehe). I can already see how fun the morning will be... "mom, I'm tooooo tired", "mom, I need to stay home from school", "I can't brush my teeth. I can't get dressed". Oh what fun it will be.

Good night!

January 2011 Birchbox!

Hello, Beautiful!

I finally joined Birchbox! My first shipment arrived on Saturday, and I have to say, it's a little bit of a snooze fest for me only because there are no makeup products in this month's shipment (I know previous months had included great makeup items; like a NARS multiple or a Stila Lip Glaze). However, that doesn't mean I'm disappointed with this month's box. There are products I will use, but let's say I knew ahead of time what was in this month's box... would I have purchased it then? No, I would have skipped this month, but only because I'm more into makeup than I am into skin care and hair care. However, the value is still good (which I will break down later in this post).

*** Before I continue, if you don't know what Birchbox is then you really should check out their website. You pay $10 a month (or you can sign up for a year and get a slight discount). Each month you're sent between 4 and 6 deluxe samples of various products and brands. You do not receive any full sized products, but you can buy the full sized versions from Birchbox (you earn points for doing so).

*** And by the way, ValentineKisses.com offers a similar program - Treasure Box Kisses - which is $14.95 a month (including shipping) and you receive all full sized products. Our Treasure Box Kisses shipments go on sale around the 1st of each new month and remain on sale through the 10th of the month. They're available only during that time and only a certain number are available each month. February's shipment is just around the corner - check out more details by clicking here.


Okay, back to January's Birchbox shipment...

For January 2011, Birchbox says this month is the "Reset & Recharge" month (and by the way, they put January 2010 instead of 2011 at the top of their info card instead of 2011, hehe). Based on this month's theme I can understand the products they included with this month's shipment.

* click on photos to view them larger *

Here is what it looks like:

The included info card:

Now I'll break it down product by product...

Oscar Blandi Olio Di Jasmine Hair Serum

Size: 0.169 fl. oz. / 5ml

Full Size: 34 ml @ $24

Sample Size Value: About $3.53

Ahava Dermud Intensive Nourishing Hand Cream

Size: 40 ml / 1.3 fl. oz.

Full Sized: 4.2 fl. oz. @ $28

Sample Size Value: About $8.75

Zhena's Gypsy Tea - Coconut Chai Black Tea

Size: 4 tea sachets (Net Wt. 0.42 oz/12 g)

Full Sized: 22 tea sachets @ $7.99

Sample Size Value: About $1.43

Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Peel

Size: two applications

Full Sized: 10 applications @ $35

Sample Size Value: About $7

Myfaceworks Sheet Mask

Size: one mask

Full Sized: 6 masks @ $55

Sample Size Value: About $9.17

Total Sample Size Value of January 2011 Birchbox shipment: $29.88

Not bad, when you look at the overall value!

Based on the items I received, which ones will I actually use? Probably all - minus the tea. I'm not a tea drinker, but my grandmom might like to try them. If anything, they'll go in my guest room for guests to enjoy.

The Ahava hand cream I think will be good to nourish my nails/fingers after manicures, but my husband already plans to steal this (he has really dry skin).

The Oscar Blandi hair serum looks like a product I would use and I look forward to trying it out at some point (although most serums/oils can make my hair too greasy or weighed down since I already have long, fine, thin hair that gets oily easily).

The myfaceworks mask is something I think I will use tonight - I'm probably most excited to try this one out.

And finally, the Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Peel is something I already have samples of (from Sephora's free samples) and I haven't used them yet - but maybe I should give them a try in the near future.

Since this is just my first Birchbox shipment I can't make a judgment just yet of what I think of the program, but so far I'm very much looking forward to future shipments and have no plans of cancelling!

Are you a part of Birchbox? If so, what do you think? If not, will you sign up for a future shipment?

NOTD: Galaxy Nails

Hello, Beautiful!

Lately I've been playing around with layering nail polish because sometimes I feel wearing just one color to be too boring. Not to mention that you can get really pretty results when you layer certain colors and combine finishes.

I'm calling today's Nail Of The Day (NOTD) Galaxy Nails:

To re-create this NOTD:

1. Apply your base coat. I used Seche Vite Clear base coat. Allow to dry.
2. Apply two coats of black nail polish (a creme finish will work best). I used China Glaze nail lacquer in Liquid Leather. Allow each coat to dry before going to the next.
3. After both coats of black are applied I did one coat of Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat (to speed up the process, but you can certainly just let your nails air dry before moving on).
4. Next apply one coat of a glitter nail polish. Choose something with a clear base for best results. I used N.Y.C. Long Wearing Nail Enamel in Starry Silver Glitter.
5. To finish it off I used two coats of Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat (to make it ultra glossy and to make it dry fast). I allow at least 2 minute between each coat of Seche Vite and then another 5 minutes afterwards before trying to do anything (so I don't dent my nails).

My Nail Polish Collection

Hello, Beautiful!

I finally put together a list for my blog of all my nail polish shades that I currently own. You can find that link on the left side of my blog, or you can just CLICK HERE.

The list is organized by brand name (in alphabetical order) and each brand shows a list of shades. The shades will list the shade name, shade number (when applicable), and the collection or formula type (when applicable).

ALL those polishes are already swatched and will be on this blog and on The Valentine Beauty Closet at some point (I only have photos of a few brands at this point).


I plan to post "My Makeup Collection" soon too, which is a lot longer of a list!

Since I'm a crazy-organized person, I have an Excel spreadsheet of all my makeup and nail polish. I also have a 5-subject notebook that I keep just for my nail polish. Each nail wheel I create (for swatch purposes) is logged in the book. I do nail wheels by brand and also by color category. I also have nail art wheels too.


If there are any brands/shades from the nail polish list that you'd like to see on this blog sooner rather than later please let me know. You can leave a comment below or email me.


Have a great weekend everyone! :)

Color Club Spring 2011 Collection: Alter Ego

Hello, Beautiful!

The Color Club Spring 2011 Collection has just been announced! Hitting salon shelves this spring: Alter Ego!

The Alter Ego collection includes 12 shades - from sheer to opaque, from light to dark, the Alter Ego collection has a little something for everyone (as most of their collections seem to). I'm really excited for all of these shades, but I of course have some I'm looking forward to the most.

The "LIGHTS" (pictured below) salon set is called "Alter Ego: Reveal Your Mystery". This 7-pc set includes (shown in the photo below from left to right):

• Get a Clue
• Revealed
• Incognito
• Secret Rendezvous
• Sheer Disguise
• Give Me A Hint
• Milky White Base Coat

The "DARKS" (pictured below) salon set is called "Alter Ego: Keep It Undercover". This 7-pc set includes (shown in the photo below from left to right):

• Alter Ego
• Secret Agent
• Total Mystery
• Alias
• Ulterior Motive
• Masquerading
• Vivid Top Coat

I think the shades I want the most are:

• From the "LIGHTS": Secret Rendezvous, Sheer Disguise
• From the "DARKS":  Alter Ego, Secret Agent, Total Mystery and Alias

I, of course, want them all and will probably end up getting them all at one point or another. When I do get my hands on these I will swatch them for you so you can see their beauty up close (I have a feeling the Alter Ego and Total Mystery are going to be drool-worthy beautiful once I swatch them).

What shades bring out your "Alter Ego"?  :)