Beauty Big Bang had recently sent me some products to review. One of them is a beautiful green chrome powder (Item ID#J6463TM-1C). Chrome powders can look gorgeous, but only if you apply them correctly!


One of the main things that you will require to use the chrome powders is a gel top coat. I tried using a regular topcoat at first but it dulled the metallic sheen and made the nails look less like chrome. If you don't use a gel base coat or base colour, you will need to make sure that you create a smooth base for the chrome to adhere to. To do this, using new polish, or an old polish thinned out with nail thinner tends to work best. If you create any bumps or dings in the nail, it will show through the chrome and get rid of the smooth mirror finish.

To start off, apply base coat, then a black polish. Next you can either use regular top coat or gel topcoat before the powder. If you use a regular top coat, you must wait for it to get almost dry, but not completely. If you use a gel top coat, simply cure it under a lamp . Then you need to use a burnishing technique to buff the powder in. Pick up some of the chrome powder with the application sponge provided and tap it onto the nail, then very lightly buff it in. I actually found that using my finger tips allowed me to lightly buff in the chrome powder much easier than by using the application sponge. Lastly, apply gel topcoat and cure the nails again.

I rushed through all these steps and it shows in my final look. You can see some of the bumps and dings under the chrome unfortunately. I also wish that my camera could see my nails how I see them, because they looked much more mirror-like and metallic in real life. They looked much more like the stock photo that I've provided below.

Beauty Big Bang offers a growing variety of nail polishes and nail art supplies, and also offers free worldwide shipping. IF you have't checked them out before, they're definitely worth a try!

Recently, Beauty Big Bang sent me some products to test and review for your all. If you don't know what BBB is, they are a nail art company that offers a wide variety of nail art items for inexpensive prices, and also offers free worldwide shipping. If you live in Canada or anywhere outside of the US like me, this is great news because shipping usually costs an arm and a leg to get to me!

One of the items that I chose to review was BBB's Chameleon Aurora Flakes. I chose the colour 5C (Item ID: J7421) which contains a variety of blue, teal, purple, and silver holographic flakes. These flakes are similar to the ones that I reviewed last year for BBB, except they are opaque instead of iridescent.

The Chameleon Aurora Flakes are listed as $7.72CAD on Beauty Big Bang's website, and are currently on promotion for $4.76CAD. They come in a container with approximately 0.1g of product, which doesn't seem like a whole lot, but it is more than enough for several uses. It also comes with an applicator, which is similar to that of an eyeshadow sponge.

What I like about this product is that it is ridiculously easy to apply, does not require gel polish, and you can wear it 2 different ways: scattered or opaque. I made sure to take pictures of both types of application for you guys!

For the scattered effect, I first applied a black polish as a base. I then applied a regular topcoat and waited for it to get tacky but not completely dry. Next, with the applicator, I picked up a small amount of the flakes and gently dabbed over various spots on the nail. You want to be careful not to pick up too much product or dab the entire nail, as you want the design to look scattered and to not completely cover up the black base.


For an opaque look, you will need to apply a black base, and apply a regular topcoat. After the topcoat is tacky but not yet completely dry, you will want to take the applicator and pick up a generous helping of the flakes. You will next want to dab the product over the entirety of the nail. Once you have done this, you can buff the product all over the nail to fill in any gaps that you may have left behind. The reason why you want to dab the product before buffing it in is so that the sponge does not stick to the polish and smudge your base around. You can also just as easily create this look by buffing it onto a cured gel topcoat. However, I understand that not everyone has gel manicure systems at home, which is why I decided to tell you how to apply the flakes with a regular topcoat.

Honestly, my pictures cannot do this manicure justice! It looked way more stunning in person, and I received many compliments for wearing the opaque look. The finished design was a gorgeous multichrome with some scattered holographic flakes here and there. The flakes made my nails shift from green, to purple, blue, and teal. I will definitely wear this design in the future!

If you'd like to try out these Chameleon Aurora Flakes for yourself, be sure to check out Beauty Big Bang's website! You can also use my code BLONDIE to can get 10% off of your order.

Pigment powders of all sorts have been burning up in the nail art world. There's chrome, holographic, and chameleon – some of which are also called "mirror" pigment powders. Chameleon powders are called as such because they make the nail shift between two colours, but they can also be called mirror powders because of their ability to make the nail shiny and reflect the light sources around it. Chrome powders can also be called a mirror powder because it makes the nail's surface shiny enough to reflect its surroundings onto it.
I recently purchased all three types of pigment powders from Born Pretty Store to see if these powders truly live up to their hype.

All of the powders came in a cute little container similar to a pot of loose eyeshadow, and they all came with an application tool which are basically little eyeshadow application brushes. When you apply the product to your nails, you may need to take preventative measures so that you don't make a mess. These powders get very messy and will leave glitter all over your workspace. I strongly recommend doing your nails over a piece of paper or paper towel so that you can easily contain the mess and just throw it away when you are finished. I used white paper which turned out to be very convenient, as I was able to roll the paper into a funnel and tap excess powder back into the pot for future use.

In order to apply pigment powder, you will need a gel topcoat and a UV lamp. However, I've seen many nail artists using gel formula polishes that do not require a UV lamp in order to create pigment powder nail designs (e.g. Essence The Gel Nail Polish Top Coat, Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Top Coat). This important to note when doing chrome nails, because just like when using nail foils, pigment powder designs can crack when using traditional top coats. Water-based top coats are also acceptable for pigment powder designs because they will also not cause cracking in the design (Suncoat Water-Based Nail Polish). However, your base coat and coloured polish do not need to be gel formulas. I used a regular base coat and black polish paired with a gel top coat from Born Pretty Store. When my black polish was finished drying, I applied the gel top coat and cured it under my UV lamp. Once cured, I buffed the silver chrome powder onto my nails. The powder applied with ease and instantly transformed my nails from black to chrome. When I was finished applying the powder, I sealed it in with one last coat of cured gel top coat.

If you've been keeping up with the nail pigment powder trend, then you'll have probably noticed that many nail artists have been expressing their difficulties trying to remove excess powder off of their skin. Many have been using liquid latex barriers around their nails so that they can peel off and discard the glitter. Some have also been using acetone and a cleanup brush to remove the small particles from their skin. I personally found that just rinsing your hands under water was a very easy method of cleanup. Just be sure that if you are not using cured top coat that your nails are completely dry before using a hand towel. If your nails are not completely dry, you may accidentally dent your design on a hand towel's fibres.

Overall, my chrome nails looked incredibly chic and I received many compliments on them. They were very shiny and reflective and I often found myself ogling my nails and watching the different reflections appear on their surface. If you are interested in trying out chrome or mirror nails for yourself, be sure to check out Born Pretty Store's website. All of the products that I used to create this look are listed below.


Products Used*:

Silver Mirror/Chrome Powder ($2.65 CAD)
5ml UV Topcoat/Basecoat ($3.18 CAD)
Sally Hansen Salon Gel Polish Manicure Starter Kit ($69.97 CAD)
Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear - Black Out ($2.47 CAD)
Revlon Colorstay Gel Smooth Basecoat (discontinued)

*Product price points are subject to change based on the current exchange rate.