Beauty Big Bang XL Stamping Plates BBBXL-001 and BBBXL-002

Beauty Big Bang sent me 5 plates to review and I have reviewed XL-003, XL-004 and XL-005 on 3 separate blog posts but BBBXL-001 and XL-002 both had images which went well together.
I have been using these 2 plates over the last month or so but on many occasions I have used both in one mani so I decided to blog the two of them together.
They are both really beautiful plates and have featured in many of my manis this summer.
BBBXL-001 has 14 14 x 24 mm images including fruits, shells, flowery and leafy patterns, flamingos, seahorses and other underwater creatures.
BBBXL-002 has 7 14 x 24 mm images and a selection of smaller individual images like ice-creams, drinks and seaside scenes.

Beauty Big Bang XL-002 with Painted Polish Deux 2.0 over yellow and grey striped base (Happy Birthday from another plate)

Beauty Big Bang XL-001 & 002 with Painted Polish Autumn Twilight 2.0 and Deux 2.0, Virago Screen Name and Props on the Flat Top, Painted Polish Stamped in Seafoam over Nail Lacquer UK July (2018)

Beauty Big Bang XL-001 with Powder Perfect White, A England Lancelot and Painted Polish Autumn Twilight 2.0 over sponged base

Beauty Big Bang XL-001 with A England Lancelot over a pink and blue stamped base.

Beauty Big Bang XL-001 with Colour Alike Kind of White and Painted Polish Stamped in Seafoam over OPI My Chihuahua Bites

Beauty Big Bang XL-001 with Painted Polish Autumn Twilight 2.0 over Wikkid Polish California Gurls

Beauty Big Bang XL-002 with Painted Polish Stamped in Charcoal over Painted Polish Stamped in Blush, Colour Alike Lemonade, Fresh Mojito and Blue Sky over A England Carnation Lily Lily Rose

 

Beauty Big Bang XL-002 with Colour Alike Kind of White, Painted Polish Stamped in Seafoam and Barry M Flamingo over a fanbrush base

Beauty Big Bang XL-001 with A England Camelot over Avon Iceberg White, coloured in with Sharpies.

Beauty Big Bang XL Stamping Plate BBBXL-003

This is the 3rd of the 5 plates I was sent for review by Beauty Big Bang.
BBBXL-003 is all about nature - flowers, butterflies, leafy patterns and some very natural looking swirlies.
There are 11 14 x 24 mm images, 1 18 x 24 mm image and a small buffet style selection about 24 x 24 mm of butterflies and a little tree.
As I was quite tight for time (sadly - I would stamp all day if I could!) I did manis using 4 images at a time over a black gel base with different polishes.
All the images stamped beautifully and I had no issues at all with transfer of image onto the stamper or the nail. This is a lovely plate with very usable images, either as a base for multi stamping or as main stamping images.
This is the first of the 4 manis I created.

Beauty Big Bang XL-003

 This is the 2nd mani.

Beauty Big Bang XL-003

This is the 3rd mani.

Beauty Big Bang XL-003

And finally I stamped over the previous mani with the tree and butterflies. (this one looked better in real life, reflections made this a bit hard for the camera to pick up)

Beauty Big Bang XL-003

Beauty Big Bang XL Stamping Plate BBBXL-004

This is the 4th of 5 plates Beauty Big Bang sent me to review.
BBBXL-004 is a mixture of 14 images, each 14 x 24 mm in a variety of geometric designs. These are all quite general designs so I used this plate over a series of manis where colour of base was specified but the choice of stamping was entirely free. As a result all of these have appeared on my Instagram page over the last month or so.
Again I tried to vary the types of polish used to give a thorough test of the plates and used my clear stamper for all of them.

2 images stamped in white over a fanbrush mani.

 4 images stamped in pink over a blue base (these seem to be a bit of an optical illusion as its really not clear if its pink on blue or blue on pink - they really confused my camera! very strange)

 2 images stamped in purple over an orange base

 2 images stamped on purple over a fanbrush base

 1 image double stamped in Black and Neon green over a yellow base

 2 images stamped in dark blue over a smooshy base

Beauty Big Bang XL Stamping Plate BBBXL-005

Beauty Big Bang sent me a set of 5 plates to review and this is the last of the 5 plates, BBBXL-005
I have used the small square plates before and found them to be excellent so I was delighted to review the larger plates.
XL-005 is a lace plate. It has 14 images 14 x 24 mm and they are all lovely.
Having committed to doing this review I then found myself really busy at work and struggled for free time so I was not able to do a full mani with each image but I did 3 separate manis using a combination of the images, and one full mani for a challenge using 2 of the images.
I tried a mixture of polishes, some stamping polishes and some "normal" polishes that I regularly try for stamping and for most of the manis I used my clear stamper. That seemed the toughest test as the clear stamper does not not always work for me, but I had no issues whatever with pickup and transfer of images. All the images stamped really well and this is a delightful plate to add to my collection.
This was the first mani using 4 of the images.

Beauty Big Bang XL-005

This was the 2nd mani using 5 images, 1 as base layer of stamping on the 2 middle fingers. I liked this simple image as a background to the main stamping.

Beauty Big Bang XL-005

 This is the 3rd mani, again using 4 images

Beauty Big Bang XL-005

And finally a mani using the tiny swirls as a base and the half lace image.

Beauty Big Bang XL-005

I apologise that the pictures look a bit blurry, my watermarking software seems to be letting me down.

Born Pretty Manicure Set

Here is another item Born Pretty Amazon Store asked me to review, available here
This is a very pretty 3 part set which comes nicely boxed and in a lovely tin. It would make a great present for someone who has basic manicure needs.
The 3 items are multicoloured / multichrome so they really are very pretty.
The items in the set are a glass nail file, cuticle nippers and nail clippers.
The nipper and clippers are made of stainless steel, they are sharp, precise and well made. I don't tend to use cuticle nippers much but these are perfect for catching those annoying little bits of skin down the side of your nails (that you mustn't pull because they will hurt for days!!) and good for the occasional cuticle that does need trimming. They are quite small so easy to get into awkward areas.
The nail clippers are good too, nice and strong and easy to use, I am really very impressed with these 2 items and both come with a plastic cap to protect the sharp cutting edges.
The glass file is good too. I often use a rougher finish to take length off my nails but a file of this grade is perfect for everyday tidying up, leaving a lovely smooth edge to your nail.

 

 

 

Born Pretty The Universe Series - Chameleon Stamping Polish

Continuing to review the products Born Pretty (Amazon Store) sent me for review, these are chrome stamping polishes - the Universe Series.
There were 3 in the set I received, available here.
The individual polishes are BPU 01 Leo, BPU 02 Galactic Centre and BPU 03 Pink Planet.
These polishes all stamped really well and I tested each of them over black and white. Although they stamped well over white they were quite subtle, the contrast over a dark base was much better and the full chrome nature of each polish was much more evident.
BPU 01 Leo is a gold to green, with gold being the prominent colour, BPU 02 Galactic Centre green to blue, green being more apparent and BPU 03 Pink Planet I would say pink to gold but mostly a beautiful rose gold.
I used a clear jelly stamper to test them as that seems to be the most fickle of my stampers and therefore the toughest test. I used Born Pretty plates BPL005 and BPL029.
I also stamped them over the Born Pretty Pearl Lustre polishes (over a black base) and that gave a nice effect.
This following pictures are over white - BPU 01 Leo in the first shot and the BPU 02 and 03 Galactic Cente and Pink Planet in the second. As you can see, clear stamping but subtle.

BPU 01 Leo

BPU 02 Galactic Centre and BPU 03 Pink Planet

These are the photos over the Pearl Lustre polishes. I tried all 3 polishes over Pearl Lustre Moonstone, the blue shimmer. (Pink Planet on index and little finger, Galactic Centre on midde finger and Leo on ring finger)

BPU 01,02,03 over Moonshine

Then I used Pink Planet over Lotus in Moonlight, the pinky red shimmer

BPU 03 Pink Planet over Lotus in Moonlight

Then Galactic Center over Jade Sky

BPU 02 Galactic Centre over Jade Sky

And finally Leo over Only You.

BPU 01 Leo over Only You

The polishes looked pretty over the Pearl Lustres but they were most impressive over black. I also painted a full nail with each so show the multichrome effect.

BPU 01 Leo and  BPU 02 Galactic Center.

BPU 01 Leo and  BPU 02 Galactic Center

BPU 03 Pink Planet

BPU 03 Pink Planet

Overall I really like these polishes. Of the 3 sets I have reviewed these are my favourite.

Born Pretty Holographic Stamping Polish

Today I am reviewing Holographic Stamping Polishes sent to me by Born Pretty (Amazon Store)
There are 5 polishes in the set. They don't have names, just a number - 01 Silver, 02 Pink, 03 Red, 04 Blue and 05 Black
These are all very pretty polishes, lovely colours but not very pigmented so their use is slightly limited in terms of base colours you could use them over.
I tested them over black and white. They all stamped well but the contrast is not great.
All stamped nicely over white but the results were subtle and the silver barely visible. Not a problem for the coloured holos, you don't always want a full-on contrast mani and the stamping over white was pretty and delicate.
They did all stamp nicely over black too but the colour was pretty much lost. The silver stamped quite clearly but the other 4 showed very little more colour than the silver. The holo was pretty and although my photos aren't great I would certainly use them again, where I wanted holo stamping and wasn't concerned about the colour pay-off.

Here is the blue (04) over white, very pretty and delicate.

Born Pretty holographic stamping polish 04 (blue)

 This is all 4 colours, excluding silver as it didn't show up. Pink (02), Red (03), Blue (04) and Black (05)

Born Pretty holographic stamping polish 02,03,04 and 05

This is Silver (01) over black, as you can hopefully see the stamping is clear and the holo is very pretty.

Born Pretty holographic stamping polish 01

This is Red (03) on the top 2 fingers, Pink (02) on the bottom 2 but as you can see, although pretty there is barely any difference to the silver above.

Born Pretty holographic stamping polish 02 and 03

 This is Black (05) on the top 2 fingers, Blue (04) on the bottom 2 but again, although pretty there is barely any difference to the silver above.

Born Pretty holographic stamping polish 04 and 05

Born Pretty Pearl Lustre Series Nail Polish

Born Pretty (Amazon Store) sent me some products to review, and then I got really busy at work so they sat for weeks in a box, just waiting! Finally, I got a chance to have a play.
The first products I am reviewing are a set of 5 iridescent polishes, available here https://www.amazon.com/Mermaid-Transparent-Glimmer-Lacquer-Manicure/dp/B074P2VY9F
I read some reviews by other users and it was clear these polishes are quite subtle used on their own or over a pale base. I tried them over white and could barely see a difference and in the bottle they do all look the same. However, put them over a dark base and they completely come alive!
I started with a black gel base so I could swatch them and play around with them without having to reapply a base.
I don't think the products are available individually but the set I received had product numbers P001, P002, P003, P004 and P005.
I used one coat for each and they all applied really nicely and dried quickly. P005 was the only one that looked a bit streaky in real life. I am a bit disappointed with my photos as they all look a little streaky but in real life they all looked lovely.

P001 Moonshine is a blue shimmer and I applied one coat over black for a really pretty effect.

Born Pretty P001 Moonshine

P002 Lotus in Moonlight is a pinky red shimmer, again one coat over back gave a really lovely effect.

Born Pretty P002 Lotus in Moonlight

P003 Only You is a pinky purple shimmer, really beautiful over black.

Born Pretty P003 Only You

P004 Jade Sky is a gorgeous green shimmer, stunning over black.

Born Pretty P004 Jade Sky

P005 Moonsky Glow is a golden bronzy shimmer, lovely over black although it did appear more streaky than the others, particularly in the photos - less so in real life.

Born Pretty P005 Moonsky Glow

I am not usually a fan of shimmery polishes but I like these and I am certain they would look good over many dark bases.

Born Pretty Pearl Lustre

Blog is having a rest

I keep saying it and now I am actually going to give the blog a rest.
I don't have time to do it and really don't enjoy it any more.

Too many other things to do, too little time!

Here is the mani that should have been blogged today - 26 Great Nail Art Ideas - Creatures with scales...
A dragon, obviously!
Dixie Plates Summer 01 with Barry M Bright Lights over fanbrush of Virago The Bus Stop, Nails Inc Madison Avenue and 'Ard As Nails Walking on Sunshine, and sponged A England Symphony in Green & Gold

Nail Crazies Unite - Neon Floral

Well this was mad week! Work was busy and of course it was birthday week, so I hadn't really planned what I would do for this mani.

However, during the week I received a beautiful new stamping plate from my lovely friend Iva @secretjewelgarden and I had also ordered a purple neon stamping polish (because I seemed not to have purple???) - that arrived on Thursday so I used the purple neon over a mani I had already done, using the same stamping plate from Iva over my fanbrush mani.

So - stamping plate : Moyra Plate 41 Florality 3, stamping polish : Hit the Bottle High Voltage Violet.

The end result was perhaps not as neon as it could have been but I liked it!

Moyra Florality 3 with Hit the Bottle High Voltage Violet