Author Archives: Mary S.

China Glaze Red-y to Rave Swatches & Review

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China Glaze Red-y to Rave Swatches & ReviewChina Glaze Red-y to Rave from the Electric Nights Collection is a neon reddish orange that supposedly glows under a black light.

(I wore this a while ago after trimming my nails short. I tend to let my nails grow long and then I cut them very short instead of maintaining a particular length. Anyone else the same way?)

Unfortunately, I don’t own a black light, so I couldn’t show you how it lights up.

Interesting thing that one of my friends pointed out: China Glaze seems to really like using the “Red-y” pun in the names of their polishes. 😉 There’s Adventure Red-y and Red-y & Willing, off the top of my head.

Several weeks ago I purchased the cute China Glaze Baby Beats Micro Mini Set that includes six of the shades in the Electric Nights Collection. Mini bottles are so fun and collectible, so I find them difficult to resist. (Plus the small brushes are ideal for my tiny toes. I don’t give myself a pedicure too often, but when I do, I love using a neon nail polish!)

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a-england Elaine Swatches & Review

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A-England Elaine Swatches & ReviewGlossy with rich drama, a-england Elaine from The Mythicals Collection is saturated with attitude.

It’s the kind of nail polish that has such a smooth finish, it’s glass-like.

This is the colour that I imagine villains like Ursula (from The Little Mermaid) or Maleficent would wear because a-england Elaine has a badass personality, an air of mystery, and a seductive quality. (This is a femme-fatale nail polish!)

I wore a-england Elaine in early March, and I was really digging how vampy this made my nails look.

I only have a few a-england nail polishes in my collection, and all of them have top-notch formulations. So whenever I try out a new a-england lacquer, it is judged with very high expectations in that department.

(If you’re curious, click here to view my other a-england nail polish reviews, and you’ll see what I mean about the brand consistently churning out quality lacquers!)

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The Body Shop Smoky Poppy Body Butter Review

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The Body Shop Smoky Poppy Body ButterThe Body Shop Smoky Poppy Body Butter may look familiar – I had a giveaway a few months ago for a bunch of The Body Shop Smoky Poppy products in February!

It has a fragrance like no other skincare I have. The Body Shop Smoky Poppy is sultry, so if you’re looking for something that’s seductive, this is one you may want to try. But don’t dilly dally because this scent is limited edition!

As with all of The Body Shop’s Body Butters, this one is formulated to help moisture the skin. I put it to the test, and here are my observations.

P.S. In case you missed it, I’m having a Canadian giveaway right now. Enter until April 24 for a chance to win the Essie Resort 2015 Collection!

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Canadian Giveaway: Win the Essie Resort 2015 Collection!

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Edit (Sunday April 26): Congratulations, Amber! You’ve won my giveaway! To claim your prize, please reply to my e-mail within 48 hours.

Thanks to everyone for participating. I’m going to have another fun nail-polish giveaway soon, and it’s going to be open worldwide!

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Thanks for stopping by Swatch And Learn today! 🙂

I’m having a spontaneous little giveaway, thanks to NailPolishCanada. We teamed up again to make one lucky Canadian nailphile’s day. (It could be you this time!)

Until April 24th, enter my Essie Resort 2015 Collection Canadian Giveaway!

Essie Resort 2015 Collection Giveaway

There are four shades in the Essie Resort 2015 Collection: Suite Retreat, Stones N’ Roses, Time for Me Time, and Cocoa Karma. (The giveaway is for these full-sized nail polishes.)

It’s easy to participate. Simply fill out the Rafflecopter form and leave a comment on this blog post answering the question, “Where do you see yourself in 10 years?”

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Simple Cleansing Micellar Water Review

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Simple Cleansing Water ReviewThe popularity of micellar cleansing water continues to gain momentum among beauty enthusiasts.

First developed in France, micellar cleansing water was touted as a multifunctional product to quickly and effectively remove makeup, cleanse skin, and provide skin-loving vitamins.

Unlike your traditional facial cleansers, micellar cleansing waters don’t need to be rinsed off, and they don’t require water to activate the product. For these reasons, it’s no wonder that micellar cleansing waters are what busy people who are on-the-go reach for when traveling or when they want something easy that works.

I was really excited to try the new Simple Cleansing Micellar Water because it’s my first experience with any cleansing micellar water! I was very curious to see how well it would perform, especially because I wear foundation, eye makeup, and long-wearing lipstick on a typical day.

For two weeks, I’ve been testing out the Simple Cleansing Micellar Water, so I’ve had plenty of time to collect my thoughts to share with you.

When it comes to skincare, I’m not thrown off by packaging or bells and whistles. Like with people, it’s what’s inside that counts.

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OPI SoftShades Collection 2015

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OPI SoftShades Collection 2015Got some nail news in my inbox yesterday regarding the OPI SoftShades Collection 2015!

As you know, OPI puts out a SoftShades Collection every year, and it usually features demure colours.

Definitely the OPI Color Paints, which I showed you swatches and bottle shots of yesterday are more my speed. (Bold, high-contrast hues make this nailphile’s heart race faster than Usain Bolt.)

That being said, it doesn’t mean that I turn a blind eye to sophisticated and more muted colours. There’s a time and a place for these.

If you look at the collection’s display, check out the model’s nails. She added a twist. I like it, and I may take a cue from that nail look. Using a soft shade as a base, you can easily jazz up a manicure with bolder shades for a funkier design.

Check out the official press release in this post, and see the promotional images of each colour.

Two of them stand out. I like how they have included Petal Soft, a glitter nail polish with daisy decals. That sounds like a lot of fun. Also, Make Light of the Situation sounds like it could take any of the softer shades to the next level with its iridescent goodness!

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OPI Color Paints Swatches & Bottle Shots

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OPI Color Paints Collection PhotosYesterday, I had the pleasure of playing around with the new OPI Color Paints, which hit stores between the eyes in May.

(You probably remember the OPI Color Paints press release I posted on here earlier, and you may have seen the quick photo I uploaded yesterday on my Instagram and other social media accounts.)

Like you, I was curious like a cat watching a mouse hole.

Would the 2015 OPI Color Paints just revisit the OPI Sheer Tints from 2014 and expand the colour selection? Or would they be completely different?

In this post, not only do I directly address that, but I show you side-by-side swatches, so you can see that the OPI Color Paints are much more pigmented than their OPI Sheer Tints baby sister!

I’ve also included OPI Color Paints swatches on a nail wheel with one coat and then with two coats, so you can see that OPI’s claim about these being buildable is true.

The silver nail polish included in the OPI Color Paints Collection is intended to be used as a base to make the colours pop, although I liked how they looked solo as well. (They have an almost creme-jelly finish to them.)

You’ll see swatches of that alone, but also with what it looks like with a single layer of another OPI Color Paints shade on top.

These OPI Color Paints are really fun to play around with, and I tried blending them and layering different colours on top. They work very well that way, too. (I may do a post later with photos of how they blend and layer.)

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