Pueen 24B - Buffet collection - all you can stamp!

Well, well well, what do we have here? Its the new Pueen 24B Buffet stamping collection! Apparently Moyou has started a trend amongst stamp makers with more manufactures trying their hands at themed buffet plates. Buffet plates differ from traditional stamping plates in that instead of having rectangle shaped images designed to fit nicely on your nails, the images cover the entire plate with no space in between. There are pluses and minuses to buffet plates which I will explain as we go along. Pueen 24B available now from www.dramaqueennails.com

I have to say I am really surprised by the design of this first plate. Perhaps environmental activists like to have pretty nails too? Well they are stuffed anyway because the words on this plate are way too big to fit most nails so if your message is "Oi" or "cri" well you'll love this plate! Don't let this one stinker deter you, there are much, much better plates ahead.

One of my favourite plates in the set, its geometric fun all the way. This is the first plate I used from the set and the images picked up well. It scraped evenly without bald spots and the size of each pattern will fit most nail sizes.

Now if you are thinking I'm not really too sure about these plates, I like my images compartmentalised and in nice manageable rectangles. Its time to change the way you think. Make yourself a stamping window and you will start to see the multitudes of options these buffet plates offer. 

   

I really love this plate too. Lots of interesting sections to play with. Which brings me to another minus. What if you just want to use the little dandelion without all the other stuff around it? Well too bad for you, use the dandelion plate from the Bundle Monster set. You could scrape off the unwanted bits from the stamp before you apply it to your nail but you have to be quick. I actually like the little dots all around the dandelion so this isn't an issue for me but I can understand how this would annoy some people.

Cool plate but the words are so darn big, luckily there are few smaller sections mixed in for those of us without talons. 

Meh, could take or leave this one...I promise I'm not going to poo poo all the plates in this set, there really are some very cool ones.

See, told you, awesome plate! Plus #1 - the same pattern on your nail but each nail won't be exactly the same, variations in placement give variations in image.

Another awesome plate.

Love this one too.

I really love this one! The geometric raindrops are great, especially with the reverse version as well. 

Another awesome plate, I'm a big fan of filigree, lots to choose from here. Plus #2, it will cover all of your nail and you can mix and match which bits you use.

Interesting! 

This 24 piece set comes with a storage case like the previous collections from Pueen.

I can see this plate being really popular. Lots of cool sections.

Fab! 

Not a huge rose person this plate still appeals to me.

This plate is sitting on my desk right now waiting to be taken out for a test drive. I see the possibilities for reverse stamping with the polka dots.

Rad, another great plate.

Such a cutesy buffet. The bird is a little disappointing just due to its size but if you follow stamping experts like Mrs Lochness stamping across multiple nails looks amazing albeit needing a little bit of practice. Perhaps this is what Pueen were intending with the larger images in this set.

Again the size here is an issue but I will still use this plate as I really like the face. 

Love this plate, yes I know it has roses but I like to think Ill use this as a rose print rather than a rose.

There is a lot to like about these buffet plates despite the few duds and size issues. If you have really long nails or wide thumb nails then these are fantastic! I love the way stamping continues to evolve and pushes us to think outside the box, moving towards seeing nails as a  fashion canvas for a great print vs cutesy little accent images, I'm all for that! 

Pueen 24B available now from www.dramaqueennails.com

Hollish Nails - The glassfleck shimmer collection

The Aussie indie polish scene...its just so hot right now! The quality and variety of polishes coming out for us polish crazies to lust over....my poor wallet slinks off to hide in the corner begging for a timeout! Do NOT read the rest of the post if you are on a no buy because there is NO WAY you are going to be able to resist these polishes from up and coming Aussie indie brand Hollish Nails. The Glassfleck shimmer collection...a million tiny, shattered glittery flecks in delicious juicy satin shimmer bases.

Holly very kindly sent me 6 polishes from her new release. There are 12 glassfleck shimmer polishes in the collection which will be released on February 28th via Hollish's Etsy shop. The six I have are the more muted colours. If these are the muted ones I can't wait to see the others....drool! These polishes will be added to Hollish Nails core collection.

The first polish is Pinky Finger: A Bubblegum pink which leans slightly towards raspberry with a pale pink glassfleck shimmer which reflects silvery sparks. OMG love this polish! I have a few pink shimmer polishes which all throw gold sparks. Finally a silver shift. I've been searching for you a long time Pinky Finger. 

Pink Finger - 3 coats - full sunlight with Seche topcoat.

I don't have any glassfleck glitter polishes in my collection because I have always shied away from glitter flecks. Seriously I have been missing out! The combo of glitter pieces with the similar base pigment colour create a faux texture/satin look when dry which is really interesting. All polishes have 3 coats, each coat dried quickly and applied perfectly, no glitter dabbing was needed, applied like a creme and no pulling when topcoat was added.

Pinky Finger with matte top coat. The matte really shows off the satin finish of these polishes. They feel smooth like a creme yet have the depth of a texture. Cool! There was a tiny bit of VNL after 3 coats which only showed up in the pics, not on the nail. It is just so pretty in real life that I didn't care one bit!

Holly you had me at Pinky Finger, and then I tried I Lilac You. Hollish Nails....well done *slow clap* well done babe. I Lilac You: A bright lilac with silvery lavender glassfleck shimmer which reflects silver sparks. Again the silver spark is a massive win for me. The combo of the darker purple glitter pigment base, with a light purple glitter shimmer, it's truly perfection.

I Lilac You - 3 coats - full sunlight with Seche topcoat.

Urg! Too much awesome! Matte topcoat satin glitter where have you been all my life? Make room for I Lilac You in your Helmer draws ladies because YOU NEED IT in your life.

Seriously Holly.....stop! I can't take much more! Teal, one of those colours that occupy a larger than normal percentage of space in my polish collection. Unfortunately teal is notorious for staining but our prayers have been answered, the perfect teal shimmer is here! I'm Kind of a Big Teal: A vibrant teal with blueish-teal glassfleck shimmer.

I'm kind of a big teal - 3 coats - full sunlight with Seche topcoat.

Oh the possibilities. I need to stamp over this like yesterday! Mattified - I'm kind of a big teal. Wow, epically amazing! Hands down my absolute fav of the bunch, glorious! 

The fourth polish I tried is It's in my Jeans: A denim blue with slightly brighter blue glassfleck shimmer. Move over every other blue polish I own, this polish just out glam'd you! So glamorous, so sparkly, the most amazing vibrant nautical blue. 

It's in my jeans - 3 coats - full sunlight with Seche topcoat

With matte top coat its a whole different obsession! A bonus with the formula that Hollish is using for these polishes is that it's a lot easier to remove then a glitter topper, glitter bomb or texture polish. 

So onto the darker blue, Shiny Happy Purple: A navy-based purple (or blurple) with deep purple glassfleck shimmer. Now this polish is described as blurple, on the nail I found it leans towards royal blue. In the bottle its blurple all the way baby, despite the fact that it appears blue in these pictures. It's gorgeous either way.

Shiny happy purple - 3 coats - full sunlight with Seche topcoat. 

Pow! I love the way these polishes mattify to a satin finish. So cool. 

"All Hollish polishes are hand made in small batches in Adelaide, South Australia, and tested for a minimum of eight weeks (on party animals, not bunnies!) to ensure that they stay as beautiful as the day the were made. All products are 5-free." Hollish.

The final polish is I Zinc I Can: A black with shiny gunmetal grey glassfleck shimmer. It's goth gone glam. Leans toward charcoal with a black shift.

I zinc I can - 3 coats - full sunlight with Seche topcoat. I can't wait for the release of this collection so that I can see the other 6 polishes. I'm sure they will be equally stunning. I've already got a few polishes in my cart from the old collections, Murder on the dancefloor......you will be mine!

It looked like bitumen mattified.  I preferred the sparkle with this one but the matte version shows off the satin finish. You can find ALL the Hollish Nails polish here at Holly's Etsy shop and don't forget to go and like Holly's facebook page here so that you can stay up to date with new releases. 

The formula and ingredients of these polishes are really high quality.  Do not let the hand written labels fool you (I believe there is some fancy new branding on the horizon). They are all round, top notch; good bottle size, good brush, great pigments, great blending, great suspension base, quality glitter...there is nothing not to like. Thank you so much Holly for sending them my way, they are prized possessions which will be popping up in lots of nail art in the future. Hollish Nails, go check it out already!