Beauty of a Site Blog

This just in! We just got these swatches of the OPI Hong Kong Collection-- they are just gorgeous! From left to right: Suzi Says Feng Shui, Jade is the New Black, Dim Sum Plum, Hot & Spicy, Red My Fortune Cookie, Bling Dynasty From left to right: A Good Man-Darin is Hard to Find, Lucky Lucky Lavender, Meet Me on the Star Ferry, Panda-Monium Pink, Pearl of Wisdom, Chop-Sticking to My Story Order yours HERE!

To all of our loyal customers, we wanted to pass along some great news:  All of the OPI Alice in Wonderland nail polishes and mini lacquer sets are in stock and available for purchase.  We are shipping them starting now- they'll start going out on Tuesday! This is an official announcement!  The very best part of the deal is that we have TONS available, so order away!  Pass along the great news! CLICK HERE to purchase nail lacquers from the OPI Alice in Wonderland collection!

I was totally stressed this time yesterday about what I would be wearing to our friends big New Year's bash this year, until I remembered a cardinal fashion rule:  the very best outfits are defined by details.  I put together a classic ensemble in greys, silvers and blacks and spiced it up with the following: For eyes:  I moved away from my overdone smoky eyes and went for something simple with a touch of drama.  Lined the inside corners of my eyes with a white liner, and a thick black liner on the outside of my eyes.  Mascara to follow.  A bit of glitter on my cheek bones sets of my eyes perfectly! For lips:  To balance out the simplicity of my eye makeup, I chose DuWop's Pink Shimmer Lip Venom for plumpness, flushing and plenty of shimmering pink. For hair:  Down and curly, I used Catwalk's Your Highness Gel Creme and Hairspray to control and hold my style.  Flexible for bounce & swing with the perfect amount of shine. For nails: Here's where I had some fun- OPI's new Alice in Wonderland Mad As A Hatter polish features a crazy multi glitter sparkle to help ring in the new year with some extra glitz. For shoulders and arms:  Dirty Girl's Glitter ball adds glitter to exposed skin, while Booty Parlor's Luminizing Body Butter adds a subtle sheen all over skin. Glitz and glitter in the smallest details not only make a perfect New Year's touch, but they are definitive of what runways, cosmetics lines and our favorite celebs are telling us are perfect for 2010.

ALICE IN WONDERLAND NOW for SALE!

These are the most surprising colors OPI has sent us this year!  We are excited to show you these awesome swatches from the new polishes from the Alice in Wonderland Collection!  We should be shipping these products out by the end of the week, but in the meantime, check these out! From left to right: OPI Thanks So Muchness:  A violet infused red with a super subtle shimmer. OPI Mad As a Hatter: Did you see this glitter!? Crazy chunky multi-glitter that has holiday parties, New Year's Eve and general fabulous-ness written all over it. OPI Absolutely Alice:  Another super glittery polish with slightly smaller glitter pieces in blues and golds.  Perfectly Alice inspired! OPI Off With Her Red!: A standby classic bold, creme bright red. Gorgeous! Check here to purchase!!!

So... it's here.  We were excited, but we didn't expect to love it so dang much.  What are we all pining over at Beauty of a Site, you ask?  Why's it's Essie's new "it" color:  Essie Mint Candy Apple. We all were excited about Essie's limited edition North Fork Collection from earlier in the  year, which featured three blue-ish greenish colors, and when we saw the promotional pictures for Essie's Mint Candy Apple from her new Sweet Time of the Year Winter Collection, we were expecting something extremely similar, but this was better! Less bold or blue than Essie Greenport and decidedly more "minty," one of our fellow bloggers straight up called this the color of an after-dinner mint.  And we're pretty sure she's right. Expect a color slightly  more green than the promotional pictures, a true mint green with a tinge of blue, with enough creamy, milkiness to the formula to make it perfectly wintery.  We found that in about two coats, you can get the even and incredibly unique minty green color you're expecting.  And alongside Rock Candy & Lollipop, it's the cutest little holiday collection of nail polishes you've ever seen. And, PS, this color is FLYING off the shelves.  If you love it, you're certainly not alone.  And if you don't love it... you should. Click here to purchase Essie Mint Candy Apple today!

Essie sent over some awesome manicure step-by-step instructions yesterday, and we thought we'd share the wealth! Essie's Matte About You Matte Nail Finisher has made matte polish so easy, and now it makes nail art even easier! Here's how to get these great looks!

* For these layered looks, wait about 2 minutes between applying each layer! *

1.  Glossy Nail with Matte Tip:  Apply base coat and polish normally, then coat entire nail with glossy top coat like Essie Good to Go!.  Carefully apply Matte About You to nail tips from side to side in a semicircular shape.  (Or use nail guides to get the perfect tip!) 2.  Matte Nail with Glossy Tip: Apply base coat and polish normally, then coat entire nail with a thin layer of Matte About You.  Carefully apply Good to Go! to nail tips as described above. 3.  Glossy Nail with Matte Moon & Tip: Apply base coat and polish normally, then coat entire nail with a thin layer of a glossy top coat like Essie Good to Go!  Using the edge of a nail polish brush, apply Matte about You to the bottom third of the nail in a crescent shape.  Carefully apply Matte About You to nail tips. 4.  Matte Nail with Glossy Moon & Tip: Apply base coat and polish normally, then coat entire nail with a thin layer of Matte About You.  Using the edge of a nail polish brush, apply Good to Go! to the bottom third of the nail in a crescent shape.  Carefully apply Good to Go! to nail tips. Have fun!  Let us know how your nails turn out!

Let's start by letting you all know- The OPI Suede Collection is in stock and available.  We have it right here in our hands and have shipped out our first couple of orders today.  And let me tell you: it's getting mixed reviews. Six stunning shades have been selected (familiar shades!) for OPI's newest Matte-ish collection.  Called "Suede," we're pretty sure that the finish on these polishes is as close as you can get to suede.  You could probably call the finish similar to velvet, also, which would explain the collections eerie similarities to Zoya's recent MatteVelvet collection. Check out OPI's Suzi Skis in the Pyrenees Suede color (above right).  Originally a smoky blue from the Spain collection, Suzi Skis in the Pyrenees ends up a glistening charcoal color which we consider super similar to Zoya's Loredana from the MatteVelvet collection.  But with a slightly different finish!  OPI's glitter ends up a little more coarse, as well as their finish just slightly more matte. As far as the rest of the Suede collection goes, our very favorite is the OPI Suede We'll Always Have Paris color (left).  Because of the glitter addition to the color, it actually ends up being a way different color than the original from the muted & dark France collection.  The Suede version is extremely pink-y, almost a muted fucsia.  But it's totally our favorite; the girl-y pink color along with the cool matted glitter finish are totally a great combination.  A winner! Click here to check out all of the Suede colors & order today!

As we approach Breast Cancer Awareness month, we wanted to make you aware of some of the great ways you can raise awareness just by sporting some of your favorite Beauty of a Site products in October! Order in the next week to have your products in time! 1. Use your favorite styling products with a for-the-cure twist! At Beauty of a Site, we're offering limited quantities of two favorite styling products in special edition pink ribbon packaging to support Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Select 10 oz Kenra Volume Sprays will come in pink bottles and select 1.7 oz will feature a "Pink for the Cure" pink ribbon on the bottle. Both companies use proceeds to support breast cancer research, early detection & support services. 2. Rock some perfect pink polish & support your favorite cause: Essie's Yes We Can, Pink! is a beautiful light, warm shade of pink that not only works perfectly with any wardrobe, but shows support for Living Beyond Breast Cancer, an organization dedicated to ensuring the best quality of life for woman affected by breast cancer. OPI Pink of Hearts 2009 (available soon!) is a gorgeous and empowering light pink cream polish. OPI will donate portions of its sales to both Susan G. Komen for the Cure and Rethink Breast Cancer in honor of October's Breast Cancer Awareness month. 3. Try out classic lotion in a special edition- with a pink pump for the cure!: For a limited time only, all of our Hempz Herbal Moisturizers & Hempz Age Defying Moisturizers are featuring a pink pump to show some support! These limited time only "Because We Care" editions help support breast cancer research by donating part of Hempz' proceeds. It's the perfect time to purchase these products that you already love, for the same low price, and help support a greater cause!

* Looking for the 2010 Halloween nail polish?  Click here. OPI's Tattoo Ta-Boo Mini Halloween Nail Lacquers are quite possibly the cutest thing around our office right now.  Nothing's more fun than letting loose with nail polish a little bit, and with these bright colors- even a glow in the dark one!- this is our perfect opportunity. And let's be honest- what's more fun than glow in the dark? Oh- glow in the dark nail art- that's what. Check out OPI's suggestions for some super-fun Halloween manicures: And for those of us are beginners (come on... can YOU do that!?), here's some step by step instructions for simpler designs from OPI, right off the back of the box:

Eyes On You Design 1. Start with two coats of Glow-ink the Dark polish. 2.  Use OPI I Love Mummy to make different sized white circles all over the nail. 3.  Carefully dot each white circle with OPI Witch Arm? to make the pupils. (Or cheat, and use a sharpie!)

Tip or Treat 1. Start with two coats of Tattoo You Want Candy polish. 2. Use Witch Arm? to french tip your nails.  (Need some French Tip help? Use these nail guides.) 3. Make three small circles near the nail bed using Witch Arm?.  (Again, we might use a Sharpie).

Be Mine, Frankenstein 1. Start with two coats of Glow-ink the Dark polish. 2. Use I Love Mummy to make the stitches. Luckly, the design totally doesn't require straight lines. 3. Make a bunch of small dots using Tattoo You Want Candy? Fun!

Give them a shot and let us know what you think!

[caption id="attachment_474" align="alignleft" width="107" caption="DermOrganic Oil Treatment"][/caption] As September starts us thinking about Fall, we have some brand new specials for our Beauty of a Site Shoppers. This month, we're offering six new promotions on some of our favorite stuff! Time to try DermOrganic! This incredible hair oil treatment, which also comes in a shampoo & conditioner form, uses organic Argan Oil from Morocco, which infuses hair with incredible managability, shine and a silky texture.  Similar to Moroccan Oil hair products, DermOrganic products are as instantly effective for your hair as they are safe for your body!  This month only, we'll include  a free trial size DermOrganic Argan Oil Treatment with any DermOrganic purchase! And because we loves these products so much we can't STAND it, we're offering $5 off selected colors of Blinc (Kiss Me) Mascara & Eyeliners!  These never-budge, never-run, wash-off eye makeup products are staff favorites.  We can't get enough of them! [caption id="attachment_475" align="alignright" width="112" caption="Blinc Mascara"][/caption] Our favorite cuticle oil to date- Creative Nail Solar Oil- comes in a super handy throw-in-your-purse balm style product that we never leave home without.  This month, we'll toss in this miracle worker ($10 value!) for free with any $40 CND purchase.  Now how about that!  Really... you can't pass this up. Get more information about these and our other monthly specials here!  For the month of September, you can find the following specials at Beauty of a Site:

• Selected Get Fresh Products 50% off
• Free Solar Balm with any $40 CND purchase
• Selected Urban Apothecary Cosmetics 50% off!
• Selected Qtica Gift Bags 20% off
• Free Oil Treatment with any DermOrganic Purchase

Click here to visit our monthly specials page!

See pictures and hear our reviews about Essie's newest nail polish collection for 2009! We're really interested how you all like these, because there are some really great colors in here!

Bold, dark, mysterious, beautiful.  Can't think of too much to say about OPI's new Spain Collection (the Coleccion de Espana), other than its everything we expected it to be.  I personally have to admit that OPI's fall collections are always my favorite, because they bring out so many of the deep, vampy, classic colors that OPI is famous for.  Indian summer or no, the BOAS staff is considering shifting our wardrobes to deeper fall colors just to accommodate some of these beautiful nail polish colors! Our suspicions were correct:  Suzi Skis in the Pyrenees and Here Today, Aragon Tomorrow are truly unique and beautiful shades.  Our pre-orders already tell us that these are going to be the hot sellers.  They are definitely slightly darker than they show up in the promotional pictures and the product images on our website, but the shade shown is pretty true to form.  Just slightly deeper and darker. A surprising LOVE from the collection: Barefoot in Barcelona. This creamy neutral shade is extremely close to CND's Cocoa, which is an awesome seller and super popular right now.  Lucky Magazine said that "bisque nail polish" that uses "the perfect blend of the most recent color trends: pink, gray & beige" is hot for the season, and that's just what this is. A tad beige-ier than the France collection's "Tickle My France-y," and the perfect everyday neutral. The promo pics didn't do Can You Tapas This? any justice; this raisin-y deep reddish brownish color is GORGEOUS.  We were expecting something browner and cooler, but this shade features a deep, warm red that we didn't see coming. Several of the shades, including Ate Berries In The Canaries, Pink Flamenco and Pamplona Purple are shades we would categorize as "surprisingly bright and colorful for fall."  Don't misunderstand- we love them and they are beautiful!- but bright, to be sure.  Interesting choice, OPI. All in all, the colors are lovely and definitely shades that we're expecting OPI to keep in their classic line for awhile.  We're accepting pre-orders for them now, and will be shipping them next Wednesday, on the official release day.  Buy OPI Coleccion de Espana here!