Review: Ejiubas double-sided Celtic plate!

(Press samples ahead!)

Hello!


Okay, guys. If you haven't checked out Ejiubas stamping plates yet, I am deeply excited to be the first to introduce them to you because, two words (one hyphenated word?): Double-Sided.


Yes, of course I love the designs, and yes, of course I wouldn't be excited if it didn't stamp well. But it does. And: DOUBLE-SIDED. Why didn't someone do this before??

Ejiubas Celtic double-sided plate

Okay, I'm getting ahead of myself. First, here's the full video review I made of the plate (I also did a super-quick version, which you can find here):

Okay, let's take a look at the plate:

I love that one side of the plate is collage-style and one side is traditional full nail images, to give you the best of both worlds, and to maximize the design potential you get from mixing and matching. And while I love the predominant Celtic flavor of the plate, I also love the art nouveau influence that makes this an amazing plate for so much more than just Celtic designs.


So how big are we talking? The full nail images are 5/8ths of an inch wide and 6.5/8ths of an inch tall:

And here's a shot to give you a feel for how big things are on the collage portion:

Yeah, okay, but...does it stamp well??

Those are some darn good images. The one thing to be careful about is the bird section of the plate--whenever you have big, wide spaces like that, you need to be careful about the direction you swipe, o you won't get bald areas. I try to go diagonal to the main lines. :)


On to the sample manicure! I'm still loving fall colors, although I'm starting to feel the pull of winter jewel-tones...but for now I wanted to do some fall layering with this plate, so I pulled out Spellbound Nails Crookshanks, an excellent polish for pond manis and stamping sammiches. Then I stamped between layers and on top of the layers with Girly Bits stamping polishes in Bronze Goddess and Flame:

Ejiubas Celtic over Spellbound Nails Crookshanks, stamped with Girly Bits Bronze Goddess and Flame

Ejiubas Celtic over Spellbound Nails Crookshanks, stamped with Girly Bits Bronze Goddess and Flame

Ejiubas Celtic over Spellbound Nails Crookshanks, stamped with Girly Bits Bronze Goddess and Flame

 I am sooo happy with how this came out, I think I'm gonna recreate it and wear it on Thanksgiving. I love how you can see the layered swirls and the flakies in the polish, and I love how these two colors of stamping polish play together. If pumpkin spice were a manicure, this is the manicure it'd be. :)


You can find Ejiubas plates on their website, and also on Amazon if that's easier for you. And don't forget to follow them on Facebook and Instagram for inspiration and updates!

Happy Stamping!
M.

Review: UberChic Beauty Collection 12

(Press samples ahead!)

Hello!

It's always one of my favorite days when I get a new UberChic Beauty plate to play with, and their newest collection, Collection 12, is no exception. Here's the full video review I made of the plates:

(I also have a super-quick review if you prefer that; you can find it here).


Let's take a look at the plates:

UberChic Beauty 12-01

UberChic Beauty 12-01

UberChic Beauty 12-01

My favorite images from this plate: The lotus + butterfly image, the bundle of little flowers (super-duper-major cute!), the totally adorable suns, the corn-like leaf image, and the thick waves. Love!!

UberChic Beauty 12-02

UberChic Beauty 12-02

UberChic Beauty 12-02

Negative-space butterflies to let your awesome holos and glitters shine through. The quatre-foil mosaic images. The medallion-like full nail images in both negative and positive that also match with the images on the very bottom. And, a tribute to the Flying Spaghetti Monster. All super-cool. 

UberChic Beauty 12-03

UberChic Beauty 12-03

UberChic Beauty 12-03

OMG, those layering images!! I'm so excited these are becoming more popular and she dedicated half a plate just to them. I can't wait to do something with those trees and the birds, and I'm a mosaic geek, so the pattern with the diamonds is really calling to me. Even the ladybugs make my heart go pitter-patter!


Here's a quick look at size:

And how do they stamp?

As usual, these plates are cute, have a ton of versatility, and are top-notch quality! I'll be back with manicures from each of the plates in separate posts--until then, you can find these in UberChic Beauty's store. You can also follow UberChic Beauty on Instagram and Facebook for tons of inspiration and news updates! And watch this space because I'm pretty sure there's a new Christmas plate on the way...


Happy stamping!
M.

Comparison: Zoya Urban Grunge Metallics and Holos, part 1

(Press samples and affiliate links ahead!)

Hello!


A while back I did a series of comparisons of the Zoya Urban Grunge Cremes, and I'm back now to tackle the metallics and holos! For each of the polishes I went through the Zoyas I have (by no means all of them, lol!) to find the closest match I have and do a comparison. Let's start with Zoya Britta, a beautiful fleck-finish berry. The closest thing in my collection is Zoya Mason:

Zoya Mason vs. Zoya Britta

Even in the bottle, it's pretty clear these are fairly different. Let's take a look at them on the nail:

Zoya Mason vs. Zoya Britta

Yep, they're in the same family, but they're pretty different. I love the purple shimmer on Mason, but wow--that metallic berry of Britta. I absolutely believe both of these deserve a place in your collection.


Next, let's take a look at Zoya Troy, and the closest match I could find in my collection, last year's Zoya Tris:

Zoya Troy vs. Zoya Tris

These do look different in the bottle, but they are also pretty darn similar. Let's see how they look on the nail:

Zoya Troy vs. Zoya Tris

Yup, these are both in the silver family, and when you wear them each alone, the first thing you see is 'silver'. But Tris has a decidedly green bent, while Troy is more up-front silver, with a nice hint of purple to it. Again I think both of these deserve a place in your collection.


So, I'm not saying there aren't closer dupes in the Zoya family, but at least from the Zoyas in my collection, these are distinct enough from their closest cousins to deserve a look.


Happy polishing!
M.

Tutorial: Autumn Leaves with Shinespark polishes + UberChic Beauty Lovely Leaves

(Press samples and affiliate links ahead!)

Hello!


Okay, so. I'm not the best at live-action video tutorials, but I'm bound and determined not to give  up! Here is my most recent attempt, this one for an autumn leaves manicure...I think I'm getting better:

For this manicure, I started with a base of Spellbound Nails Milky Way for a nice, even base that would allow my holos to shine through. Then I used the smoosh technique (see video) to create a mix of Shinespark Polish Harvest, Evergreen, Pumpkin Spice, and Heart Of A Hero. Then I stamped over the smoosh mani with UberChic Beauty's Lovely Leaves plate:

UberChic Beauty Lovely Leaves

I stamped with Messy Mansion Soft Gold; here's how it came out:

UberChic Beauty's Lovely Leaves plate over a smoosh mani with Shinespark Polish holos

UberChic Beauty's Lovely Leaves plate over a smoosh mani with Shinespark Polish holos

UberChic Beauty's Lovely Leaves plate over a smoosh mani with Shinespark Polish holos

UberChic Beauty's Lovely Leaves plate over a smoosh mani with Shinespark Polish holos

What do you think? This is one of my favorite manis I've done recently, maybe even this year. I love the firey leaves and it's so cool how the negative space image lets the holo just shine on through.


Happy fall, and happy stamping!
M.

Before & After: Dia de Los Muertos Goth Glitz! (featuring Sassy Pants Celebrate + MoYou London Gothic 07 & 09)

(Press samples ahead!)

Hello!


It's Dia de Los Muertos, and while I normally do a sugar skull mani, I decided to go a little bit different this year...


I started with a base of Sassy Pants Celebrate, a gorgeous glittery holo:

Sassy Pants Polish Celebrate

 

Sassy Pants Polish Celebrate

 Then, I stamped roses from MoYou London Gothic 07 and a cross from MoYou London Gothic 09:

MoYou London Gothic 07

MoYou London Gothic 09

I stamped using It Girl Nail Art Sapphire stamping polish; here's how it came out:

MoYou London Gothic 07 & 09 over Sassy Pants Polish Celebrate, stamped with It Girl Nail Art Sapphire

MoYou London Gothic 07 & 09 over Sassy Pants Polish Celebrate, stamped with It Girl Nail Art Sapphire

What do you think? I think it captures the roses that are such a motif for Dia de Los Muertos, and while the cross is often left out in public celebrations, I just felt like incorporating that aspect of the tradition for some reason this year.


What do you think? It's not the typical Dia look, but I like it. And--HOLO GLITTER!!!


Happy stamping,
M.