Shop Update

Hello there!

If you haven't heard already, I am finished my spring/summer vintage fashion collection! It took a while, but it was worth it. Take a look for yourself!

These first two pictures are Instagram photos of my very last piece I did - a retro bathing suit piece. I think it was the perfect addition to the shift dresses and lovely glasses. Did I represent all your favourite styles??

These are my favourite photos of the grouping. (Excuse my toe in first one. It kind of gives you an idea of the size of the works I guess.) Which one is your favourite?

I'm going to try to have these up in the shop soon, but I will keep you posted of course. I know it's been a long wait, but you'll have to hang in there just a little longer my dears! I just want to get you great quality prints for the best possible price. As I said before, these pieces will be available as prints. In't that awesome?! Yes! I really can't wait to start scanning these and taking photos, because the detail in each item on the page is very exciting. I'm all about the details, you know.

What's next? Well I have a few things up my sleeve. We're still trying to get organized for our garage sale/CharmingShop table, and I'll slowly be working on changing up this blog to make it more functional too. Between that I will be working on some really adorable new print collections and adding some new Balloon Girls into the mix. 

I'll let you know when these pieces go up for sale.

Thanks everyone!

Marissa xo

CharmingShop

DIY Cleaning Supplies - Keep It Cute!

Happy Monday! The beginning of the week always says, "back to work" for me. Back to business plans and working on my next project, but not only that; back to housework too. The beginning of the week is when I personally get the most inspiration to buckle down and clean. I noticed cleaning supplies can be so boring and everyone has the same ones. It's just routine. You take them out, clean and then put them right back in their hiding place. I guess that's all their good for in reality - just doing their specialized job. No love for cleaning supplies. But with an obsession for cuteness like mine, I couldn't let that be. 

All you need is a pair of craft scissors that are fairly sharp. It can be tough to cut through those scouring pads. I loved the idea of cutting them into darling mini hearts that could sit up near my sink looking romantic and proud, but I cut a few other shapes (circles and squares) just for some variety. You also have to take into account their functionality. They have to be big enough to do some tough scrubbing, so don't cut them too small! If you're wondering about the sizing my biggest square at the top there is about 10cm by 10cm. I'm very happy with how charming these little guys are, and I think I will keep on doing this forever! They have also inspired me to think of some other cleaning supply cuteness I will explore in the future. 

What do you think? Would you try this DIY out?

I bought a huge amount of flowers yesterday, so I'm going outside on this perfect, sunny day to get planting! Hope you all have a lovely day, and that it's bright and beautiful where you live too! 

Bye for now!

Marissa xo

CharmingShop

Nail Growth Tips

Hello ladies and gentlemen, are you having a fabulous weekend? I am. It's been busy, but oh so eventful. Yesterday while trying to find second hand retro knobs for our kitchen cabinets, we stumbled upon a real beauty - a ridiculously good looking 50s couch, with a gorgeous, scrolling wooden frame. Original gold and olive green upholstery. It was a dream. We both saw it at the same time, and fell instantly in love. So after putting it on hold, arranging a truck to get it, and cleaning it like crazy, it's sitting in our living room like it was always part of the family. I am just so crazy about it. We both are. I have a little photo of it on Instagram (@marissahowes) if you want a sneak peek, but if not, I plan to eventually get around to doing room tours on here. You'll see it sooner or later I'm sure!

But that's not really the subject of my post today. It's nails! I looove nail polish. When I wear it, my nails grow pretty long, and I just like the classy shine of well manicured hands. I'm a big advocate for do-it-yourself manis or home manicures, whatever you want to call it. When you do the upkeep yourself, it's so much cheaper, and come on, it makes you feel good when you can do it yourself. With all the different tools and tricks available to buy now you can achieve and look or effect yourself. It's so easy now and most of the time, everything looks like it came from a salon. You can even do gel nails yourself now! That's crazy! You should be excited about all the nail technology these days. I am!

I have done some schooling in the art of nails, so I wanted to share some tips and tricks for maintaining long and strong nails AND keeping that polish on for longer than a day without chipping...

#1 BE HEALTHY - This is probably the most important. You're nails will grow best if you eat healthy, exercise, and maintain a positive attitude. When you have a healthy mindset and you get it into action, your whole body benefits! Vitamins and supplements can help too if you need them.

#2 OIL/LOTION - Massage your nail area with oils and lotions. It softens the skin around your nails and stimulates growth too! You wouldn't believe how much this helps. Vitamin E oil is really great, because it has healing properties to it. Its good for taking care of any rough areas, cuts, or hangnails.

#3 CUTICLES - Soak your fingers in warm water, and gently push back your cuticles with a cuticle pusher. This cleans up your nail for easier nail polish application and also stimulates nail growth. This tip always works to get longer nails. Above all else, I swear by this tip the most.

#4 NAIL POLISH REMOVER - always go over your nails with nail polish remover before you paint them. If you've been soaking them, pushing back the cuticles and applying oils or even just touching your nails too much, there are oils on your nails now that will interfere with your nail polish application. Quickly wipe them to make sure they're completely clean. We want the nail polish to stick, not melt off!

#5 DON'T SHAKE - Don't shake your polish! It can actually create bubbles or turn your polish to a weird unusable consistency. Just roll it in between your two hands gently to warm it up. That's all you need. And don't shake your hands when your nails are drying either! That can create bubbles and your polish can even come right off if you're shaking to hard! It's all about gravity. If you're in a hurry, blow on it, take your hands over to a open window for a bit, or buy quick drying top coats. They're awesome.

#6 DO THE WORK - If you want your nail polish to stay, do a base coat, two coats of colour and then your top coat. It's foolproof. If you leave a step out, your nail polish won't be as strong, and it will probably chip earlier than you want it to.

#7 CAP IT - I cap every coat of polish I do. Even the base and top coat. This means swiping the polish over the very tip of the nail. This tip is a miracle worker. Trust me, sometimes I can get up to 10-12 days without a chip. It's amazing.

#8 LET IT DRY - Take your time and don't rush. Your coats should be completely dry until you move onto the next one.

These are some quick shots of my current nail situation. I'm wearing an Anna Sui red. I've had this one on for a while now without a chip in sight. I have to keep my nails fairly short to do my artwork, jewellery and various craftwork, but I can grow these babies pretty long if I follow my routine. 

Follow these tips and you'll be headed for gorgeous, healthy nails! Yay!
Grow those nails!


Marissa xo
CharmingShop