Reddit mentions: The best nail art accessories

Sorry for the late response, busy day! If she's into stamping, I really like this set of stamping plates, but if you're not sure if she already stamps, you might want to get her a stamper too.

For more unique colors, I like shopping online a lot more than ULTA type stores (although those are great places to get polishes on clearance). ULTA should definitely have holo polishes though, and probably a few duochromes! I really like Color Club Beyond in the holos category (actually, all the Color Club holos are great! Probably the best ones IMO). As for duochromes, glitterbombs, and jelly glitters, I think indies are definitely the way to go. Check out this site, it has BUNCH of different indie brands, and the shipping is pretty fast. In particular, look at Enchanted Polish, Glimmer by Erica, A England, Hare Polish, Jindie, Ozotic (I have been trying REALLY HARD to resist this temptation especially), and Picture Polish. The last two jelly glitters I linked are from Sonnetarium and The Hungry Asian. I also really like Pretty and Polished on Etsy.

I also wouldn't rule out Amazon completely. A lot of polishes actually come from the same shippers, and usually shipping is really fast, and pretty cheap. China Glaze for example retails for $6-7, and they're usually $5 including shipping from Amazon. Also, shopping online is just easier :P For a few pretty unique colors, try China Glaze Some Like it Haute, Essie Bikini So Teeny, and Butter London Knackered.

One last thing, I forgot to mention another favorite luxury brand -- Deborah Lippmann! Seriously, if she's really into polish, getting a Butter or a DL will probably make her happier than getting the equivalent value in other brands, even if that doesn't make much sense.

Well, I'm quite new to this but I'll try :)

First off, are you sure your wife would like nail art? There may be a reason she doesn't use her nail polish?

Well, unfortunately there aren't many stores that sell stamping supplies. The best place for a lot of nail art stuff is Amazon.

If she's impatient/ always likes to be using her hands a fast dry top coat might be a good idea for her. Good ones are Seche Vite and Out the Door :)

Konad is the best brand to do with stamping about (as far as I know). Their stamper is the one to get. As for image plates- Konad ones are good but expensive. I would suggest getting a Cheeky or Bundle Monster pack. You can get so many different patterns I would suggest getting something like this or this, which has a variety of full nail images, individual stamps and french tip stamps. Also, if you do buy image plates etc. then I would suggest buying proper stamping polish, at least for black and white. Metallics work well for stamping too.

For nail art brushes, you can get them online but all of mine are actually acrylic art brushes. They tend to last well and you can buy them in store. Acrylic paints are really good for doing complex designs, over the top of a layer of normal nail polish. They're easier to mix, don't dry as fast and are cheaper than nail polish (if your wife would want to do art on her nails).

You can get dotting tools too, if you think those would be good?

I will say that some things are sold on Amazon from China, so the shipping times are quite large. They may not get to you in less than a month (depending on where you live).

Sorry if all of that was confusing or no help at all!

Nail stuff is pretty broad but I'll see if I can help!

Dotting tools, striping tapes, rhinestones, and nail art brushes are great for her age bracket (and they have the added bonus of being super cheap!!)!

For a higher level of difficulty check out nail stampers with "plates". Here is a tutorial to show what those actually do, tutorial.

You know your kid better than I do, but at her age I would have loved a dedicated space for my "beauty supplies". Would a desk with a nail station be a welcome gift? If you live near an IKEA, get something like this and these for polish storage, each box fits 50 polishes easy! I would also get a desk lamp and some mason jars or whatever to hold the tools that are too big for the box. Maybe even a vanity mirror for when makeup becomes a thing. To keep the desktop clean and easily manageable I would get some cheap plastic place mats from the dollar tree.

Polish-wise, Sinful Colors is a cheap brand of polish found in most drug stores, usually around $2 a bottle, but the colors are nice and go on well (I own about 20 of them and use them often). For a person her age I probably wouldn't get too many of the more expensive brands like Essie on up, just because preferences are fleeting at that age. Eventually, you could dive into the deep scary world of independent polish makers (where all the pretty colors are!!)

A dotting tool looks like a pencil with metal balls on the ends. You can buy dotting tool sets with varying tip sizes for different sized dots. I've never heard of a bad quality dotting tool, so brand is not important here.

She might be interested in a stamping kit, or if she already has one, more plates. Konad is the brand of choice, but their plates are expensive. Bundle Monster plates are more affordable, although their edges tend to be sharp. Check out wowsocool for Konad plates. If you do get her a stamping set, get the Konad Special Polish in black and white, at least. Not all polishes work with stamping, so it's hit and miss, but the Konad polishes are designed to work with stamping.

Finally, she might appreciate some special effects nail polishes, like magnetic nail polish. That is all the rage right now. Essie also has a new glitter polish range out (called Luxeffects), she might like a couple of those. If you're in the US, you can check out the nail polish collections at Sephora, they do little gift sets with a variety of polishes that are quite nice.

Hope she likes what you get her!

*Edited to add: Oh oh oh, Sally Hansen Salon Effects! Haha, I just thought about what I would like to get and I really love those strips. They're real nail polish strips that you stick onto your nails. They come in really cool designs. Love them. There is a limited edition Holiday collection out now with some lovely designs.

I don't use any polishes branded specifically as "stamping polish" (though Mundo De Unas is great from what I hear, ships from Mexico and apparently has a smell to it, but if you're okay with that it's a good try).

As far as drugstore and more easily accessible nail polishes, stampers, and plates go:

-Try to use any "one coaters" you already have. Thick, opaque polishes are what you want. DONT try to waste your time with glitters, sheer colors, etc.


-I use Sinful Colors for my black & white stamping, Sally Hansen Insta Dry for most everything else. It's coined insta dry because they're one-coaters, which leads to overall less dry time, not because they actually dry quickly which gives you more time to work while stamping!

-This is my favorite stamper so far. It's squishy and VERY large. My first stamper was from Wistonia, found here, but it did distort my images more imo. It's not a bad choice for beginners though!

-Plate quality is SUPER important. You want to use reputable brands that will have deep, consistent etchings (99 cent plates should not be trusted; if they work, cool! but don't expect good results every time for sure)


-My favorite stamping plates are from MoYou London and It Girl Nail Art (being upfront, one of my best friends owns It Girl, but they're excellent quality so I'm including her for you to check out).


Come see us over at r/RandomActsOfPolish! We also have a giant stamping master thread written by one of the mods (she's the owner and friend I mentioned). Feel free to reach out if you have any more questions :)

I know some fun tools to start with would definitely be dotting tools. I got that set cheap when I had free Prime shipping, and I did the same for these brushes. I'm sure you can shop around and find what fits your budget (I'm pretty cheap/broke myself), as some people also find it cheaper/easier to get tiny craft brushes, like from Michael's (and they almost always have like 20% coupons weekly).

It takes some practice to freehand stuff, so the dotting is nice to begin with. A lot of people, beginners and not, also like stamping. You don't have to get the legit Konad plates, but people tend to recommend the Konad stamper at least, and then get knockoff brand plates like Bundle Monster or others. There's so many tools to use, but you can choose whatever fits your preference and/or your budget to begin :)

And yes - follow blogs for awesome tutorials (people even post a lot of their own on here), and YouTube has lots of amazing videos for things like water marbling, or gradients with makeup sponges. I hope it helps - have fun! :)

Please excuse the length, I love making lists.

Video Production

Green Screen

Bounce

Tripod

Books

Dining with Dr Who

Writing movies for fun and profit This is a great book. I have it, absolutely hysterical.

Writing

Ink quill

TARDIS Deluxe Journal

Travel

Street Signs

Flags

Eiffel Tower Chocolate Mold

Little Window Beach

17th century world map

Watercolor World Map

Universal world wide adapter plug

Hidden pocket wallet



Science!

Liquid Gold Plating Kit

Molecular Gastronomy Kit

This one also works for gardening:
Moons and Blooms lunar calender

Inflatable earth with glow in the dark cities

Galilea Moon Phase Calendar and Clock

Glow in the dark lunar calender!

Art

Sunprint Kit

Scrapper tool set

Fantasy!

LOTR inspired necklace

Another LOTR inspired necklace

Dragon necklace

Dragon JEwerly box

These/this are/is a book, but Mercedes Lackey is a FANTASTIC fantasy writer. I'd start with the Mage Winds trilogy or Mage Wars series.

Outdoors

Portal-able Speakers If you want to listen to relaxing music (or just music) while reading or chilling outside, this is the perfect speaker. It goes pretty loud, my bro has one, I steal if to make my showers musical.

Solar power LED Water proof color changing globes

Ball lanterns!


Math

Math clock

Mental Math

Pi ice cube shape tray

Mini Abacus pendant keychain

And it was delicious

Math jokes

Math/science ice cube tray


Rubik's Cube office thingy

Abacus-they have these in all colors and shapes and what have you.

Spirituality

Wasn't quite sure what you're looking for, but these things are pretty relaxing and some of them are used in meditation or for relaxation/de-stress so I figured I could put 'em here.

[LED mini waterfall)(http://www.amazon.com/Mirrored-Waterfall-Light-Show-Fountain/dp/B008Q3GH1O/ref=pd_sim_hpc_17)

Zen reflection bonzai tree with a little pond

Candle and water fountain

Five tier illuminated fountain

Other random fun things!

DR Who Projector clock

Sherlock season one Dunno but I feel you might like this show.

Giant Nail polish set


Nail art brushes

LED faucet water glow thing

Alright! I think I'll stop there before this becomes a novel xD

:) I'm blue daba de daba da Pika2

a. My user name is G0ATLY! It is in all caps because I was mad when I tried to make Goat and it was taken.

b. This blue text is a link to my item, please click here.

c. The item currently costs $0.31 with $0.73 shipping. The total is $1.04.

d. I just took a quiz and it suggested I was Ravenclaw.

e. My favorite pokemon is beedrill!

f. My favorite doctor is Dr. Fine from the Three Stooges. I honestly blanked out, and could only think of "Calling Dr. Fine, calling Dr. Fine."

g. I don't watch my little ponies, but I did watch the first episode! I would have to say I liked the shy one. :3 I had to look up her name again and it was Fluttershy!

h. I rarely watch much T.V, but when I do I enjoy Mythbusters, Pawn Stars, I Love Lucy and The Golden Girls. My absolutely favorite movies are Hook, Logan's Run, Beetle Juice and Space Balls.

i. Oryx and Crake followed by Viral nation are my favorite books.

j. I do not watch anime or manga very much. However, I use to enjoy Full Metal Alchemist and Hellsing.

k. I don't have a cellphone, but I do have a house phone. It is a Uniden, and dies every 10-20 minutes.

l. The goat is my favorite animal!

.....

z. I am doing quite wonderful today, how about yourself? Thank you for this lovely contest!

I haven't tried the Secret Garden collection, but I'm really curious to do so! I've had decent success with the 2013 Bundle Monster fan set, but I've heard hit-or-miss things about some BM quality.

Definitely check out MoYou London for pretty plates! They're great quality, good packaging, and they have some gorgeous plates. ::cough cough:: there may also be some knockoffs on ebay that work pretty well (but the packaging isn't nearly as nice - be careful of the edges) - Xiuya or Tian Xin brands ::ahem::

Ooh, or the Pueen Fireworks plate and their Encore Collection! I have the Fireworks plate, and I'm not used to its size compared to other plates (it's 7" x 9.5"!), but it's awesome.

These awesome nail brushes are only a buck nineteen! Including shipping! I guess I don't need them, but I really like to do my nails in my spare time- it's very relaxing! These would allow me to do some super cool designs and stuff. =)

Here's one of my favorite gifs of all time! Maybe you won't find it as funny as I do, but I just think it's so hilarious! HE JUST WALKS RIGHT AND DOESN'T CARE AHHHH I LOVE IT

Haha, thanks for the fun contest! =)

Thanks for hosting!

What's your favorite holiday? My fave holiday has to be Christmas!! Love the tree and lights and snow!!!

Who is your favorite holiday character? Christmas Snoopy from Peanuts! So cute :)

What is this food you look forward to having the most during the Christmas season? I am a sucker for all cookies during the holiday season! My favourites are almond shortbread

Show me a picture of an animal celebrating the holidays! So cute!

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007BLN17K/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=XIHRIBLPQR2Y&coliid=I3GVU1BQ59YOER&psc=1
I could definitely use some brushes to create some holiday nail art!

The stamper that you got with your kit may be a little softer, but it is not a "squishy." The small pink ones never are. I'm not familiar with the Emori polishes, so I can't comment on that except to say that very few polishes stamp effectively.

I would try:

• A stamper like this keeping in mind that squishy stampers sometimes need to be "primed" (like /u/The_Griffin mentioned) by buffing lightly with a fine grit file or buffer. I can't stress enough how much I think this is a major factor--even if you get better plates, you will still have a hard time with that konad stamper. If the price is too high, search "squishy nail stamper" on eBay and take any one of the knock-offs that specifically mention that they are made of silicone. If it does not work well right out of the box, it will need to be primed.
  
  
• A polish that is known to stamp well. Maybelline Color Show "Bold Gold" or any of the opaque cremes from the Sally Hansen Insta-Dri line work well. I've had success with Sinful Colors "Black on Black" as well. All of those are under $5/bottle.
  
  
• Even with working quickly, it takes some practice. If this is your second attempt, there's still a learning curve ahead. Don't give up! I would try varying your technique--scrape lightly on the plate, try rolling with your konad stamper (both plate and nail--it has no "give" so pushing down to get the image is difficult).
  
  When all is said and done, there is a chance that you just have some bad plates. Unfortunately, like most things, stamping falls at least somewhat under the "you get what you pay for" and the set you have is like $4.50 for ten. The very cheapest plates I have (in that size) are at least $1/plate. They may be using inferior materials or etching equipment. There are quite a few 1 star reviews of that set on the Amazon listing, many of them mention shallow etching.
  
  I like something like this for beginners. I have plates from this brand and know with certainty that they are good quality. In this case, the price is so low because this set was released in 2012 and the company is selling off old stock because they release plates 1-2 times per year. 26 plates for $12 is on-par with the set you ordered, but there's a very good chance this set will be much better.
  

Oh! I've been drooling over that color forever. Good choice! ;) Are you a big red fan?

If you have patience, Amazon is seriously a steal for building an arsenal! And if the answer to the patience question is yes... may I suggest...

• Guides for basic designs!
  
  
• If you want to organize your collection! These are super helpful when it starts growing and you want to be able to catalogue and match colors for manis. :)
  
  
  
• Striping tape, for all the lines!
  
  
  
• In case you want to up your cuticle care game :) or maybe this set instead?!
  
  
  
• Dotting tools are you best friend! And if you're into cleaning up your nails, this is a fantastic bundle!
  
  
  
• Gotta keep the nails healthy! and a different option if you'd like
  
  
  
  
• Makes removal so much faster!
  
  
  
  
• A trusty quick dry top coat
  
  
  
• Pair your top with a trust bottom coat!
  
  
  
• Maybe you want to try your hand at nail art?
  
  
  
  That's what I've got for now... Hmm.. What did I miss?

This is the lamp that I got. I highly recommend it, not only because it works really well, but because the shape of it makes it so you can paint your nails on top of it. Which makes a much bigger difference than I would have thought. It has motion sensor, so you can just stick your hand in to turn it on. Being able to stick your hand in makes it easy to flash cure (not as big of a deal for polish, but I use hard gel).

SUNUV SUN2C 48W LED UV nail Lamp with 4 Timer Setting https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N0BCN9B/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_LtLQBbS1H6PNS

Gelish is a great brand.

The other set you got, I've not tried the brand but it's a great price. Just be prepared for the colors you see on your screen to be different in real life. The quality probably won't be as good as gelish, either.

My personal advice is to skip the cluvaz gels and just get the gelish sets for now. Gel Manis last so long, you've got months worth of Manis just with the gelish sets. My experience is that the lower quality products end up being a waste of money because I never use them when I have better options available. Especially because these will be on your nails for 2-3 weeks. But you do you. Some people love having a huge collection.

I recommend the Winstonia stamping kit. It comes with 20 plates and it's ON SALE RIGHT NOW! :O For less than $15. The only complaint I have about this kit is that the full nail stamps are too small to fully cover my thumb nail.

I agree with the other laqueristas who have posted that the Konad stamper is the way to go. As far as scrapers go, I've found that using an old credit card or gift card is best. If you get a stamper/scraper kit that comes with a scraper, that's great, but I still think that the plastic cards do a better job. I've also heard good things about the white double sided Winstonia large-sized stamper, but have yet to try it myself.

Be sure to look up stamping polishes before you try stamping. Most nail polishes won't work well with the stamping kit. I would recommend getting Wet n Wild "Black Creme" and Wet n Wild "French White Creme" to start off. They are much cheaper and easier to find than the black and white Konad polishes, and work almost as well. For colors other than black and white, I'd recommend googling generic brand polishes that are good for stamping. There are a lot of blogs that have lists of polishes that work well for this technique.

This is so sweet. She will cherish these memories when she get's older. My dad used to do my hair every morning before I went to school and those are still some of my fondest memories.

Now, on to nails. Sinful Colors is my main suggestion for polish for you. You can buy it at most drug stores (I've found it at CAVS and Walgreens), Target, and Walmart. It runs around $2 a bottle, sometimes only $1 when it's on sale. They have some really great colors and fun glitters. You can obviously invest in more expensive polish but they aren't completely necessary. Make sure that you are at least using a base coat to keep her nails from getting stained and a top coat if you want the polish to have some staying power.

If you're looking for tools I suggest picking them up on Amazon. I suggest dotting tools, tip guides, and small brushes for clean up and detailing to get yourself started.

YouTube is full of tutorials on how to do nails. I'll try to come back later and link you to some good looking tutorials.

Good luck!

Edit: you should also x-post to a more active polish subreddit if you want more replies. /r/redditlaqueristas, /r/randomactsofpolish and /r/PolishGauntlet are all really active.

I've been using this lamp (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N0BCN9B) for almost a year now and absolutely love it.

For the polygel, I went with this one (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076B9CBVZ) because it had excellent reviews and it was great to have everything I needed to do my nails, except slip solution and dehydrator. I used alcohol (100%) as slip and I had my own dehydrator.

I just bought this kit (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07RY99LXY/) to try next as it was a bit cheaper and I wanted to see if it's easier to work with the slip solution or not (kit comes with everything).

Happy to answer any questions you may have if it helps you save some time and not make the mistakes I made as a first timer. I'm still happy as heck with the results and can't stop staring at my nails. Lol

Ohmygosh, I think you might be talking about my nails!

I really like the glitter base you chose, as well as taking the extra time to make the hearts 3D (darker polish color for shadow + outlining them in black + white accents). The lettering could use a little work, but practice makes perfect! I'd recommend investing in some smaller detail brushes like these because they will make it A LOT easier. But seriously, your nails look amazing! It's especially impressive you did both hands. Great job!

This is the set I got, mostly because WOO FREE SHIPPING: http://www.amazon.com/MASH-Marbleizing-Dotting-Manicure-Pedicure/dp/B00631JA8S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368963458&sr=8-1&keywords=mash+dotting+tool

The one I could find at Sally's was like $5 for just one, so finding that set made me so happy. It's just like a plastic pen, but instead of ink, it's a metal ball at the top. As for nail art pens, I know Sally Hansen makes some, but I really haven't had great results. The formula is super runny and you can end up with a giant failure blot of color if you're not careful. :(

Also thank you. :D I had a lady literally grab my hand to look at them today (currently wearing the yellow base with pink roses from this post), and I'm like, "On one hand, it is so awesome that someone thinks my nails are worth grabbing. On the other, please stahp." Anyway, I hope I helped and you can be well on your way to owning your very own set of dotting tools!

I really like the Madam Glam gels.

https://www.madamglam.com

They last on your nails forever. I always wait till they're on sale and never pay more than $10 a bottle. The one step gels are awesome, too. Their formula is nice because it's thick enough to control well so you're less likely to flood your cuticles but thin enough to flow and self level nicely.

For brands you can buy on Amazon, Aimeili and Elite99 are both pretty good too. Aimeili has excellent pigmentation and requires fewer coats.

Be sure to get a good curing lamp with a wide spectrum. Then you don't have to buy a brand specific one. I have this one and have never had a brand it didn't cure correctly. $40 is a steal for one with a wide spectrum.

SUNUV SUN2C 48W LED UV nail Lamp with 4 Timer Setting, Sensor For Gel Nails and Toe Nail Curing https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N0BCN9B/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_3jLyCbPZBWTQ2

HAVE FUN!

don't worry be happy

I love you. <3

[This scarf] (http://www.amazon.com/WorldPrideInc-Fashion-Leopard-Pattern-Shawl/dp/B007G5DU3G/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=3PIOYPNJLKXMD&coliid=I3QED8232G384J) is 3.80 with free shipping! I love it so much. I feel like anybody would love it. <3

I don't know if you like Nail art but I do! [This] (http://www.amazon.com/MASH-Rhinestones-Nailart-Manicure-Wheels/dp/B005BF1M10/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=2TW8KRNAN1IEA&coliid=I27Y7MZBPFOO66) wheel of stones is really diverse and less than $2 with free shipping!

Also, I'm really close to completing my acrylic nail collection to be able to do my acrylics at home! [These tips] (http://www.amazon.com/White-Acrylic-French-Style-Artificial/dp/B008TNQ19E/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=2TW8KRNAN1IEA&coliid=I1T6NJYKXKCAO8) are $3.39 with free shipping, so if I had to pick what I wanted, this would be it.

Thank you so much for the contest! <3 you're awesome!

What makes me feel better is hugs, LOTS OF HUGS! -hugs you lot-. If i can't get hugs, 80's music or comedy movies! Especially 80's music on youtube with the actual video. Like Come on Eileen, or Safety Dance, or You spin me right round, etc. To just watch them is great, and hearing them so bouncy! comedy movies its hard to be grumpy or sad at silliness in them :)

Hope next week is better for you! HUG!

stamp plates

Konad is great, but it's a bit more expensive. Their stamps are larger, so they cover a lot more area; this is highly beneficial when stamping thumbs. On the other hand, there are Bundlemonster plates. These are awesome and much cheaper, but tend to run on the small side. They're actually releasing a whole new line of plates soon and a they look awesome!! This is a great site for Konad plates and you can get BundleMonster from Amazon

I just started recently. I recommend looking at tons of videos on YouTube. They do reviews of stamping sets, step by step instructions on how to stamp, which polishes work for stamping, and which brands provide better results.

Since I'm just getting started I got this stamper set and this plate set and so far I'm really happy with them both. I did take the advice of many YouTubers and use an old gift card as a scraper instead of the one provided in the set since it was scratching my plates.

Dunno what else to say without getting too specific and writing a novel but honestly, stamping is so much fun and pretty easy to do. It's a fun way to take your nails to the next level.

Good luck!

Edit: Forgot to mention that if you have crazy long or wider nails that you might want to look into alternative stampers and plates since Konad and Mash (the brands I linked to, respectively) are more designed for normal/slightly long length nails.

Mine have also been for other people, and it's not much but I'm a teacher and was on break till Monday. Break means NO PAY! AHHHHH lol. Here:

1. Well this was a gift card to donate to tourney
   
   2 I love looking back and seeing the prices fall lmao.
   
   3
   
   4
   
   [5] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0063MECYO/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i00)
   
   [6] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0072PJS2M/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00) This is the only one that is not a gift for someone on RAoA, bu a gift for my uncle. He is putting this on his new artificial leg :)
   
   [7] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000HT388K/ref=oh_details_o03_s00_i00)
   
   8
   
   9
   
   [10] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007HASKO4/ref=oh_details_o04_s00_i00)
   
   
   Welcome to an amazing community!
   
   

I think [these] (http://www.amazon.com/MASH-Rhinestones-Nailart-Manicure-Wheels/dp/B005BF1M10/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=QQEPMN5YQAW1&coliid=I1ZTPKE1YG4W6R) would add some serios bling to my manis-> making them FABULOUS! LOL. It's $1.52 with shipping. Maybe then you could polish 2 people.

But if I had to pick a polish it would be [Flip Flop Fantasy] (http://www.amazon.com/China-Glaze-Poolside-FANTASY-Lacquer/dp/B0085YK77O/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=QQEPMN5YQAW1&coliid=IZ5DBG7I8Z9LJ) I saw it at Sallys- should have just gone for it then- but I was there for Turned Up Turquoise - Which I love! I think it would be a great summer color & I swim a lot so I gotta have my toesies looking fancy!

Thanks for a fun, flash contest!

Hope your day at work is going well. It is the beginning of vacation season so we have a few people out and it's craziness.

• Etsy registry | Llarowe wishlist
  
• My collection
  
• Pinterest nail board
  
• Favorite colors: blues, greens, greys and orange/corals. Brand wise, I love Zoya, China Glaze and Essie. I dislike NYC, ELF and Julep.
  
• My BIGGEST lemming is Sation Holiday Golightly. I also really want any Hare or Happy Hands polishes on my wishlist, and any OPI Texas jellies that I don't already own.
  
• My favorite polish trend is circle glitter and matte glitter. I hate crackles, rhinestones, FIMO slices, bar glitter or shaped glitter (like stars or hearts). I like the idea of the sparkly Liquid Sand/PixieDust type polishes, but dislike the China Glaze or Barry M styles. Holos are wonderful. I typically prefer shimmers or cremes over glitter bombs, but if it's on my wishlist, I'd love to get it on my nails!
  
• I don't have a stamper, but I love these Winstonia plates and am considering starting to stamp just to use them.
  
• Chocolate or candies?. Some of my favorites are Fast Breaks, Take 5's, sour watermelons, cherry sours, coke bottle gummies and Razzles. But pretty much if it's a gummy or something chocolate, I'm happy! (Note: White chocolate is not chocolate and no one can convince me otherwise.)
  
• No allergies! I abhor the taste of Fruit Punch, though. It's like everyone took the worst parts of every fruit flavor and mushed them all together. Yuck.
  
• Some of my favorite movies are Almost Famous, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Moonrise Kingdom, Royal Tenenbaums and 500 Days of Summer. My favorite TV shows are Arrested Development, 30 Rock, Parks and Rec, Psych, Breaking Bad, Gossip Girl (don't judge me!) and Weeds.
  
• Two labs! Jake, who's a big black bear of a dog, and Tripp, who's a much wimpier lab-husky mix.

Awww, this is so sweet! Nail art doesn't have to be expensive at all, the salon I go to uses a lot of toothpicks and tiny brushes for most of their fancy stuff. The problem is with actually DOING the art. It takes a super steady hand and some serious talent. I'm awful at it which is why I have them done instead. Have you considered getting her a gift card to a salon? If you go that route, make sure to show them some pictures of what you have in mind and ask if they can do it. If they're legit they'll have some pictures or samples to show you.


As far as kits go, $20 on amazon should be just fine. I would recommend getting one with the little bottles, because the little bottles come with little brushes (which is essential for doing art). Maybe some extra tiny brushes for detail. Also dotting pens are a fancy and durable alternative to toothpicks. If she's into bling, nail jewels are cool and fancy as fuck. Lastly (and very important), invest in some serious base coat and top coat. There's nothing worse than spending an hour getting your nails did just to have them chip an hour later. OPI is top shelf.


Here are some links to help get you started. Hope this helps, good luck!


SHANY Nail Art Set (24 Famouse Colors Nail Art Polish, Nail Art Decoration) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005X2F7KI/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_8gaEub1TK3HVR



DragonPad 5pcs 2-ways Acrylic Uv Gel Nail Art Design Tips Dotting Painting Brush Pen Set https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005Y6F4WO/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_AtaEub111WR7A



Nail Art Brushes- Professional Nail Art Brushes- Sable Nail Art Brush Pen, Detailer, Liner **Set of 3 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007BLN17K/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_IyaEub19FMKQ2


1200pcs New Nail Art Rhinestones Glitters Acrylic Tips Decoration Manicure Wheel https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008RS4LO8/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_1AaEub1NFX4D9



OPI Natural Nail Base Coat & Top Coat COMBO FULL SIZE .5 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004B3YC9M/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_PBaEub19KD7J8

Stamping does seem to be the thing lately. I have this stamper set from bundlemonster. The white one works okay for me, but I did order the Winstonia stamper the other day to try. I have mostly bundlemonster plates (the 2013 & 2014 CYO collections) and 3 MoYou which I've used with good results.

I keep this post from Copycat Claws bookmarked. She compares a bunch of drug store and stamping polishes by color so it's easy to see the differences. I've purchased several colors based on this post alone.

My current favorite for stamping is Cult Cosmetics. They are super opaque and I love the colors. DTLA, Melrose Place, and Paradise Cove see the most action. I've ordered a handful of MDU's but it will be April before I see them, most likely.

Man I suck so bad at deciding what I want too..I always just tell people they don't need to get me anything or if they're insistent I ask for a gift card.









































Alright..lemme put on my thinking cap..












I guess my first suggestion is obligated to be this CD because of the title..




























Or there's this stinkin' freakin' cute Rilakkuma backpack/bag






















If you like cats on socks there's these cute friendly kitties or if you like cats and socks but aren't happy there are these cats flipping the bird on socks









If you'd rather drown your birthday in alcohol than cute things there are these nice stemless wine glasses






























If you'd rather watch movies on your birthday Howls moving castle is always a good choice

















Or if you're a makeup person there's this nice set of matte lip color.



















If you're more of a nail person you could get this stamper and kitty cat design nail plate together to have some crazy cute kitty nails!































I may suck at picking things for myself, but I can suggest things all day for others :p

























^^even ^^if ^^I ^^may ^^or ^^may ^^not ^^be ^^bad ^^at ^^that ^^too.






































Either way I hope you and /u/LadyAmpersand have amazing birthdays! Having a birthday twin is always fun c:

Of course !!
First you will a stamper !!

Some stampers are sticky or non sticky. They both work, just depends on your preference.
Like this

Stamper

Or like this

Squishyone.

I use old gift cards to scrap the nail polish off my plates. Watch a YouTube video to see how they do it. The trick is not to do it too hard !

Many plates work great but these are my favorite and easiest to work with
Pueen encore set

I also like moyou London plates, and born pretty ! They work great

As far as nail polish goes you can't stamp glitter!

I use sinful colors to stamp on top of my mani. Black/white stand out the most !
Just have fun stamping and don't give up. It's all trial and error !

Traveling for work has its ups and downs. I teach veterinary practice management software, so I spend every week in a different animal hospital. It's hard being away from my family so much, but it works out because I get weeks off at a time whenever there are holidays mid-week. It's also nice to get to see so much of the US and meet new people every week.

I would totally recommend the Winstonia plates. Also their big squishy XL silicon stamper is pretty nice, and it has a hard pink end for smaller designs that I read is like the Konad one. It did take me several sessions of trying before I had any success, but I think that's probably just the normal learning curve.

A pretty decent brush kit is definitely necessary to do a lot of art. I have this one and I really like it. You will also need some dotting tools that will help you create perfect dots. Some striping tape is really handy too. You might also want a stamping kit. Konad has a great one and you can buy it on Amazon.

Have fun!

Hi, OP :)

*Disclaimer - I'm not a licensed nail tech. I'm a self taught hobbyist who learned how to do her own nails, and occasionally friends' nails.*

So, I've been doing this for about 5 years and my old reliable lamp from amazon (a random brand called youspicy - which is no longer available, sadly) just gave out. It was a beast. 48 watts, UV bulb in the top AND LEDs around the sides, mirrored bottom that was removable, etc. After it finally gave up and died I was using a strictly UV light lamp that a friend had gotten me last year, and I HATED it! Not only did it take 2-3 times as long (90-120 seconds vs. 30-60 seconds in my old lamp), but it got really hot inside - like a tanning bed does. I ended up setting that one aside in case of emergency and was hoping I could find something similar to my old lamp.

As one does, I hopped on amazon and found that in the 5 years since I'd bought my old lamp LITERALLY everything has changed. Now nobody really uses the combo lamps with UV bulbs AND LED - I mean they exist, but aren't particularly good/well priced - all I was seeing was lamps lined with only LED lights. After a day or 2 of research I realized that it really does come down to wattage. LEDs are much more energy efficient and get the job done just as well as anything. Basically, you find one that fits your needs (i.e. I knew I wanted a lamp that had a pad on top for your hand, at least 48 watts, and 10, 30, 60 sec timer), read the reviews, and go from there. Absolutely no need to spend hundreds on a branded lamp that is essentially the same thing.

Here's the one I got recently on amazon - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N0BCN9B/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_q4r4DbRXKW8Y2

​

The products you use will make a difference, though!! Definitely splash out on quality base/top coats if nothing else. Hope this helps :)

Happy Birthday!

I fought hard, but I couldn't make it! I would like these because they are super cute and I love doing my nails. :3

I have lots :) CG Def Defying is $4.63, CG Red Satin is $4.66, CG Surreal Appeal is $5, CG Whirled Away is $5.27, Essie Ballet Slippers is $5.79, and this stamper is $4.35. There's more options than that, so if I win you can look at those too if none of these tickle your fancy :)

I also have lots of favorite shows! I love Supernatural, Weeds, Pretty Little Liars, the new Hawaii Five-0, Scrubs, Grey's Anatomy, Psych, Fringe. (The bold ones are the ones I recommend you watch if you haven't seen them already)

edit to add Fringe. More may be added haha

I learned some new stuff, and wanted to give an update! Paging u/SuperMagicx as well, in case you're curious :)

Liz from the Nail Hub describes a way to test if your gels are being properly cured! She explains here about 10 minutes in, but in a nutshell, you paint the gel on a plasticy surface (I used a ziploc bag), cure it, then peel it off. Obviously there is a sticky inhibition layer on the surface, because gel which is in contact with oxygen doesn't cure (which is why we wipe it off with alcohol). However, if the backside is still wet at all, then your gels aren't being fully cured.

I didn't test all my polishes because I have a whole bunch, but I tried one from six different brands, and the only ones that conclusively cured all the way through were "no wipe" polishes; they work a little differently in that they don't have a tacky layer on top that you have to wipe off, and I'm not really sure how they work. But I cured all the gels for 2 minutes under a 48W UV/LED lamp, so it's definitely not a wimpy lamp, and the bottles that said how long to cure (many didn't specify) said that 30s-60s was sufficient.

So, in conclusion, I really think that it's important to match the brand of lamp and polishes!! I'll definitely be selling what I have and sticking with one brand. Some people never develop allergies even if they are exposed to uncured gel, so that doesn't conclusively mean that you would become allergic too, but (1) I have some allergies already, so maybe I'm susceptible, and (2) I really love gel manis and don't want to lose the ability to do them, and the risk (become allergic) doesn't outweigh the gain (avoid spending money on new polishes and a lamp).

Hope that helps! :)

1. It's a tie between The Lion King and The Little Mermaid. Growing up I was basically a FISH and lived in the pool. I would swim all the time and pretend I was Ariel (or a dolphin). It's also my favorite song soundtrack. The Lion King is tied because it was a movie we got to see before it was released during summer camp. I was with all my friends and it left me with an amazing memory.
   
   
2. I think you should get China Glaze's Purple Panic because I am also a polish-aholic lacquerista and purple is my favorite color! Bonus advice: Be aware that if you get these brushes, I bought them and the silver part separated from the handle. You'll have to reglue them and they also bend/break easily.
   
   
3. My chosen item is also a polish!
   
   
4. I don't remember my trip to DW but my favorite park is Epcot and I still go there as much as I can. I took my husband there for my birthday/late honeymoon for his first time and it was just awesome. I never get tired of it.
   
   See ya real soon!

The stamper should work with any plate. I have the official Konad stamper and bought a few single Konad plates. Then I decided to give one of the bundle plate sets (this one specifically) a try and the plates have been comparible to the Konad ones for me.

The main thing is using polish that will work well with the stamper. I have one of the official Konad polishes, but bought a bunch of the Sally Hansen Insta-Dris that work great with it as well. I know there's a blog out there that has a huge list of polishes that stamp well.

You should definitely give it a try! It's so fun!

This striping tape is awesome!! I feel like it's been on my wishlist forever lol I also think these nail art brushes look nice!! :) A little over budget but they may be worth it lol rhinestones!! Thanks for hosting this but it's only May 1st!! :3

Chuckle Fucks!
I hope my work IT scans my computer and find that.
I would love these:
http://www.amazon.com/1200pcs-Rhinestones-Glitters-Decoration-Manicure/dp/B008RS4LO8/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=2BM6YXD10TNTP&coliid=I39A9ZUGOED9FM
Because even though I'm 35, sometimes I paint my nails like I'm 10. And I'm damn good at it too. :)
Good luck on the interview!

That's so awesome! Congratulations! What do you do? I hope you get a raise! ;) Make sure you treat yourself too!

I would love this in Bauhau5 and this little guy Lilpeedee has me fiending for :) BIG MONEY!

Get something like the Bundle monster plates or search around amazon for different plates. There's plenty out there. Konad brand are the best, but also the most expensive, around $7 a plate, while the Bundle monsters end up around $1 each including shipping.

I would recommend getting the Konad brand stamper, the quality is the best, and it's only $2.90 from Konad site and if you are going to get a scraper (plastic gift cards/bank cards work fine) get the plastic bladed one, NOT the metal one - they scratch the plates.

I typically recommend the Winstonia stamper, but I don't know what shipping would be like for you since it's not prime eligible. I would recommend skipping their scraper and using an old gift or credit card instead. It's worked well for me!

thats a bit bigger. Honestly Something like these but in animal print would be ideal I wish I had the means to have my own made. Like each side a different animal print. Like one Zebra, leopard, snakeskin, etc...

The BM stamping plates are pretty cheap, actually. The original set is $18 on Amazon, so compared to Konad, it's a pretty good deal.

Tell everyone that's what you want for a birthday or something. That's what I did. XD

Hi! Thank you for the contest :)

My goal is to quit smoking! I started smoking when I was 18, and it has been a few years. It's an extremely bad habit, something I should have never picked up, and it has definitely had some bad effects on my health. I would like to quit without using gums or patches, so I've been using an e-cig to suppress at least some of my cravings. I still feel like I need a real cigarette sometimes, but I definitely have cut down! Hey, every step toward a goal is progress, right? :)

561

[Pretty nail stuff!] (http://www.amazon.com/Rhinestones-Piece-Nailart-Manicure-Wheels/dp/B005BF1M10)

Thanks again.

This is .01, but is 4.46 shipping. (YIKES!)

Next is .60 with .99 shipping.

I'm Ron Burgundy? Now get off Reddit and hit those books! Studying doesn't happen by itself... Just put on your best "Concentration" playlist and STAY FOCUSED! Good luck!

(Besides, you don't study, and we may die. How's that for incentive?)

it seems to rely more on the scraper you use more than anything else. i got this one, it has a lot of fun full nail designs, but then a few cute decals, but i would recommend the konad stamper/scraper set for the best results!

These would make a GREAT stocking stuffer because they are small and they will be used!! Not just put somewhere! USED! haha

I have gifted a few people before because I am a shop-a-holic and believe I should use this for good!!! Plus giving to others is just AWESOME! Who doesn't like getting free things?!?! And not to mention FREE things they WANT!

I've been with RAOA for almost 2 months :D

I would go out and try new food every night if you can! I bet it's amazing there! also, make sure you and your roommate get along :) My roommate and I would always go one 'Roommate Dates" every few weeks! :) Nail stickers / False Nails :)

Thank you! :)

I actually use some nail art brushes that I got from Amazon for like $3 for almost all of my detail designs. I'd totally recommend them if you're getting into more detail manis :)

Edit: here are the two sets I have...1 & 2...and they're crazy cheap right now! :)

My favorite creepypasta, the one that gives me chills and keeps me up at night every time, is Ted's Caving Page. Some spoiler-ish background on Ted can be found here.

The scariest incident I ever had, personally, was when I was telling my kids a spooky story before bed, and I had the sudden absolute certainty that someone was staring at me. I looked across the bedroom and saw a face, as if an elderly woman was laying on a bed directly across from ours, staring straight at me with wide, startled eyes. I looked away and tried to ignore the feeling of being watched, figuring it was a trick of the light or my mind. When I told my husband about it, he said "Oh yeah, my grandma died in that room. Her bed was right up against the wall opposite where ours is."

WELL GREAT THANKS FOR THAT INFORMATION

my under-ten: studs, dolls, or lashes if you please!

edit: Booooo

This Konad set is what I started with, and I picked three separate plates I liked to go with it. They have some other starter kits, but I didn't like the designs of the four plates that came with it, so it was just as cost-effective to buy the kit and plates separately. You can find the stamper on other sites as well, and ebay has a lot of nail stuff for pretty cheap, if you don't mind long waits for shipping.

Other stamping plates you can pick up are the Cheeky sets, which have 25 plates for usually about $25 on various websites. They have a variety of designs for cheaper than the Konad plates, but with the same quality I've heard.

My one important suggestion is that whatever stamping kit you get, don't bother with the scraper they give you. It's usually a metal scraper that scratches the plates and does a bad job clearing the excess polish off the plate. Instead, what I use (at the recommendation of a lot of people) is an old plastic gift card. It's wide and easy to hold, sturdy enough to scrape off the excess polish, and doesn't scratch up the plate. I had a lot of trouble with stamping until I switched to using it instead of the scraper that came with the kit, but I'm glad everyone recommended it to me!

If you don't mind waiting awhile for some plates to come in I've had really good luck with bornpretty store. I've even bought their clear jelly stamper and I've not had any issues. This is a crowd favorite stamper


For plates bornpretty, bundle monster, pueen, and winstonia all stamp very easily. Depending on how much you want to spend it can get a little pricey for plates...that's mostly because I have an addiction.




Check out their websites for bornpretty and bundle monster. Most of the time its cheaper to buy directly from them than to purchase it on amazon. Shipping from bundle monster is normally less than a week.

Hi, Ilovethedaisypup!

I exfoliate once a week or so with an apricot scrub, and usually remove my makeup using baby wipes, though I also love cleansing oil. I moisturize every day, and use this cream from the face shop. It's amazing. I'd really like to try using striping tape the only issue is, none of it ships to Canada, so you'd have to send it to yourself, then to me. Luckily, I don't mind waiting, and shipping is cheap!

http://www.amazon.com/Nail-Art-Double-Stamper-Scraper/dp/B002MZ8BK2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1320550654&sr=8-1

This is what I bought a few months back when I bought my stamper. Some people may tell you that you need the special nail polish but I've always used Sally Hansen's black nail polish and found that it works just fine with my stamper and shows up perfectly. As for plates, one of my personal favorites that I find myself using over and over again the one with zebra, leopard, cross criss criss, and two little tip designs. If you think that you'll be using your stamper a decent amount, then I suggest you get the bundle monster. The plates from the Konad are a little too expensive for my taste, so I usually just resort to getting new plates from Amazon.

This is my personal recommendation. The white end needs a little prepping, but its wonderful! Its so squishy you can very easily stretch or shrink the image before you stamp, or use the marshmallowy of it to stretch as you're applying. Not my fav or making decals, but brilliant otherwise!

http://www.amazon.com/Winstonia-Double-Ended-Plastic-Scraper/dp/B00CJIOG0Q/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396986665&sr=8-1&keywords=winstonia+stamper

Good luck, I hope everything goes great.

I would like this 1200pc nail rhinestone set its $1.50

Wow thank you for hosting! I've had my eye on stamping kits for a while, so I love this one!

These pearls are so beautiful!

Last, this caviar business has always been a bit strange...and thus I am drawn to it. I am a firefly abuzz about a lantern~

Thanks so much for hosting the gauntlet! I would be so thrilled with any of these. Cheers!

The cheapest place to get a lot of this is by search around on amazon, honestly. If I were you, I'd get a set of nail brushes instead of a whole set of striping polishes. Then you can use one bottle for multiple things. And here are some cheap, but good, dotting tools.

This is an add-on item, but it's the cheapest you're going to find orangewood sticks anywhere. You can also gets pearls and gems

Sanding blocks and nail files are pretty affordable at sally's. but if you can get into CosmoProf, it's even cheaper there. I believe a manicure bowl is also pretty cheap at Sally's.

Your biggest money sink will be nailpolish. There are some decent brands for fairly cheap, but overall....

1.30?? Ehh who cares. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY FABULOUS GINGER!!

I can't win both?! LAME ;)

El cheapo BRUSHES. I've decided that you can't have too many of the skinny ones :)

I just realized you specifically said POLISH. Lol. Here's the cheapest polish...though I feel like the prices change every time I click on my WL

Llama face. Llamas are pretty, right?

Anything off my lists is cool but I would love some dotting tools

My fave place is the top of the hill at Home where I can sit and watch life go by and watch the sea: http://imgur.com/a/Ekzzx

Happy Half birthday! Flash This

1. Weavesilk It's quite entertaining!
   
2. I live a primal/paleo diet 365 days, so I can't entertain you with a high carb meal, but my birthday is tomorrow and I am having Steak with asparagus, mushrooms, and probably sweet potatoes.
   
3. Item!(I always wanted to try this!)
   
4. Got my eyes examined today, and I learn that your PD is your pupillary distance, and you measure it by placing a ruler from the middle of your pupil to your other one in mm.
   
   Thanks!

I use the Bundle Monster plates instead. On Amazon, they run only $17.99. You'll also want to get a stamper. Some people like to have the plate holder as well, but I never bought it and I don't have any sort of difficulties.

You'll also definitely want to get some of the special konad polish. The most important one is the white polish. None of the white polishes I've owned are nearly opaque enough. Any thick black polish should work fine for stamping, as well as any strongly opaque color.

They are not too tricky to use, although it does take a bit of practice.

Well you'll need a stamper and a scraper, Amazon has a lot of different kits available. I have a set from Konad similar to this. Then you'll need plates, which mostly come in sets but then they have jumbo plates which is one big piece of metal with several designs etched into it. I've bought all my plates from Amazon as well, my favorite brands are MoYou London, Pueen, and Cheeky. Then as far as how to actually stamp I recommend youtube videos, there are so many helpful ones out there!

Happy belated birthday!! I want a present. I would love this it's $2.35 plus free shipping and it isn't an add-on

I second the amazon movement! I picked up my bundle for cheap! Granted it was 9.95 when I bought it and they raised it 5 bucks, of course! But its exactly like the bundle monster. And the stamper I opted for was not the double ended stamper but was still cheaper with shipping than the other example. Also checking clearance anywhere you go. You would be surprised what you'll find.

*The best tip for major nail haul I have been given though, is checking craigslist for polish. When a nail salon closes down, they will sometimes list all their stuff, polish included for cheap! Check this post out! I found one and it should be coming very soon!

I cant think of any ready kits, but you could put one together for her? Ger her some nail brushes, the really thin ones for decorating, then dotting tools, as well as strips and tape, stickers, aaand some other stuff. These are all the things I have :)

http://www.sallyhansen.com/nails/nail-color/stickers/salon-effects-real-nail-polish-strips
http://www.sallyhansen.com/nails/nail-color/stickers/salon-effects-french-mani
http://www.sallyhansen.com/nails/nail-color/nail-art
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=nail+tape
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=nail+art+brush&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Anail+art+brush
http://www.amazon.com/Dotting-Marbleizing-Manicure-Pedicure-Ounce/dp/B004OHQR1Q/ref=sr_1_2?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1417152335&sr=1-2&keywords=nail+art
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IGZQ5QO?psc=1
http://www.amazon.com/MASH-Nail-Art-Practice-Fingers/dp/B00683JILU/ref=pd_sim_bt_11?ie=UTF8&refRID=1Z58JZWJE6CZHDAXPFA0
http://www.amazon.com/Rhinestones-Piece-Nailart-Manicure-Wheels/dp/B005BF1M10/ref=pd_sim_bt_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1Z58JZWJE6CZHDAXPFA0
http://www.amazon.com/Color-Starter-Design-Nail-Basic/dp/B00HPZDMX0/ref=sr_1_12?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1417152335&sr=1-12&keywords=nail+art
http://www.amazon.com/3d-Pieces-Rhinestone-Nails-Cellphones/dp/B007TL60IE/ref=sr_1_15?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1417152335&sr=1-15&keywords=nail+art
http://www.amazon.com/SHANY-Cosmetics-Decoration-Bottles-Tweezer/dp/B009LYB2E4/ref=sr_1_14?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1417152335&sr=1-14&keywords=nail+art
http://www.amazon.com/Designs-French-Chevron-Teardrop-Stickers/dp/B00DHQCJTO/ref=sr_1_11?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1417152335&sr=1-11&keywords=nail+art
http://www.amazon.com/Painting-Drawing-Brushes-Marbleizing-Dotting/dp/B00A363EPO/ref=sr_1_9?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1417152335&sr=1-9&keywords=nail+art

a little drier may come in handy too, as nail art is layered and can take a long time to dry http://www.amazon.com/PROMOTION-USpicy-SEASHELL-Portable-Manicure/dp/B005WQB6G4/ref=sr_1_1?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1417152565&sr=1-1&keywords=nail+dryer

As well as one of these quick dry drops or sprays

http://www.amazon.com/OPI-Polish-Quick-Lacquer-0-3oz/dp/B0012LIHUG/ref=sr_1_2?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1417152601&sr=1-2&keywords=nail+quick+dry
http://www.amazon.com/OPI-Rapidry-Coats-Fluid-Ounce/dp/B000NGH3X8/ref=sr_1_3?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1417152601&sr=1-3&keywords=nail+quick+dry

Shop around and you'll find them for lower prices.

If you have time, buy them on eBay, that's where I always get them. They get shipped from Chine or Hong Kong and super low prices. I've bought 5 nail dotting tools for 1-2$, including shipping, and lots and lots more. A 12 wheel of nail decals, stickers and whatnot, for 99 cents.

These star shaped studs are $1.16! :) I love studs and want to keep adding different shapes to my collection!

yay cheap tools!

Happy Almost birthday!!! I'm 26 and my favorite birthday gift ever would have to be when I was 16 and my mom bought me a car. It was just like a $500 piece of crap but I loved it.

Item

Super Big Hugs

I see a ton of "I'm not entering", so I'm going to enter. :)

1.01

93 cents

1.20

1.38

I would love any of these, just wanted to give you options! :)

Thanks!!

I got the stars off amazon, I'm pretty sure they were even a glam from someone here! Very cheap and totally worth it!

First, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Second, these star studs are super cheap, just $2.71 (free ship)!

Third, this song came up on my pandora station this morning, and I think I like it.

What would you consider cheap-ish? I have these nail gems for under $2 with free shipping :)

350Buy Rhinestones 2400 Piece 12 Color Nail Art Nailart Manicure Wheels https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005BF1M10/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_nmMKxbJM38EWS

If $4 is more what you're thinking, I have a nail stamping plate for that price.

I love painting my nails and am trying to branch out from the boring solid color stuff. I'm too cheap to pay for a real manicure, so this is the closest I can get to nail art as I can't even draw stick people 😂

Thank you so much!! Yes, I just bought this lamp on Amazon after reading about it on here. It works great and was way easier than expected!

A nail stamper(link) / stamping plate(link) is something I think a lot of people even who love their nails might not have. And the plates are all different so even if they have a few already I'm sure there will be other designs on the plate they don't have. Basically they can stamp cute designs on their nails with their polishes they already have.

I love my nails, and I just finally broke down and got one recently.

I need some jars for all my new indies!
I also really want a stamper and some cuticle remover.

Happy birthday, lady! Thanks for the contest!

It's my party.

This contest is awesome sauce!!!

• These are great for entertaining!
  
  
• Super cheap!

I have no experince with the Rio set but when I started stamping I bought the BundleMonster stamping plate set, and a cheap stamper and scraper from Amazon. I also got a few stamping polishes but they're not entirely necessary as many normal polishes work, it's just a bit of trial and error to see what does.

It's fairly cheap to get those essential bits, especially considering how many plates you get for the money you pay. And if you decide it's something you enjoy, you can always buy more plates. As beenardpinkles said, Konad are well recommended and have lots of lovely designs, they're just rather expensive.

How about some kick butt food tattoos?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 and last but not least a lovely "mmm mmm" worthy Campbell's soup can tattoo

This rhinestone wheel is $1.40.

Mmm Mmm Good

Yay!!! Boy could I use this! It's a $1.01!! :)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B007BLN17K/ref=aw_ls_2_1?colid=UBWFPL1UA6MV&coliid=I23FT4UCPP7LOX
I'm using my phone app so I just cut and pasted! :)

Here are some cheap brushes. A stamper and some plates might be nice. And dotting tools.

What kind of polish does she wear? Sparkly, shimmer, creme? I like indie brands but Zoya, Orly, OPI, and China glaze are nice and easily accessible.

You need stamping plates, like these. They are metal plates with indented images on them. You take an opaque polish and paint it over one of the images. Then you use a little scraper to scrape off the extra polish that gets on the flat part of the plate. I have the scraper and stamp set shown here. After you scrape off the extra, you roll the end of the stamper over the polish on the plate, then roll it over your nail. The ends of the stamper are soft and rubbery and it picks up the polish from the indentation in the plate and transfers it right to your nail. It sounds complicated but I assure you it was so easy. These were my first attempts, and they came out great!

Happy cakeday!

My husband's 30th Birthday cake, made by a friend

Sad attempt at a birthday Mani. My thumb is supposed to have a cake on it.

I'd like to get into stamping, though I'm not sure if this is the best stamper

After watching and reading lots of stamping plate reviews I realized it's a very personal choice. How much money are you willing to spend? Which designs do you like?

Personally I bought the Cheeky set and a Konad stamper because I liked the Cheeky designs and they were cheap. My sister has the Salon Express kit so I use that one a lot too. I've just used nail polish I have in my collection for stamping, some work great, some don't. Trail and error.

The best thing that happened today was that the person in front of me in the drive thru in Dunkin' Donuts (not Krispy Kreme and I feel like I'm betraying you because of this, lol) paid for my order ! That was super nice and they gave me a little card and I plan to do it for someone else tomorrow c:

Item thing

Love these metal nail addons. Or the nail stripes that someone else already linked. SO CUTE! And sooo cheap. <:

yay cheap tools!

Some brushes would be nice! These are 98 cents with free shipping.

I've been getting into nail polish lately. I would really like to try stamping.

A little about myself, I love reading. I'm always reading a book in my free time.

Elephant Barber.

I was searching 'best nail polish brands' and your post came up. Get here these 1, 2, and 3. They ship from hong kong and will take about 2 weeks to get to the USA but she'll love these because she can do designs.

I'm not currently home but it's from the Shany set I just got in the mail yesterday... http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004DK0UDA/ref=oh_details_o00_s01_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I can update you with the stamp number and polish names when I get home later. I'm super excited with how it turned out but I definately still need more practice.

[HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHICA!] (http://www.amazon.com/30Pcs-Colors-Striping-Decoration-Sticker/dp/B00A76CPUA/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=1OUQ8B0KGTG86&coliid=I1T0VPBHVAP1MX)

Make sure you have plenty of water to re hydrate when you're done celebrating! =)

$0-5 Nail Stamper I have seen a lot of wishlists here with polish/nail at supplies, and I think that stamping would be fun for a lot of people!

$5-10 Fun glitter polish A set of 6 for less than ten bucks!

$10-20 Acrylic Paint! Because being artsy is always fun!

20-50 China Glaze Summer Neons 2012 because nail art

Well it looks like you don't have nail art brushes to go with all those detailing gems you want.

I'd like these Stars for Nails and you can still gift more people with money to spare!

Happy early birthday!
I actually just purchased this so I still dont own them but they are great! Ive seen many manis use one of these designs.
Its the winstonia first generation stamping plates.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00B868SK4?pc_redir=1403885011&robot_redir=1

actually a few days ago i posed this same question to laqueristas because it just seemed to daunting to start something completely new like this. here's the post. u/norikotheninja's comment was definitely the most helpful.
i settled on gals' princess plate set and the konad stamper and scraper. the konad plates look nice, but not for $5 a pop. but definitely delve into the youtube videos that show you all the plates and techniques etc.

Cheeky 2012 plate set. It's the only set I have. :) It's a very good set for patterns and has a few "decal"-type stamps but not many.

As you can see the fine details on the plates come out very nicely in real life.

I love these rhinestones, there are green ones in it? Does it count? Thank you so much for doing this!!!!

Hi! I really like this Konad double ended stamper. I have plates from Mash, Konad, MoYou... you can mix and match just fine. I've never tried a polish specific for stamping, but I find that most opaque polishes work well. My favorite stamping polishes are from the Sally Hansen Insta Dri line.

Konad can be bought online here http://www.ocnailart.com/ (not sure if they ship internationally)
Image plates are listed around $7
Plus you will need to buy the stamper

A cheaper alternative is the bundle monster
http://www.amazon.com/Bundle-Monster-Stamping-Manicure-Accessories/dp/B003ILUQPM
It is $18 for 21 image plates. You also will still need to purchase a stamper.
I hear the only difference between bundle monster and konad is that bundle monster image plates are sharper on the outside so you will need to handle them with a bit more care.

Also keep in mind that not all polish is good for stamping. Konad sells special nail polish (at an absurd price)
but thick kind of goopy nail polish works well also. I find that icing nail polish gets gloppy on me quickly so you may want to look in to that.

I got all of mine on Amazon. Below are the first things I bought. I'm pretty new too, but I'm building a nice collection. Not many of the nail items on Amazon are Prime eligible, but if you can find them, I would compare the non-Prime+shipping vs. the Prime one.

http://www.amazon.com/Bundle-Monster-Stamping-Manicure-Accessories/dp/B004XJNQXW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1319410273&sr=8-2

http://www.amazon.com/Nail-Art-Double-Stamper-Scraper/dp/B002MZ8BK2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1319410273&sr=8-3

http://www.amazon.com/Debra-Professional-French-Manicure-Clean-Up/dp/B001MP0T2Q/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1319410423&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.com/Marbleizing-Dotting-Nail-Manicure-Pedicure/dp/B004OHQR1Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1319410439&sr=1-1

I purchased this set: http://www.amazon.com/Bundle-Monster-Stamping-Manicure-Accessories/dp/B003ILUQPM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1323438892&sr=8-1

I do have one Konad that I received as part of the rl exchange that I will be trying out next just to compare. So, at the moment I've only used Bundle Monster. I'm curious to know how other stamping plates compare as well.

I also purchased http://www.amazon.com/Nail-Art-Double-Stamper-Scraper/dp/B002MZ8BK2/ref=pd_bxgy_bt_img_b

So far CG works well for stamping. I'm excited to see if Essie, Orly, OPI...and others will work as well.

Nail brushes for super detailed nail art! Interview! Thanks for doing this, good luck!!:D

Awesome sauce!

This Dali clock is pretty amazing

$1 and under

$.42 (Sometimes fluctuates, and usually has free shipping)

Under 60$ wants would be this! <3 AoT! Orrr this! I have an expensive hobby. :C

Thanks for the contest!!

I just picked up the Cheeky 2012 and MASH 2012 sets for pretty cheap, with a Konad Stamper/Scraper Set. I've heard good things about Bundle Monster and Shany too, but these seemed to have more designs I liked. So there are realistically quite a few cheap options out there for you!

Plate W116. From Winstonia, it came in a bundle that I purchased from Amazon, has allot of great Holiday stamps!

http://www.amazon.com/Winstonia-Stamp-Stamping-Manicure-Pedicure/dp/B00B868SK4

But it's only May 1st D:! [these pretties!] (http://www.amazon.com/SODIAL-3000-Mixed-Colours-Shapes/dp/B008U1Q4DI/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=3B40O49VRCSVW&coliid=IG9G10QXOJ54N) are 1.72 with free shipping! woohoo!

I have this set: $3.50 with free shipping if you have Amazon Prime. They work great! Definitely recommended.

I also got this one from dealextreme.com for $1.40 plus free shipping. Quality's the same as the MASH tool, but you only get one, and it takes forever to ship.

I can watch this for hours. I fucking love that cat!

This please :D Somebody gifted me the tools so now I can really use gems!

I have a TON of stamping plates, and I've never bought one in a store. They're almost all exclusively online. Over 90% of the plates I own are from Amazon:

Bundle Monster Set 1

Bundle Monster Set 2

Red Angel

My favorite of these is Red Angel. You can see which plates I've used at my blog's Red Angel page. Below each plate image is a link to the posts I've used the plates for. If there's no link, I haven't used them yet.

Hope that helps!

Any combo of these would be fine ;) awesome contest!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B008PEXV3Q/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_1_3?colid=6XO2THL3E386&coliid=ICB6EL8H1WOHO&vs=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00EZM9ESS/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_1_15?colid=6XO2THL3E386&coliid=IISW47AQPPEER&vs=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00A76CPUA/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_2_2?colid=6XO2THL3E386&coliid=I1NFEBGHV3VLI1&vs=1

I actually bought these on April 11th and they just came in today.

I bought these specifically for the super free shipping because I also ordered four of these balls for frankening, so now I have 400 tiny metal balls!

Ohh boy, that's ok! These lovely gems are $1.82 after shipping right now, but it's only May 1st so you could still find something better!

I keep going back to these ones. I have wide thumbs and using any part of the plate allows for more freedom of what part to used. http://www.nailpolishcanada.com/products/4-pc-8-sides-pueen-special-edition-encore-collection.html
(mouse over to see the plates better) Both sides are etched so its actually 8 plates.

edit: better link to see both sides of the plates http://www.amazon.com/Pueen-2014-Nail-Stamp-Collection/dp/B00L1CALVO/ref=sr_1_2?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1412993791&sr=1-2&keywords=pueen+2014

This is my cheapest at $1 and free shipping.

Happy Birthday!

1. benefit Bad Gal Lash - black
   
2. Maybelline Eye Studio gel liner - black
   
3. Naked 2 palette
   
4. theBalm Frat Boy blush
   
5. Pink Papaya Blemish Treatment Concealer in fair.
   
   Bam, I got 5 on it. Wow, literally the only thing under $5, I feel greedy now! Congrats, RAOM!

I would love this! Thank you so much for the contest!

Definitely not bad for a first attempt!

Dotting tools, brushes, and striping tape (or even more!) can all be found really cheap on Amazon!

I recommend this lamp and this post is a really great step-by-step. At home gel is a complete game-changer.

This poopsickle


edit oh my gosh, I think I am a couple minutes late. I really want to paint pretty pictures on my nails and this is super cheap. So thanks for the contest!