BMC Gel Polish Fundamentals and Football

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Hello Loves!  I know I disappeared again.  Things got a little crazy last week.  Good news is on the horizon.  I'm not ready to share yet, but I'm super excited.  I'll share when I can, I promise!  So, I'm back today with the Bundle Monster Speed Gel Fundamentals Collection.  This collection consists of three basic colors - black, white and red.  Don't let the bottles fool you - these are Speed Gels.  I'm not sure why they are in the Gel Polish bottles instead of the Speed Gel bottles, but they are one step gels that don't require a base or top coat.  The collection also includes a really neat travel LED light in the form of a flashlight.  I put it to the test and will share my thoughts on the light too.  :)

But first, how about a little art?  Fall is coming, and in the South that means one thing.  No, not changing leaves and cooler weather, though that does happen.  What fall means in Athens, GA is football.  Oh yes, I live in the home of the Georgia Bulldogs, and this past Saturday was the first game of the season.  It just so happens that UGA's colors are red and black...and the Fundamentals Collection had me covered.  Of course I couldn't resist a little bit of team spirit artwork.  Funny really...I'm not a football fan.  I keep a copy of the game schedule, but not so I can watch the game.  Growing up in this town, you learn early that you have to keep up with the schedule to know when to time your outings on game day to avoid the traffic.  You also learn to keep up with other school colors to be sure you don't accidentally walk out of the house in the opposing team's colors during home games.  lol

So, why did I start with the art?  Well, I think it says a lot about one of the polishes in this collection.  Take a look at that Georgia G.  Not as crisp and clean as my usual work, right?  Yeah...so let's talk about Cocktail Dress.  Cocktail Dress is a basic black cream.  I had really high hopes for this one based on the other two polishes in this collection, but honestly, Cocktail Dress didn't live up to my expectations.  It is a decent back with fair coverage in two coats, but as you can see in the dots in the art above (especially the pinkie nail in the last photo), it is not as rich as I was expecting.  Let's take a look at the pure swatch.  This is two coats.  Application was a little tricky too as I found it a little shrinky on the first coat.  The second coat evened it out without issue.  The shine is quite impressive, though.  Again, this is a one step gel - no separate top coat.

Moving on, Button Down is a bright white cream that did not disappoint.  This one was a breeze to apply and provides excellent coverage in two coats.  There's not really much else to say about a white, so here are the photos.  :)

Finally, Rouge Lipstick is a classic red cream.  I would call it a true red - not too orange or too blue.  It really is a fundamental shade.  This one actually blew my mind.  It offers perfect coverage in just one coat, making it a wonderful base for art!

I talked about the coverage of Cocktail Dress for art above, but let's take a look at the others.  I decided to do a simple doticure to test out the coverage.  Yeah, I know...dots don't really show coverage for art but I was running out of time.  So dots it is.  I focused mainly on Cocktail Dress and Button Down.  Button Down dots really well, but remember, since these are one steps the dots will be raised if you don't add a separate top coat.  Not that I have anything against texture.  ;)

I used a base of Cocktail Dress and dotted it with Rouge Lipstick on my thumb.  Rouge Lipstick is fabulous for dotting and I suspect will be awesome for art as well.  I'll have to test it out when I have a minute to breathe.  While this was just a dot test, I find myself a little smitten with it as a manicure.

Ok, so let's talk about that Travel LED Flashlight.  This thing is really neat.  I wasn't sure about it at first, but it cures the speed gels flawlessly in the same amount of time as my Harmony 18G.  Of course, it is a one finger cure.  But it works perfectly!

Not only is it compact for travel, but I'm in love with this little light for nail art too.  I do A LOT of flash curing.  A LOT.  It isn't always comfortable to put one finger in my bigger lamp, so I gave this little light a try for flash curing art work.  Yeah, it's perfect.  PERFECT.  Ok, I know I keep screaming at you, but I seriously adore this thing.  Simply hold it 2 inches above the nail for the recommended cure time.  It even appears to work with a variety of other brands.  :)  Those 12 led bulbs really get the job done.

The only down side is I think my husband loves it more than I do.  He has an LED flashlight that he purchased a while ago (as a hunting/tracking aid) and it is no where near as bright or powerful as this one.  This little baby also lights up glow in the dark paint brighter than any other light I've tried.  We painted glow in the dark stars on my son's ceiling, and I used this travel LED flashlight to charge them last night.  The paint has been there for 2 years and the stars were glowing so bright I could see outlines of the furniture in a pitch black room!

Ok, so I'm seriously crushing on this flashlight.  But I'm also happy with the Fundamentals Collection.  I know I've been a little critical of Cocktail Dress, but as a base color it gets the job done.  It just isn't as bold as I would like for art.  If you're not looking for an art black, this one is good.  Button Down and Rouge Lipstick are both fabulous!

If you want to add any of these colors to your collection (or the entire Fundamentals set), you can pick them up on Bundle Monster's Website here or on Amazon here.  The flashlight is also available for purchase separately from the collection.  You can purchase it on Bundle Monster's website here or on Amazon here.  :)

Oh, and I hope all of my US followers have a happy and safe Labor Day!  If you're having a beer or grilling a burger, have one for me.  :)  I'll be sitting here in front of my computer editing photos all day.  Such an exciting life I live.  lol

~Michelle

* The products featured in this post were provided by Bundle Monster for my honest review.  This post uses Amazon Affiliate Links.  Purchases through these links generate commissions that help fund this site.  All other links are courtesy links and do not benefit ManicTalons.com.