I have added this post as a page, you can access it by clicking "My Equipment" on the menu bar! I hope to be adding to it periodically, so stay tuned!
Hello everyone! I've set up this page so you can all see what kind of equipment I use to do my Nail Art, From what remover I prefer right down to how I store my polishes! I get a lot of questions on where I get my tools, so I thought a page would be a good idea, to show everyone!
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Nail Polish Remover
A lot of Nail Bloggers use pure Acetone to both remove their nail polish and do clean-up, but my nail can get quite brittle, which Acetone would only exacerbate. The best Nail Polish Remover I have found is Sally Hansen Strengthening Polish Remover. It does me just fine, and is made with pro-vitamin B5 to keep nail as healthy as possible. You can buy this from your local drugstore or supermarket, it is pretty common! It also smells nicer than usual remover!
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Stamping and Image Plates
Some of my Nail Art is aided by the use of Image Plates, often referred to as "stamping". These work by transferring the image from the plate to the nail by use of a rubber stamp, after the image on the plate has been saturated with polish, then scraped clean. There are SO many eBay sellers that make them, but only buy them from sellers you trust, as the quality of these can vary wildly. The image plates that I use are the BundleMonster image plates (both the old and new sets) and Konad, which is probably the most reputable and well known stamping system (but they're more expensive.) The best place to buy BundleMonster is either at their website, or on amazon. the best place to buy Konad is from wowsocool.comhttp://www.wowsocool.com/ or eBay - if you're careful that you are buying genuine Konad products. This is just in my experience, however, living in the UK.
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| 3 image plates with stamper and scraper |
Stamping Polishes
The best nail polishes to use are ones that are extremely opaque, as this will give you the best transferred image. My favourite ones to use, especially for black and white, are the Konad Special Stamping Polishes:
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| Konad Special Stamping polish in white, red and green. |
Again, I bought these from wowsocool.com, but eBay is usually fine for UK buyers, just be sure you buy from a reputable seller. You don't have to buy these special polishes to stamp with though, a lot of high street brands work just fine, as long as they are opaque. "Foil Effect" polishes work really well, such as this one from Miss Sporty, called Electric Beige.
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Nail Art Pens
I bought a set of 60 Nail Art pens from eBay, called Nail Star pens, and they are OK. I've not had any issues with them, really, but I know a lot of people can't stand to use them. They are not incredibly opaque and get clogged up easily, they also STINK. This said, if you don't want to spend a lot of money on them (This set of 60 cost me £20), then these are absolutely fine, especially the staple shades like red and green. I get my black, white, gold and silver Nail Art pens from Claire's Accessories, and they cost £4 each. I find these are better quality than the eBay pens, and because I use these shades the most often, I decided to make the investment. They last a long time and are more opaque.
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Nail Art Brushes
I bought mine from BornPretty.com - they do free international shipping, which is just great. There's nothing worse than thinking you've got a cheap deal and then finding out that its expensive to ship to the UK. They are great quality, and I would recommend them - they're great for tiny details and you get a good range of brush thicknesses, fan brushes and a dotting tool. Make sure you clean them after each use :)
Topcoat/Basecoat
Where I haven't exactly found a holy grail of basecoats, like I have with topcoats, there are 3 that I particularly recommend, and I tend to alternate between them:
Sinful Colours Base Coat - I like this because it dries extremely quickly to a semi-matte finish, it looks like you're wearing nothing at all and that you just have healthy nails.
Nails Inc Kensington Caviar Basecoat - This was a gift, and I'm so glad I received it because I never would've bought it myself. It came with a topcoat, but it's the base coat that steals the show. It's slightly pinky and looks lovely even by itself.
OPI Nail Envy - probably the most revered base coat in the Nail-world, it is considered a cult product because it strengthens and repairs as it protects. I only use this occasionally as it's my Mummy's - but it is very good!
This is the only top-coat I will use now. Once you go Seche, you never go back! It penetrates through all the layers of your polish and sets like glass - very, very quickly. Your nails will be touch dry in 1 minute and protected against chipping. Really, if you've never tried Seche Vite, you don't know what you're missing! I bought mine from eBay for about £6.
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Scotch Tape
A Scotch Tape Manicure is where you "tape off" certain sections of your nails (once they are completely dry) and paint over them before removing the tape - this creates straight, neat lines and can be used to create numerous effects such as this:
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| full post HERE |
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Travel Case/Storage:
I actually keep the polishes that I use most often in old Glossy Box boxes on my shelf, where they're easily accessible, but I do keep some in a Beautician's case that I got from Amazon. This way I can take them wherever I like, look professional on photoshoots and keep my tools together:
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