Express Manicure at Persona

Following my complimentary laser session at Persona last month, I was given a voucher for an express manicure which I gladly accepted and fixed an appointment for, earlier in June. 

An Express Manicure at Persona consists of cuticle tidy, nail shaping, hand massage and nail polish application (worth €17). My manicurist for the day was Leann who I must say did a very good job from beginning to end!

First off, she asked me to soak my hands in some water so as to soften my cuticles and prepare them for the treatments to follow. Next, my cuticles were pushed back and tidied and any dry skin was nipped off before my nails were filed into an oval shape.

Subsequently, came my favourite part of the whole experience - the hand massage with coconut scented hand cream. This was divine and I almost fell asleep! Nail polish application followed and I chose a gold colour which we all know looks good with everything.

I left Persona with hands as soft as a baby's and nails manicured to perfection! It's nice to have someone take care of my hands every once in a while!

Once again, thanks goes to Persona and the lovely staff there for the treatments. Persona is located on Sir Ugo Mifsud Street in Ta' Xbiex. For appointments call +356 21 340 366. Alternatively, you can visit their website for a full list of treatments and services offered.

The Express Manicure was offered to me free of charge by Persona. All opinions are my own.

Review | Born Pretty Store Nail Transfers

Born Pretty Store have once again come to the rescue with their nail transfers. I had broken a few nails some weeks ago so I couldn't do proper nail art product reviews but now they are back, all the same length!

So, back to the review. Born Pretty Store had sent me some nail transfers from their extensive range to try out and I chose the black and white dots I am wearing here and some Audrey Hepburn ones which I haven't worn yet.

These transfers are very to use, even for beginners. Just remove the protective film, plunge into some water, remove the backing and carefully apply over your nails avoiding air bubbles. Here is the manicure I wore for 5 days straight:

These nail transfers only cost $1.64 for the dotted ones and $2.40 for the Audrey Hepburn ones. Remember to put in my code EBABK31 at checkout for 10% off your order!

PR Samples

Review | Born Pretty Store Transparent Stamper

Finally, all stamping nail art problems have been answered!! If you are familiar with stamping, you would know that one of the biggest issues with this nail art technique is the difficulty of knowing where you are placing an image on your nails, because it is kind of hard to see when using a fully opaque stamper.

Thankfully, Born Pretty Store have a new stamper in stock that actually looks like a magnifying glass and has a transparent squishy stamping head and you can even see through the hole on the opposite side. This makes it easier to know which part of an image you're picking up especially when it comes to the larger ones and also, you can see where you are actually placing the design on the nails.

All it took for the stamper to work was just a quick roll on a lint remover to prime it, take the usual steps for stamping, roll the stamper onto the image, et voila! the image is clearly picked up, ready to be stamped on your nails! This makes it perfect for placement and landscape manicures as well as a multitude of other nail art creations. The plate I have used for this nail art is also from Born Pretty Store and it is the BPL-007 plate. I'm not a big fan of the scraper that comes with this stamper though and I prefer using the transparent credit-card like one.

If you're a fan of stamping, I highly suggest you get this one even if you're a beginner. The price is $2.99 and you get 10% off your order with my code EBABK31 at checkout.

PR Sample

Review | Born Pretty Store Peel-Off Base Coat

If like me you like wearing glitter nail polishes, you know what a pain they can be to remove when you want to change your manicure. Of course, there is the very effective foil removal method but sometimes that can get a little time consuming. Peel-off base coats have been popping up on the market but sometimes they come with a price tag that I cannot bring myself to justify for something that is not even going to show.

Of course, there are many a tutorials to make your own but what if you can have an effective, cheap peel off-base coat that's ready made? Enter the Born Pretty Store Peel-Off Base Coat!

The bottle this come in really reminds me of the Ciate ones except this doesn't have a bow on it. It contains 7ml of product and the base coat is a transparent, milky colour. It does have a scent that is a little off-putting at first but I got used to it while working with this base coat. The brush is a standard size and I had no issues with it.

For this Halloween nail art, I applied two coats of the peel-off base coat on bare nails and allowed 3 minutes for each coat to dry before proceeding with applying the nail polishes (two coats each plus top coat). The base coat was easy to apply and it didn't interfere with the polish application. I like that on applying the polish, it didn't re-activate the base coat as it usually happens with regular base coats.

I removed this manicure after 3 days and look how easy it was to peel it all off!!! The glitter came off in one piece and so did the creme nail polish! I was actually surprised that it didn't peel off on its own after I wash my hands as I expected it to do so this is definitely a gem every nail polish addict should have in their stash!

Thus, I guess I have found the perfect solution to wearing glitter nail polish without worrying about the hassle to take it off! You can buy your own Peel-Off Base Coat from Born Pretty Store for just $4.57 and you can also claim 10% off it with my code EBABK31 at checkout!

PR Sample

Review | Born Pretty Store Holographic Nail Foil #77

We all have to admit that holographic nail polishes are a spectacle to look at so when I was offered the chance to review one of the new holographic nail art foils from Born Pretty Store, I jumped at the opportunity to have a go at something different with a holographic finish.

The nail foil comes in a transparent container and you get a full meter's length of holographic goodness. The foil's width is 4cm. The design I chose resembles stars/laser light and I thought it looked best over a dark coloured polish (I used China Glaze Jungle Queen as my base).

You will need some foil adhesive to apply the foil to your nails. After the polish is completely dry, smoothly apply a fairly thick (not too much!) layer of glue taking care to avoid brush marks if possible. The glue will go white at first but will dry transparent. Wait for it to go tacky (you will know it has reached this stage as it will be clear) and firmly press and smooth the foil onto your nail, foil shiny side up. You can use a cotton disc to help smooth out the foil and then, gently peel to reveal the transferred design. I suggest you work one nail at a time to ensure a smooth application and prevent the glue from drying completely from one nail to the other. Finally finish off with a top coat.

This particular foil transferred effortlessly to my nails and application was fairly smooth. The manicure lasted me for around 5 days before I could see any tip wear and the foil peeling off.

Born Pretty Store have a whole range of holographic nail foils with beautiful designs all throughout. This one I have retails for $3.07 and you can get it at 10% off if you quote the code EBABK31 at checkout.

PR Sample

Review | Born Pretty Store 2mm Striping Tape #5

Earlier last week I received a package from Born Pretty Store with some nail art products to review for you guys and the first thing that I really wanted to try was the 2mm rose gold striping tape. Currently I'm obsessed with everything rose gold - jewellery, nails, shoes, makeup, everything under the sun really! I just think it is such a versatile and luxe metal that goes with everything! I'm also really fond of this tape because of it's copper under-tones.

I used the tape in this skittle manicure to create a sort of geometric design on my ring fingernails and I really like how striking it looks against the other colours. To maximize the wear time of the striping tape, always make sure to trim the tape a little less than your nail length/width.

On me, the tape lasted for 4 days before the corners started to peel off after helping my boyfriend with painting some walls, house chores, doing dishes and work in general. I would also like to point out that the colour does fade a little on application of a top coat.

The 2mm striping tape range is available in 2 colours for just $0.99 a roll! I really like the holographic ones for the coming holiday season too. Which ones would you pick?

To get 10% off your order, quote the code EBABK31 at checkout.

The rings I am wearing in the above picture are also from Born Pretty Store and qualify for a 10% discount too.

PR Sample

Review | Born Pretty Store 4mm Metal Ring Nail Studs

One of the latest additions to my nail art decorations stash is this wheel with 6 colours of metal ring studs courtesy of Born Pretty Store.

The package comes with silver, chrome, gunmetal, gold, bronze and copper rings, all of which are 4mm in diameter. My first thought was to use them as a base for liquid jewels but they turned out to be a little smallish for the job. 

I then used them to enhance this white and rose rose gold water marble design and I was very pleased that they held on really well throughout the five days I wore the manicure.

The only thing I am not keen on with these rings is that their ends overlap and they scratch so I recommend filing them down a little before adhering them to your nails.

These metal nail decorations cost $2.66 and you can get 10% off with the code EBABK31 at checkout.

PR Sample

Review | B-Pro Systems Hybrid Gel Polish 122

A few weeks ago I posted a picture on my Instagram with a new kind of gel polish - hybrid gel polish to be exact which is produced locally by

B-Pro Systems.

I was sent the shade 122 which is a gorgeous Italian Pink that is very apt for the summer months and began testing it right away. What makes B-Pro Systems Hybrid Gel Polish different from other gel polishes? Well, you just apply the colour and cure! No base and top coat needed!

So, let's start with the basics...B-Pro Systems Hybrid Gel Polishes come in 8ml bottles just like regular nail polishes and I really like the size and shape of the brush as it fits my nail bed perfectly. Being a gel polish, the formula is obviously on the thicker side but it is very easy to work with.

What I did was prep my nails to remove surface oils so that the gel adheres to the nails, apply the first coat of colour, cure under UV or LED light, and repeat with a second coat and I was done! No base coat, no top coat, no nail cleanser! And i was left with a super glossy manicure in a little over 5 minutes!

How did it perform? I must say I was really impressed with the staying power of this gel polish especially when keeping in min that I did not apply a base and top coat. I started seeing the first signs of tip wear after about a little over a week and then by the second week, I had a really huge chip on one of my middle fingers which is going through a 'soft' phase at the moment and it bends easily so I guess that is what caused the chipping.

As for removal, I used acetone and wrapped my nails in soaked cotton discs for just 10 minutes and it was all gone without causing any damage to the nails. 

The B-Pro Systems Hybrid Gel Polishes are only available for sale to professional nail technicians from Beautica in Paola and they currently come in 24 shades but they keep adding new shades every so often so keep your eyes peeled for more shades.

I look forward to purchasing some shades in due course and introduce this service to my clients who sometimes just want a quick polish!

PR Sample