NOTD: BM-201 stamped over a glitter sandwich

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On to the nail stuff!


I've always liked the look of glitter sandwiches, but never did many myself. If you've missed it, I did one HERE that is the base of this mani. I wanted to try something like this one, a fun base with stamping added on top. What do you think, does it work?

I used BM-201 plate for the design and Yssy No.3 for stamping. The design I used happens to be one of my favourite designs from this set and I've used it a few times. For those of you who are new to stamping, this design is really forgiving and you can do multi stamping without it looking odd.

In the close up below, you can see where the design didn't transfer properly and I had to double stamp. Because of the way this design is, you can't really tell the mistakes in real life, only in macro photos.

Till next time!

Amazing customer service by Bundle Monster

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Last year when I purchased Bundle Monster's second set of 25 Stamping Image Plates, I received them and happily started using them. As it happened, one plate out of the set was made so that the top image you see highlighted below didn't work. The groves in the design were simply laser cut too shallow, so that lacquer did not stay in the groves and did not transfer onto the nail. I was a bit upset because I was looking forward to using the pretty flower design, but I left it alone. 

Fast forward a year later when I was looking at purchasing Bundle Monster's third 25 Stamping Image Plate set. I realized that I still had that one plate that didn't work right and before making another purchase, I wanted to see what could be done about my previous purchase. I sent an email to Bundle Monster's customer service department with my old order number attached, letting them know that they plate was faulty. Within a day, I had a response offering to send me a replacement, no questions asked. Wow, of course I accepted!

 I have heard good things about Bundle Monster's customer service practices, but I was surprised that they would still honor my purchase and send me a replacement well over a year later. I must admit, I am very pleased. I received my replacement plate within a few days and I can't wait to use it! Here's my new plate!

 Oh and for those of you who don't own any stamping plates yet, do remember to remove the blue (or sometimes clear) film off of each plate. It's there to protect it from getting scratched but unless removed, the plate won't work.

Now I'm wondering, how many of you have had bad experiences with retailers and e-tailers? When it happened, did you take the time to complain and make your experience known to the place of business or if not them, then at least your friends and co-workers? Yeah, I think we've all done that, when something goes awry we all want to share it with others so that they don't have to go through the same experience. 

Well, how about a good experience, do you make it known when you had one? I certainly try to, I fill out surveys, call managers and tell friends when I've experience a positive customer service situation. This is why I wanted to share a great experience with Bundle Monster with you. Tell me about your experiences!

Till next time!

NOTD: Sensique Indian Rose + BM-208

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In the spirit of experimenting with how to do stamped designs on nails, sometimes I try something that looks strange to me. Today is a day when I get to show you a result that I find both strange looking and interesting at the same time. Maybe you can tell me your impression of it. I'm open to comments and critique, as always.

I used Bundle Monster plate BM-208 for the design.

To create this design, I used both black and white lacquer, dabbing it in random places on the design I wanted to use on the plate..

... then I scraped as usual, at which point the two colours sort of mix and intermingle. Then I stamped each nail, creating this strange effect. 

Simple.

 In the close up photos you can see a little better how nicely the shimmer comes through from the base colour, which I like. You can also see how the colours drag through each other. Click on any photos to view larger.

For the base colour I used Sensique Indian Rose (see swatch HERE).

Till next time!

A note to you, yes YOU, all my nail friends..

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As you may have noticed, the other day I launched my newest Contest/Giveaway 

and if you haven't, you should check it out HERE, it's really awesome! 

Now I've read through just over 100 entires so far, I must tell you, I'm totally moved. You guys have given me such awesome answers that even if you are not the winner of the contest, I want to address what you told me. The nail community really is so great!!

So thank you all for saying what you did to me and here are my responses:


~ to my nail friend who offered to wear your panties on your head for a week out of sheer joy if you were to win my contest, whooowheee girl, that is quite the offer, thanks for making me laugh out loud


~ to my nail friends in countries that never had SH Nail Prisms, I'm sorry that you can't find them easily, but if you're determined, just like anything else in life, you can make your wishes come true, so don't give up!


~ to my nail friends that look forward to my posts on here and enjoy them, thank you so much, I never thought that my ramblings about lacquer and pictures could brighten someone else's day, that makes me feel awesome


~ to my 60 year old nail friend, you're never too old for making your nails pretty, you go girl~!


~  to my nail friends who are dealing with depression and find that doing your nails is the one thing that makes you happy, know that you're not alone, I've been struggling with this disease myself and there are many others like you online


~ to my nail friends dealing with debilitating diseases that immobilized you, I'm glad that you have become part of this crazy nail world and that it somehow adds a little colour to your lives, we all could use some joy in life when it's tough to feel joyous  


~ to my nail friends who have had the SH Nail Prisms as a 'younger' girl, I'm sorry if you've had to get rid of them for one reason or another, they really are great and I hope that even if you don't get them through me, that they will somehow make their way into your lives one way or another


~ to my nail friends who can't afford to hunt Nail Prisms down and buy them, I understand the money situation you're in and it is the very reason why I'm going to sell the ones I was keeping as back ups, I hope your hardships end soon


~ to my nail friends that are new to this world of nails, welcome and enjoy the ride that comes along with it, your wallet will hate you soon enough, I promise, but hopefully you will end up with a great collection


~ to my nail friends who are in school and are either studying hard for exams or have done well on them or even recently graduated, I can identify, I went through school recently and know what it's like; so even if you don't win the contest, treat yourselves with something nice for a great effort and good luck with your futures!


~ to my nail friend who thinks that SH Nail prisms are awesome and that I'm awesome, yes you're awesome too!


~ to my nail friends who are scouring nearby stores trying to find SH Nail Prisms, in case you don't know, they have been discontinued a long time ago (something like 10 years now) but they have been known to randomly pop up in some crazy dusty stores, so look in discount bins and baskets that look like no one's touched them for a long time


~ to my nail friends who wrote a paragraph as an answer to my contest, don't worry about it, I've enjoyed reading what you've written and thank you for taking the time to do it


~ to my nail friends who are looking to expand their current collections and would love to add SH Nail Prisms to them, I hope you do at some point because they really are awesome and any girl who collects lacquer must have some in her stash


~ to my nail friend who is going to start her own nail polish jewelry, I hope you're very successful at it and I do wish you luck


~ to my nail friend who vowed to be on a no-buy as support to her boyfriend who quit smoking after 10 years, tell him congratulations and you're a brave girl promising something like not buying any pretties, wow!


~ to my nail friends who have found me through my SH Nail Prisms Guide, I'm glad you found it and enjoyed it, you're one of the reasons I made it, I just want these pretties to be properly itemized somewhere and yes, I'm still working on updating it as I get more Prisms, I still do not own all of them


~ to my nail friend who's researched Sally Hansen and the history of the Nail Prisms line, yes I have also done some research and found the same info as yourself, virtually nothing, it is mysterious indeed


~ to my nail friends who are moms and new moms, I hope you're going to find a way to still get yourself some pretties to put on your nails even though you have the tough job of providing for your family


~ to my nail friends with new blogs, congratulations and have fun blogging, it takes work but I promise that you'll end up meeting some great people because of this hobby and I certainly hope that if you get some Nail Prisms in the future, you'll blog about them




Till next time!

NOTD: Gradient sponging over nail striping tape mani

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There are so many techniques to do nails with that I've yet to try or at least have yet to show you. One of the fun and easy techniques is gradient sponging, and you can see one of my examples of using a sponge HERE and of course my gradient mani tutorial HERE. Now I've seen quite a few luxurious manicures around the blogosphere using gradient sponging over striping tape and that's what I tried today.

 The base for this manicure is the awesome Island Girl Aloha Luau, if you missed it, see the swatch HERE. 

 Now to be honest, I almost did a stamped design over it, but for some reason I wanted to try this technique instead, so I added tape in a random way, then sponged with white over it and viola. I added Seche Vite top coat over it and I was done. Let me know if you want to see the step by step.

 In the close up, it all looks a bit fuzzy, but it's a good thing no one looks that close at my nails, ha! I think this one will take some multiple tries to get right.

 How many of you have tried gradient sponging and using striping tape? Which colour combinations do you think lend themselves to look better than others?

Till next time! 

NOTD: Butter London Slapper

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I'm excited show you Butter London Slapper today, a beautiful cream teal. I've yet to try this brand, so I put it on with child-like excitement, waiting to see how great it is and I must say, it's great!

 To all my Canadian nail friends, if you've been looking for a good e-tailer that will ship to you, I got this one from Nail Polish Canada, you should check out their site for your nail polish needs, they carry a lot of brands like Nfu-Oh, A England, Nubar and other tough to find ones.

 I am really happy with the quality of Slapper, it went on like buttah and 2 coats did the trick. It dried fast and is glossy without top coat. It was also easy to clean up, unlike some teal lacquers that can stain. 

 I'm stoked to wear this one again! I'm also wondering now if all Butter London lacquers are this good. Have you tried them and which ones are must haves?

This product was sent to me for review.

Till next time!

nailXchange's Nail Prism Contest/Giveaway

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** THIS CONTEST/GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED**
Have you been trying to find some 
Sally Hansen Nail Prisms without luck? I know how that goes, they're elusive little suckers! I have spent hours driving around and looking for them. Now I'm going
to share some with you!

If you have never seen them before, they have been long discontinued by Sally Hansen and can be hard to find. I am compiling a Nail Prisms Guide HERE to help other girls identify them, as there seems to be very little information about these beauties online. 


I am also going to be selling some of the ones I have left over. If you don't think you can win them and just want to purchase them, my last Blog Sale has a list of them HERE.


Now,


who wants some Sally Hansen Nail Prisms?!

I have a few that I'd like to share in my 

The prize will be:

Nail Prisms South Sea Pearl (swatch HERE)

+

Nail Prisms Emerald Amethyst (swatch HERE)

+

Nail Prisms Ruby Diamond

+

Nail Prisms Lavender Pearl

+

Nail Prisms Fire Opal (swatch HERE and HERE)
---
--------------------------------------------
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So why is this a Contest/Giveaway?!

Well, I'll be giving these away but not to a random person. I want you give them to the most deserving person. I will be choosing the winner, based on the completion of this  sentence:

"I should win these Nail Prisms because..........."

Simply fill out the form below to enter this Contest/Giveaway

and 

GOOD LUCK!

**THE ENTRY FORM HAS BEEN REMOVED**

Contest/Giveaway rules:

1 - You must be one of my public GFC (Google Friend Connect) followers. New friends/followers are welcome, but please join only if you think you'll stick around. 
2 - Only one entry per person please.
3 - You must provide me with your GFC follower name and email address in the Contest Entry form so I can contact you if you win and you must complete the sentence.
4 - You must respond within 48 hours (if you've won) or another winner will be chosen.

Contest/Giveaway information:

1 - This giveaway is open Internationally.
2 - The contest starts June 21, 2012 and ends on July 12 , 2012 at 11:00PM E.S.T

3 - The winner will be randomly selected by me.

Bundle Monster launched set # 3!

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I know many of you enjoy seeing the NAIL ART I create with stamping and some of you do it yourselves. Well, Bundle Monster has been one of my favourites since their launch and I've successfully used their product ever since. Today is an exciting day, because even though you might have been seeing teasers around the blogosphere, Bundle Monster launched their new set HERE. I can't lie, I'm pretty excited and just placed my order. Now I wait impatiently for it to get here! Wheeee!

I haven't even seen the full set until today and if you haven't seen it before, here are some shots of the plates. The deal is 25 plates for $21.99 plus shipping depending on your location.

 Will you be ordering this set?

Click on the images to view larger.

Till next time!

NOTD: Andreia Higicol No.105

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Do you remember seeing one of my new favourite foreign lacquers I showed you HERE just a little while ago, Andreia Higicol No.92? Well I finally tried another one from this brand, and it's the beautiful Andreia Higicol No. 105. I got these during my haul in Portugal I showed you HERE and I must admit that I'm super excited to have tried this brand, the formula on these is awesome.

I could have gotten away with 2 coats of this one, but because I'm used to it, I added a third one. It went on like buttah and it dried pretty fast. 

I just love the shimmer in this one, you can see it in the close up a bit better. Click on any photos to view larger.

This mani ended up being the base for my Gradient + BM-208 stamping mani I showed you HERE so of course I want to show you at least one of the photos of the gradient alone. I simply did a gradient with Catrice Birdy Reloaded.

How many of you tried doing a gradient mani? What are your favourite colour combinations?

Till next time!

NOTD: Gradient + BM-208 stamping

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There have been a lot of gradient manicures going around the blogosphere and I can't lie, I have done my share of them. I think that a nice gradient just looks so awesome under stamping, I just had to do another one. If you've never tried this technique yet, you should, it's easy. I did post a tutorial about it in the TIPS & TRICKS section, HERE.

I stamped with My Secret No.121 and used Bundle Monster plate BM-208.

 The base is Andreia No.105 (I picked up during my haul in Portugal HERE), then I did a gradient with Catrice Birdy Reloaded. I will have to try this one over again, I'm not very happy with the way the black turned out, I wanted it to be more opaque.

Till next time!

Blog update!

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I want to take the time to welcome the new followers have have recently decided to be a part of this blog. Thank you for joining and know that I appreciate and look forward to your comments and suggestions so don't be shy. You guys are like my extended family! Oh and you can also reply to one another with the reply button in the comments section.


Second order of business is that I have received many emails while I was away, asking if my BLOG SALE is closed and if and/or when I'll have another one. I did have a blog sale last year before my European trip, trying to make some money for it and since then, all my pretties have been in storage awaiting what's next. Now that I'm back, I'll be launching another blog sale soon, this time trying to make some money to pay my outstanding bills, ha! Being away and not working for 6 months is not good for bill paying.


And lastly, I want to let you all know that I'll be having another giveaway in a few days, I'm just not sure which lacquers to give away. I was thinking that it would be nice to give some Sally Hansen Nail Prisms again, since they're long discontinued and still highly sought after by many. If you have any suggestions, let me know what you think.  


Till next time!

NOTD: Island Girl Aloha Luau No.1162

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The other day I showed you my Island Girl haul HERE and today I finally tried one of them. I tried Island Girl Aloha Luau No. 1162 and I must say I absolutely love it! It's no secret that my favourite colour is purple and even though I like darker purples, I think this one rocks. It's a neon purple with a silver shimmer in it that dries matte.

 I had to add top coat to this one, just because I'm not a big fan of matte lacqures. The two photos above are without topcoat and the ones below are with top coat. In the close up photos you can see the shimmer in this one.

 The formula on this one is great, it took 2 coats for full opacity and it dried fast. All photos are taken outdoors on a cloudy day.

Till next time!