diy: painted rhinestone necklace

If you follow me on Instagram (@theneonteaparty), you probably caught the above photo of my good friend, fashion stylist and swimwear designer Heather aka Heather Feather rocking a painted rhinestone necklace I customized for her last week. The project was inspired by a genius, "why-didn't-I-think-of-that?!" DIY I came across recently on P.S.-I made this...'s Instagram feed, and I finally got to test it out when Heather so generously surrendered a bunch of her old rhinestone jewelry for me to mess around with.

The project is as simple as this:

+

Take a rhinestone necklace (or any other form of rhinestone jewelry) and paint over the stones with your favorite matte nail polish colors. Tada! Tom Binns-inspired jewelry of your dreams! Heather requested a combination of nude and neon pink, so I used "Don't Pretzel My Buttons" by OPI and "Jackie Oh!" by Color Club (available at Harmon). If you choose to use neon nail polish, you need to use a white base coat to make the color pop. If you don't, the sheer lacquer will create more of a stained glass effect on the rhinestones, which you don't want. My white of choice was "I Will!" by L'Oreal. 

Here's what the necklace looked like pre-neonization:

I opted for a singular coat of nude, as to not soften the facets of the stones too much. I painted the accent stones with enough white so that they were completely opaque and then added enough pink to cover all evidence of white paint and until the hue really popped. I decided against a clear top coat to keep the matte effect, but you might want to use it to prevent chipping. Let dry for a few hours, 

and voilà! 

I think it came out pretty well, don't you?

For more inspiration, head over to Charm & Chain to check out their Tom Binns debut, chock full of dazzling neon color combo-spiration for your rhinestone painting desires! And definitely let me know if you try this easy DIY yourself!

Peace, Love and Neon,

Marisa

color story: icy sea foam

{stylesightings | unknown | elizabeth and james spring 2011 | essie absolutely shore}

You all know I'm partial to hues of the fluorescent variety, 

but also I have a significant soft spot for pastels. 

The two compliment each other perfectly! 

This icy sea foam green is such a refreshing hue for summer 

and I can't wait to try out this new Essie polish.

Peace, Love and Neon,

Marisa

from my closet: spring '11 resurrections

With my spring clothing budget looking to be spent only on dresses for formals and (dare I say it) GRADUATION, it's time to go recessionista chic and shop my closet for this season's trends. What goes around does indeed come around and this time the 70s are back in the form of platforms, bellbottoms, John Lennon glasses and cool blues and whites. A flower child myself, these pieces have been long-time lingerers of my closet and will once again see the light of day. (Now that the long-awaited spring is finallyyyy here.) 

Here's what I found:

{white blazer, garance doré}

I bought a white blazer from Zara a couple years back but wore it only a few times before stowing it away with my glittery leopard halter and homemade denim bermuda shorts. I guess it has something to do with the fact that I felt like a mad scientist ever time I'd try it on. Lucky for my cute little blazer, spring '11 says, "Bring on the lab wear!" and bring it on I shall. Maybe even with a pair of cropped white jeans? Now we're talkin' spring's other sartorial demand: MONOCHROME.

{denim flares, unknown}

My first pair of designer jeans were super-flared Seven Brands with lime green pocket stitching. Short and lazy 15 year-old me never got around to hemming them and before I knew it, I became a strictly skinny jeans kinda gal, sending the Sevens straight to the back of my denim drawer. Inspired by my newfound appreciation for 70s-style bellbottoms, I finally had these babies shorted last month and have been rocking them with heels ever since.

{turquoise nails, the man repeller et moi}

After reading today's Man Repeller post, I was reminded of the most amazing turquoise nail polish I sported much of spring '10 after spontaneously purchasing a bottle from an H&M in Amsterdam. (That picture of my toes was taken in Sevilla. Adorbs, huh?!) I've already painted my nails this color today and I'm pumped to make it my go-to color for the second spring in a row.

{black kork-ease platforms, zappos}

I was fortunate enough to snag these babies from a Teen Vogue closet giveaway on one of my last days as an intern there a few summers back. I wasn't so keen on them at first but became a quick convert when I realized that they are the most comfortable height-boosting shoes in existence. Conveniently for me, flatforms are the sandal of choice this season and come next month I'll be running all over NYC in these guys.

{rockin' round sunnies in paris}

These badboys hail from a tiny vintage store in Rome my friends and I discovered last year on my 21st birthday. We all found absolute gems in that shop that day, including my favorite navy quilted, chain link bag. (Also pictured) I sported these sunglasses today for the first time in months, SEASONS even, and I won't be putting them away any time soon.

What items from your wardrobe will you be resurrecting this spring?

Tell me in the comments!

Peace, Love and Neon,

Marisa

recent acquisitions: summer 2010

While I have not been going crazy with the J.Crew purchases (most of what I buy is on sale even before my discount) or any purchases for that matter, I have picked up a few OUTSTANDING items this summer.

1. Panama hat, purchased at a gift shop in Sevilla, España

This hat goes with everything and looks good on literally everyone--even those claiming not to be hat people (cough cough, Alex Black). I love throwing on this baby with both casual and dressy outfits to add a special summer kick to the look.

2. Sequin striped sailor shirt, J.Crew

I posted this shirt on a recent NTP post as a J.Crew item that I was dyingggg to have--et voilà! Now it's mine! I found a returned XS in the stock room and made it mine that day! It's a good thing the shirt runs super big because the XS fits my Medium frame like a glove!

3. Embellished white fabric earrings, J.Crew

First of all, these earrings remind me of Prada earrings from Summer '08 when I was working at Teen Vogue. Those were black fabric with green stones and I was IN LOVE with them and their matching bib necklace. Like the sequin striped shirt, these earrings were probably a return and were on sale for $29.99 even BEFORE my discount! It's fate.

4. Miu Miu Spring 2006 sandals

{one of my favorite Miu Miu collections of all time!}

These shoes are by far the purchase of the summer. I found them two days ago at a tiny consignment shop at 350 East 9th Street run by a darling French-Algerian man named Matiell. I saw the shoes in the window, discovered they were my size, saw the price tag ($66!!!!) and knew they were mine. And Matiell was so sweet he knocked off $6 and gave my friends good prices on their purchases as well. I'll definitely be back there to see what other amazing pieces I can score--maybe he'll even knock off $200 from a $400 emerald green silk Chanel chain link purse. Hey.. a girl can dream!

Other summer 2010 purchases include Essie's Lilacism nail polish (seen on my fingers and toes in the above photos), a new pair of black lace-up Docs on sale at Urban for $39.99 (!!!), and THIS sequin mini stripe tank in grey from J.Crew.

I am building up a pretty spectacular wardrobe, if I do say so myself!

Alright kiddies, my friend Rebecca is coming over now and we're gunna make some lunch.. I'm thinking something including poached eggs. Yum!

Peace, Love and Neon,
Marisa

want this now: pastel polish

Last summer's nail polish craze was all about the neon. This summer? Pastels, of course.

I've been dreaming about lilac nails for no particular reason for the past two weeks now, and lo and behold: many of the lovely ladies that joined in Amy's birthday celebration this week were painted up in the hue! Do I have good trend radar or what?

What must have began with Chanel's Jade last fall now has polish-lovers craving purple and blue members of the pastel family.



Essie's current resort collection contains three pastel tones (blue, green and purple) as well as a complimentary pale grey tone. Cute!

However, I am currently on the hunt for a true powder blue and pale lilac, like the ones I used to choose at the nail salon when I was seven.



Are those my dream colors I see in OPI's current Shrek collection??

Peace, Love and Neon,
Marisa

EDITOR'S NOTE: Went to crewcuts the day after this post and lo and behold: they were selling the perfect shade of pale purple! Essie's Lilacism is currently on my toes :)

nail polish giveaway!

Attention Neon Tea Party lovers! I have a special treat for you all today: I am doing a nail polish giveaway, courtesy of Karma Organic Spa!!

When I was home for Thanksgiving, my mom and I stopped in Bendel's for a little window shopping and ended up talking to Nausil Zaheer, creator of Karma Organic Spa and their fabulous all-natural, chemical-free nail polishes. After my mom informed him of my blog, he offered me two bottles of nail polishes for a giveaway and one to keep for myself. I guess he thought I was legit after we discovered that we have both worked with stylist Sabina Schreder. (Nausil has done nails for many of her shoots and I assisted her on two shoots this summer!)

I am giving away one bottle of a shiny amethyst color called MIDNIGHT PASSION and a bright matte teal called SAFETY ZONE. I've been sporting MIDNIGHT PASSION all week and I'm loving it!!

So how do you get your hands on one of these babies??

The two people that send my blog URL to the most people will get one of the two colors--both of which are FABULOUS! Comment on this post to tell me the number of people to whom you sent my blog. I will be announcing the winners on Friday, so good luck!!

In the meantime, check out Karma Organic Spa's website, which features tons of all-natural nail, skin and body products! My mom's a fan of the pleasant-smelling nail polish remover (yes, it's true that such a product exists!).

Peace, Love and Neon,
Marisa

the jade is taking over

Looky looky at what today's post is on WhoWhatWear... I'm telling you, it was all my doing!

(I effing wish, haha!!)

Peace, Love and Neon,
Marisa

want this now: mint chocolate nails?

The other day, my friend Jessie and I met up in Harvard Square for the afternoon--which included a trip to the ice cream shop (duhh!). She ordered mint oreo in a sugar cone and explained to me that she used to order mint chocolate chip and pistachio ice creams because that classic pastel green was her favorite color. This conversation reminded me of both the room that I had as a baby, which was painted in that very color, and my own love of mint chip ice cream. Consequently, I felt a sudden resurgence of my fondness for the yummy minty hue.

Lucky for me, as I mentioned two posts back, Chanel will be offering manis at FNO in their new Jade color, and I'm more excited than ever to score myself a bottle!! As I've been back at school for a week and attempting to get into the swing of things, painting my nails has certainly not been a priority of mine. And all of the unpacking and cleaning? Forget about it! But now that that's all done and I'm back in action, I can paint my nails the color of Jessie's and my childhood any time!!

What do you think of the color?? Have any great new colors on your nail polish wish list that you'd like to share with the class??

Peace, Love and Neon,
Marisa

Summer '09 Mani Wish List

A few things have me thinking of nail polish colors: the first being that it is a new season, hence the urge to change things up; the second being that I begin my internship at rag & bone on Tuesday and am planning on getting a mani; and the third being that I think I packed up my bag of nail polish with all of my stuff in storage... OOPS!

So for the to-be-infamously-fabulous Summer '09, I'm feeling: lavender, Barbie-shoe pink, sea foam green, pastel coral and neon pink (obviously).

LAVENDER - OPI, A Grape Fit:




BARBIE-SHOE PINK - Essie, Punchy Pink:




SEA FOAM GREEN - Rescue Beauty, Bikini Bottom:




PASTEL CORAL - Chanel, LA Sunset:




NEON PINK - Essie, Short Shorts:



Alex was wearing this color today. AMAZING! Got the Editor's Pick on Makeup Makes Me Happy.

Wonder which color I'll choose for my first week at work...!!

Peace, Love and Neon,
Marisa