The world of blogging [enter stage left]

How to start my very first post ever?  Hmm, I suppose I should begin with some background, and why I decided to add my input to the blogosphere.  Well, sometime late last year, I discovered what I thought was a new trend: nail stamping with those amazing Konad plates.  :O  How did I miss this?!  It's creative, beautiful, eye-catching; the possibilities are endless!  That led to watching many, MANY, videos of Andrea's (aka PlasmaSpeedo!) on YouTube while I deliberated on what plate set to purchase.  So of course I watched videos showing her polish collection as well.  So many pretty colors!  I was hooked.  OPI and China Glaze were my new obsession, which led me to Scrangie's blog where I could spend hours (and trust me, I did!) looking at beautiful swatches and detailed reviews to help me decide which polishes I had to have.  I then discovered Scrangie was not the only nail polish blogger/lacquerhead out there! *gasp

The whole world of nail polish blogs opened unto me, and I've been hopelessly addicted ever since.  Every time a smallish package would arrive in the mail for me, my roommates would exclaim, "another one?!"  My stash is still very modest, compared to that of many bloggers I've come across.  But I'm sure it'll continue growing...my poor bank account!  Especially since I discovered indie polishes - WOW.  They blow my mind!  Don't get me wrong, there are tons of drugstore and mainstream polishes that are fabulous, but indie polishes are truly an art.  My first indie was "After the Storm," from Silly Lily Polish.  LOVE the story behind it too!  (she made it by candlelight in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, and it has over 100 kinds of glitters in a clear base.) *swoon

Sorta macro bottle shot!

This is what happens when you put your finger over the flashbulb!

So, as I've waded deeper into nail polish blog reading, I began thinking to myself, maybe I should join 'em!  But there's no way I'll get the perfect, fabulous photos those gals have - not to mention, I really doubt I could keep up with posting every day or even every week.  But it could be fun!  That's the beauty of a blog - it's all  on YOUR terms!  SO, one last nudge by Essie Rae from iHeartPrettyPolish was all it took. ;-)  She said it was lonely being the only (or seemingly the only) polish addict in MN with a blog.  She's been a pleasure to converse with via email, and I would consider her my first "polish buddy." :-)
So here goes!  After extensive "research," it seems that because the majority of nail polish bloggers have such extensive stashes which are constantly being added to, one way or another, there's a lot of swatching going on, but not much about how long a polish lasts, which is of particular interest to...well, me, and I would imagine, there have to be other people out there like me!  Therefore, I've decided to take the road less traveled and post more about the durability of polishes, accompanied by photos of day 1, day 2, day 3...you get the picture (pun intended). ;-)  Of course, I love nail art and trying interesting layering combos and such, so I'm sure I'll do those types of posts from time to time too.  Who knows...we shall see what happens!

And now, to the reason why I added "n'stuff" to the end of my blog title.  I feel I can't really have a blog focused solely on nail polish because I have so many other interests and things that are important to me too.  So expect other topics as well!  Like my love of travel and the places I've been (hence my background image).  In the "dry periods" between travels, I've been sustained by reading of other peoples' travels and seeing amazing photos which expand my horizons - and add to my bucket list!!  Well, I think that about covers all the points I wanted to touch on in my first post.  Thank you for reading, and I hope my thoughts will be of use and impact to someone out there, sometime. :-)

Emily

P.S. Here's your laugh/chuckle/guffaw/teeheehee/ROFL for the evening: my dog Kali - awww so CUTE! . . . . .aaaand with a sock on her head!  I am not really sure how nor why I got the idea to do that, but it sure was funny! :-D

I recently shaved her & left a Moe-esque tuft.  I think it's CUTE!