Tag Archives: pampering

Mar14

New Hot Pink & Magenta Nails

Posted on March 14, 2024 by lifewithlilred

Hello!! When I was sick AF, I had to cancel my appointment for a fill at Elysian Nails and it made me so very sad. Getting my nails done always perks me up and I really needed it because my nails were looking as awful as I felt! Thankfully, the owner of Elysian was able to get me in first thing on Monday morning to get me right and my nails are finally back to their former glory. It felt so good to get pampered after a long week of feeling like ass and I am loving how my nails turned out:

Prior to my go to girl leaving the salon, I would never dream about using anybody else for my nails. However, now that she is employed elsewhere, I alternate between a few different techs. This is fine by me because everyone at Elysian is excellent and I have never had a bad experience with any of them. Back in January, a new to me tech did my nails and she did an absolutely amazing job so I was excited to be back in her chair on Monday. I also couldn’t wait for the bright, poppy palette of hot pink and magenta I picked out to adorn my nails. I needed something fun and zippy after a long, gloomy week of being sick!

Because I couldn’t get in for my regularly scheduled time, my nails were in a worse way than usual when I go for an appointment. They were extremely grown out and the middle finger on my right hand was lifted badly. My tech blew my mind because instead of putting a new tip on the nail, she free painted it with acrylic and I can’t even tell the difference. Prior to my appointment, my nails felt very weak and she fortified them expertly. My acrylics feel so strong now and the length, shape, and color are perfect too. I don’t want to speak too soon, but I think I might have a new go to tech. 😀

This was one of the best fills I have gotten at Elysian Nails because it was so desperately needed. My tech was able to turn my busted nails into something beautiful again and I can’t stop looking at them!!

Do you have a go to hair stylist or nail tech? How long have you been their client for? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb9

New Glitter Garnet & Ballet Slipper Nails

Posted on February 9, 2024 by lifewithlilred

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New Glitter Garnet & Ballet Slipper Nails

Hello!! This past Tuesday, I spent some wonderful time getting pampered at Elysian Nails. They had to push my appointment back because my normal gal was having wisdom tooth pain and I could totally sympathize. I definitely know a thing or two about that! This actually ended up working beautifully because I was able to make a quick pop in for a client and run a few errands beforehand. The best part, though, was that I was in and out of the salon in forty-five minutes flat thanks to the super speedy tech who filled in for my fill. I am loving how my nails turned out:

^^^ Also very aware that my right middle finger is still swollen from my tumble, but it’s getting better!

Since Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, I decided to use a traditional V-Day palette of red, pink, and all of the glitter. Normally, I shy away from holiday themed nails because they don’t seem very appropriate the day after the fact. However, Valentine’s Day colors look cute anytime and I would use these colors again outside of February. They are so pretty! The garnet is called University Red and it spoke to me immediately. It was exactly the deep shade I wanted to add some edge against the lighter pink I planned on using. I chose Forgotten Pink for that in a soft ballet slipper hue and thought the colors look dynamite together.

Amazingly enough, I didn’t break any nails when I fell and trust and believe that was the first thing that I clocked afterwards lol. I did end up having a nail lift completely off weeks later, though, and that sucked massively! Despite having to do some repairs, my nail tech, Shelly, got me in and out with ample time to spare. She has done my nails several times before and knows exactly how I like them. Her speed and skill will never not amaze me when I’m in her chair and she turned my grown out, janky nails back into a work of art. In record timing to boot!

I feel like a whole new woman with my new hair and nails! It was so nice to get some back to back pampering and here’s to hoping my middle finger will be back to normal next time I get a fill lol SMH.

Do you like to wear traditional holiday colors when they roll around? What color of polish are you rocking? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb7

New Hair, Who Dis?

Posted on February 7, 2024 by lifewithlilred

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Hello everyone!! This past Friday was an excellent day! I spent my morning and afternoon getting my hair done at the Shear Shop and had a slumber party with my bestie, Lea, that evening. I haven’t had a day off since the holidays so it was really nice to have a full day dedicated to some R&R and fun! As always, my amazing stylist, Anna, transformed my hair into something fresh and new and I am loving the results. That Pulp Riot color is absolutely everything! Check it out:

^^^ Shout out to my husband for never taking a nice picture with me lol. Also peep a brand new OOTD coming soon from the above look!

Going to the Shear Shop is one of my favorite forms of self care. Spending time with Anna is like seeing a best friend/therapist and I have never once left her chair without feeling like a billion bucks. The past few times we have done my hair, we have tried to incorporate one of our favorite Pulp Riot shades called Satire amidst Nightfall (navy), Pyro (deep red), and Fireball (bright red). When the bright yellow color was fresh, it looked awesome. However, the Satire and Nightfall would begin to blend together after a while and created an unsightly shade of green. Although we’re never normally mad about random colors that pull, this was one we wouldn’t stand for!

This time around, we decided to scrap Satire altogether and use Pyro, Fireball, and Nightfall. Anna also mixed up some lilac dye with the navy to make a deep purple to place throughout the hair. The entire process took about five hours from start to finish and we began with bleaching the roots for about twenty-five minutes. It’s always fun to see how my hair looks after the bleach is out because the colors can look pretty crazy. For example, there were streaks of emerald green in my hair afterwards. I kind of liked it, actually lol.

After my hair was washed and dried, the hair dye application came next. To achieve this look, Anna painted the top of my roots with Pyro. This deep red is stunning and it’s also strategic. The deeper shade against my roots looks so much better as it’s growing out. Then, she painted the framing of my face with Nightfall and did a halo wrap of it around the bottom layer of my hair and streaked it with purple. All that was left after that was to paint the remainder of my hair with Fireball, sit for about an hour, and see what happened!

Beauty is pain, people, because the water Anna used to wash the dye out was bitter cold. Like the coldest I think the water has ever been, but I will do anything for the best results possible. It felt like heaven to get my hair blow dried shortly after! The ice bath was completely worth it because we are loving how my hair turned out. Not using the Satire was a great move and we have never seen the red looking more vibrant since it wasn’t muddled down with another color. I will also never not be obsessed with Nightfall and I think the color is so flattering on me. Not to mention the wonderful haircut that was much needed after growing out for a few months. C’est magnifique. ❤

I feel my absolute best after an appointment with Anna and know I am looking it too. We plan on lightening things up for my springtime session and I can’t wait to see what we come up with!

How long do you go between getting your hair done? What colors should I get for spring? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan12

New Coral & Lilac Nails

Posted on January 12, 2024 by lifewithlilred

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Hello! This past Monday, I was able to finally get my nails done after work and it was SO very needed. I was unable to come in during Christmas week because sick and my salon takes a week off after New Years so that was a no go either. After a much deserved break for all of the wonderful employees of Elysian Nails, my appointment for a fill couldn’t have come sooner. My nails were looking awful – they were insanely grown out, dull as dishwater, and there was some lifting too. I couldn’t stand it! Thankfully, a new to me tech got me right and it was one of the best fills I’ve had in months. Check it out:

During the grey months of winter, I normally opt for deeper colors for my nails. However, after a not ideal holiday break, I needed some brightness in my life and decided to change things up. I was craving the poppy, fun shades of spring and a coral polish caught my eye as I was scouring my selection. This hue just screamed spring and was like an instant pick me up. To keep with the spring motif, I went with a lovely lilac as my complimentary color and loved how it turned out. I seriously can’t stop staring at my nails as I type this and they are a breath of fresh air to start the new year with.

For such a pretty color palette, I needed pretty nails to match and my tech did an incredible job. I was very impressed with her from the jump because she was so detail oriented. For example, she took the time to really work on my cuticles and that is something that I have never had a tech do before. I didn’t realize how bad mine were until she removed all of the dead skin that was ready to come off. My tech tended to everything wrong with my nails with so much precision and care. By the time she was done, it was like the lifted nails never happened in the first place. My nails felt strong, sturdy, and sharp enough to poke an eye out and that’s exactly how I like it!

One of my favorite things about Elysian Nails is that your hands will always be in the best hands no matter which tech is pampering you. Everyone is so amazingly skilled and even though I couldn’t get an appointment with my go to girl, I was still treated like a long term client by the tech who did my fill. You simply can’t beat that level of customer service! ❤

What color of nail polish are you currently rocking? Are you craving springtime already? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dec30

Face Mask Festivities: GlamUp Nourishing Acaiberry Sheet Mask Edition

Posted on December 30, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Face Mask Festivities: GlamUp Nourishing Acaiberry Sheet Mask Edition

Howdy!! After I enjoyed a super hot bath with the amazing bath bomb you saw yesterday by Rusted Acre Soap Co, I decided to go all out and do a face mask too. After being stuffed up and sick for several days, I was very much in the mood for some pampering! Even though the relief of something so pleasurable was short lived, it was nice to be able to take my mind off of the foul mood I was in for just a little bit. It sucks being sick over the holidays! For the face mask portion of my self care, I went with a Nourishing Acaiberry Sheet Mask by GlamUp. I figured my face could use all of the nourishing it could get after blowing my nose every minute of the past few days lol. Take a look at some pics and let’s discuss:

^^^ I LOOK GREAT!!!!!!!!!

I am not a huge fan of sheet masks and find them to be a bit of a chore. They never fit well and I like the convenience of continuing to go about my business while a clay face mask sits. In this case, I had no issues with having to lay down to let this sheet mask do its thing because it’s not like I was doing anything but laying in my own misery anyway. This sheet mask by GlamUp fit a lot better than other ones that I have tried, smelled delightful, and was loaded with serum to get the job done. Dare I say, too much because it was dripping everywhere!

I let this mask sit for twenty minutes and at that point it had began to dry and I was over scrolling through Facebook to see all of the Christmas fun I couldn’t participate in. I can’t say that I noticed any real difference in the way my skin looked or felt, which is pretty much par for the course of every other sheet mask I’ve used. This wasn’t surprising to me so it wasn’t disappointing. The act of having the face mask on was the most pleasing thing to me because it felt good on my feverish brow and it felt like I was taking care of myself even if it was in a simple way. I wouldn’t buy more from this brand, but the experience was soothing and you can’t ask for much more when you’re sick.

I am going to rate the GlamUp Nourishing Acaiberry Sheet Mask with a two out of ten stars. If it didn’t bring me some type of relief, I would have given it a zero lol. I still have several more GlamUp masks to use and I don’t expect any of them to be any better, but we’ll see what happens!

Do you prefer a clay or sheet mask? What is your favorite form of self care? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dec29

Bath Bomb Blitz: Rusted Acre Soap Co. Knife Edition

Posted on December 29, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Bath Bomb Blitz: Rusted Acre Soap Co. Knife Edition

Hello everyone!!! I hope you all had a merrier Christmas than me because I have been sick as a dog. Thankfully, I have tested negative for Covid several times, but your girl has been feeling ROUGH. This has been most upsetting because I literally never take time off and took an entire week off for the holidays only to get sick. One thing that made me feel better in a sea of yuck was some pampering thanks to my Christmas gift from my sweet blogging bestie. Kate of Live In The Nautical treated me to an absolutely amazing set of horror bath bombs by Rusted Acre Soap Co. and I am in loooove. It was so nice to soak away my troubles for a bit and I was blown away by the show that my Knife bath bomb put on. Check it out:

It is hard to find a true substitute to Lush bath bombs, but I think that they have met their match with Rusted Acre Soap Co. This is, easily, the best not Lush bath bomb that I have ever used and it makes me so eager to try out the other four in the set I got. The Knife bath bomb was a slow fizzing one with thrilling surprises during every stage. What started off at a leisurely pace ended with a massive bang (As you can see from how the water was colored!) and I almost wanted to draw another bath to see what the other bath bombs were going to do!

When I placed the bath bomb in the water, it began to fizz white and smoky grey with the tiniest flecks of red. This process lasted for about two minutes and I assumed that was going to be all. I was so happy to be so completely wrong!! Just when I thought that this bath bomb showed me all it had to offer, the knife erupted in red and began to change the color of the water. After over a minute’s worth of red, the bath bomb changed to black, creating inky, glittery blood red water. It was like watching the climax of a horror movie all from my own bathtub. 😮

This was arguably the coolest bath bomb I have ever used and it smelled great too. Even while severely stuffed up, I could still smell the tangy lemon in the air which was both soothing and invigorating. I only had two qualms with this bath bomb and they are minor. 1) It stained my tub horribly. 2) It wasn’t as moisturizing as a Lush bath bomb, which is my favorite thing about them. Regardless, what a unique experience and I can’t wait to use more!

I am going to rate the Knife bath bomb with a seven and a half out of ten stars. If you are a horror fan, then I cannot recommend the Thriller Bath Bomb Set by Rusted Acre Soap Co. enough. You will love them!

How do you like to pamper yourself? What is your favorite horror flick? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dec15

BFF Christmas Gift

Posted on December 15, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hi darlings!! In the past few days I have received so many early Christmas gifts and it has warmed my little heart. My Christmas countdown has been going on since the beginning of the month and these early prezzies are the perfect thing to tide me over until then. I am SO looking forward to some time off to celebrate with my family and finally giving them the gifts that have been sitting in my apartment for months! This Tuesday, I was delighted to receive Santa Mail from my beautiful angel best friend, Kate, of Live In The Nautical. She is my blogging/IRL bestie and her gifts this year simply sleighed – check it out:

For literally every gift giving occasion, Kate wins. Lol, I consider myself to be an excellent gift giver but my best girl is on a whole other level. For my Christmas prezzies, Kate gifted me with a hand massager and an amazing set of horror themed bath bombs by Rusted Acre Soap Co. What I love about presents from Kate is that her gifts are always perfectly tailored to me. They are SO thoughtful and I can tell that she saves little tidbits from conversations in her Christmas Rolodex to find something just right. In fact, her gifts to me are either something that I would buy for myself or think about purchasing but never do. It’s that best friend telepathy, baby!

Kate gave me the gift of pampering this year and I can’t wait to use all of my new goodies. A car accident when Johnny and I first started dating left me with a lot of issues in my hands and arms that come and go. Spending a ton of time on the computer doesn’t exactly help the cause either lol so the hand massager is going to be fabulous to use! It is also so sweet to me that Kate clocked my complaints of hand pain throughout the year and said “I know the gift for her”. Johnny is also most eager to use it too haha so it’s a double gift. 😀

The piece de resistance, however, is the horror themed bath bombs by Rusted Acre Soap Co. Kate and I are both avid true crime fans, but she is SO not a horror movie gal! Yours truly, on the other hand, lives for them and I clutched my pearls when I opened my bath bomb box. These bath bombs are the absolute coolest and they look so great that I almost don’t want to use them. I totally will, though, and I just know they are going to be awesome. Bath bombs are a product I love, but rarely buy for myself and they are almost always a staple in Kate’s gifts. She has gifted me with spooky bath bombs before, but these ones take the cake!

The best gift of all will forever be having a best friend like Kate. I thank my lucky stars for her every day and for the wonderful blogosphere that brought us gals together. I love you, BFF!!! ❤ ❤ ❤

What is your favorite scary movie? How did you and your bestie meet? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dec8

New Glitter Gold & Ruby Nails

Posted on December 8, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!! This past week hasn’t been the best for yours truly so it was super nice to take a pause on Tuesday afternoon to get my nails done. I needed a new full set in the worst way and, as always, my nail tech hooked it up! Prior to my appointment, my acrylics felt dangerously close to a break with one wrong move. Now, they feel sturdy and durable and look amazing too. I am loving the glitter color combo I selected and my claws look perfect for the holiday season! Check it out:

When I get my nails done around the winter holidays, I like to do something seasonal without being too obvious about it. I have never been one for nail art (way too expensive!) and the only holiday I go all out for is Halloween. To give a subtle tip of the cap to the holiday season, I wanted to steer clear of the traditional red and green motif. That’s not to say that red couldn’t be in the color palette, however, and I opted for a gorgeous glitter ruby and gold, instead. The ruby red had me feeling all of The Wizard of Oz vibes a la Dorothy’s slippers and the gold was like tinsel for a Christmas tree. This color combo feels festive without being too in your face about it and that is exactly what I was going for.

I spent a wonderful almost two hours at Elysian Nails getting all of the pampering done. It always takes a bit longer when I get a full set because soaking my nails off beforehand is an absolute must. I am a huge baby and I cannot stand it when my nails are taken off without a soak. It hurts!! Once my nails were soaked off, it was so weird to see my real nails beneath the acrylics. At this point, acrylics are my real nails so that will forever come as a shock lol. Thankfully, it wasn’t long until my nail tech created brand new nails for me and she crushed. They are strong, shaped to perfection, and I couldn’t be happier with the end result!

These Glitter Gold & Ruby Nails are about as festive as it gets for Lil Red, but I would be a liar if I said they didn’t make me think of Christmas every time I look at them. I can’t wait to celebrate with my family! ❤

Do you get nail art when you get your nails done? How do you incorporate the holiday season into your personal style? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Nov8

New Navy & Grey Nails

Posted on November 8, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!!! I don’t know about all of you, but I had an excellent weekend! I got my nails done on Friday and my bestie girl came over and on Saturday I attended the Akron Comicon. You will see much more about that this week – it was a hoot. 😀 I couldn’t wait for my appointment at Elysian Nails after my work day on Friday because my nails were looking pretty rough. They were lifting and outgrown and I always know that it’s time for a fill when my acrylics poke through the gloves I wear to clean the bunnies’ litter box. So gross lol.

Thankfully, my tech got me right and the timing couldn’t be better – I’m attending an event this Friday that I am beyond excited about. It’s a surprise, but you will all be informed soon!! Check out my New Navy & Grey Nails:

During the fall and winter, I always gravitate towards bold, rich nail polish paired with a lighter hue. It creates a gorgeous contrast and I think it looks so chic and sophisticated. After oxblood and beige nails during my last fill, I wanted to get away from warmer hues and delve into something more icy and cool. I have been obsessed with all things navy since adding the shade into my hair a few months ago and needed more of it! I selected a deep navy and softer heather grey for my colors and love how it turned out. They make me feel like a total ice queen!

Normally when I get my nails done, I opt for a first thing in the morning appointment. That didn’t work out this time around, but it was pretty nice to wrap up my week at the nail salon. Closing the work day out by getting pampered was most relaxing and, as always, my nail tech crushed. She got my janky nails looking brand new again. They feel so secure and sturdy as if some of the nails hadn’t been lifted at all. The shape is exactly how I like them, the colors are divine, and I can’t wait to show them off this Friday at a shindig with a local celebrity. 😀

There is nothing like a fresh fill to get your girl back to feeling her damn self and I can’t stop looking at my new nails. And, yes, I already booked my December appointment in October lol. Make sure you get your beauty appointments scheduled while you still can for the holiday season!

What color of nail polish are you rocking? When during the day to you like to schedule your beauty appointments? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Oct6

New Mocha & Oxblood Nails

Posted on October 6, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Howdy!! When Johnny and I had COVID, I had a nail appointment that needed to be cancelled. The last thing I wanted was to make all of the fabulous techs and patrons of my favorite salon sick! As I lounged about doing a whole lot of nothing, the promise of a fill was the treat I needed to look forward to. My nails were so grown out and it was driving me nuts! This past Tuesday, I couldn’t wait to hit the salon after a quick shift at work and Shelley slayed on these Mocha & Oxblood nails:

I was feeling very uninspired the past few fills in terms of nail polish colors. Summer was winding down, but it wasn’t quite fall and it was hard to determine what I wanted to go with. Not this time, though! On Monday evening, I went out to a delicious Mexican dinner with my bestie, Lea. She had on the most lovely beige polish and that was all of the inspo I needed. This is not the first time that I have done a variation of nude and red polish, but it hits just right every time. It feels so chic for fall and I am living for that oxblood polish – it is gorgeous!

When I have a first thing in the morning appointment at Elysian Nails, I am SO fine with the fill taking longer because my work won’t start until later. In the middle of the day, however, I want a super speedy session so I can get back to whatever else is on my agenda for the day. Shelley is synonymous with super speedy fills and she knocked mine out in forty minutes. As always, it is most impressive and she completely rocked it. In under an hour, my grown out talons were a distant memory and I left the salon feeling like a million bucks. This is the first fill I have been excited about in a while and the color combo has me feeling like a fall queen.

Some pampering was exactly what I needed for a post COVID pick me up and your girl is officially back to feeling herself. It’s amazing what a mere hour at the salon can do!

What are your favorite fall colors? What color of nail polish do you have on? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

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