Links checked 12/12/13
Yes, highlights of the day, that’s what I said despite the fact that it’s only 7:34a- but I’ve been up since 6a.
Yes, highlights of the day, that’s what I said despite the fact that it’s only 7:34a- but I’ve been up since 6a.
My first Ah ha! moment came this morning while removing my franken Holo Green over San Fran; I used the “foil method” I’ve read about on the blogs and heard about on You Tube because removing it the old fashioned way is a pain and takes forever. The idea requires wrapping your fingertips in foil with cotton balls soaked in remover and looks ridiculous but don’t underestimate it because that was the most effortless removal I’ve ever done.
My second moment came while I was sitting at the table, card swatching my SpectraFlair holos. The polishes are very thin in consistency but they still needed to be mixed up so I started to shake one of the bottles when I felt something hit my cheek. I look down, I see polish coming out of the bottle but I can’t figure out why because the cap is screwed on tight, right? I check it to make sure and it snaps off in my hand. It’s not a loose cap, it’s the glass neck actually snapping off, the broken piece of neck still stuck in the cap. I’m not sure what annoys me more, the wasted bottle or the wasted polish. I was able to salvage most of the polish along with the cap and brush but the bottle is history.
Then the second bottle broke while I was shaking it, even more gently than the last, not roughly, not tapping it on my palm, just gently shaking it… and I felt polish on my hand, again. Rather than breaking at the neck, this one has a tiny hole at the top where the seam is.
Both are from the same 50-bottle batch I purchased recently from Nailite Inc. but these are different from the first set I ordered last year. Last year's were square in design, the brushes fitting securely inside their black caps. This set has issues. Rather than the nice squared bottle, they are round, the seams are sometimes quite visible (which is really an aesthetic thing), the brushes don’t always stay in their cap and fall out when you open the bottle. I updated the pics on my entry Best Buy Supplies when Nailite changed bottles but I didn’t think the quality would go down while the price stayed the same.
Left is the newer round bottle from Nailite, right is one of the square bottles I bought last year from them. Both are supposed to be “high quality Italian glass”, same price, same volume but one is inferior.
I don’t mind the self assembly but I mind the cheaper manufacturing. I emailed them a little while ago, not to ask for a refund but to make them aware of the bad batch or the bad few as the case may be. You should be aware too if you order these. My dealings with Nailite Inc in the past have been fine so I don't think it's the company, it’s the product. -MK
Looks like the holos were nice shades though.
ReplyDeleteI read a couple of days ago on Lynnderella's blog that she had a similar problem, she wrote that from what she has read that the bottle breakage was probably due to over filling the bottles, so maybe that's the problem...
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteI'm obsessed with glitter lately and came across your blog. Thanks for so many great tips! On your hints page you mention that you are using a calligraphy pen vs funnel. I just wanted to add that I sometimes use a metal pastry tip or even just a straw that I have cut the tip at an angle to scoop & pour. The straw is nice because if you switch colors just cut off a new section for each. Also, thought I was onto something re: suspension agents & silica (search: fumed silica transparent nail enamel) but can't figure out how to get a hold of any to experiment.
Denise- I’ll get them posted when I’ve completed refining them but thank you.
ReplyDeletePolish Queen- I saw that on Lynderalla’s blog too except my bottles were only half full- SpectraFlair costs too much to use a full bottle. I just think the glass on my bottles is much thinner than the bottles before that. Or maybe it was just bad luck, none of the rest have broken yet.
Pina- Yes, oftentimes I use the calligraphy pen for my drop, I’m good at estimating without measuring but I started using it before buying TKB’s spoon set. Pigment clings to anything plastic but not to my metal pen or the spoon simply because there is less surface area. After buying the spoon set, I learned the drop will also fit in the neck of the bottle so I use them interchangeably. As far as suspension, augment it with store bought polish. After all the research I’ve done, Stearalkonium Hectorite is the only suspension agent used in store bought polish while TKB’s suspension bases use a variant of that. As far as I know, you can’t buy that key ingredient. Fumed silica, even if you find a place to buy it, isn’t going to do you any good. It has thickening properties and is used in many industries including cosmetics (like the Magnesium Stearate I tried for the same reasons) but it must also be used for suspension and fumed silica by itself cannot do that. I believe the reason fumed silica would be used in clear polish is due to the fact that little or no Stearalkonium Hectorite is used and generally clear polish is a very thin consistency.