I was recently contacted the the PR company for Salon Express Nail Art Stamping Kit and asking if I would like to review the kit. These kits have been available in the USA for about 6 months, but they are soon to be available in Australia, in Target to be exact. This kit is one of those "As seen on TV" products, but I've never seen these on TV - although I would love to see a 30 minute infomercial about a nail stamping kit (instead of the Magic Bullet) - that would be so cool! Has anyone else see these advertised on TV.
So here is the kit, it's all sealed around edges so at least you know someone can't open it in store and swap out plates.
The kit includes five plates, a plate holder, a scraper and a double sided stamper. My first impression of the plates is that the single images are quite sweet, and there seems to be a few stamps with a similar theme, such as the butterflies and dragonflies, underwater creatures (turtle, seahorse and starfish) and flowers.
There is one image plate with six full nail designs and they all look very small and may not provide full nail coverage (which quite bizarrely is how they are shown stamped on the models hand on the packaging - WTF does anyone actually stamp a full nail design like that?) The plate holder seems a little redundant, I did use it, but it didn't make the process any harder or easier, nor did it make the stamping process it any cleaner or dirtier.
The first time I tried using the supplied scraper I found it didn't do a very good job and left the polish on top of the plate all streaky. It seemed to touch the plate where I drew the arrows below, but left a gap on the plate in the middle.
So what I did was grab a piece of A4 paper and fold it up a few times to get some thickness, then I just scrapped over the paper, over and over again. I also gave it a very light file (using my nail file) along the edge of the metal. This seemed to condition my scraper and leveled the edge of it for smooth scraping. I know a lot of girls don't like using a metal scraper because it scratches you plate - instead they use an old credit card. I've personally never had a good experience with a credit card as the scraper, and the scratches on my plates don't bother me at all. So after this scraper had been "broken in" it was great.
To test out the plate, scraper and stamper, I chose to use red Konad Special polish, cause I new it would show up nicely for the photos. Konad special polishes are great, but they are also expensive. If you are looking for some good stamping polishes, I recommend you get yourself Ulta3 Black Satin and Lily White (you can grab them in Target for $2). Both those polishes are excellent for stamping. There are also a few other Ulta3 polishes that are good for stamping, Orchid and Gold Rush are two that come to mind.
After just one swipe, most of the polish scraped away cleanly, leaving a good solid imprint in the plate. The plates seem to be deeply engraved, which is exactly what you need, because that way the polish doesn't dry too quickly and it is easier to pick up.
Now to the stamper. This is a great double sided stamper with one smaller and and one larger end. I normally use the konad double sided stamper and this one is just as good. The stamp ends are nice and squishy, which makes it easier to roll the design both off the plate and onto your nails. I had no issues with the stamp picking up the polish, although they do say you can lightly buff the ends of the stamper if you have trouble with it not picking up your design.
For my mani, I tried out a few different designs, all stamped using Konad special polish in white. I also tried out one of the full nail designs. To my surprise, as long as I was very careful placing the design, it was just large enough to cover my nail. If you have long or wide nails, these full nail designs would be too small. They are definitely too small for my thumb nails.
My interpretation of this design is the butterflies and dragonflies, flying in the blue sky with the rays of sunshine represented on my ring finger. I Googled some designs made using the Salon Express Nail Art kit, and there are some good ones out there, such as this sweet palm tree one, this zebra print one and this nail polish ring stamped with the sea horse, to mention just a few.
The Salon Express Nail Art Stamping Kit will be available in Target for $20. I think this kit is fantastic for anyone who wants to try out stamping and doesn't really know where to start. I wish these were around when I starting my stamping. I know I paid more than this to get some konad plates and the stamper.
Now for the giveaway part. I was also lucky enough to receive three additional Salon Express Nail Art Stamping Kits to giveaway to my readers. As this is a new product in Australia and provided by an Australian PR company I feel its right to just open this one to my Aussie readers.
To win, please leave an answer this sentence in the comments section below.
"If I could design my very on nail art stamping image plate, I would put on it ...."
The prizes will go to the three ideas for a nail plate that inspire me the most. Get creative gals!
- Entries close on 30 June.
- I will post winners commenting name on an upcoming blog post.
- Winners must email me within two days, otherwise I will select another winner.
- Australian entries only.
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