The Mia Secret 4th annual Global Nail Championship awards were announced in October to much excitement and fanfare. The online nail competition has become a staple for the brand, with licensed professionals, Mia Secret Educators as well as Mia Secret Lovers taking part in the contest.
This year, entrants were tasked with creating not only beautiful and imaginative nail art, but also pulling together the entire image as if were to be featured on a poster or the cover of a magazine. That means the theme needed to extend beyond the nails to encompass the model’s hair, makeup and wardrobe as well. At least 50% of the products used to create the nails had to be from Mia Secret, although competitors were also allowed to use crystals and other embellishments. In each of the three categories — Magazine Photo Poster, FX Xtreme Photo Poster and Calendar Photo Poster — entries were judged not only on the nail technique and artistry, but also on the overall production of the photograph, including composition, model and visual impact.
The awards ceremony was held via live stream on the Mia Secret Facebook page on October 13, 2023. Celebrity nail artist Tom Bachik and Mia Secret Executive Publishing Advisor Stephanie Yaggy Lavery hosted the live stream, announcing the winners chosen by Mia Secret vice president Lynda Sanchez along with the marketing department. Below, you’ll find a list of winners and their prizes:
Magazine Photo Poster
There was no theme for this category, however contestants were encouraged to be creative by finding a theme that’s not overly done (ahem, flowers). The idea was to create extreme nails on a beautiful model for an end result similar to something you’d find on the cover of a professional beauty magazine.
1st Melisa Krigeris, Uruguay, $1,000
2nd Elisa Sanchez, Guatemala, $800
3rd Dorian Roman, Costa Rica, $600
4th Renatta Morbioni, Ecuador, $500
FX Xtreme Photo Poster
This category was a lot of fun because it not only incorporated extreme nails, but also special effects makeup, using things like prosthetics and inspiration from Cosplay. The key to taking home a prize in this category, though, was to ensure that the makeup and costume didn’t overshadow the nails.
1st Anielka Peralta, Costa Rica, $1,000
2nd Maria Dolores Sanchez, Ecuador, $800
3rd Rosangela Salinas, Venezuela, $600
4th Samantha Fuentes, Guatemala, $500
Calendar Photo Poster
This category tasked each competitor with creating a theme surrounding the seasons of the year. The nails were to be wearable and salon-friendly, and each winner took home $400. While typically there would only be one winner for each category, we received two fantastic entries in the Winter category, so we had to award them both.
Winter: Maria Zuluaga, Costa Rica
Winter: Hendrica Peters, South Africa
Spring: Gabriela Torres, United States
Summer: Michelle Rodriguez, El Salvador
Fall: Monica Tamara, Colombia
If you’re interested in participating in the Global Nail Championship for this year, follow Mia Secret on Instagram, Facebook and our blog for more information about the rules, categories and entry opportunities to be held in summer 2024!