Winstonia Series 1 Stamping Plate Review

Recently on Nailed It, you may have noticed a revival in stamping. That continues tonight with a review of one of the plates in Winstonia Store's Series 1 stamping plates.

I used the large floral pattern, as well as it's smaller counterpart for my design tonight, as well as a 3D fimo flower for my thumb!

I had no problem with these stamps. They transferred easily and all the lines and details translated perfectly.

Below is a shot of the plate I used, which includes several other floral ideas:

The series also comes with 3 other plates:

Image courtesy of Winstonia Store

Image courtesy of Winstonia Store

Image courtesy of Winstonia Store

This series of plates comes at a really low price. All four are available here for $4.95! SO CHEAP!

Which plate is your favorite? Which design is your favorite?

These products were sent to me by Winstonia. The reviews are based entirely on my experience with the products and were in no way influenced by anyone.

Bundle Monster Holiday Plate Review - Cinco de Mayo Plate

Happy Cinco de Mayo...in September!

Bundle Monster's holiday stamping collection has all sorts of interesting holiday choices, including a Cinco de Mayo plate! I literally laughed out loud when I was flipping through the plates, so I absolutely had to use this one. I went full Mexican with this as you can see!

The plate comes with the two stamps I'm showing here, as well as a cactus, maracas, a Southwestern style sun, and the text "cinco de mayo". Marta at ChitChatNails took a great shot of it here:

Photo courtesy of Marta of ChitChatNails

How cute is that plate? I will definitely remember it come next Cinco de Mayo! It's a holiday I am certain I don't celebrate traditionally (as you can see by my last Cinco de Mayo post), but it's all good and fun.

The colors I used in my mani were Milani's Tainted in Red and Yellow Mark, which are both textured polishes. I also used a base of Purity (Zoya) and stamped with Posh (Revlon) and Tasmanian Devil Made Me Do It (OPI), which made the stripes of the Mexican flag as well.

You can pick up the entire Bundle Monster holiday collection of 25 plates on their site for $21.99.

Bundle Monster also recently released a collection where users turned in and had their own designs created on plates! That collection of 26 plates runs at $16.50 here.

Check up with them on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and Google+!

These products were sent to me by Bundle Monster. The reviews are based entirely on my experience with the products and were in no way influenced by anyone.

Bundle Monster Holiday Plate Review - Wedding Plate

Haven't seen stamping posts on Nailed It in a while have you? Tonight I'm reviewing one of the plates from Bundle Monster's new 2013 Holiday Plate collection.

This collection features a bunch of great plates perfect for every holiday out there, including non-Holiday holidays (e.g. baby showers and birthdays).

The collection comes with 25 plates, and 150 designs. You can see each design at the Bundle Monster site, or for real-life images, I recommend checking out Marta's review.

Today I reviewed plate BM-H22, which is a wedding themed plate. Since it's not a holiday, I wanted to use designs that were a bit more generic, and could work in any situation. I used two designs from this plate.

I had trouble getting the design on my stamper, which was obnoxious. I really had to pile on a lot of polish, and several times, to get the design to finally transfer onto the stamper. Maybe I'm just out of practice.

The skittlette look uses Mermaid's Tears (OPI), Crown Me Already! (OPI), Lick-O-Rich (Sally Hansen Sugar Coat) and Black Onyx (OPI) for the stamp.

I'll be reviewing another plate soon, inspired by Cinco de Mayo!

You can purchase this nail set from Bundle Monster here for $21.99, and check up with them on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and Google+!

These products were sent to me by Bundle Monster. The reviews are based entirely on my experience with the products and were in no way influenced by anyone.

Winstonia Stamping Plate Review

Remember Winstonia? That surprise beauty supply company that I quickly adored because of their fabulous nail art brush kit?

Well they're back on Nailed It, making another big splash in my opinion of the company. They recently launched their first generation of nail stamping plates. The set comes with 20 plates and retails for $15.99. So thinking of it as 80 cents per plate, you're realize you're getting a bargain.

Thinking of it as 80 cents for these plates, you realize you're robbing someone blind. These plates are superb. I love them, and I've sort of fallen out of love with stamping plates. (It's not them, it's me.)

First off, the size of the designs is great. The whole-nail designs cover my entire nail, including my thumb.

Each plate arrives sealed in blue film to prevent scraping damage, and the backs all have thin cardboard protecting you from sharp edges. They're circular discs, just as Bundle Monster, Cheeky, Red Angel and Konad.

The engravings on the plates are the perfect depth. I tried two designs, one of which had some of the smallest detail I've seen (the peacock feather above), and I got a near-perfect transfer almost every single time! No muss, no fuss. Just polish, swipe, stamp, and transfer...as simple as stamping should be. I take issue with plates that don't have the proper depth to their patterns, causing me to redo the process over and over. The bad experiences I've had lately with some of my other plates just left a sour taste in my mouth, but trying the Winstonia set was like licking a sugar cube.

The kit does not come with a stamper or scraper, so you'll need to procure those some other way. (Winstonia offers a two-way stamper and scraper combo tool here.)

I'd also like to give major props to Winstonia for their creativity in designs. They're modern and I like all of them! Though some designs are pretty useless (such as the stamp that's literally just text that reads "earth day"), most are very thoughtful of today's trends. The following plate is likely to be a big hit:

Mustaches, aviators and Gameboy references?! Like I said...I think it'll be a hit.

I had some personal favorites as well. The season-appropriate stamp I liked most was the wood grain, which I showed in my manicure tonight. (Unseasonably, I liked the sweater design of plate W120). I wanted to play with another stamp, so I also did feathers.

Light as a feather...stiff as a board. That old sleepover game that never worked for me and my friends actually works much better on nails!

I used A Taupe the Space Needle (OPI) as my wood base, and stamped it with Konad Chocolate. The white base is Au Champagne (ORLY) and it's stamped with Passion (China Glaze).

You can buy the set from Winstonia's store here. They've also generated another fantastic coupon for you to use on anything in the store. Enter the code BLOGNAILEDIT for 10% off your order of these plates through April 30th! Please note: The coupon code only applies to the plates, not your entire order.



If your order is $30 or more, you can get 15% off your entire order by entering EVERYTHING15.

Some people were upset that Winstonia didn't ship to their countries, but checking their shipping policies page, it appears they do ship internationally, though you will have to pay via PayPal if you do ship internationally. 

These products were sent to me by Winstonia. The reviews are based entirely on my experience with the products and were in no way influenced by anyone.

Runway Stamp

After I stamped these nails, I realized how well the pattern would have gone with the Tadashi Shoji nail art competition. I'm still really glad I did my design freehand though, but this would have been a fantastic stamp alternative.

You can still vote for my entry here! I'd love your support!

With the winter weather whipping the windows and calling all chills, my nails have been both dry, brittle, and uninspired. Luckily I recently received my plates from Cheeky. If you've been thinking of getting some plates, get these! You can get three jumbo plates, including plate C, which I used in this design, for $19.99 here. Apparently there's also a steal of a deal on a 6-jumbo-plate set for $39.99. Uh...what?! That's unheard of! And these plates honestly rock. The designs are HUGE, and the only thing you'll be complaining about is the fact that your stamper is probably too small for them. Seriously...dang.

Don't you love the blue I used? It's Essie's Aruba Blue. The stamp is Silver Sweep (Sally Hansen Insta-Dri).

Born Pretty m-59 Lovely Heart Stamp Review

The marathon of reviews continues with another Born Pretty pretty. There's plenty of pretty out there in nail world, but nothing feels quite as pretty as a girly bow. Okay...maybe pink, scented, kitten shaped glitter would be prettier...or at least girlier. But bows are up there. At least top ten.

The m-59 plate is a great stamp if you're looking for bows. It comes with not one but two bows for you to choose from (and these aren't duplicates).

It also gives you 4 different hearts to choose from and two different snow flakes. For this, it's one of those versatile but useable plates I'll come back to when I'm looking to quickly spice up a manicure. For this manicure using Light as Air and Sugar High (China Glaze), I just wanted to use the bow.

I used the solid (as opposed to the polka dot) bow to add accents to the tips of my nails tonight. The design picked up like a dream, even with my chunked up, post-Thanksgiving dinner Black on Black (Sinful Colors). Lately my stamping attempts have been awful and annoying--designs not transferring, partial images being picked up, dragging issues, and scratched plates. I was fully prepared for a long night of retrying each finger to get it right, but I didn't have to redo a single one. (Yes, my middle finger may have benefited from a do-over, but that's an alignment issue, not an image transfer issue.)

Compared to my last experience with a Born Pretty plate, this was flawless. The designs are all carved deeply and with nice detail. I didn't have to retry anything to get the right results, and the plate fits nicely with the rest of my plates (Bundle Monster, Red Angel, Konad). If you're looking for a pretty plate, grab this one. It's cheap at $2.99 and the designs are all not only cute, but useable. When wouldn't you need a heart or a bow? And for winter, snowflakes can look amazing with some metallic polishes.

Pick up your plate here and get free shipping. If you're looking to spend even less than $2.99, why not use a 10% off coupon? I just so happen to have one for you to use any time, as many times as you'd like!

This product was sent to me by Born Pretty. The reviews are based entirely on my experience with the products and were in no way influenced by anyone.

Born Pretty CK-03 Plate Review

Nailed It's about to undergo a marathon week of reviews and nail art, so buckle up!

Born Pretty kicks things off first, with the CK-03 quadrate stamping template.

 I was giddy to get this stamping plate, but unfortunately, my hopes were let down a bit upon arrival of the template. Comparing the template to a Konad plate, you can see why.

Born Pretty on top, Konad on the bottom.

See that size difference? The stamps on the Born Pretty plate are all too small to fit my fingernails, and I don't necessarily have large or long nails. Here's my thumb up against one of the designs:

Damn. I was really excited about this plate, especially the pattern beside my thumb there. There are several patterns similar to this throughout the plate, but only none are exactly the same. However, looking at the base of the plate, there are actually three repeat patterns.

I'm not sure why they replicated the exact same patterns. They don't even go the other direction. They're just straight up copies of one another. There's a total of 42 designs advertised, but you really only get 39. Bummer.

I do like the designs on the plate though. My favorites are the lace patterns, with inlaid patterns within them. I also really dig the metal grate design right beside the top pattern highlighted in purple in the image above. I have plans for that one, but I'm frustrated that to get an entire nail design, I'll have to carefully place at least 2 designs.

My opinion on this plate is very mixed for the reasons I just listed. For one, I love the designs. They're carved well and transfer easily with the right polish. However, the designs are all too little, and you get repeats on the plate. Ultimately, I don't think I'd recommend it. It's cheap, at only $8.53 (here), so you can decide if you think it's worth it. I just want you to keep in mind what you're getting, and I don't want any of you to be disappointed without the knowledge.

With that in mind, here's my nail art using the plate. I had to do a cutout design because the size of the designs was too little, and I'll admit, I love it anyway.

I used two OPI colors here: My Boyfriend Scales Walls (the white) and stamped with Tasmanian Devil Made Me Do It. The black lines were done with Black (Color Madric). I just added rhinestones to spice it up a little more.

You can pick up this template at BornPrettyStore.com here. With the coupon code below, you'll get the plate for just over $7.50, which definitely ain't a bad price for 39 nail designs! The choice is yours.

This product was sent to me by Born Pretty. The reviews are based entirely on my experience with the products and were in no way influenced by anyone.

The Neon Sailor

Me and yellow...we go way back. I really can't ever get enough of yellow. There are so many beautiful living things in the natural world that are yellow, whether that be a bright or a muted yellow. So that's why you'll always see at least one yellow-cure per month.

Tonight's used The "It" Color (OPI) for the yellow. I've shown that one before, but this time, I've added Neon Lights (Elemental Styles) on top of that for an extra kick. Neon Lights is another tiny glitter mix. Of every type of glitter I've come across, it's the simple, clear-base, itty-bitty glitter mixes I find myself drawn to and really seeking out the most. Windestine was the first Etsy shop that made me realize that, and now I've got Neon Lights to accompany Carbon Copy and Asbestos. I'm beyond pleased. I snapped a picture using Instagram earlier to show off just how cool the combination was before any stamping:

The stamp was done with Hey Sailor! (China Glaze) and m57, the well-loved Konad plate that got me started sometime two years ago. Two years? Wow time flies when you're bloggin' your little heart out.

Stamping Shelby

One of my favorite pinks, if not my favorite pink, is Shelby from Zoya. It's the best mix of pigments to create the prettiest color. Plus, it's really easy to work with. Usually when I want to use it, I don't want to use anything else with it. I thought the best way to use it and still keep it the star would be to stamp on top of it.

The stamp is from BM-209 and I used Passion (China Glaze) for it. Isn't Shelby gorgeous?

Leopard Pistol Accent

 
I've been wanting to recreate this manicure since I first saw it at Marta's blog, ChitChatNails. Her manicure used different fingers for the leopard accent, as you can see here. I wanted to do my first two fingers as the accent nails, and I decided to start calling this type of pointer/thumb accent combo a pistol accent. Pretend like you're shooting a handgun. Which two fingers did you use? See...pistol accent!

The bright red I used is another score from the ridiculously cheap beauty supply store a reader pointed out to me near Boulder. It's Tasmanian Devil Made Me Do It (OPI). It's soooo bright and I'm thrilled it's part of my collection. I have one other red that comes close, but it's not bright with that orange-red feel.

The base for the accent nails is Farah (Zoya). I used the m57 Konad stamp rather than freehanding the leopard spots. They're filled in with Load (Illamasqua) and stamped with Black Creme (Wet n' Wild). I literally can't stop looking at my hands.

Thanks for the inspiration Marta!!!

Optical Chaos

I haven't stamped all my nails in a while! Trying to decide between designs today, I finally decided it was time for some stamping, using the Love at First Lavender I showcased earlier in my review of Sation polishes.

The plate is Red Angel RA-106 and I just used Black Creme from Wet n' Wild for the stamping. My middle finger got a little smudgy, so I apologize for that. Isn't it just optically chaotic though? There's just so much going on, but there's only two colors. Crazy!

Boho Birdie

Quick reminder to vote for my submission one last time! Today's the last day.

Today's manicure drove me nuts. I should've left the gradient alone. Personally, I think the stamp ruined it. But it also may have been a case of the it-looked-better-in-real-lifesies. I hate it when I catch those.

The gradient was created with two Color Club colors: New Bohemian and Earthy Angel. Turns out, Earthy Angel is not a good color for my skin tone. Probably will just stick that one in the pile with other accents-only polishes.

I sponged to get the gradient effect, then stamped the feather from the Bundle Monster BM-15 plate with Konad Special Brown polish.

Damn...it looked so much better in my head. As soon as these pictures were done being taken, I cleaned it all off.

Born Pretty M71 Plate Review

Tonight I'm doing a review for you! Are you excited? You should be, it's good stuff.

Born Pretty has tons of amazing nail products, as most of you have seen and probably partaken in. One of these products is their stamping plates, which is what I'm reviewing today. In particular, I'm taking a look at plate M71.

The plate consists entirely of small images not meant to cover your whole nail. Perhaps the most famous and well-known design on the plate is the Hello Kitty head. You've seen it before though, so I decided to use a different design (more on that later).

The designs on the plate are all quite cute, and they design I tried is cut at just the right depth. Picking up the design was not an issue, and it transferred beautifully (taking user error out of the picture).

The plate is slightly larger than Konad plates, and is obviously a different shape. There is no backing on the plate, but it's never bothered me. Here's what I'm sad about, which probably won't affect anyone else. The larger size doesn't fit into my little round container where I conveniently keep all my plates. :( Sad.

In addition to the plate, they sent me a scraper and stamper.

 

The scraper measures and acts exactly as the Konad scrapers.

They're both metal, both easy to handle, but unfortunately, they both scrape the plates to death. I still recommend cutting up an old gift card and using that to scrape your plates.

The stamper's rubber piece used to pick up the design is the same size as both the original Konad stamper, and the extra large stamper, as you can see here.

The length of the tool itself is much shorter than the other stampers though.

At first I thought I'd hate the size, but it's actually nice to work with. You can kind of cup it in your free hand's fingers, and it maneuvers well. I don't like the texture of the rubber. It doesn't provide as much give when you're pressing it down on the surface of the plate, so if you've got polish you're stamping with that's a bit less thick in consistency, you won't have as easy as a time picking it up. I ran into this problem with the first polish I tried as stamping polish, and eventually wound up switching to the Konad stamper.

Like I mentioned earlier, the design transfers quite well with the right polish. I used Black on Black (Sinful Colors) for my design.

The base is Carey (Zoya) and the yellow dots are Happy Go Lucky (China Glaze).

Overall, I would recommend buying the plates. They go for about $4.00, and even if you only grab one, you won't have to pay for shipping. What's even better? You can use the coupon code given to those readers of my blog: C10X31 for an additional 10% off. 

Oh the good things just keep on coming!

The Born Pretty products shown in this post were sent to me for review by the company.

Easter Sunday Best

I've got another super tasty, super simple Saran Wrap nail design for you this Easter morning! I wanted it to portray the Sunday best you see so many folks wearing today, but unfortunately, the two colors I chose for the base are too similar to the white stamp I used (Konad m57 with White On). It certainly doesn't look bad persay, but it's a little too muted for my taste.

I used Bubble Gum (Savina) and Re-Fresh Mint (China Glaze) as the two colors for the base. I didn't take pictures last night after creating the manicure, so there was quite a bit of shrinkage. I'm a little surprised how much occurred, and get now why girls don't like Seche Vite for that reason. It's just itching for me to easily peel it off and try something new.

Maybe you'll see two Easter manicures today!

Colors in the Face of Cancer

Jackie Clark, a writer and outreach contact for the Mesothelioma Cancer Alliance reached out to me several weeks ago, extending an invitation to partner and present a touching and inspirational story to the readers of my blog.

Please enjoy her insightful words below, detailing just one of the tough issues women face when diagnosed with a tragic and sometimes fatal prognosis.

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Colors in the Face of Cancer
By: Jackie Clark

Are you a woman struggling with a cancer diagnosis who feels like she can use a new paint of coat on life? Or are you a daughter whose mother was recently diagnosed with breast cancer? Why not try nail polish and enjoy having some cute cuticles, despite the circumstances you may be under.

As inconsequential as it may seem, a manicure can really brighten up your perspective. Let’s face it there is nothing fun about cancer. Yet, in the midst of your darkest emotions, brightness can be found in the form of gorgeous, silky nails. A simple act like painting her nails can refocus a woman on her femininity and innate beauty.

When facing a daunting diagnosis and the subsequent treatment options, it is easy for a woman to feel overwhelmed. One of the first things a woman allows to fall to the wayside is her personal upkeep and beauty. Yet maintaining ties with current trends in fashion and beauty can serve as a wonderful way for a woman not to lose herself as she faces the biggest battle of her life.

If the idea of a full makeover is overwhelming, there are small and simple ways for a woman to maintain a sense of style. The reason why a manicure is such a wonderful idea is because it an easy and time efficient way to pay a little attention to your own needs. A manicure may be the absolute last thing a woman has on her mind while battling cancer, yet it may be just the thing she needs to renew her sense.

Being pampered is a great way for a woman to ease back and allow herself to be treated as a princess, even as she struggles with one of the many cancers woman are faced with including mesothelioma from asbestos exposure.

If a trip to the salon for a manicure simply isn’t in the budget, then a woman can still enjoy the same blissful pampering at home. All it takes is a simple drug store bottle of nail polish and her husband, friend, or children to elegantly apply the nail polish as she sits back relaxes. The soothing human touch paired with adding bright, beautiful colors can be a truly transforming and healing experience. After endless appointments with doctors and treatments following the cancer prognosis, hands that provide a beautiful touch can be a refreshing change.

Painted nails are a sign to the world that a woman no matter how many struggles she may have faced, has not given up on herself or her fight against cancer. Remembering the importance of beauty no matter how small an act proves that she has not lost count of her value as a woman.

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Painting your nails, getting homegrown manicures, and creating details on your nails truly is effortless with today's tools. As all of you know, I'm a huge fan of dotting tools, but an even more effortless tool available at low prices to almost every country are stamping plates. From Konad to Red Angel to Bundle Monster, these patterns take about two tries to master, and then you too could be creating beautiful designs such as this.

Confidence is key, and a beautiful manicure can empower anyone.

Jackie, thank you for your insightful, inspiring and beautifully written post!

Silky Stamp

This pattern and color combination reminds me of a tapestry I hung on my dorm room ceiling sophomore year in college. It was a bedspread I got from Urban Outfitters, and it's truly stunning. The damask pattern is silver, and the material is a sheer white. I hung it right below a light, so the light dimmed down and spread out throughout my entire room. Man that was a good room.

For the base of this, I used French White Creme (Wet n' Wild) and stamped with Passion (China Glaze). I realize I used that color last night, but the color was so striking I wanted to use it again. (I have a feeling it'll be one of those bottles I'll need 2 of.) The plate is RA-109, from the increasingly popular Red Angel line. I remember when I first bought the set in November, there was one or two reviews. Now there are 109 reviews, and I'd like to think I'm a part of that. I hadn't seen the set used on any of the blogs I followed, so I took a risk at $12.99 and wound up with one of the best sets out there. Have you bought your set yet?

Gilded Leaves

Recently, I won my first giveaway by luck of the draw over at grape fizz nails. The prize was the coveted Whimsical (Revlon) and another beauty, Violetta Sparkle (Avon). That package arrived today from Canada, so I decided to use my prize for tonight's manicure.

I had an impossible time trying to get a good picture of the combination I came up with, so these pictures aren't the best. You get the general idea though.

The plate used is BM-11, which is quickly becoming my favorite plate to stamp with. (I used it a while back during my mini self-challenge and again for Secret Agent Lila.) The polish to stamp with is Passion (China Glaze). They're more fun in person. I couldn't quite get the shine from Seche Vite to show up properly.

Thank you again Anne for the lovely giveaway, and the great prizes!

Guest Post: Embellished Nails

So today was supposed to be my guest post over at Embellished Nails. She went on a cruise for a while, and asked for some guest posters. So ahead of time, we all sent in our posts for her to set up. Mine went through...mostly. Unfortunately, I don't see the images, which, let's face it, is the best part of nail blogs!

So, if you care about the story behind these nails, head over to Emily's blog for my guest post.

Since the images aren't working over there, I'll put them here. In honor of Emily's cruise, these are my sailor nails!

A Bit of Glit

February 14th is just around the corner ladies, so it's time to start gearing up with some festive manicures.

Valentine's Day is probably the easiest holiday to prepare manicures for for several reasons. A) I can't think of a single girl who owns nail polish that doesn't have a pink, red, or purple in her collection. B) Hearts are the easiest thing to create, besides dots. They're basically just three dots, strategically placed. C) Cute is easy to do.

My first act in this series of pinks and cutes is a simple stamp over some girly glitter.

I started this off with Heavenly (Savina), and then added one thinnish layer of Candy Cane (Color Club). After sorting out the stamping plates that would go well with the colors and theme, I finally landed on one I was almost sure I'd never use, but actually quite like. Bundle Monster's BM09 plate has this sort of tattered "LOVE" stamp, so if any imperfections arose as a result of the transfer, no one's the wiser. It also grits up this glittering manicure a bit. Black on Black (Sinful Colors) stamps lovely though, so I imagine there aren't too many issues.I should have stamped it facing the other way for photographic purposes, but the unusual post-production rotation will have to suffice.

Snaky Subtlety

I've missed stamping! Today's manicure used a stamp (BM-220), and I forgot how much I love using those things. With the setup I have, it's so easy, and I can do it without thinking about anything. (Would anyone be interested in seeing how I set up before and after stamping?) This was particularly helpful last night, when I was thinking about what the nonsense and laughter that came out during "Wild Women Wednesdays" (name pending). Thanks Chloe & Bree!

The base for this stamp is Color Club's Nomadic Nude. I can't remember if I've used this before, but dang is it pretty. The stamp is Poetic (China Glaze).

There's not a whole lot else to say about this manicure, but I think it could pull as a work or interview appropriate manicure. Maybe the details are too much, but the color combination is enticing. I think an interviewer would notice it enough to think "Ok, good, this person takes good care of their looks", but not be distracted by it as you delivered your carefully thought out answers.

For my first interview, I honestly have no idea what I did with my nails. I know that I cleaned them (I had made sure to write that down on my hand as a reminder, which ultimately, was stupid, because then I spent a good 5 minutes scrubbing my hand to get the ink off), but I don't know if they were polished. This was back in high school, so forgive my forgetfulness. I do however remember one of the answers I gave. As my "worst work quality", I said I was sometimes too detailed. Sneaky answer, but coupled with my other answers and personality, it got me the job on the spot. I started working at Hollywood Video (may it rest in peace) that week.