The Queen Series is a weekly feature happening on Wednesdays. Each week one of us from The Digit-al Dozen will introduce you to our blog, tell you about how we got started, and talk a little about how we ended up being the Queen of something. We all have unique talents when it comes to nail art, and our Queen titles reflect that. Check out past posts in this series.
Heather Preston, The Queen of Simple
Blog: www.peaceloveandpolish.com
Twitter: @peacelovnpolish
Facebook: www.facebook.com/peaceloveandpolish
YouTube: www.youtube.com/peacelovenpolish
Google +: https://plus.google.com/+HeatherPrestonPeaceLoveAndPolish/posts
Instagram: www.instagram.com/peaceloveandpolish
During the day I'm superwoman, yea - I wish! I'm a military wife and currently a stay at home mom with a teaching degree. I have a 10-month old son and a 5-year old Sheltie and they fill my day with lots of excitement and adventure!
I've been blogging about 2.5 years (3 in August). My blog started as a hobby to keep me busy while my husband was on a deployment. I never though it would stick around this long, but here it is! There's no real original story behind my blog name. I just though of something that had 'polish' in it - and then Peace, Love and Polish was born. Coincidentally, I am not the only one out there in the blogging world, but I never thought to check.
People may read my blog for giggles, but mostly for nail art! I love to do freehand nail art. You won't find any stamping here (I kind of suck at it). I do some swatches from collections - but nail art is what I love to do. I love to incorporate my personal life and wit into my blog posts - so it's not just strictly nail lingo.
I really love to post and chat with other nail aficionados on Instagram! It's super simple to access right on my phone whenever I have some down time, and I love the nail community on there - all the ladies are so encouraging and I love seeing different kinds of nail art! I get so inspired every time I am on there.
Want to know what my most popular post EVER is? Well, it's a Digit-al Dozen Mani, and one of my personal favorites too! It's my colorful tree done during art week (seen here). It's the most out of the box mani I had done at the time, and it was so well received! I was thrilled!
When it comes to dedication to this blog, so much blood, sweat and tears go into it. Okay, maybe not - but a lot of time does! Prior to my son, I spent a good amount of time working on manis, taking pictures, editing them, writing posts and keeping up with the blog appearance. Now that Connor is here - that time has significantly decreased. I think I am able to get in maybe a few hours a week here and there to work on posts and such. Life as a Mom is time-consuming. I typically plan what I am doing on a calendar on my computer! It's right there - so it's super easy to type up a post and look at the date prior to scheduling!
I certainly wish I were better at fine art details and creativity! I love when I see my fellow Digit-al Dozen-ers think outside the box and produce these amazing, beautifully detailed manis! I try to practice as much as I can, but time constraints due to nap time don't give me much time to really get into a detailed design.
When I think back onto what could possibly be my earliest polish memory, I think it was middle school and those cool Bonnebell scented nail polishes! I was obsessed, and I always had to have my nails painted. Every week I changed a color. It basically continue from there. OF COURSE THE POLISH CAME BEFORE THE BLOG! Where would this blog be if I didn't have a love for polish? I've learned so much about it since then though! I didn't realize my love for polish had become an obsession until one day I was bored and sat down to count my nail polishes. It came to 88 (and I remember distinctly) and I was shocked. Then I realized others had the same passion, so I started reading blogs and buying more polish based on others suggestions. The rest is history.
My collection is rather small compared to most polish hoarders, I'm just below 500. I'm happy with that number though, and I purge often. Hypothetically, if I could only save five polishes they would be (in no order) Essie Limited Addiction, China Glaze Re-Fresh Mint, OPI Excuse Moi, LCN Knitting Wool & Color Club Revvvolution.
Of all brands of polish I love China Glaze the best. OPI is a close second however. They have the best colors and most of their collections appeal to me! I obviously own the most China Glaze polishes - 109! I really love pastels and creams! I am a sucker for a shimmer though, but pastel creams are my heart. I love them. A lot. More than I should.
Here's one of my favorite polish tips to give out - don't forget to cap your tips with top coat! It helps seal the edge of the polish and prevents major chipping! Also, moisturize, moisturize, moisturize! It's super critical to help keep your nails and cuticles healthy!
Being a part of the Digit-al Dozen for over a year has been a blast and I am so completely grateful to be in this group of such talent! My absolute favorite theme ever done in Digit-al Dozen History has got to be Black and White. I hated it at the time, but I really knocked out some of my best work that week!
One of my favorite things to see is my work recreated! I absolutely love it, it makes me feel like what I'm doing is worth while. It's nice to know others love my work enough to reproduce it. I kind of feel famous after, if I can even say that! When two of my manicures made it onto the Nail It Mag website - I was floored. That's when I felt I made it big!
Of all the bloggers in the blogging world, I am really inspired by everyone! I like to take a little bit from each blogger and try to work it into my own. I can't pick just one - seriously. I have a love for all of them! Of all the nails in the world, I wish I had the nails of Lindsey from
Wondrously Polished. Does that make me creepy? I just love her nail
shape and how her nails are on the shorter side, but still look long
and feminine.
I don't have a polish workspace, as crazy as it seems. I have a little lap board that I tote ALL over my house to do my nails. On the couch, in bed, on the floor, at the table. I like to have everything portable. When
working on my nails, especially when there's a specific theme in mind -
it's super hard to be original. I always look for inspiration from
patterns or wallpaper. I guess that's not too original - but they are
inspiring. I get a lot of inspiration from color palates too :)
Thanks for reading and getting to know me, the Queen of Simplicity a little bit more! I love inspiring everyone to create simple yet beautiful designs!
