Hitting up BeautyMark has always been a favourite pastime for beauty and fashion mavens; the beauty boutique has become a one-stop-shop for skin care, makeup, jewelry and clothing along with a handful of luxury beauty services. Over the summer, the Vancouver beauty institution welcomed Linh Khuu as their resident nail guru. Her quiet and stylish one-person studio is on the top level of BeautyMark’s Yaletown store, and she offers everything from a simple manicure ($22), and Gelish gel services, ($32-$45) to all the bells and whistles of sparkly Swarovski crystal designs ($10 per nail).

Applied like regular polish and cured with a special light, gel manicures last up to two weeks without dulling, chipping or cracking. Linh chooses the Gelish brand because of its superior quality and uses a speedy 60-second L.E.D light machine instead of the usual slower UV light, resulting in a much faster experience.

Perfect for a holiday or special occasion when re-doing or changing your polish just isn’t an option (hello, Mexico!), the process is quick, painless and the result is stunning. She polished up my dull looking hands with a Gel Polish Manicure ($45), and I left admiring my shiny, strong and vibrant nails with an appointment to return for my next application.

Book with Linh by calling her directly at 778-773-2753.

By: Erin Gerlach of thesparkle.net, Vancouver

You should follow me on Twitter @erincg.

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