Author Archives: Mary S.

China Glaze Charmed, I’m Sure Swatches & Review

China Glaze Charmed I'm Sure Swatches & Review China Glaze Charmed, I’m Sure from the Autumn Nights Collection is a vampy eggplant shade that’s a purple version of squid ink.

Dark and mysterious, China Glaze Charmed, I’m Sure is a very sexy polish because, as you’ll notice, it’s incredibly shiny!

(You may remember me gushing over this nail polish on Instagram not long ago!)

The Autumn Nights Collection is spectacular so far, and it looks like China Glaze is on point again with brilliant colours and formulas to match.

I have a few more shades to share with you from this collection, so please stay tuned!

P.S. I want to take this opportunity to thank you all for voting for my nail art in the contest. Your support meant a lot to me!

Continue reading →

China Glaze Strike Up a Cosmo Swatches & Review

4 Replies

China Glaze Stripe Up a Cosmo from the Autumn Nights Collection is so glamorous and blingy, I feel like I need to pop in a grill, floss my neck with some mad ice, and get down with some crunking! 😉

Then again, when I look at China Glaze Stripe Up a Cosmo, thoughts of a proper debutante wearing white elbow-length gloves and a string of pearls spring to mind.

It has such an awesome finish – you’re going to love it, especially in the sunlight because it sparkles like the eye of a mad scientist!

P.S. Today is the last day to vote for me in the nail-art competition. To vote, just click “Like” on Facebook on my manicure photo here. I’d really appreciate your vote to take me to the top! Please help me to spread the word! Thank you so much for your support!

Continue reading →

Nail Art Tutorial: Prom Nails

16 Replies

Prom Nails Nail Art Tutorial Back in high school, a large group of my friends and I rented a limo and went to the prom together.

It was a night that I still look back on and smile about because, as corny as it sounds, my experience was like that out of a teen movie. I was really living in the moment, enjoying every second of it!

I got my hair done, did my own makeup, and wore a blue/purple duochrome dress that had a corset top with a large layered, tulle, Cinderella-style bottom. Yes, I felt like a princess!

Interesting thing: Before I went shopping for my prom dress, I actually drew a colourful sketch of my dream prom gown. The very first place I went shopping at with my best friend, I struck gold. Literally, I found a dress that matched my drawing exactly, and it was hung on a hanger that was close to the ceiling of the store! (That never happens, so I knew it was destined to come home with me.) I half expected to see angels floating down and playing harps when I caught sight of it! My dad bought me the gown for my birthday (which was an atypical splurge), and I was ecstatic!

I danced spastic in my crazy high heels that night, slow-danced with the guys, took some photos, and felt so pampered in general. Up until that point, I had never been to such an elegant venue or treated to such attentive service from waiters! It really added to the magical experience, and being able to share it all with close friends made it even more amazing!

It was really amazing to see how great the guys looked! I couldn’t believe how they passed as gentlemen. A guy in a suit or tuxedo instantly makes you forget that just days ago, he was in the school hallway cracking jokes about flatulence! Haha!

Recently, Nicole by OPI teamed up with Prom Canada and invited me to participate in an exclusive nail challenge, which you’ll remember me blogging about yesterday.

(You can still VOTE FOR ME, by going to that Facebook link and clicking “Like” on my manicure photo! Please vote and help me to spread the word! Thank you so much!)

We were asked to choose 3 shades from a pre-selected list of Nicole by OPI nail polishes. I chose Nicole by OPI Dream Maker (shimmery pink), Nicole by OPI Please Red-cycle (creme red), and Nicole by OPI Candy is Dandy (textured pink glitter).

I came up with a look that features a prom couple and some hearts.

Come see my Prom Nail Art Tutorial with step-by-step written instructions and photos to show you how you can achieve the same look!

(If you try it out, please share your manicure with me. I’d love to see your creativity at work!)

Continue reading →

Please Vote for Me in the Nicole by OPI & Prom Canada Nail Art Competition

8 Replies

How to Vote:

Step 1: Click here or on the below photo.
Step 2: Click “Like” on my manicure photo on Prom Canada’s Facebook.

Thank you so much for your continued support!

Not long ago, Nicole by OPI’s PR privately invited me to participate in an exclusive nail contest.

There’ll be one winner who’ll enjoy a feature in Prom Canada’s first issue of their magazine plus a Nicole by OPI prize pack!

The winner will be whoever gets the most “Likes” on Facebook on their contest-submission photo on Prom Canada’s Facebook.

Nicole by OPI partnered with Prom Canada, which is a new magazine. Together, they provided a list of 8 Nicole by OPI nail polishes that participants could use. We were asked to pick 3 to use in our design.

The ones I chose:

Nicole by OPI Dream Maker (shimmery pink)
Nicole by OPI Please Red-cycle (creme red)
Nicole by OPI Candy is Dandy (glittery-pink textured polish from the Gumdrops Collection)

The challenge? Create prom-inspired nails!

For this look, I employed freehand, dotting, and nail-stamping techniques.

On my index and pinkie fingers, I stamped two different heart patterns. Then, for my middle and ring fingers, I created a prom couple – a female wearing a dress with a sweetheart neckline and pearl necklace and a male wearing a bow tie and tuxedo, respectively.

Very soon, I’ll share with you my step-by-step tutorial on how you can achieve the same manicure. Stay tuned!

Until then, please vote for me and help me spread the word. Thank you! 🙂

Edit: It always makes me smile when bloggers support each other! 🙂

Vampy Varnish Swatch And Learn

China Glaze Queen B Swatches & Review

11 Replies

China Glaze Queen B Swatches & Review China Glaze Queen B from the Autumn Nights Collection is a blue-purple creme nail polish that’s simple, but dramatic. I can see this as a great base for nail art!

The first thing that sprung to mind when I heard the name Queen B was a queen bee.

Isn’t it so weird how she’s fed by all her workers and is just responsible for having baby bees? (I wonder if she’s fanned with a leaf and fed grapes while having her little nails painted. Hehe!)

Thinking about bees also made me sadly remember the Colony Collapse Disorder, where worker bees go missing. It’s pretty scary because bees are needed to pollinate crops including plants that provide fruits and vegetables for our consumption. So if they disappear, that could spell disaster for our food supply!

I’ve read that some pesticides are the reason why a lot of honeybees are dying, and that it may play a role in how some bees leave the hive and either forget their way back to the hive or how to communicate to other bees where to locate the nectar.

Bees play such an important role in our ecosystem, so it’s scary to see them get hit with such a major problem.

I hope that scientists can figure out a viable solution to, at least, slow down the process.

Continue reading →