Sandal season is fast approaching

     The aftershocks have been going strong again here in Tokyo. It was relatively quiet for the past 2 weeks and then since Monday evening we've been having rather sizable jolts. Nothing too strong, but definitely annoying and unnerving. This morning I was just about to step into the shower when I was startled by an aftershock, and, not wanting to be in the shower in case a bigger one struck, I decided to clean house until the fiancee came home from the gym. I also took the opportunity to go through my make-up stash and tossed out a few things that were old or that I didn't use.

     I ended up purging a lot from my nail polish collection; I love nail polish, I repaint my nails myself every week (and, in spring and summer, toes every 2-3 weeks) and I always buy whatever color catches my eye. Tokyo is the nail art center of the world, so there's definitely a lot to choose from. Every month I end up with a few bottles of novelty colors, but I usually only use them once or twice, so I decided to get rid of most them today. Now I just have my set of staples, though I'm sure I'll be adding more (and then throwing out more) in the near future!

L-R: Essie Shop Til You Drop, Color Club silver glitter, Revlon Silver Screen, Mavala Rosee, OPI I Love Yokohama

     Now I know Essie and OPI are usually the top favorites out there in the blogosphere, and while I do like quite a few of their shades, I'm not particularly loyal to them. Essie polishes always seem super streaky, and Shop Til You Drop is no different. But it's a really pretty shade of coral pink, perfect for summer, and I only use it on my toes so the streakiness isn't much of an issue. As for OPI, some polishes/formulas are awesome, and some are streaky, bubbly, or dry up in their bottle way too quickly (Samoan Sand, my favorite neutral, is guilty of this, so this week I have to buy yet another fresh bottle). I Love Yokohama, from the Yokohama collection, is one of their better quality ones, offering a warm subtle shimmer and a rich natural pink tone. It's another color I use more often on toes, so when it comes to fingers, I usually rotate between demure (Mavala's Rosee, an amazing peach pink shade that always gets compliments, a which is a pretty close dupe for Chanel's Peche Nacree), chic (Revlon's Silver Screen, which in Japan is actually a different shade than the back in the States, more a white silver shimmer than dark grey/silver...Revlon's formula is amazing, it lasts forever and goes on evenly, it's the best of the drug store brands IMHO), and badass (Color Club's awesome chunky silver glitter, which does take some elbow grease and extra-strength remover to get rid of, but it's worth it).
     This past week I wore Silver Screen, so I mostly wore neutral colors to complement it. On Sunday I wore one of my favorite casual outfits (though I wore my Zara khakis to work and changed into jeans afterwards). I feel like a figure skater when I wear it, which is pretty awesome, and the sweater is both comfy and flattering, which can be a rarity!

Shimmer open-knit sweater (F21), white chemise (Zara), jeans/jeggings (Zara)

     While I still prefer autumn and winter, I do have to admit that dressing for spring is by far the easiest; fewer/lighter layers, flats rather than boots, and a cute light spring jacket (or not, on warmer days). Soon it may even be warm enough to wear sandals, so time to go buff and paint those toenails! Think I'll go for the Essie polish for my first sandal wearing of the year...