Ransom Riggs

{Man Crush Monday} Ransom Riggs

~ Taylor Justine ~ 1 Comment

In honor of the release of Hollow City in paperback tomorrow, my MCM is none other than Ransom Riggs! As half of one of the most AWESOME literary powerhouse couples, Riggs is so much fun to follow on Instagram, and equally as entertaining of a writer.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children was a breath of fresh air when I picked it up last year. Its story is unique, creative and, at times, creepy in the best way. I don’t usually read books that fall into the thriller/horror genre, so Miss Peregrine’s toed the line just enough to keep me on pins until Hollow City is released in paperback!

Miss Peregrine's Inspired Manicure // Novels and Nail Polish

Not to mention, the awesome vintage photos that come with it make your reading experience that much more incredible. Talk about picture books for adults, am I right?
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children // Novels and Nail PolishHave you pre-ordered Hollow City? If so, Happy Reading!

What to Read Wednesday

~ Taylor Justine ~ Leave a comment

#WhatToReadWednesday is a series I started doing on Instagram a couple weeks ago after seeing it created by Barnes and Noble. I love the idea of a quick review, with bullets to entice readers at a glance. Since not everyone is on Instagram, I decided to bring the series to my blog as well!

Let’s catch up with the last three weeks of What to Read Wednesday!

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn: Just finished this book today. It took hold of me and never let go, even now that I’m done.

Sharp Objects

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs: Unique story, filled with suspense and gorgeous writing.

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi: Stood out brilliantly among a world of dystopian fiction.

Shatter Me

Are any of these books on your TBR list? Happy Reading!

 

Miss Peregrine’s Perfect Polish

~ Taylor Justine ~ Leave a comment

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar ChildrenLet me start off this post by saying I’ve never been one to read and enjoy books that fall into the genre of “horror.” I don’t do horror movies or go to scary places like Knott’s Scary Farm, even on Halloween with my boyfriend to hide behind! So you can imagine my nerves when I picked up a book with a levitating girl on the cover and creepy black and white photos throughout. But, with the huge amount of love and support Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children has received on sites like Tumblr and Goodreads, I knew I needed to grow a pair and read it!

Sadly, I left it at my boyfriend’s house earlier this week, so I haven’t been able to finish it yet. But, I am incredibly intrigued with the characters and “peculiar” happenings so far! It even inspired my weekend manicure, which I am sharing with you today. My review of Miss Peregrine’s will becoming soon, but in the meantime, enjoy some fun nail polish!

Tools I used: Julep's Plie Wand and Dotting Tool, Julep's Lucy, Sephora's Self-Maid Millionaire.
Tools I used: Julep’s Plie Wand and Dotting Tool, Julep’s Lucy, Sephora’s Self-Maid Millionaire.

While Miss Peregrine’s definitely has dark overtones, I was pleasantly surprised to find it isn’t nightmare-inducing scary! It was the creepy premise that inspired me to use an almost blood-red Julep polish, Lucy. I like that it gives off a dark vibe without being completely black. It took two coats to achieve the rich, pigmented color I wanted, and dried without streaks!

This was my first time using Julep’s new toy, the Plie Wand, and I loved it! Changing out the different caps was simple, and it really did give me so much more control when painting with my non-dominant hand. Like anything, it’ll probably take a bit of practice to make perfect, but I can see it becoming a staple in my manicure routine. I love me some fun, new gadgets to try out!

Julep's Lucy + Sephora's Self-Maid Millionaire
Julep’s Lucy + Sephora’s Self-Maid Millionaire

I decided to add a little bit of sparkle with accent dots on my thumb and ring fingers. I found the perfect gold in Self-Maid Millionair, one of the mini Sephora exclusive Cinderella nail polishes. The book takes on an element of the supernatural, and the gold really reminded me of that! Miss Peregrine’s home starts off as somewhat of an oasis for Jacob after the tragedy of his grandfather’s death, and the gold represents that.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

Do you love a nice, dark mani every once in a while? Happy reading!