Change Myself

This weekend I got a once-in a lifetime opportunity to go see one of my favorite Chinese singers, 王力宏, or Lee Hom as he's known in English. The title of the post is the English translation of his last album title. He's super talented and super cute, and I paid a little less than $60 USD for tickets. My dad seemed to think that that was expensive, except he probably forgot how much I paid for Christina Aguilera and Spice Girls tickets...and the seats weren't too bad, all about the same. I wish the screens were bigger, but the acoustics were good. And Shanghai Stadium is HUGE! My camera never takes good pictures at night but here's a fairly ok one of the concert:
I just need to see my favorite band, Keane, performing sometime and then my life, concert-wise, will be complete.

Anyway, I've been getting lazy about my nails since I've been sick on-and-off ever since I got back from my National Week holiday to Beijing and Dalian. But, the good news is that I do indeed have new pictures of a polish I got here in Shanghai called Rose Sheer. Not really the color you'd expect though....

Sorry for the extreme cloudiness in these pictures, I thought I fixed that with Picasa but it's just the angling of my camera and the smoggy sun

I did nail decals for the first time ever!

I didn't do so well on the nail decals this time but my ones right now aren't too bad. Anyway, yes the name really is Rose Sheer, I double-checked the label and the box. It's actually black with mostly a great olive-green shimmer but also has some blue shimmer. It's subtle but I like it. The application wasn't too bad at all, but the thing that disappointed me the most was the richness of the color. It's not exactly the most opaque of blacks, and definitely not as rich as Red Earth's polish. We'll see though.

Seventh Sense retails for 68 RMB (about $10USD) and can be found at Sasa stores in Shanghai.

Minx Nails

As you guys know, one of my weaknesses is the shallow world of entertainment- I frequent celebrity gossip sites every day (then try to justify it by spending lots of time on BBC.com, ecogeek.org, and newsweek.com). Anyway, I was reading an blurb on JustJared.com about Minx Nails, which recently did Beyonce's nails for the music video for her new single, "Single Ladies. " You can read the post here. I was interested about Minx Nails based on what Jared posted, so I decided to contact them directly.

Their PR person, Janice Miller, couldn't have been nicer, and I got to find out a lot about Minx Nails. Basically, it's going to change the face of fake nails forever (in a good way). Unlike a traditional nail polish, Minx is applied in polymer strips that are heated and them applied with pressure onto the nail, where it then cools as a type of shrink wrap. The benefits of there not being an actual "polish" is that because it's a polymer, there is no chipping or smudging, and no drying time is needed. Plus, there are no fumes.

Something else that really stands out about Minx is that it doesn't require nail polish remover to remove, nor does it require prying the strips from your nails. Or soaking in any type of crazy solution. The simple way to remove Minx? Heat. Here's what their official website (MinxNails.com) advises:

Removing Your Minx Although Minx can last a awhile, you will eventually have to remove it as your nails will start to grow out. Do NOT use nail polish remover! We are proud that Minx is a green product and does not require chemicals to apply or to remove. We want to do our part in keeping mother earth healthy and happy. When you want to remove your Minx (so that you can put on a new set, of course), place your nails under a heat source (a hair dryer will do) and work loose an edge of Minx near a lateral nail fold. Slowly peel Minx off the nail plate going from side to side (not top to bottom). Apply a nail moisturizer when you are done, and have a back rub and a cocktail while you are at it.

The application process is similar to those stick-on nail strips that Avon and Incoco sell, but Minx is offered in lots of different colors, even metallics (which is a huge selling point for celebs). Or, they can be custom-made, as Janice told me that currently Beyonce and her sister Solange are sporting "OBAMA" Minx nails of black with silver letters. (To be politically equal because I try to be fair, I suppose you could customize them for McCain as well, with the Mc part on the thumb. If one really wanted to.)

Of course with such a high-tech and cool product, I admit I was a bit afraid to ask for the price. But, I am curious so I'll probably save up to try it sometime when I get back to the States. I love my polish, but it's interesting to try different products. Not to mention if Minx really does live up to it's claim of being chip-free, it would be the perfect solution for chipped nails on short vacations or especially business trips. I can sense this being a powerful asset for corporate women who are always on the go but want to keep a polished image.

Here's a picture of what "Golden Lightning' looks like (the same color Beyonce wore in her music video):

Photo credit: Michael Marker
Source: Janice Miller, Minx Nails

What do you guys think? It's a neat concept for sure though. I know it can't replace nail polish entirely (nor would I want it to, otherwise I'd have to find something else to blog about!), but I think as a once-in-a-while splurge, this could be a good short-term investment. It's definitely the most gentle alternative to acrylics or other fake nails, as there's no drilling and no industrial-strength glue. Alternatively, if anyone's tried it, I'd love to hear your experience.

Ok and as a sidenote, anyone who has a Nintendo DS and a R4 card, download Taiko No Tatsujin. It's such a fun game, and I've been obsessed with it. I love rhythm games, because my hand-eye coordination has only improved from playing video games lol.

Update

Hey guys, I know news has been slow here but I just came back from like back-to-back vacations, as well as having to deal with school and a family death. I've been really preoccupied but I've really missed blogging and I've done some stuff to maximize efficiency for me so that I can get back to blogging on a regular schedule:

• I got a SD card reader, which will make uploading pictures onto my computer faster
• I got a new SD card exclusively for taking nail pictures, which will help me so that when I do upload my pictures I don't have tosearch through thousands of my other pictures...also so that when my friends look through my camera they don't have to see like 15 pictures of my nails
  
• I downloaded Picasa, which will help me upload pictures faster to the web and will hopefully cut down on the editing time.
  

Granted I can't go crazy with taking pictures like I used to with my huge stash back home. But, I will get to share pictures of some polishes I've gotten in China, as well as some older pictures I have on my computer that I haven't shared yet. Hopefully with more efficiency, I will be able to post more. I've already got some interesting news to share with you guys about Minx Nails, a type of manicure you can get at salons that honestly sounds amazing. So please, stay tuned!

Minx Nails

Satisfaction

**Blogger's Note** Ok, so I started this post the day before I left for Beijing but I totally fell asleep in the middle of posting, sorry! I'm in Dalian right now enjoying my vacation but I had to pop into an internet cafe to post this

Right now I'm packing for a vacation, I'm going with some friends and my cousin to Beijing for China's National Day (Oct. 1), except we pretty much get the whole week off. It's a big celebration, and even though the capital is going to be PACKED, I'm excited to see all the celebrations that will be happening.

I'm a bit worn out from school and running around trying to find stuff for the trip though, so this will be a short post. It's ok to just stare at this polish though, it's really amazing. Red Earth is an Australian cosmetics brand that is super popular in China (most famously, actress Zhang Ziyi used to be a spokesperson for Red Earth) and has been along longer than mainstream American brands have been in China. So even though the products are a bit pricier, the quality of Red Earth is always top-notch.

It's evident in their polish #73. I was craving a darker color so I caved when I saw #73. In the bottle, it looks like maybe a blue/purple dark grey...

But on the nails, it looks a bit like OPI Light My Sapphire!



It's pretty, but not quite as sparkley as Light My Sapphire. This was my first Red Earth polish but I will have to save up to buy a few more. The polish was very rich and opaque in one coat, so it's definitely good stuff. It definitely satisfied my craving for a vampy color.

Red Earth polishes retail for 78RMB in China and can pretty much be found anywhere. They have stands in malls, independent stores, and can also be bought at Sephora (which is where I got mine =)).

Happy Birthday!

Just wanted to give a birthday shout-out to EmpressStephanie, who runs Polish Addict. Words cannot express the tragedy that is my life since I cannot view her blog nor Scrangie's blog.

Anyway, happy birthday Stephanie! I hope you have a terrific and polish-filled day & year.

...and it's also my mom's birthday, so I have to give much love for my momma =) Happy birthday mommy! I love you.

Gah!

This is a hard season of nail polish for me to be away. True, I get cool Asian polishes but I can't get too many because it makes it difficult for me to carry back and to get through customs. Instead I've spent an hour looking at my friend Jen's pics because she has China Glaze Bahama Blues and the OPI Holiday Collection pics up. I LOVE China Glaze Blue Island Iced Tea, and I can't wait to get it! It reminds of me a pretty Sony Cybershot I saw yesterday at the Sony store, which looks like this:

Sony Cybershot DSCW55 7.2MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom (Blue) via Amazon.com

I also really like OPI Don't Toy With Me, which I am definitely also going to get. A girl can never have too many reds! I'm actually really excited because it's been a REALLY long time since a new OPI polish has struck my fancy, and it can only go up from here right?

And let's not get started on the hotness that is ChG Emerald Sparkle, ok? Misa Toxic Seduction and ChG Emerald Sparkle are definitely the IT green colors of this year. The world could always use more green!

So I really do love Jen, not only is she my age and super cool, she got me NYC Molten Metal because I'm in China. It's a limited edition NYC, the same as NYC Midnight and Cognac Sparkle (the latter of which I missed out on). I feel like this is like an upgraded version of Chanel Kaleidascope, which I was not a fan of.
It's blingtastic and fantastic. I can't wait to try it! I've always really liked NYC polishes just for the cheap factor, but their limited editions that come out each year with their fall line is definitely something that keeps people interested. Although, I have to say that the polish is a bit more expensive than regular NYC Glossies, either $2.99 or $3.99 if I recall correctly. Don't be discouraged if you can't find it right away, they will still be around by winter. Or possibly later. But, me being me, I wanted to get it secured ASAP. I mean, look at this color! Luckily Jen and I have the same skin tone, so hopefully it will look as good on me as it does on her.

No Really, I'm Not a Waitress!

Please excuse the poor quality of the picture, since I rarely get full sunlight like I used to, I've been tinkering with some indoor lighting. Anyone have any suggestions? I don't think I can get a halogen lamp...

Anyway, for the past couple of days I've been wearing a classic OPI shade, I'm Not Really a Waitress. It's a classic red shade...and there's really not much to say other than that.
It's not to say that this isn't a good color. It's an almost cherry-cranberry shade in real life with just enough red/gold shimmer. I prefer how it looks in dimmer lights or in the shade because it borders on almost a vampy red shade. It is a very pretty color.

Other then that, I think the word "classic" sums it up pretty well. If you're looking for a staple red color and OPI wears well for you, this is definitely a must-have shade. Other then that though, red is red. There's not much that makes it stand out. Every drugstore brand makes a red like this, it's really only a matter of preference. It is one of OPI's most popular shades and a best-seller though.

I recently bought the September issue of Chinese Harper's Bazaar. It's the Fashion Olympics edition, and it's huge! Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi is on the cover, and it has some cool nail pictures and ads in it too. I've been noticing that within the past three years, nail polish and in particular nail art has really started to pick up. Anyway, I'll be posting (hopefully) pretty regularly now that one of my friends has fixed my internet. I now have consistent (albeit slow) internet, hooray! It's not too bad as long as it gets the job done =)

Impressions: Studio Tools Non-Acetone Nail Polish Remover Pads

I know I'm constantly apologizing for the lack of updates, I actually caught a cold though in the past couple of days so I really haven't been in the mood to do anything but sleep and rest. I have actually gotten a couple of new polishes while I've been here in China, so I'm eager to share those as soon as possible with you guys....even though there's not much sunlight to take pictures.

So, I decided not to bring a big huge bottle of nail polish remover with me here just because of the hassle and because nail polish wasn't an immediate priority. But, to tide me over until I could buy some remover, I picked up Studio Tolls Non-Acetone Nail Polish Remover Pads at Target. I used them last summer as well since they are cheap (I believe $1.99 for the box). They also come in an Acetone version, which I haven't tried yet.

L-R: Box, Individual Package, Pad

Quantity: 6 individual pads

Claims: Extra-thick felt nail polish remover pads are ideal for easy and convenient nail polish removal. Each pad contains a special formula to help soften cuticles, and add strength and resiliency for more beautiful nails. One pad cleans all ten nails.

My experience: The felt inside the packets is thick and supersaturated with remover. The scent is strong and a bit unusual, not like any remover I have smelled before. Not pleasant but not entirely unpleasant (it's bearable, for lack of better words) and quite strong. Also, one pad doesn't clean all ten nails, it can clean up to five since all the remover dries up by then.

Likes:

• convenient for traveling, no worries about spills
• price isn't too bad

Dislikes:

• the way the remover feels against bare skin, because the pad is so saturated with remover, it can make your fingers feel pruny
• the remover also feels very sticky after, which added onto the pruny fingers makes it feel very uncomfortable
• kind of drying
• the remover dries so quickly that by the fourth and fifth nail it becomes a struggle to remove the polish- I actually found out that this can be avoided by keeping the pad folded as shown in the picture above, but the trade-off is that your fingers get prunier.

Conclusion: They kind of suck but they are good for short-term vacations when you don't have anything else, since they are so convenient. That being said, I need to find some real remover ASAP.

Also, I'm sad because there are some beauty blogs that I can't access, like ALU, Scrangie, Nail Addict. It's very weird. Luckily I am able to see my own blog, but that means I can't always keep track the latest nail trends in the States for four months =(

Mini Nicole-fest

Hi guys! I actually AM alive! I've just been having issues with internet and I've also been having a blast in Shanghai. No matter how many times I've been to this city, I'm constantly rediscovering more stuff to do and my friends and I have been having lots of fun just wandering around.

So, a bit of belated business to tend to...the Canadian Nicoles! First of all, Canada was awesome and I just love Niagara Falls...

The American Falls & Horseshoe Falls from the Rainbow Bridge

American Falls at night

Isn't it so beautiful? I could just sit and take pictures forever. Obviously with the sightseeing and soaking in all Canada could offer in the four days I was there, I didn't get to see much nail polish UNTIL the very last day I was in Canada. We stopped by the Shopper's Drug Mart inside the Eaton Shopping Centre in Toronto, and I got some Nicole's on sale! They were priced at $7 instead of the $13 CAD they usually are. Pricey, especially with the sadly weaker dollar, but it's a unique souvenir for me. Now, these aren't any regular Nicole's...these are two Nicole's that actually can only be bought in Canada! They are exclusive to only Canada, so I'm really glad to have gotten my hands on them.

I adore vampy, or darker, colors even though my parents hate them and always give me weird looks whenever I wear darker shades. But, I feel like polish is very expressive so I love wearing dark shades when I'm feeling fun or down. Also, they just look cool sometimes. The first shade is Drama in the Dark, a black base with slight green and blue sparkles.
It's actually a bit of a plain color, but I'm always really weird about wearing just straight black...most of the time, I just can't pull of straight black creme polish...I'm always tempted to layer something over it. It's a pretty color, but not much of a standout. I did get good, opaque coverage in one coat, this is it with two coats.

However, since I am a fan of green polishes, Nicole Drama in the Dark was what really grabbed my attention. The base is a dark green and it has green shimmer sparkles as well.

Shade picture:

I love it! It's shown here with two coats although in hindsight I should have put three. I'm so glad that many polish companies have started to make more green polish. It may seem a bit "out-there" for some people...I will admit that it took a lot of courage for me to wear green polish because I always thought it would look weird. But, I kind of thought that with red too and now I love red polish. Green is actually a lot more flattering than other people think. I do know though that for some people, it can be a giant step out of the comfort zone. However, you never know unless you try!

I really wanted to find the Canadian version of Respect the World because it's apparently darker...here's the American version, a pretty teal color that's a bit frosty.

In shade:

It would be prettier darker, but I do like how the American version looks too. I miss my polish collection!!!

Well I'm practically falling asleep as I write this, but I promise you that I will find a balance here soon so that I will get back to posting pics soon. I have a bunch of pics that I saved up just so I wouldn't run out of things to post about during my four-month time here. So, stay tuned!

Oh, before I forget though, according to reader Danielle, for all those in the Niagara Falls area, they are building a Sally's Beauty Supply in St. Catherine's!