Recent stampings with MASH



I recently acquired MASH nail stamping plates 26-50, and have been having quite a lot of fun/hours of enjoyment ever since.

 

For Aussie's and Kiwis, you can buy these here and here.

 

And here are some of my creations . . . . muwhahahahahahahaha!

 

Snakeskin:

 

 

Swirls:

 

 

Bubbles and seaweed:

 



 

Funky tribal (Aztec/Egyptian/Navajo):



 

 

Frilly flowers:

 

Lacey flowers:

 



 

 

Art deco:

 

 

Art deco (with added dots using dotting tool):

 

 

Shiny giraffe print:

 



 

There are so many great nail artists out there, but perhaps if you're not so dexterous, nail stamping is for you.  It's also great for those with shorter nails, because you can focus on the design on the nail, as opposed to the lack of length of your nail.

Have fun (I do!).

NN

Revlon Colorstay

These Revlon Colorstay (yes, "colorstay" without the u, because it comes out of the States!) polishes have been out for some time, but Priceline had a sale on them around Christmas, and that made them a reasonable price, so I got some!

Here are the colours (with a u!):

Bold Sangria

Midnight

Indigo Night

Spanish Moss

Blue Slate

Coastal Surf

Seashell

These are great polishes!  Glossy, vibrant and long lasting, the darker shades are also good to use for stamping.

NN

Love is . . . on my nails

We're day 2 into February (can you believe it?!), and February means . . . Valentines Day!

I started to go through my polishes, picking out the reds and a few pinks, and do you know what?  I really don't have many of those shades.  Given that's the case, I'm going to do my best to give you a few design ideas using what I have.

If you Google Valentines Day nails, there are literally a billion and one different ideas out there.  However, If you don't have access to stamps or aren't to crash-hot with nail art, you can always fall back on plain red or pink nails, or maybe even pastel shades.  There's also red and pink glitter polishes out there, and I know that Jordana have glitter polishes with hearts in them!

For something a bit edgier, you could use Sally Hansen's Sugar coat in Cherry Drop, or Essence's Sparkle Sand Effect in Be My Lover.  Both have a textured finish and are great for something a bit different.

In the stamping world, there are lots of hearts and arrows etc out there.  Half of my stamps have at least one image related to love on them, so I'm definitely not without options.  Here's a few stampings I've done recently to get you inspired:

NN

Revlon Parfumerie

Just landed in Australia and New Zealand is Revlon's new scented nail polishes range - Revlon Parfumerie.  Presented in pretty little square bottles, the polishes are a gorgeous, gimmicky addition to any nail polish lover's collection.  They are pricey, though, at $15.95 a pop, but if you hurry, Priceline has a deal - two for $20.

The dilemma for this NP lover was do I make my choice based on the colour(s) I like, or the
scent(s)?  For starters, I decided to do a bit of both.

There are three categories of fragrances - Fruits and Florals, Freshes and Sweets and Spices, so I went with Lime Basil and Apricot Nectar from the Fruits and Florals, Tropical Rain from the Freshes and Spun Sugar from the Sweets and Spices.

I'm going to comment on each scent below, but in regards to the polishes themselves, and based on the four that I purchased, I was very impressed.  As you can see from the photo above, I got three cremes and one shimmer/metallic, but they're all easy to apply and dry pretty fast.  I'm not sure about their longevity/durability, because I've only swatched them and removed them, but I imagine that they'll be similar to Revlon's usual quality.

Apricot Nectar:  In my opinion, this smells more like orange than it does apricot. Definitely a fruity smell, but I got more citrus notes rather than stone fruit.  I even smelled a faint whiff of Juicy Fruit!

Spun Sugar:  Once this settles down, it does have a sweet smell, with a very slight hint of something soapy.  I was hoping this might smell like Candy (NZ)/Fairy (Aus) Floss/ Cotton Candy (US), but it's a very subtle sweet.  Lovely polish as well, but given my nails aren't in good nick at the moment, the polish showed every split and imperfection, so if you do wear this one, make sure you've clipped and/or buffed for the perfect finish.

Tropical Rain:  I wasn't sure what to expect from this one.  I was hoping it was a kind of ozone-y type of smell, similar to Estee Lauder's Beyond Paradise perfume, but instead it's quite strong and kind of like a unisex perfume.  Also, I get a woody scent from it.  I don't think the scent really matches the colour.  I would argue that it belongs in the spices category.

Lime Basil: This one really does quite closely match for scent and colour.  I get the citrus scent, but it's not overwhelming, and is tempered with a very delicate basil smell.  It doesn't make me want to eat it, but it is an interesting smell!

These are lovely polishes, and you can start to smell the scents not long after you apply them to your nails.  The smell lasts for a while, and then fades, but it was suggested to me that I just got used to the smell, and that they actually still had a scent to them.

They're a good gimmick, and bad at the same time - you want to be able to smell the polishes, but to be able to do so, you really have to hold your painted fingers under your nose to get a whiff, and that looks a bit weird to do that in public, if you know what I mean.  Bad mental image!

All in all, these definitely do work, but be prepared to part with a bit of money and indulge in the scents in the privacy of your own home.

NN