Hello and welcome to Beyond the Paint, a blog by Bio Seaweed Gel (BSG).
Beyond the Paint will be bringing you posts and content throughout every month to look forward to! Stay tuned for expert advice, exclusive news, exciting interviews, giveaways and much more

MAY AT A GLANCE

With the weather warming up it’s time to get ready for pedi season and a whole lot of new(s) at BSG! This month we drop details about our upcoming new gel polish, share summer nail inspos, chat with our Brand Ambassador, the charm queen Sarah of @CHRMDBYSARAH plus a little giveaway at the end!

TERRAZO GEL POLISH

You saw it here first. We cannot reveal all just yet but here is a sneak peek of our upcoming Summer 2022 Collection, Terrazzo Gel Polish. Think shapes, mod and neon! There will be 6 new shades and they are going to be in a new Specialty Gel Polish formula! Terrazzo will be joining our Specialty Gel Polish line-up including the likes of PHASES Colour Changing, Rhinestone, gelChrome and Supernova Reflective. We love our Specialty Gel Polish lines featuring unique finishes and textures! We will be dropping full details about the collection next month just in time for Summer so stay tuned. Enter to win a $25 BSG e-Gift Card by taking a guess at the new collection name! Full giveaway details below.

POINTS FOR DONATION: NAACP

Thank you to everyone who used their BSG points and turned it into a donation as part of our ‘Points for Donation’ initiative! The donation has been made to National CARES Mentoring Movement and we look forward to another successful PFD term, this time with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

WHAT IS POINTS FOR DONATION?

If you are a new reader, Points for Donation was introduced back in February 2021 to our BSG Rewards Program as an initiative aimed to highlight and support organizations that empower and elevate Black communities. It is a redeemable reward that allows customers to redeem their BSG points (collected from purchases made on our website) into a charitable donation benefitting the featured PFD organization.

The PFD organization changes on a semi-annual basis, with all donations currently going to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

ABOUT NAACP

The NAACP is the largest and longest standing leaders in the fight for civil rights and social justice for colour people. With over 2+ million members and 112 years of experience, they have proven and continue to make changes and impact to build Black political, social and economic power to end racial hatred, racial discrimination and racial injustice.

SUMMER NAIL ART INSPO

Heading to the nail salon soon? Here are some ideas for your upcoming mani – looks we’ve been loving from the gram!

Don’t forget to tag your BSG nail look with @bioseaweedgel so we can see them! We’d also love to know what BSG colour(s) you used, so be sure to include a hashtag as well in the caption. For instance, if you used 04 Marshmallow, include the hashtag #BSGMarshmallow.

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: SARAH NGUYEN OF @CHRMDBYSARAH

For those who may not be familiar with you and your incredible work, please introduce yourself, your name where you are based and a brief nail history of how you got started in the nail industry 🙂

“I’m Sarah Nguyen (known on social media as CHRMDbySarah: pronounced charmed). I’m based in New York but am originally from Southern California. I’ve been doing nails professionally now for almost 6 years! Wow the time has flown by! I made the move to NYC back in 2013 for a fashion retail job that I thought was my end all be all. I was healing through a breakup and my boss at the time asked if I wanted to come to New York for a couple weeks and that magically turned into 8 years! After a couple years working retail, I realized that something had to drastically change & something just clicked mentally for me where I knew I had to take the leap of faith and pursue nails. It began more as a hobby for myself that blossomed into what it is today. I started assisting Gina Edwards (with absolutely no experience!) and she said she saw the fire & determination in my eyes so I was fortunate enough to be alongside her through iconic campaigns, etc. From there, everything opened up where I was able to make a name for myself through client & editorial work and just being me!”

There is no denying that sculpted nails, crystals and jewels are all part of your signature work and look! You are of course CHRMDBYSARAH 😍 I've seen your nail art range from minimal use of crystals and charms to more extravagant, decadent and fully stacked. There is definitely a high level of artistry and creativity that is going on when you create these looks, and I'd love to know where do you pull your inspiration from and how about do you go about your creative process?

“I am definitely the queen of CHARMS & the architect of sculptural jewelry build-outs! I'm honestly inspired by everything around me. From just listening to the sounds of my neighborhood, the birds chirping & some jazz music to conversations during sessions. I love going to galleries and museums when I feel like I need a reset… My creative process flows naturally and organically. I really just let my hands do all the work. I never pre-plan any of my sets or sketch them out. We are creative beings that when you know how to tap into yourself and lead with your intuition everything just flows the way it needs to. I stay true to my authentic self in and outside of nails … I’d rather create the trend then follow the trend.”

Could you share with us how you got started with using Bio Seaweed Gel and what some of your favourite BSG looks are?

“I started using Bio Seaweed Gel back in 2014/2015... I was at a nail supply store in Brooklyn and saw an entire section of all black gel polish bottles with these beautiful colors on display & I instantly fell in love. Some of my favorite current looks:

Laura Harrier for this year's MET Gala! Using all BSG products: Stronger Base-1, BSG UNITY in Halifax and Sirius of course!, with the BSG No-Wipe Top Coat.

French Reflective Tip: Using BSG Jelly Bean (3 coats) 2 coats of Sirius, 1 coat Sculpting Builder X, No-Wipe Top Coat

Pink Floral Reflective"

"In addition, here are some of my BSG obsessions that should be in everyone's kit!

UNPOLISHED Removal Kit: literally has been such a game changer in my removal times!!!!

Soak-Off Removal Wraps: these are definitely and essential to every kit! These squares are the perfect size and are easy to pack when traveling!

Apron: this is a must have!!!! I love to pull a cute fit together for any day that I am working so wearing an apron is a MUST!

Stronger Base-1 is a mic drop staple!!!! This has been my go-to base because not only does it help strengthen and maintain natural nails, it's universal with ANY other gel brand!!!!!

UNITY & 3STEP Gel: The consistency is great because you can easily layer them without them being too thick or bubbly!

S1 Sirius: at this point I think my clients need to stop me! I'm so obsessed with Sirius that I've been using it on everyone!"

Your talent has landed you on the set of many amazing editorial campaigns, photoshoots and opportunities to work with huge brands! Do you have a favourite campaign that you've worked on or was most significant to you? And do you have a 'dream' brand/collaborator that you would love to work with?

“Some of my favorite gigs were being the lead manicurist for most of Pat McGrath's online & Sephora campaigns (also British Vogue) and assisting Gina Edwards for the Balmain Yeezy campaign and Kanye being less than 10 feet away! That Balmain x Yeezy campaign was my first ever set job in New York and I had ZERO experience! I remember purchasing all my kit essentials from the pharmacy the night before because I didn’t have a kit of anything! I felt in alignment & that jumping into nails was the right path for me! I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to be lead nails for Schiaparelli one day! I know it will happen but I’m putting it in the ethers!”

Lastly, other than Instagram is there any other social platforms that you can be found on? As well as any exciting news we should keep an eye out for from you this 2022! 👀

“My social for IG and TikTok are @CHRMDBYSARAH … 2022 will definitely be all about collaborations, more CHRMD products and pushing my own boundaries and continuing to inspire those around me.”

BLOG POST GIVEAWAY

Time for a blog post giveaway! We will be giving away a $25 BSG e-gift card to the closest guesser of the new Terrazzo Gel Polish Collection name! Here is your hint: hydration and celebration!

One winner will be randomly selected and contacted by email on June 6th 2022. Must be 18+ to enter and a resident of Canada. For all USA residents, to enter and leave a comment on our USA blog click here.