Nail Art for Beginners: The Scrapbook Scissor Manicure

Hey Ladies! If you didn't see my guest post over at Beauty Full Lacquer, then click the link and head over there now. I did a nail art tutorial, and decided to start a series on here called "Nail Art for Beginners." These are going to be my attempts at nail art that I see on Pinterest or other blogs. Some might be successes and others might be complete failures, but I will share the process either way. Hopefully, other beginners like me will find some new techniques to try!

Today's manicure is my attempt at the Pin below. The picture is pretty straight forward. They used scrapbook scissors with a detailed edge to cut Scotch tape, thus getting an effortless design.

Credit

For my manicure I chose to use green painters tape, as I was worried that the Scotch tape would stick to the bottom nail polish too much. I used Joe Fresh Hula as my base colour, and Nubar Elegant Indigo as the accent colour. I was surprised that I actually liked how this colour combination looked.

The execution of the manicure worked okay. I was worried that the painters tape would wreck the base colour so I didn't push it down very hard. This caused the detailed edge to not be crisp and clean in some areas. Next time I attempt this I will wait to make sure the base colour is dry, and will try to use scissors with a less detailed pattern.

New Nail-Mail Subscription Box! Bondi New York!

Hey girls! First I want to say sorry for the long hiatus. I took July off to finish up my online course, spend some time with family and friends, and to celebrate my birthday. I have been missing blogging so much, so thought I would come back with a really exciting review. Today I am going to be reviewing the newest monthly subscription service to hit the scene. It's a nail mail box by the company Bondi New York, and based on what I've read and seen it is going to be a huge success. Lets start with a bit of information about the company itself.

About Bondi

This brand new nail polish company was launched in 2013 with a collection of 20 fashion forward colours that are 5 free. What is 5 free you ask? These polishes are free of 5 harmful chemicals that are found in most other nail polishes: formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, camphor, toluene, and DBP.

This company is based out of New York City and is all American made. All of their net profits (after costs) go to their non-profit foundation, which supports a wide variety of charitable causes throughout the United States.

About Bondi's Subscription Box

Bondi's Subscription box will launch in August 2012. The doors are already open for sign ups. All you have to do is sign up on their website http://www.bondinewyork.com/ with your name and email and you will be sent a link to access the subscription page.

What you can expect every month

Every month your subscription box will include:

• 3 full size polishes that have a retail value of $37.50
• A deluxe beauty gift
• An opportunity to win one of a number of $500 gift cards they are placing in random boxes
• A 25% discount on polish purchases from the website (This will drop the sale price from $12.50 a polish to $9.38)
• Free shipping (even for Canadians! It's great to finally see a company offer their service to us without ridiculous shipping and duty charges added on)
  

What you can expect within the first 3 months

August's box will contain their current collection of polishes. Subscribers will get 1 of 8 different colour variations. If you would like to sign up for more then 1 box in August, just shoot them a quick email. Customer service will make sure that you don't receive 2 of the same box.

September's box will be a preview of their upcoming Fall Collection. I've seen a few swatches on their Facebook Page of what I am assuming is the Fall Collection and they look gorgeous! Bondi also had a naming competition and 5 lucky ladies won a free box for having the most popular names.

October will be the first month that they send subscriber's only polishes. These polishes will only be available in the subscription boxes and not for regular sale on the website. This is a great marketing tactic by them to get and keep subscribers. The words "limited edition", "special collection", and "members only" before the word polish really suck beauty enthusiasts in. They will make a killing off these subscription boxes.

Sneak Peak of the Fall Collection. Polish names on Right from T-B: The 7 Train; My Ex's Heart; Police Box; Meadow Moss; West Point Waters

When to sign up & When the box ships

You can subscribe from the 15th on in order to receive the following month's box. For example: to receive September's box you can sign up starting August 15th. Subscriptions are recurring so there is no need to mark your calendars to make sure you sign up in time.

Boxes ship each month on the 1st. If that day happens to be a weekend or holiday then they will ship out the next business day. I really like that they are shipping at the beginning of the month. It will take longer to reach me in Canada, and I want to receive the box in the month it is intended so that I can review it in that month as well.

Subscription Plan Options

There are four subscription plan options for us to choose from.

1. Month to Month = $19.99/month
2. 3 Month Plan = $49.97 or $16.66/month (with this option you save $10)
3. 6 Month Plan = $99.95 or $16.66/month (with this option you save $19.99)
4. 12 Month Plan = $199.90 or $16.66/month (with this option you save $39.98)

With all 4 plans above you will have the option to skip months where you don't like the colour selection. The long term plans will automatically renew after you have successfully receive all the months paid for.

The Bondi Team

Skipping a month

Starting with September's box you will be able to preview the colours in the box and if they do not interest you then you can choose to skip. Previews for the box will go out 7-10 days before the shipping date, to allow customers the opportunity to let Bondi know if they would like to skip that month or cancel, if they don't wish to continue receiving the box.

Bondi is currently working on integrating the Subscription Box into regular accounts. This should be done by mid-September, at that time to skip you will just have to hit the Skip button. In the mean time to skip you can chat with a Rep on their website 24hours a day. You can call 1-888-548-2290 or email hello@bondinewyork.com and a customer service rep will take care of it for you.

Bondi posted this pic on Facebook showing the beginning stages of their Account system.

How is Bondi's Customer Service?

So far my experience with Bondi has been through the roof. Someone is always available to chat on their website. They always answer questions quickly and thoroughly. When you email them you can expect an email back within 24 hours and most of the time it is from the Founder himself, Richard Annington. You can ask a million questions and they answer them all with enthusiasm and a smile. Their customer service is a big reason why I am signing up for this service.

Bondi Founder Richard Annington

A sneak peak of September's Box

While emailing back and forth with Richard he gave me a little spoiler for September's box, and I thought I would share it with all of you!

"September's box will have a twist. We are partnering with a charitable organization to raise awareness of a national issue here in the U.S. It is going to be "sexy cause" marketing, not "begging and making you feel bad with every stroke of the polish brush" marketing."

 

 

I for one an very excited about this subscription box and hope that it doesn't disappoint me like Julep did. I will be reviewing August's box thanks to Bondi, and then I will be signing up on a month to month basis starting in September.

 

What do you think the charitable organization is going to be? What are your thoughts on this Subscription Box? Will you be signing up? Leave me your thoughts in the comments below.