Wear Teal Day - Ovarian Cancer Awareness Mani
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Hey guys! I just wanted to get up a quick post today to promote Wear Teal Day, which is today, September 7. The goal of today is to raise awareness about ovarian cancer. I know I'm not alone in having lost loved ones to cancer - or, more positively, knowing people who have been diagnosed and successfully gone into remission! - and one of the scariest things about it is that it can happen to anyone. The goal of raising awareness is to help get funding for research to prevent and treat the disease, as well as to help people learn about how to detect symptoms early on. The National Cancer Institute has a booklet of information about ovarian cancer here. There isn't a great deal of knowledge about its prevention (although some research suggests oral contraceptives may decrease the risk), but in my opinion annual visits to your OB/GYN should be part of every adult woman's life. Although, we have made amazing progress in treating cervical cancer with the development of the HPV vaccine, ovarian cancer is actually the leading cause of death from gynecologic cancers in the United States, and awareness is key in successfully fighting this devastating disease.
Today I'm wearing a base of China Glaze in Custom Kicks. Custom Kicks was released with the Summer 2009 "Kicks" collection. It is a beautiful green-leaning turquoise creme with subtle gold shimmer. The formula on this is wonderful. This is 2 thin coats. The closest to a color-accurate picture I've found is All Lacquered Up's, although the polish is brighter and a bit deeper in real life. Everyone else seemed to have the same problem with color-accuracy that I did - my camera wanted to make this more blue. My pictures are color-accurate for the other two polishes, but Custom Kicks is a bit deeper, brighter, and with a little more green. Sorry, but I'm back to school and I don't have time at the moment to color correct!
Over Custom Kicks, on 3/4 of my nail, I layered Hits Speciallità in Hera. Hera was released with the Winter 2011 "No Olimpo" collection. It is a teal polish with stunning linear holographic shimmer. It leans a tiny bit more green than Custom Kicks, but they are a good layering pair. Hera needs 3 coats for opacity, but I just used one layer here, dabbing it on with a sponge. Since I just used the polish with a sponge, I can't speak to the formula. The bottle is tiny (only .2 fl oz), but it's gorgeous. Great swatches of Hera can be found on Scrangie, The Polished Perfectionist, The PolishAholic, and Vampy Varnish.
This is the first time I used a sponge to get a gradation layering effect, and I think it turned out pretty well! At the same time, I don't know if it's my style - I keep feeling like the tips of my nails look dirty. I don't like it in normal light, but in the sun (which of course went away once I finally had time to shoot pictures) the holo effect is hard to resist. I used little eyeshadow applicators to layer the polish. They came in a pack, and I got them at CVS (see picture). I just painted a bit of polish on the top half of the applicator and dabbed it on my nail. It was really easy and quick! My biggest tip would be to start at the tip of the nail and work up toward the cuticle to get a nice diffused gradation, but don't overwork the sponge or you'll start to lift color off as it dries. Also, don't forget the sides of your nail (this can get a bit messy - although Hera and Saint George didn't stain my skin at all). I went back after I had sponged on Saint George and sponged a bit of Hera over where the two colors met to increase the holo effect and make a smoother gradation.I will try to get some pictures in the sunlight tomorrow, so you can really see the holo shine. Worn September 6 - 8, 2012.
In the meantime, will you wear teal today? What's your favorite teal polish? Do you like my first sponge gradation attempt? What do you do to stay healthy? I am the child of two doctors, so one of the biggest things I do is make sure to see my doctors once a year, and keep aware of any changes in my body I notice. I know many people don't think that seeing a doctor is necessary, but I always feel that with your health, a cautious, proactive approach is best. My best friend's mom, a true super woman, ignored pain in her chest until it was too late for effective treatment, and my hope for everyone is that they can avoid suffering from illness like she did. Take care of yourselves everyone!
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Amazing gradient!)
ReplyDeleteMaria - I'm glad you liked it!
ReplyDeleteThis is awesome
ReplyDelete