Pretties from Bohemian Glass Nail File

PR samples provided for review

 

My local forecast for this weekend calls for snow (five to ten inches of it!) but here inside I have pretty flowers to look at thanks to Bohemian Glass Nail File, who sent me a few of their products to try out. These glass files have painted handles decorated with Swarovski crystals and come in a few sizes. The long ones here are a touch over 5 inches and the small travel size is about three and a half inches. (They also have pedicure files available on their website which are longer and wider and just as pretty.)

 

One of the first things I did was take a close look at the files from the side, to make sure they were the good kind ... not that I thought they weren't, just having been burned by a bad glass file back in the day that tore up my nails, I'm extra careful. I was reassured when I saw that little dip between the handle and the file end that means the texture is ground into the file, not sprayed on.

 

I've used these for two manicures now and like them a lot; they leave my tips smooth, with no little wisps left over like emery boards or sprayed on glass files can. They don't wear out; after heavy use, I just wash and let dry and they're good as new. Here's a closer look at the designs; if I were more skilled with nail art, I could see copying these for manicures.

 

The design on the travel file was my favorite; my eyes are hungry for color now that spring is almost here and this design has a nice mix of shades.

 

The files come with soft black cases to protect the filing surface (and protect other things in my purse or makeup kit from the filing surface).

 

These files are made in the Czech Republic, which is known for fine glassware, but they ship out of California, which means I had my files only a few days after they were shipped.

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The files shown in this entry were provided free for review purposes. The content of the entry was not dictated by the provider, and I get to keep the files for my own use.

Aveniro Glass Nail Files

Sample provided for review

At the beginning of June, after exchanging email with a company representative, I received several samples of glass filing products from Aveniro, a source I'd not heard of before. They're based in the Czech Republic, which is known for its glass products, which is one of the reasons I agreed to review these.

Among the items I received was a matched set with a mini purse-sized nail file, a full-sized nail file, and a large foot file, all with plastic sleeves to store them in.



I was most interested in the foot file from this set, as it is sandal weather now. A feature I really liked about this file was that it has two different textures. One side is rough, with a coarser texture than a typical file; this was good to take down the calloused areas on my heels. The other side is smoother, more like a regular nail file, to do the final smoothing with. The foot file is made of thicker glass than a nail file, so I didn't worry about breaking it even though some spots on my feet required some heavy pressure to smooth out.

The nails files that came in the set with the foot file are good quality glass files, perfectly suited for shaping nails without damaging them, but I spent very little time using them during the time I was evaluating these products, as Aveniro also sent another nail file with the handle decorated with with pretty crystals. This one came with an opaque sleeve for storage that had a nice soft feel to it, almost like velvet.



You know I like my bling, so I've used this file pretty much exclusively for the last six weeks. It's a good qualilty file, leaves nail tips smooth, and is not too delicate to carry around in a purse.



Like all the files Aveniro sent, this is etched glass, which means the texture is part of the file, not sprayed on like some cheap files. The texture is not going to wear off; it just needs washing to restore it to its original state after regular use. I don't know if it's clear enough in the photo below, but you can tell an etched file by the way the filing surface is slightly lower than the handle when the file is viewed from the side.



All the files I received for review are double sided, so that means more filing time before washing is needed to restore the surface, which is a nice touch.

The last product I received was even more intriguing than the two-textured foot file. It's a dual ended manicure stick. This came in a hard plastic tube with a cap for storage. One end has a flat angled tip and the other is pointed; both are etched like a nail file.







I found this manicure stick quite handy to deal with rough skin along the edges of my fingertips along my nails. It was much easier to work into those small areas than the flat side of a nail file which had been my usual approach until this tool came into my life.

I wish I could direct you where to buy these products, but as of this writing Aveniro does not have an online shop. They do sell to other retailers, so you may want to check out their website to get an idea of what to look for when you're out and about.

The products shown in this entry were provided free for review purposes. The content of the entry was not dictated by the provider, and I get to keep the products for my own use.

Sparkly Accessories from Mont Bleu Plus a Poll

Two posts in one day? Believe it. My photo folders are overstuffed with things I want to shared, so I'm doubling up today. I could have bumped the nail wheel, as I so often have done in the past, but it's just getting back to its routine so I didn't want to disrupt that.

I've written before about how much I like Mont Bleu crystal nail files, so I was delighted a while back to get another package of goodies from them to review.

The file in this package was the large 195mm long size; you could do a lot of filing with this before having to stop and wash it.



Here's a comparison of the big file with the medium (135mm) and small (90mm) sizes I usually use. I keep a small one in my purse at all times and like it so much I ordered a half dozen similar ones to give to friends.



Another thing I keep in my purse is a bag hanger (the one I wrote about in this post). This package had a bag hanger as well, decorated with clear, red, and burgundy crystals. Nice as that was, I was immediately distracted by the compact mirror, the top of which is completely covered with different sizes of red and wine crystals.





The compact is gorgeous, and feels so solid in my hand. This is a special occasion piece, perfect for primping in public.



Continuing the elegant theme, the package also contained a wooden handled hair brush decorated with red and clear crystals. The bristles are a combination of boar and nylon massage pins. It's by far the nicest hair brush I've ever owned.





Rounding out the package was a jewelry set in red crystals: bracelet, earrings, and ring.



The Design Glassware by Mont Bleu website has products like these plus many more available for purchase. Right now I've got my eye on a bracelet made with aurora boreale crystals. Every shipment I've got from them has been well packaged and arrived in good shape. The files I ordered came in less than two weeks despite having to cross the ocean to get to me.

In other Mont Bleu news, they invited me to participate in a competition for bloggers to submit ideas for new designs for nail files. I was asked to come up with three ideas and then have you, my readers, vote on the one you like best. Your choice will be submitted with the winning designs from the other bloggers participating, then the Mont Bleu experts will pick the winner. That winning design will be produced by Mont Bleu and the winning blogger will be awarded a set of the files with the design. Of course, should the fates align and my design win, I would do a giveaway awarding files to readers, without whom there would be no blog and no opportunities like this.

After pondering, I decided on the following ideas. Please excuse my rough mockups; my contact at Mont Bleu assures me their designers and work with any type of sample/draft, which is good as my image editing skills are not the best.

#1 Nine Patch

This was inspired by one of my other hobbies, quilting, and incorporates two shades of my favorite color, purple, with an accent of green, which is calling to me more and more.



#2 Double Rainbow

This design illustrates my theory that if two or three colors are good, six are better.



#3 Elegance

And this last design is the other side of the coin, showing that sometimes restraint is called for.



Voting starts now and will continue through July 25th. The poll will be on my sidebar for the duration (just under the About Me block).

Which is your favorite design for the Mont Bleu competition?

The products shown in this entry were provided free for review purposes. The content of the entry was not dictated by the provider, and I get to keep the products for my own use.

Goodies from Mont Bleu

Design Glassware by Mont Bleu has been very kind in sending me products to review in the past, and today I've got more good stuff from them to share.

Since this is a nail blog, I'll start with the mini glass nail file. This particular one has Swarovski Elements (I just call them "crystals" but I'm not an expert on these things) in turquoise blue, clear, and smoke.



I don't see this exact file on their site right now, but there are so many options in the mini nail file section I might have missed it. There are decorated ones similar to this for 8 Euro and plain ones in a variety of colors for 4 Euro. The decorated ones (I'm not sure about the plain) come with a case to protect the working end of the file. The stones are still exposed when the file is in the case so it's easy to spot/feel when grabbing out of one's purse. When I first started carrying one around, I was worried about the stones coming off, but the mini file I've got in my purse right now is perfectly intact after over a year of me pulling it out and putting it back in and even losing it at the bottom of my bag for a while.



The next sparkly item I have to share is a business card holder. This is brushed metal decorated with jet black crystals on the outside and lined with black short nap velvet-like fabric. It's the perfect place for me to store the indie polish brand cards I've been gathering as I try new lines. This one retails for 19 Euro (other crystal colors are available in the same style); the undecorated version is 10 Euro.





Because I was just eagerly pulling out items from the box and not reading labels on the individual packages, I wasn't sure at first what this next item was. It was pretty, I did know that: a silvery disc decorated with crystals from clear to pink to fuchsia.



The outer ring could be unwrapped (and then rewrapped with a satisfying magnetic "snick").



Then I figured it out—the outer ring could not just be unwrapped but rotated to make a hook, a purse holder (a.k.a. bag hanger) to hang one's purse off a table instead of putting it on the floor or on the back of a chair. I wondered if it would be sturdy enough for my purse, into which I cram as much as will fit, and am happy say it did just fine. The back of the disc has a black rubbery insert that keeps it from slipping; I used it on a highly varnished and slippery restaurant table the other day and it stayed right where I put it. This sells for 16.90 Euro.



The last item is a bit of a departure from what I'm used to seeing from Mont Bleu, as it's made with pearl-type beads instead of crystals. It's the Shamballa Bracelet. The one I got has peachy pink pearly beads, though many other colors (and ones with faceted beads) are available; prices ranged from 17 Euro (plain beads) to 27 Euro (crystal beads) for the ones I looked at on the website.



I do wear bracelets sometimes, but hadn't encountered one with this fastening mechanism. Basically, you make it big enough to fit around your hand by sliding the section between the "tails" to one side, then slide it back once it's on your wrist. The black cord is a bit fuzzy, so the sliding takes a bit of tugging sometimes. The full size beads at the end of the tails help with sliding it back, but can get distracting while wearing the bracelet. I found myself a bit distracted by the clacking of the tail beads on the other ones sometimes. If you don't wave your hands around while talking the way I tend to do, you might not even have that clacking happen.



Every time I look at the Mont Bleu website, they seem to have new products. I just ordered a few things myself that may show up in a future entry. You can use code BLOG20 in the Voucher field when you check out to get 20% off, plus right now they're offering free air mail shipping (even international) for purchases over 38 Euro, so you can be sure I added enough to my order to qualify. I love a deal.

The products shown in this entry were provided free for review purposes. The content of the entry was not dictated by the provider, and I get to keep the products for my own use.

Glass Files and Other Good Stuff from Mont Bleu

Last year, I reviewed a couple of glass nail files sent to me by Design Glassware by Mont Bleu. Since then, I've pretty much used nothing else for filing my nails, except for a several week period when I misplaced the purse sized one and had to press a broken Swissco into service since I was not going to risk taking my only other Mont Bleu out of the house. So I was delighted when I got a package from Mont Bleu just recently with all these goodies:



The rounded end glass file is very similar to the files I reviewed last year, just with a rounded tip rather than the more pointed one. I'm not sure how to tell on the Mont Bleu site which files are this shape; the most similar crystals I could find were on this Swarovski glass nail file W-M5, which retails for 10 Euro.

The tweezers has crystals on one side of the handle, which not only makes it pretty but helps with grip, too. I usually use a scissors-handled tweezer because it's easier for me to maneuver, but I tried this one and it worked just fine. The most similar one I could find on the Mont Bleu site today was this one for 12 Euro, which has a slightly different shape. There are three pages of tweezers in a variety of colors and shapes, with and without crystals.

The file in front has the same pleasing filing texture on the business end as the other file. The handle end has the symbols for my zodiac sign as well as an inset crystal. I couldn't find this exact one on the Mont Bleu site, though the do have another Zodiac line of glass files for 10 Euro each.



I admit I am rushing through the tools to get to the earrings—I didn't even know they had earrings so was very surprised to see these in the package. when I got my hands on them, I didn't want to put them down to take pictures—the vibrant shifting colors are just so pretty to look at. There's blue and green and pink and yellow and coral and aqua and purple and orange, and I just kept moving them around to admire them. I did find these on the Mont Bleu site; they're the Austrian Crystal Earrings (8 Euro).







My only problem with the earrings is that when I'm wearing them, I can't see them. Fortunately, they also have rings on the site, like this Two crystals Swarovski one. That looks nice, and it's adjustable so I wouldn't have to worry about fit.

As with the last shipment I got from Mont Bleu, this came in protective pacakaging and arrived in perfect shape.

The products shown in this entry were provided free for review purposes. The content of the entry was not dictated by the provider.

Barielle Treatment and Top Coat

If you read my posts on even a semi-regular basis, you know I struggle with peelies. So when Barielle sent a bottle of their Nail Rebuilding for me and Lucy to try, I was quite interested to see if it might help me.



If I were a really conscientious reviewer, I would have followed the directions exactly. As shown on the website, they are: "Use 2-3 times per week for 3 weeks without additional lacquers to allow nails to breathe. Then use as a fortifying basecoat in your weekly manicure regimen." Three weeks without color? That was not going to happen. I figured since I change my polish more often than the typical person, I'd be applying it at least two times a week anyway so just skipped ahead to using it as the first step in my manicure. After doing that consistently for five weeks, my nails look like this with just the Nail Rebuilding Protein on them:



I didn't crop my thumbnail out of that photo because I'm pleased to be able to show that it's as long as my other nails, instead of being shorter because I've had to cut it down to remove damage. My right thumbnail, which is usually even worse because I'm right handed and just can't seem to stop using that nail as a tool, is just as long. I'm not sure the last time that was the case; it's been quite a while.



My peelies haven't entirely gone away, but they are much better. Right now, I've only got them on two nails, which is a big improvement over the four or five or six that's been more usual for me. One thing I like about this treatment is that it seems to do a good job of sticking the damaged layers together so they don't keep creeping up and up the nail. This means I don't have to take down the length to cut off the bad spot right away. I don't know if you could see it in the photo above, so here's a closer look at the one bad nail on my left hand (the one on my right looks similar):



I'm quite pleased with how this treatment is working for me, so much so that I bought the PRO version at Sally Beauty for myself when it was time to send this bottle along to Lucy. I know not every treatment works for every person, but this one sure seems to be working for me right now.

Barielle also sent their Ultra Speed Dry Manicure Extender for a tryout. I didn't use this as much as I did the treatment, but when I did use it, it worked fine. The consistency is thinner than what I'm used to using, but that didn't seem to affect its longevity. I never did try it as a manicure refresher since I don't tend to keep my polish on long enough to need refreshing.



The Ultra Speed Dry Manicure Extender is $16.00 on Barielle's site, and the Nail Rebuilding Protein is $17.50. I have the feeling that they would last a while; that first photo shows the bottle after I'd used it at least nine or ten times (probably more).

The treatment and topcoat shown in this entry were provided free for review purposes. The content of the entry was not dictated by the provider.

Glass Nail Files by Mont Bleu

A few weeks ago, I got a package from Design Glassware by Mont Bleu which contained two glass nail files for review. These files are decorative as well as functional, since the handles are adorned with Swarovski crystals. I got a set of two: one full size and one mini; both came in soft black sleeves for protection.



Here they are out of their sleeves (on top of the box they came in, which was inside a bubble mailer, which protected them just fine on their journey from the Czech Republic to me here in Michigan USA). The white smudges are because I could not wait to try them and tested on my nail as soon as I slid them out. Like all glass files, these are washable, so those marks aren't permanent.



I've been using Swissco glass files most recently. Compared to those, the one from Mont Bleu is just a touch longer and about the same width. The biggest difference is the Mont Bleu is two-sided (the Swissco is textured on just one side), so I can do twice as much filing before I need to wash off the surface. Last night, this came in quite handy, since I had to take off a lot of length due to an unfortunate incident with one of my pinky nails—I didn't think picking up a pile of clean laundry from a bed was a risky move, but I managed to snag my nail in a loose thread on the comforter and that snapped the tip right off. Ah well, stuff happens. (In photo, Swissco on top, Mont Bleu below.)



The crystals are very pretty and sparkly, and also make it easy to hold on to the file. I was a bit worried the stones wouldn't stay in place, but I've been using these files for three weeks now and they're still on there solidly. I even poked at the stones trying to see if I could wiggle them or pry the off—I couldn't.





Like I mentioned above, I've been using these files for three weeks—the full size for manis and the mini is in my purse for touch ups. They work quite nicely; the texture is very fine and leaves my nail edges smooth. That they're pretty, too, is an added bonus.



The Design Glassware site has huge variety of designs available, including some plain files if you're not into so much bling. Files like the ones I've shown are 10 euro for the full size and 8 euro for the mini (the set is 15 euro; there's also a set of three with these two plus a jumbo one for 27 euro). I've got my eye on a plain glass nail file with a purple gradation on the handle for my travel kit; that's 5 euro. There are some that combine crystals and color, like this Swarovski glass nail file with a lilac handle decorated with sparkly stones; I haven't figured out how to justify getting that one yet. They also have other products, like tweezers and compact mirrors and more, but I haven't even managed to look at all the files yet.

The Mont Bleu files shown in this entry were provided to me free for review purposes. The content of the entry was not dictated by the provider.

A Confession, Some Nudity, and a Break

The last time I posted an actual nails of the day entry was July 4th. There's nothing unusual about that; it typically takes me at least a few days to get photos out of my camera and into an entry. But you may have noticed that it's been a quite while since I posted even a recent nails of the day entry. Since late September, I've been working off my backlog of swatches, as I had to put my nails in rehab due to an unfortunate incident: my first ripped nail in I don't know how long. Peelies are pretty much a constant battle for me, but I'd been having really good luck with not getting rips and tears. Until a few weeks back, when I felt a nail catch on my clothes and instead of the hangnail I expected to find when I looked at the snaggy hand, I saw a rip in one of my nails. When I took off my polish (well, most of it), this is what I found on my left middle finger:



I was tempted to try and patch over the rip with a silk wrap or teabag, but as I recall that gets tedious to keep up, and besides earlier that week I'd been reaching for something without looking and jammed my right hand into a wooden railing, with this result on the middle finger on my right hand (this is after I filed back the part that was completely destroyed):



With two nails really struggling and a few others showing signs of Mr. Peelies, I decided it was best to just cut them all down to shorties and do a treatment week. Given how stained my nails were, I was somewhat chagrined to think of going out in public with nothing but clear coat between them and the world, but I reminded myself that I don't work at a beauty supply store, I work with computer geeks, most of whom pay absolutely no attention to my nails whatsoever. Here's my left hand, pre-rehab; it gets the worst of the staining because it's where I try out all the colors:



And here's that hand, freshly trimmed and treated with OPI Nail Envy Sensitive & Peeling, which I decided to try instead of my usual Orly Nailtrition or Nail Defense since those aren't completely making the peelies go away. My nails look so strange to me here, even though I used to keep them at this length or even shorter all the time.



I spent the next week applying another coat of Nail Envy every other day, per package directions. At the end of that week, here's how they'd progressed. My index finger was actually worse, but that damage was no doubt already done before I started rehab and just lurking, waiting to show itself.



I followed that with another week of Nail Envy, adding a new coat a couple of times during the week. After that week, here's what my nails looked like naked. Not at all pretty, I must say, though I guess the staining is better since I cut much of it off and some of the rest peeled away. I know it takes weeks for nails to grow out and the damage I'm seeing here is just going to take time to get past, but it's still discouraging.



At this point, I could not stand one more day of having nothing but treatment on my nails, but that's a story for another entry, which I will write after I get back from one of my periodic mini-breaks. I'll be spending next week mostly offline, getting reconnected with people who don't live in my computer or work in my office and refreshing my brain. I'll be back on the 24th or 25th, most likely. See you then!