tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62212705421228107382024-03-06T22:33:29.866-05:00Nikki'sNailFilesA blog about life, travel, food, fitness, inspiration and all things life.Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.comBlogger864125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-19494512209115611742019-07-06T14:25:00.000-04:002019-07-07T21:16:19.612-04:00Happy Fourth of July!For all my American visitors, happy Independence Day! I hope you are all enjoying your parades, your barbecues, your fireworks, and fun times with family and friends! We'll be heading to the morning parade with my family. My dad always has a lovely spread of breakfast foods and he even sets up a tent so we have some shade. After that we'll be hanging out for a barbecue and ending the night with Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-76048789361651645662019-06-30T13:53:00.000-04:002019-07-07T13:54:34.209-04:002019 Chinese Lantern Festival
Have you noticed I am trying to catch up on my backlog of posts?! Lol. Next on the list? My trip to the 2019 Philadelphia Chinese Lantern Festival. We usually go with my broski and get some dim sum beforehand and that's exactly what we did a few weekends ago. The lantern festival in theory does not change year-to-year bu they introduce new lanterns each year. Here are a few our our Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-2371004223840410882019-06-28T14:13:00.000-04:002019-07-07T14:14:29.037-04:00Having a SWEET time at Ariana Grande's Sweetener Concert 2019
Look at us go! My sister and I are on such a roll with doing fun things together this summer. We recently went to Coffee with Carly x The Seven Guide and this past Monday we attended the Ariana Grade concert! We saw Ariana Grande for her Dangerous Woman Tour in New York back in 2017 and we wanted to go again. Plus we have been listening to Thank You, Next and 7 Rings on repeat. Maybe Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-22364776497947426502019-06-25T10:03:00.000-04:002019-07-07T13:23:14.286-04:00A Ric Rac Nail FailWhen I was younger my mom used to sew Halloween costumes and some holiday dresses for my me and my siblings. No off-the-rack Walmart costumes for us! I remember hours of her sitting at the kitchen table with her Singer sewing machine, patterns, fabric, ribbons, and threads. I guess I was feeling nostalgic the other day because these nails are inspired by Ric Rac ribbon. Do you know ric ric?Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-65777168963711766032019-06-18T13:21:00.000-04:002019-07-07T13:22:21.865-04:00Sister Escape: Coffee with Carly x The Seven Guide
My sister and I took a little road trip last week for a blog-related event called Coffee With Carly presented by The Seven Guide in Stone Harbor, New Jersey. So, who is Carly you're probably wondering? Well, she is a blogger over on CarlyThePrepster.com! She has been blogging about her life, travels, style, etc. since her college days in 2008. My sister reads her blog and asked if I would tag Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-2628071829521746622019-06-08T11:34:00.000-04:002019-07-07T13:24:35.797-04:00A Quick Trip to NOLA (Part Two)
Part Two of our trip to NOLA starts off with a trip to Oak Alley Plantation.
I know visiting plantations is a controversial topic. But we decided to visit Oak Alley Plantation because we knew it discussed and honored the history and experiences of all individuals at the property. And the property was a sight to behold. We sipped a mint julep and learned all we could.
After Oak Alley Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-52603322525016201272019-06-05T12:06:00.000-04:002019-07-07T18:25:32.246-04:00A Quick Trip to NOLA (Part One)
Any opportunity we have to scratch our travel itch we try to take. So when Memorial Day approached we knew we wanted to seize the opportunity (and days off) to schedule a quick getaway. We considered a few locations but ultimately settled on a brief visit to New Orleans, Louisiana. Want to see what we got into?
We arrived to our hotel in the French Quarter on
Thursday afternoon and Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-23867748500784007822019-05-23T10:03:00.000-04:002019-07-07T13:24:19.559-04:00How to Use Cricut + A Project Night with my Sister
Every time I get something new -- a new gadget, purse, even new clothes -- I always want to use it immediately and frequently. Does that happen to you? Well, my sister recently purchased a Cricut Maker machine and invited me over for a craft night to try it out.
Are you familiar with Cricut machines? They can DIY pretty much anything in your imagination. Seriously. It can precision-cut a tonNikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-38931339909957881222019-04-08T19:59:00.003-04:002019-04-08T20:02:09.078-04:00An Overdue Recap: Nails, Meals, and Miles!Sometimes a girl just needs to paint her nails, kick her
feet up, and blog a little, you know? And for me that time is right now. Like
right this very second. I know it’s been a while, so there are beaucoup updates to share!
What to start with? Oh! Some nail designs!
Feels good to post some nail photos finally. I can't remember the last time I posted a nail photo!
Ok moving on. Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-10855656093511914872019-04-05T10:06:00.000-04:002019-04-08T22:07:17.957-04:00The Last Italy Recap: Final Days in FlorenceOh my goodness it is about time this gets posted, right? I mean, our trip to Italy was literally over six months ago but no big. I've recapped our time in Rome (part one and part two), Vatican City (part one and part two) Pompeii, Venice (part one and part two), and Milan. Now it's time to share how we spent our final days in Florence!
No sooner did we arrive off the train in Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-31276348400737557382019-02-04T22:42:00.000-05:002019-02-17T22:43:04.730-05:00Maxing Out Our Time in Milan
From Venice we traveled north to Milan. I was psyched to see Milan and all of its fashionable inhabitants but I was also really looking forward to our day trip to Lake Como. We were in Milan for three days but I really count it as one and a half because we only went sightseeing the first day and the third morning we were there. This is what we did on those days!
After unloading our baggage (Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-58538746026039262472019-02-03T21:57:00.000-05:002019-02-17T22:00:46.844-05:00A Few Days in Venice - Day TwoFor day two/our last day in Venice it was back to sunny skies all day. We hit the road water and visited the Venetian islands of Murano and Burano. These islands were so tiny and fun to explore.
Our morning began with an adventure of its own--trying to find the vaparetto stop and to buy tickets. Luckily we did that quickly and we even found a gas station...for the boats.
The first Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-89572415513807575372019-02-01T21:36:00.000-05:002019-02-17T21:38:23.019-05:00A Few Days in Venice - Day OneWe only had a few days to spend in Venice during our two weeks in Italy in September. I really wish we would have added one more time though because wandering the canals and waterways was so much fun. It's like another world and was completely different than what we are used to. This is how we spent our few days in vivacious Venice.
During our trip we really lucked out with the weather. On Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-74297754819079122262019-01-08T10:50:00.003-05:002019-01-08T10:50:57.272-05:00Things for 2019Alright, so this year didn't see quite the same amount of excitement as 2017 did but we still did manage to have what I think was a darn good year. This year I went to see Taylor Swift with my siblings, completed my very first Tough Mudder Half, celebrated my broski's 21st birthday in Las Vegas, tried a new activity, saw Christina Aguilera in concert, continued my family's paint party Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-37749825965592340412019-01-07T17:23:00.001-05:002019-01-07T17:23:15.595-05:00Happy New Year: Best of 2018!
I bet you thought I would forget, didn't you? It's that time of year again--time for my annual Best Of post featuring my favorite nail designs that I did in the year prior. I did this for 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017, so there was no way I was letting this tradition stop.
I am happy to report that 2018 saw the exact same number of posts as 2017....73 strong. However, there were notablyNikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-66226859843183445302018-12-25T11:59:00.000-05:002018-12-28T12:16:48.128-05:00A Very Merry Christmas 2018 Recap
(Photo from here.)
I love the holiday season. My favorite part of the holidays is definitely the lead up to Christmas because that's when everyone seems to be in a better mood. There's decorating, yummy dinners, holiday treats, spending time with family and friends, exchanging Christmas cards, wrapping gifts, hanging ornaments on the Christmas tree, and just general activities that really setNikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-33589969135140721942018-12-21T10:34:00.000-05:002018-12-28T10:36:15.823-05:00A Christmas How-To: Finishing a Cross-Stitch StockingI am so excited to share this that I am interrupting my very belated and very drawn-out recap of Italy to bring you a little Christmas-inspired "How To" for the inquiring mind.
Based on recent experience, I realized that there is little no instruction or YouTube video about how to finish a cross-stitch stocking.
Backing and framing your finished cross-stitch project? Sure.
Whole lessons on Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-7756286567059159482018-12-11T20:59:00.001-05:002018-12-28T10:08:23.061-05:00Travel Day - Naples to Venice + Pompeii Purple Swatch
Ahhh, lord these delays are killing me. Well, let's pick up where we left off, shall we? The next day in our Italian anniversary trip was a travel day (read: a realllllly long train ride between Naples and Venice) so I don't really have that many worthwhile photos for this particular day to share. Notwithstanding this lack of blogworthy photos, I figure since last post was about Pompeii that nowNikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-26115500292258322382018-11-12T19:50:00.000-05:002018-11-12T19:50:51.157-05:00Plenty of Pompeii + Climbing Vesuvius
Our second day in Naples was filled with a trip to visit what was one of the most astonishing places I have ever been. Pompeii was no doubt a sight to behold in its heyday and continues to be even despite the very palpable history and sense of catastrophe that was with us as we explored the massive town. Walking into Pompeii it was clear that the town was so much more than rubble and Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-39671962056986235282018-11-06T21:58:00.000-05:002018-11-06T21:58:11.489-05:00Signed, sealed, delivered....VOTED TODAY
For my American visitors, did you vote today??
As you may/should know, it's time for the midterm elections! I'll admit I'm not super political so it won't be shocking that there's not much no political debate here on the blog. I definitely don't want to change that but I will say that yes, I voted! And I even did a festive nail design afterwards. I was inspired by my presidential Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-42490427853979879692018-11-04T11:34:00.001-05:002018-11-04T11:34:56.401-05:00Travel Day: Rome to NaplesOkay, let's get back to recapping our adventure in Italy from September shall we? I went for margaritas with my sister yesterday and she reminded me how I sort of left it hanging after posting about our day at Vatican City. So here I am continuing on with a little bit more of our trip! Our next day was a travel day to re-position ourselves from Rome to Naples. But we started the day in Rome with Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-79029992391630488332018-11-02T07:52:00.000-04:002018-11-04T12:04:34.584-05:00101 in 1001 Days...Part Two!
I seriously cannot believe that I'm starting my second 101 in 1001 List right now. I love making lists and I am so excited to restart on a whole new set! I will always be grateful to Mackenzie Horan for creating the concept and sharing on the internet to inspire others.
So things didn't go as planned with my first list--I only completed 46 items--so obviously one of goals on my new list Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-15598859203822789132018-10-31T22:03:00.000-04:002018-11-01T21:04:45.665-04:00Happy Halloween 2018: My Amazon Costume + Painting + Pumpkins!
I hope everyone had a wonderful and safe Halloween! I binged on leftover candy and am now lounging on our couch watching Hocus Pocus and staring at all the wrappers in shame. Lol. I'm also trying to complete a bit of work before I call it a night. I'll admit, it was really fun passing out candy tonight and seeing all the little kids in their costumes. It's such a different experience from Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-28263958219906976842018-10-19T12:06:00.000-04:002018-10-19T12:06:00.257-04:00One Day at The Vatican (PART TWO): Sistine Chapel + St. Peter's Basilica + St. Peter's DomeOk, so let's finish out our "Day in the Vatican" with Part Two. Part One got so long and photo heavy I thought it was better to break it in two.
So picking up where we left off: walking into Sistine Chapel!
We followed the crowd into the Sistine Chapel, which despite being connected to the Vatican Museums was actually a pretty decent walk! Although we got to see a really neat Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6221270542122810738.post-2742674564436538032018-10-17T15:44:00.005-04:002018-10-17T15:55:03.576-04:00101 in 1001 Completion and Recap
How have I been so remiss as to not post about my 101 in 1001 progress?!
Seriously??
You guys might remember how a loooooong time ago I created a list of 101 things I wanted to do over the next 1001 days. I found the idea over on Pink Champagne Problems (which is now The Champagne Edit by Dana) and she got the idea from Mackenzie Horan on Design Darling. I think Nikkihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08063127818383677392noreply@blogger.com2