I am embarrassed to say that I have been hoarding this book, bound un-cracked, for nearly a year. Shameful! So shameful. I wasn’t even hoarding it for myself, I was waiting for the perfect opportunity to unleash it onto the world, and that time is now!
This little nail polish cookbook was written by Allison Rose Spiekermann who created Nail Pattern Boldness (which gets 1,000 points for cleverness), a line of nail lacquers, bases and top coats.
I call it a nail polish cookbook because, obviously, the title is Homemade Nail Polish: Create Unique Colors and Designs for Stunning Nails. The entire book is about using the nail polish you have (plus some cool new tools) to invent, create, and show off one-of-a-kind manicures.
That’s not carefully painted floral nail art – that’s a homemade polish!
But it doesn’t stop at manicures – or I should say, it doesn’t start at manicures… it starts at the very building blocks of nail polish: ingredients.
Aside from the seven syllable, unpronounceable ingredients in nail polish (stearalkonium hectorite?), which it defines and explains for you, it also goes into details about glitter, the types and sizes of which are detailed meticulously.
Once the basics are out of the way, then the real fun starts. Creativity is required!
Making your own nail polish
Each page details a different formula to create a unique polish with varying textures and finishes. Some include glitter, some are jelly textured, and some even include other makeup products I guarantee you already have.
There are also other tips and tricks scattered throughout the book, like ways to dismantle nail polishes to “harvest” the parts you like.
Ultimately, what I really like about this book is that it doesn’t leave you high & dry at any point of nail polish creation. It leads you through every step, from ingredients to packaging and labelling.
Tons of people have been making their own nail polishes for years. A quick search on Etsy shows exactly how prolific custom polishes are, and if you’ve got a knack for it, that’s potential income, baby. Just take it from Allison, herself! Not only has she founded a successful nail polish line of her own, but she’s also managed to take it to the next step and publish a really helpful, valuable book about every step of her process. (Well, almost every step – everyone needs their trade secrets!)
This book made me actively want to try my hand at nail polish creation. I’m a sucker for anything creative and productive, but this is something that fuses creativity with fashion in a way that is accessible and just straight up fun. (I’m seeing homemade stocking stuffers for my girlfriends & party favors in my future.)
You can pick up a hardbound copy of this book for $13.49 or a Kindle copy for $9.99 at Amazon, on Nook for $10.49 or…
You can win this copy of Homemade Nail Polish in a giveaway.
This giveaway. And it’s a big giveaway, actually. I am not kidding when I said I was inspired by this book when I got it, and wanted to find the perfect time to do a giveaway.
I am giving away a copy of Homemade Nail Polish: Create Unique Colors and Designs for Stunning Nails written by Allison Rose Spiekermann, and I am really excited about it so I’m going overboard with accessory prizes.
The entire giveaway prize package includes:
- 1 book: Homemade Nail Polish
- 2 Cutex Advanced Revival Nail Polish Remover Pads
- 2 bottles of Cutex Spa Formula Nail Polish Remover
- 3 Julep nail polishes in Piper, Nadia, & Adrianna
- + An unknown number of random other things from my sample bins (I am an intense, occasionally disconcerting gift-giver…)
I really wanted to include some empty nail polish bottles like these because you’d legit have everything you needed to make your own polish (I mean what I said about guaranteeing that you already have ingredients you can use!) but I didn’t grab them in time. Luckily, you can get ten empty bottles with brushes for just under $15, or you can surf eBay which also has some good deals on empty bottles! Be sure that whichever ones you buy come with the little mixing balls.
How to enter
Enter the giveaway by using this widget to complete tasks you’ve probably already completed! You can have up to 4 entries, and the winner will be chosen randomly on March 5th, 2015.
This giveaway is open to USA residents only – sorry rest of world! I promise I’ll get to you next time.
Good luck!
Giveaway ends Wednesday, March 4th, 2015 at 11:59pm
Winner selected March 5th, 2015.
(Hover over image to Pin!)