Modern Nail Art

Base: Kb Shimmer Funky Cold Patina

Stamping Plate: Nicole Diary L-07

Stamping Polish: Miss Claire one coater

This very versatile plate (Nicole Diary L-07 #46770; link)  is from Nicole Diary brand from the Bornpretty website. This plate has only full nail designs and lots of textures. it has many themes from florals, abstract, geometric and textures. The plate sells for $3.99 and even the fine lines and images print crisp and neat.

PS: Plate was sent for an unbiased review.

Born Pretty Rainbow Handle Holo Stamper

Hello Hello -wello! 

I love all things shiny and holo-ey! And when BPS came out with this stamper I had to have it in my collection. So I called for it as soon as I could. The stamper is available of the BPS site (#45934; link) 

The stamper body has a nice tapered cylindrical body which is easy to hold. The stamper head is medium soft. Not too squishy. It comes with option to have clear head or holo head. I choose the head with holo flakies in it. These flakies however do not bother the function of a transparent stamper; though one might have slight difficulty if trying to do layered stamping. Stamper retails for $2.99 and is a reasonable buy at this price.

As you can see below the image pick up is very sharp and crisp. 

BPS Chameleon Holographic Magnetic Polish Starry Star

Another much delayed review. I used this polish back in December but never got around to editing pics. This beauty is from Born Pretty Store (#43679; link ; starry star shade)

Its a holographic, magnetic and duochrome polish. 

Under direct Sun light

BPS recommends you use it over a black base polish so I did.

Base: Sally Hansen Black heart

Topped with BPS Chameleon Holographic Magnetic Nail Polish shade Starry Star

As you can see the magnetic and holo effect are very strong. However unexpectedly the magnetic effect also has a very strong duochrome effect which I was pleasantly surprised with.

The polish dries fast and lasted on me for 4 days. I am totally in love with how it looked in direct light. All the things I love in one polish. This retails for $5.99 for 6ml after discount.

I have posted a small video to show the dazzling effect in light on my Instagram @nailartnthings (will link it below too)

Born Pretty Store Universe Series Stamping Polish

Hello Readers!

Today I have on the blog a beautiful stamping polish from Born pretty store for review.

This polish is from their universe series called Leo (#42851 Link) 

There are a total of 8 duochrome polishes in this series and the color shift is quite visible and strong.

It shows well over dark polish. Here you can see it is a very bronze gold color.

But when the angle shifts you can see it has a very prominent green/olive toned shade.

The polish is very opaque and stamps smoothly. It retails for $5.99 for 6ml bottle after discount (original price is $6.99).

Love stamping with this polish. Would like to try this with different base colours too.

Born Pretty Store Holo Polish Blue Love

Hello! September is almost coming to an end. The year is just flying by. really!

Today I have a cute little polish from Born Pretty Store to show you.

BPS has really come out with very awesome range of holo polishes. 

On review here today is a blue holo polish called Blue Love (BP RR-07 #42846; link) from their Rose road series in Deluxe holographic range of polish. 

In sunlight

in artificial light

I loved how holo the polish is, its not a very linear holo nor is it too scattered. The blue shade is also very flattering on my skin tone. The polish in this range come in 10 cute shades and I had a hard time picking one. Bottle size is 6 ml for $7. I find it's a bit pricey for this size but the quality is good. One thick coat is sufficiently opaque. But I've used 2 coats in my pics above out of habit. The polish dried fairly quickly in 5 mins. Overall I quite like this polish and considering that I don't get any real holo polish locally I am very pleased that BPS has got good holo polishes now. My packaged reached me in 15 days after shipping.


Polish sent for review. It is my honest, unbiased opinion.

Born Pretty Store No Wipe Gel Top Coat Review

Recently I started using gel polish just coz I wanted to use those shiny mirror finish pigments and holo pigments. Most of these pigments needed gel polish and a no wipe top coat. I got a basic set of uv gel lamp in a starter kit but I was still short of a no wipe gel topcoat.

And then my favourite shop for all things nail came out with a no wipe tc. Born Pretty Store.

I got the no wipe topcoat (item #39795; link) with some pigments and I am really happy with the way it works esp over these shiny powders and pigments.

Here I have used it over BPS pigment 38616 over a black base and again topped it over the pigment. Can you see how shiny reflects and it certainly doesnt take the shine away from the pigment.

I used it over a glitter gel polish and the result is equally shiny and smooth look.

I have also used it below over the BPS magnetic polish

The top coat goes smoothly and is self levelling. It cures nicely in 30 seconds in a led uv lamp. No need to wipe sticky layer as this is a no-wipe top coat. I love shiny nails using the pigments and chrome/mirror powders so my main purpose to test this was for the powders and it works really well. One layer of top coat and the pigments stick nicely to it and give a proper chrome/mirror finish when rubbed on with finger or silicon applicator. 

It lasted well over 10 days for me without any chips but I removed it as I wanted to change my nail polish. This top coat sells for $2.79 for a 10ml bottle. It is very reasonably priced as compared to other no wipe gel topcoats and is easily available via BPS. If you are a chrome/mirror nails lover and need a good no wipe gel topcoat then this is certainly brings an end to your search.

PS. Product provided for an honest unbiased review.

BornPretty Soak Off Caps

Sometimes the glitter polish and gel polish get to you! In the sense they are so tiresome to remove that you dont feel like using them at all. There's always a way to use the peel off base but for me that doesnt work well always. It comes off in just a day or two and most likely in the middle of the important event that I had painted my nails for. So this comes at a really good time for me. 

Born Pretty Soak off caps.

Now I dont fear using gel or glitter polish directly. I love removing them by using these soak off silicon caps (item #39658). I have used the older variety of a small plastic bulb with a rubber cap but trust me these silicone ones are much better and easier to use. 

All you got to do it soak a piece of cotton (1/4th of a cotton pad) in acetone. Place it on your nail so that the polished area is completely covered by it. These caps have a small V opening on the under side. Fold the cap around the edge of the V and place your finger in it. Now unfold the cap around your finger. For glitter polish let it stay for 5 mins. For gel polish let it stay around 10-15 mins. 

Gently remove the cap and voila! your polish should have come out without much trouble.

I got these caps (item 39658; link) from the Bornpretty store. They sell for $2.99 for 5 pieces in a set. You can get them in green, red, yellow, purple, rose-red (bright pink). These are made from silicone material so acetone doesnt affect it and all you need to do is wash off with water once you use them and let dry. 

I find them the best so far to remove polish esp if you use gel. Although I use them to remove any mani even if its a normal one which I think would need a lot of rubbing. I am happy to recommend this product if you dont like the rubbing and tugging one needs to do to remove polish. Any polish!

PS. product sent for an honest unbiased review.

Advanced stamping Nail art : Roses

These are the longest nails i've had in quite a while. I wanted to do a decal mani before I had to trim them a bit. Love this length but I constantly worry about breaking them or hurting kiddo.

So I made some stamping decals for this. 

Base: Dance Legend Scout

Stamping polish: MDU Pastel Yellow

Stamping plates: BM XL-205 (roses) and BP-L020

Filled roses with DL shock

All topped with HKgirl

This is a beautiful shade! I just looooooove DL polishes!!

Love love love!!! <3 p="">

DuoChrome Mirror Nails using BornPretty Chameleon Pigment

I dont know if its just me or are more of you totally in love with the duochrome mirror finish pigments that have popped up in the nail art world. Believe me guys these are so much better than anything you've seen last year. Dont believe me? Have a look:

Base: DL glitter base Black

Pigment: BPS Top grade chameleon Glitter pigment in shade BRB20 (link) item #38616

Top coat: Oceans Beauty Top Pure (water based tc)

My thoughts on the pigment: The quality is superb! 

The pigment is super fine, opaque, no bald spots and no need to rub in much or anything. The shine and mirror like finish is incredible. I have take pics which reflected clouds and the whole building from across my house with nice detailing. The colour shift is simply very obvious and pleasant. You dont need to twist your hand at funny angles or squint. Its just there. I cant wait to try more of these pigments. You can use them with gel and water based polishes both. Since I frequently like to change my polish I used a peel off black base. I have also swatched this with a white base. The difference in is that the mirror effect goes a bit mild but the pink/purple colour in the transition shift was more visible. This pigment retails for $4.29 for 0.5gm which is very nicely priced as compared to other good quality pigments in the market. (link)

BPS Holographic Star Sequins UV Gel Polish : Swatch and review

On the blog today I've swatched a very pretty looking blingy gel polish from the house of BPS. Its called BORN PRETTY Holographic Star Moon Sequins Gel Bling Soak Off Manicure Nail Art UV Gel Polish (link ; item no: 40427; shade 1)

As you can see it is a red jelly base filled with holo chunky, medium and small hex glitter with an occasional star. It looks even better even and juicy in person with a holo sparkle in direct light. On my nails is 2 coats of gel with layer of top coat. I had cured my nails after each layer.

The polish is slightly thick as all gel polishes are. I found this easy to apply. The first coat goes smooth although I didnt get even glitter placement and I didnt want to make it thick since it is gel polish. So instead I made a thin coat and cured it. Next I put another thin layer and then dabbed some glitter and evenly distributed it with a light floating hand movement. the polish goes quite opaque in 2 coats. 

As you can see the finish is really smooth and shiny. I thought maybe the glitter would poke up and out but they didnt. The polish settles well and goes streakfree. Overall the polish feel and quality is really nice. (I will update here for how long lasts on my nails without chipping once I test it).

This polish retails for $3.99 for a 10ml bottle (link to the product). The bottle comes in a white coloured bottle. This polish comes in 10 shades and some of them have a moon glitter instead of the star. Scroll down for more closeups and pics in different lighting.

In sunlight

Indoor light

Swatch on a stick in Indoor light

PS. Polish was sent for an honest review

Swatch and Review: BPS Chameleon Magnetic UV Gel Polish

Today I have a new BPS product on the blog. 

Its called BORN PRETTY CHAMELEON CAT EYE GEL MAGNETIC SOAK OFF GEL POLISH.

I've loved magnetics since they got revamped post 2012. They are so much stronger in effect with all the works like duo-chrome and holo etc. So I wanted to review this polish from one of the most affordable websites of nail art things.

Base: BPS Chameleon Magnetic UV Gel (link; shade 21; item #40294)

Top coat: BPS no wipe gel top coat

The site specifically says to use a black base underneath it but I wanted to try how it looks without the black base. So as normal I used 2 coats of this polish, applied magnetic and cured it in UV light after each coat. The effect is a nice duo chrome turquoise to dark blue/purple shade. The magnetic particles give it a distinctive olive-gold line that diffuses softly across the nails. The polish comes in a 10ml white coated bottle with slightly thick consistency as UV polishes are. It applies smoothly on nails without any streaks and spreads evenly. I used my own cat's eye magnet (it is not included in package) after each coat and cured it. So after 2-3 coats the magnetic effect became very prominent. On my ring finger I have applied 3 coats to just test the density of the colour but it was almost quite opaque in 2 coats itself and doesnt change much when using 3 coats. It lasts long as it is gel polish but clearly I don't have the patience and need to change my polish every 2-3 days. 

(I will update here with a pic of this polish with a black base soon

Update: Below is a pic of the polish with a black base and UV topcoat. The black base really brings out the shine and shimmer in the polish and clearly shows the duo chrome effect better)

This polish retails for $3.99 for 10ml and is available in 12 shades. (link)

Here's a macro look at the polish: love this pic!!

Mandala Nail Art with stamping decals

After I long time I sat down and did a full advanced decal mani that I had been wanting to do since I got this cute mandala plate BP-L52 (#36310 ; link)

Base: Chambor Gel effect nail lacquer (white 510)

Stamping plate: BP L-052 (#36310 from born pretty store)

Stamping polish: MDU 2 (black)

Decal filled with Chg: glow with the flow, treble maker, daisy know my name?

All topped with hkgirl

Here's how the decal looked before I put it on my nails.This chambor polish in white makes a very good base for decals as it doesnt dry crisp and it was very easy to take the decal off the stamping mat as it stretched and bent without tearing off. Definitely a must have polish if u love making decals.

Now moving on to the stamping plate. I got this plate from Born pretty store and I had been saving it to make decals when I have enough time to make a full decal mani, not just accent. This plate is very versatile and it has hollow designs which are very good for making decals. The designs are comfortable to fill in decals and not too tiny. The etching was perfect and I could pick up crisp designs. You can also make circular gradient and use these mandala designs to stamp normally for an eye catching manicure.

This plate retails for $2.59 and is very reasonable at this price (link to this product).

Floral Mermaid Nail Art using Born Pretty plate 110

Still cant get over this mermaid nail pigment as you can see!

I did a bit of nail art to just give it a fresh look after a couple of days. Something bold but not filling.

Base: DL glitter base in white

Coated with BPS neon unicorn mirror powder.

Topped with EZ dip water based top coat

Stamping with M-polish dancing in the streets

Stamping plate: BP 110 (#33743 link)

This plate is a small 55mm dia round plate from BPS collection. Its a neat floral design plate with designs strewn apart each other to clearly allow to see the base polish. The overall design of the plate is very nice and versatile to even allow to make decals. 

As of now this plate retails for $1.59 which is really reasonable. The etching is nice and I had no trouble in pick up. But while cleaning off the polish from the plate the polish was getting a bit stuck in the tiny corners of some designs so I had to wipe off a bit more throughly. Overall I like this plate much and definitely look forward to making some decals with his plate next.

You can use my code ARTX31 on the bps site to get a 10% discount.

PS. Plate sent for honest review

Born Pretty Unicorn Mirror Powder

On my nails today is one of the cutest look ever! I had been wanting to try out this for the longest time; ever since I saw a mani of stick-on nails on the internet in this beautiful mirror-pearl finish. I was quite certain they were stick-ons and I didnt want stick ons so I thought maybe there will come a duochrome polish but it didnt. Instead there came something even better! Its called

BORN PRETTY Neon Unicorn Mirror Powder Ultra-thin Nail Art Mermaid Chrome Pigment Powder (link)

Base: Dance Legend Glitter Base in White

Born Pretty Neon Unicorn Powder (#40320)

Topped with Ezdip water based top coat and sealer

Over white base

The powder quality is very good and fine. It instantly gives the duochrome mirror effect.

You dont need to rub in much nor will you get any bald spots. The shine effect is very visible and eye catching. You can see the whole range of purple-pink-green-blue on white and yellow-green-blue spectrum over a black base. 

This powder can be used even without gel polish if you have water based polish and top coat.

I like to keep changing my mani ofter so I used it over a white peel off base from DL and topped it with water based top coat from Ez dip. 

The powder retails for $2.99 for 0.2gm (link) and 0.2 gms might look less but its enough to do all 10 nails twice over. I am totally swooning over how this powder looks over different bases. 

PS. Powder sent for an honest review