Author Archives: Mary S.

OPI Pink Yet Lavender Swatches & Review (Layered Over Pretty Serious Hot Summer Nights)

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OPI Pink Yet Lavender Swatches & ReviewWhile I’m obsessed with the Liquid Sands, that doesn’t mean I neglected the rest of the Mariah Carey by OPI Collection!

Ever since I got OPI Pink Yet Lavender, I’ve been dying to layer it over another colour.

Pretty Serious Hot Summer Nights was The Chosen One.

The two polishes became instant soul mates. I’ve even caught the extroverted glitter sneaking into my Helmer’s blue drawer to find Hot Summer Nights. 😉 (Haha, that could be interpreted in a variety of ways!)

The result was unexpected (I’ll explain later in this post), and I fell in love with it because it almost had a galactic vibe.

I swear this nail-polish combination wanted to live forever on my nails. A cute little shriek could be heard when it saw a cotton ball soaked with acetone getting closer…and closer…and closer! *Psycho knife/shower scene music here*

But it had a good run. And I’m pretty sure that I’ll wear this combination again. It’s one of my favourites!

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Zoya PixieDust Collection Press Release & Video Clip

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Zoya PixieDust Press Release & Video Clip smallerIf you’re a fan of the latest matte-texture nail trend like I am, you’ll be excited to hear about Zoya PixieDust!

Yesterday when Zoya sent me the press release with new information on this, I was really curious to find out what colours they would be putting out.

I expect a lot from Zoya because they’re brave to explore new colour territory, and they’re always on the pulse of fashion trends.

In this special-edition collection, there are 6 Zoya PixieDust shades, and I was really happy to see that one of them is periwinkle! (I feel like there aren’t enough periwinkle polishes in general, and to have one with this unique texture would be really special!)

This post includes descriptions of each colour as well as a link to a video clip put together by Zoya that shows you how to apply PixieDust.

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Pretty Serious Hot Summer Nights Swatches & Review

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Pretty Serious Hot Summer Nights Swatches & ReviewPretty Serious Hot Summer Nights is from the Christmas Without Snow Collection.

It made me think about how, after last winter was unusually mild here, a lot of people were predicting that Mother Nature would hook up with Old Man Winter this year for a real doozie!

Thankfully, that hasn’t been the case. Mother Nature didn’t reply to Old Man Winter’s e-mail….yet! 😉 Maybe she’s busy planning an awesome summer, and she doesn’t want to get distracted. Or maybe his e-mail accidentally landed in the spam folder…

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CLOSED: Surprise Giveaway: Win This OPI Mariah Carey Liquid Sand 4-Bottle Mini Set

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OPI Mariah Carey Liquid Sand GiveawaySurprise! 😉

The second I found out that the OPI Mariah Carey Liquid Sand 4-Bottle Mini Set existed, I knew that it would make the perfect giveaway prize!

So I had to buy it to treat one lucky reader! It’s a small token from me to say thank you for your support.

Not only will you get adorable mini bottles, which are highly collectible, but this set includes all of the Liquid Sand colours released so far!

This will be a great way for you to see which one you like the best before you commit to a full-size bottle.

Since reviewing 2 of the Liquid Sands, OPI Get Your Number (my favourite) and OPI Stay the Night, I’ve noticed that a lot of you are intrigued with the unique Liquid Sand finish…and for good reason! I think it’s one of the most original concepts that we’ve seen in the nail industry in quite some time!

Please carefully read the full rules in this post before entering.

Edit: After this post was published, I’ve also reviewed & photographed OPI Can’t Let Go (purple Liquid Sand), OPI The Impossible (red Liquid Sand), and OPI What Wizardry Is This? (taupe Liquid Sand coming out in March).

Another Edit: The lucky winner is Melissa! Congratulations! Since there are multiple Melissas, just to be clear, the winner is the one who left a comment on January 16 at 6:18 am. I’ve sent her an e-mail. She has 48 hours to claim her prize! Thanks to everyone for participating. I’ll be having another giveaway soon. Stay tuned!

Yet Another Edit: Melissa was so fast! She already replied to my e-mail! So now this giveaway is officially closed.

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Pretty Serious Blue Gums on Boxing Day Swatches & Review

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Pretty Serious Blue Gums on Boxing Day Swatches & ReviewPretty Serious Blue Gums on Boxing Day is from the Christmas Without Snow Collection.

The name cracks me up because it conjures up a mental image of chattering teeth on a winter’s day or the way Polar Bear Plunge participants must feel after they jump into the freezing water.

Wikipedia says that a Blue Gum can refer to Eucalyptus in Australia.

Considering that Pretty Serious Cosmetics is an Australian brand, this plant is probably what they’re referring to. Still, I like my idea of chattering teeth because it brings to mind those little wind-up toys that are both amusing and creepy.

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Smorgasbord Sundays: What Are You Passionate About?

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What-Are-You-Passionate-AboutAlthough this blog makes it pretty clear that I love nail polish, my passion for writing makes it pale in comparison.

Since a very young age, I gravitated toward the written word – the pen is far mightier than the sword.

Even before I learned how to write, my mom said that I used to scribble on paper and pretend that I was writing.

When I learned the alphabet in kindergarten and couldn’t read or spell yet, I was already playing around with the different letters at home.

Without any prompting or encouragement from my parents, I wrote down letters in different combinations at home. Then I’d show my made-up words to them and ask, “Is this a word?” Nope!

Then something amazing happened, and I’ll never forget it. One day, my mom looked at what I had written and said, “Yes, that is a word!” She was clearly as surprised as I was!

Anxious to find out what I had randomly spelled, I asked, “What does it say?”

“Family.” My mom said.

Sure, it could just have been by chance that I spelled that word, but I interpreted that as a special sign for me to always appreciate my family, even if there were many dysfunctional things about it.

Through good times and bad times, writing has always been my passive psychologist. It’s cathartic and creative. Even if I sometimes get writer’s block, I still enjoy the process of recording thoughts, whether it’s on paper or on the computer.

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OPI Stay the Night Swatches & Review

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OPI Stay the Night Swatches & ReviewOPI Stay the Night is from the Mariah Carey Collection that features the new Liquid Sand finish.

I wore this to a party in early December, and it received a lot of unsolicited (and very surprising) compliments from people who I thought liked more traditional nail polish! So it’s a winner!

And you’ll remember that I was over the moon about OPI Get Your Number. Well, although Stay the Night is cool and edgy, Get Your Number is still my top pick of the Liquid Sands.

Stay the Night has a gothic feel, and it’s not for someone who wants a typically pretty manicure. It’s for the nailphile who wants something racy and avant-garde.

In this post, you’ll see what it looks like in different lighting conditions and also with a shiny top coat.

But, just like I wrote in my OPI Get Your Number review, I suggest that you wear any Liquid Sand polish without a top coat, at least for a day. You may be pleasantly surprised by how much you like the unique finish!

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