Nail Art Stamping!

So, this month, I tried nail art stamping for the first time ever!

One of my nail stamping experiments! 

Shopping for supplies... 

I purchased some supplies online at the after-Christmas sales - using the lists of included items from various starter kits to work out what I would need. (I could have ordered a starter kit - but I wanted to choose which image plates/pictures I would get - and the prices for kits and for the same list of separate ingredients weren't a lot different).

My supplies! 

The Konad 'special polish' =D

I ordered a double-sided stamp tool, a scraper tool, an image plate holder, some image plates, and a bottle of special polish (all Konad brand, as it seemed to have the best online reviews).

Stamping for the first time... 

I was so excited when my order arrived a couple of weeks later! I immediately began to experiment!

The first step in nail art stamping is to paint your nails with a base coat or regular nail polish. Once your nails are dry, you paint over your desired image on the metal image plate with the special extra-thick stamping polish, and scrape the excess polish off the plate with the scraper tool (so that the polish in the grooves of the image remains, but the rest is scraped off). Then you pick the image up with your stamp tool, and transfer it to your nail using either a gentle rolling motion, or by pressing and lifting.

At first, I found it hard to get the hang of stamping quickly enough - and the special polish dried on the image plate, or on the stamp before I could get it onto my nail! (I'm used to going slowly and carefully when it comes to nail art - but nail art stamping really requires you to race!) I got the hang of it after a few failed attempts, though - and the results really impressed me!

Stamping experiments!

Things I've learned...

1. The designs come out really detailed and perfectly flat - and once you get the hang of it, stamping is actually quite easy!
2. I have to say that I don't think the image plate holder works particularly well. You could definitely survive nail art stamping without one of these as long as you have a not-to-slippery surface to work on. 
3. I have also seen people recommend that you use a plastic expired gift card instead of the scraper tool (as it can scratch the image plate) but my image plate doesn't seem to be scratching so far. It would be useful to have a disposable scraper, though - as it accumulates a lot of polish!
4. One thing you really need to have on hand is LOTS of nail polish remover, as you will need it to clean your tools! (It's recommended that you clean the image plate after every 1-3 stamps - to ensure that the image details will transfer clearly. You also need to give everything a good clean at the end).

Some more experiments... 

When I ran out of space to experiment on my fingernails,
I moved to my toes! 

Anyway, I have enjoyed my experiments over the last couple of weeks - and have now ordered a few more special polish colours, and some more image plates, too!

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