Hot Off The Stamping Press: Nailways Back To Basics Nail Art Stamping Plates!

Hey stamperistas,

Remember how I said the press is sizzling? It really is and because it's so hot I am a bit behind in all the plates that have launched over the last few weeks, but I'm doing my best to catch up and stay on top of them for everyone!  Today's post is all about Nailways.  I really like this company though I'm not sure I've put up too much art from them so I'll have to rectify that.  This Danish based company has about 6 Collections out to date and I have all of them except their new Back To Basics Collection which launched about 2 weeks ago so let's take a look....

As usual this is a collection that consists of 4 individual plates that have different concepts as a part of one underlying theme.  In this case the collection is just what it sounds like - basic images and designs that can be used in various ways.  First up is the 123 ABC font plate.   IMO probably one of the most useful and dynamic plates I've seen in a while because essentially you can mix and match the letters and they give you various sizes to work with -in the range of small, medium, and large - smart.

Next up is the the Block It plate.  Essentially a plate that pays homage to block shapes and has a lot of interlocking block abstract patterns as well as single images.  Another plate which IMO has a great deal of potential depending on how it's used.  I like this one a lot actually!

Lines plate.  Exactly what it sounds like honestly this whole collection is very smart and in blogging about it it's made me want all the plates even more because of the variety of ways in which I could redesign the patterns of these plates into nail art.

Shape That plate is a bit more flexible with the theme.  I dislike that there is a repeated full nail pattern on this plate from the Block it plate.  This one is cute but probably my least favorite amongst the 4 plates.

What do you think?  I feel like this is a very simple release with very well thought out images.  What I would consider a excellent set in the arsenal of a new or seasoned stamper if you want your basic shapes all on a few plates and from one collection.  These days that's important to me.  I probably have about 5 different plates with letters all different sizes and fonts and no with the variety seen here in one single plate.  The great part about Nailways s that you can purchase the plates individually or as a collection.  These plates retail for 3.95 Euro per plate or you can get the entire set for 14.95 Euros. Plates can be purchased here.  Happy hunting ladies and thanks for reading!  I'll see you next post....

Holloween 2013: PolishTBH Dark & Difficult Times and Thestral Harry Potter Inspired Nail Art

"Dark and difficult times lie ahead. Soon we must all face the choice between what is right and what is easy."

~ Albus Dumbledore

Lovely lacqueristas ;)

I hope everyone is doing fabulously on this sunny Sunday afternoon!  It's been quite the weekend including some lost nail mail so I'm feeling a bit frustrated, but plodding along fairly steadily all things considered.  Today I've got some gooduns for you ;) I have discovered another great indie brand that takes my breath away - PolishTBH.  Chrissy owner/creator of the brand created a collection that had me from the word go.  The Diagon Alley Collection  is an entire collection inspired by the infamous shopping grounds from the Harry Potter series.  There are 6 delicious shades in the collection 2 of which I will be featuring today along with some kick ass nail art!

Dark and Difficult Times is blueish gray polish that contains a mix of holo black and charcoal glitters and red and green color shifting flakies inspired by the sky in the setting of Harry Potter  It is incredibly beautiful and one of the main reasons I fell in love with this collection!  Though it is known that I have a horrible weakness when it comes to gray polishes.  This little precious flashes fire every time I look down.  It's opaque in 3 careful thin coats.  Because the base is a bit thick thinner coats work best with this polish.

Thestral is a sheer black jelly with crammed with various sized and shaped black matte and holo glitter, lavender hexes and micro silver glitter.  Inspired by that noble race of creatures that could only be seen by those who have viewed death. This polish was actually created by the 7 year old son of PolishTBH and the proceeds will be going to his new Xbox.  How cute!  Cuteness aside this polish is gorgeous!  Opaque again in three thin careful coats.  What's crazy is how complex this polish is.  It changes from angle to angle and has a lot of hidden depth.  Way to go Mikey!

Mani-louge

Base/Topcoat: Glitter Base (testing)/Sally Hanson Diamond Flash

Base colors:  PolishTBH Thestral & Dark & Difficult Times

Stamping Colors:  Essie Blue Rhapsody, Konad Black & White, Color Club Beyond

Stamping Plates:  Apipila P.10, Nailways Darker Period Halloween, Konad Charming Nails Plate

 

For the nail art I chose to use one of my new sets of plates from the latest collection of Nailways plates called Darker Period - Halloween.  I will do a separate post to review these later.  I also chose to use my newer Apipila plate P.10 which has a several awesome images from Harry Potter.  This manicure literally fell together with ease as a result. I also used a bit of advanced stamping technique here to double stamp which you can see in the lightning bolt and the spider web.

So thoughts? I enjoyed creating Halloween inspired nail art while keeping in mind the nostalgia I love so much about this series of books.  Having done this mani makes me want to read them all over again, but ain't nobody got time for that ;)  You can find the complete Diagon Alley Collection here on the PolishTBH website.  If you buy the whole collection you get a bonus cuticle oil which on top of smelling amazing are phenomenal! Alrighty thanks for reading and see you next post!