A loooooooooong hiatus but I am back! :)

Hello Beauty lovers!

It has been way too long since I have written a blog post.  Due to a much needed sinus surgery and taking the proper amount of rest and relaxation to recover,  I am back and ready to blog my face off! 

I have some great posts coming out this week:

• Top 5 Fall Items
• Mascara Review
• Two HOT new colours for the lips that I adore!
• Are you "Matchy-Matchy" or a "One and Only"?
• EOTD's
• NOTD's
• Lip Swatches and Pics
• Gradient/Ombre Lips

So much exciting stuff to share, review, ponder, and to love! I hope everyone has been well and happy :)

Always Smile :)  - Sand

NOTD - Gradient Nails - Blue to Gold :)

I have seen this nail trend on many lovely ladies and I always assumed that you have to go to the salon to achieve.  Tomorrow, I am attending an 18th birthday party and the outfit du jour, is a teal/bright blue Indian outfit with gold embroidery, therefore I wanted to have my nails look a little special vs. teal nails or gold nails.

Now I didn't want to spend any money and wanted to do my nails on my own.  I didn't want to opt for the typical one shade choice and wanted to combo the two, and I saw gradient nails on long nails and thought....could i do that....the answer is YES!

Here is the look and effect I came up with:

Makeup Sponges

China Glaze - Base Coat

China Glaze - Top Coat

Sally Hansen - Xtreme Nails in Strobe Light

OPI - Teal the Cows Come Home

OPI - Glitzerland

I am going to continue to work on more nail gradient tools and once I feel more comfortable I will share the step by step.

The look I was going for was sparkly disco ball in teal blue, I think I achieved that?  LOL...i had found this look for long nails but this goes to show you can also do this on short nails.

Always Smile :)  - Sand

FOTD - Smokey Champagne

Hey Everyone,

I haven't done many FOTD (Face of the Day) Posts, so here is one that I rocked for a Birthday Party I attended.  The look was fun to create, the eye and face details are below, along with the FOTD of course:

FACE:

Vasanti - Liquid Cover in V4

Vasanti - FaceBase in V4

MAC - Mineralize Skin Finish - Candlelight

Vasanti - Rockies Blush

Vasanti - Swiss Alps

EYES:

  Click here for the eye look

LIPS:

Vasanti - Sweden Lipstick

CoverGirl - Enchantress

NYX - French Kiss

Always Smile :)  - Sand

It's official...I am a NAIL POLISH Junkie :)

I can't help myself.  The look of the shiny bottles, the allure of the bright colours, to the variations on finishes, to fun things like "crackle", is it any wonder I am a Nail polish Junkie???????

Here is my latest fix:



How is this not the hotttttttttttttttest thing u have seen???

Name:  Colour so hot it Berns 

Name:  Glitzerland

I will post nail swatches this week, but in the meantime, please feel free to see the proof of this addiction below:

OPI The One that Got Away

OPI Nail Haul

Nail of the Day (NOTD) OPI Russian Navy

NOTD - OPI The Colour to Watch

Now that I see them all listed, I thought oh its only an OPI addiction but there are PLENTY of nail blogs coming up this week and I have collected Sally Hansen as well as China Glaze!

And, I am starting the Short Nail Revolution.  My nails are paper thin and don't grow and on occasion I will put on false nails, but in the meantime I love my shortness and am proud to rock all these amazing colours, so join me in this revolution!

Always Smile :)  - Sand

P.S. Please feel free to share in your own nail junkie experiences?? :)

Makeup By Sand @ 2011 Miss India Canada Pageant :)

On Saturday July 23rd, 2011, a very elegant and glamours evening, held at the DoubleTree by Hilton, was under way for 16 excited ladies. I was fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to apply makeup on 3 contestants for the MISS INDIA CANADA PAGEANT. This was a very fun and rewarding experience for me and I got to meet a great group of young women.

The venue, decor, food and the entire event was beautifully organized and it was electric! The vibe and love from the audience could be felt throughout the night.  I am sure the contestants were super nervous but once they were on stage, the positive love from the crowd sure helped them feel at ease.

I have posted a few pics of "my girls" below (Photos courtesy of Filmicafe):

Kerensa

Kajol

Rupi

Congratulations to all participants but of course, to the 2011 winner Akhina Mooken!

Always Smile :)  - Sand

HAUL - Bath & Bodyworks :)

I love fruity scented things and of course I love Bath & Bodyworks!  I love their anti-bacterial hand soaps and of course their bath related items too.  Here are the items I got below:



Nectarine Mint - Smells so amazing and suds up well

 

Passionfruit - Very fruitful scent :)

 

SweetPea - My ALL time fave scent!



Dark Kiss - Romantic scent, not as fruity :)



This is the creamiest and smoothest body butter ever! :)



If you haven't paid them a visit yet, please do, because the products are amazing and they always have great register deals as well, so you are always bound to find a lil' something!

Always Smile :)  - Sand

EOTD - Smokey Champagne

This past Saturday, the family was invited to a 1st birthday party.  So I wanted to keep the look soft and bold yet appropriate for the event. 

Here is the look I came up with:

Products Used:

Eyeliner - ANNABELLE Black Eye Pencil

Inner Corner to Middle - MAC Retrospeck
Outer Corner - VASANTI Brasilia E/S - Charcoal with Golden Sparkle
Crease - VASANTI Eiffel Tower E/S Duo - Matte Taupe
Brow Bone - VASANTI  Golden Temple E/S Duo - White Gold
Liquid Liner - VASANTI Cleopatra Liquid Liner
Mascara - MAYBELLINE Great Lash Big Mascara

Always Smile :)  - Sand