For the longest time, I wasn't much of a girly-girl. I played piano for many years which never gave me occasion to grow my nails out at all, and always having short nails made me not care about polish. Add the fact I was a spazz with a nail polish brush and always made a huge mess and that I am ridiculously prone to chipping it within less than a day, and it was a given I wouldn't bother with it much.

For the first time ever, I've started growing out my nails to a decent length. BPTP claw polishes can claim a lot of credit for that. I've decided to talk a little bit about all of the ones I have so far rather than doing separate entries since I don't have that many yet.

The first I bought was Blood Countess. I adore the color. It's a true red, a very deep, dark, dried blood red without either brown or purple in it. I use three layers over a base coat for the most even color, letting it dry between each layer, and top it with a top coat. Dry time is average. The polish is high gloss with a very professional looking finish. I had it on my hands and feet two weeks the first time I tried it, with no chipping or fading at all on the feet and very minimal chipping at the tips for the fingernails.

Second up were Maiden and Embalming Fluid, which layer with each other very well. The finished product looked like opals on my fingertips and toes. The only complaint I have with Maiden is that it seems a little more chip prone than Blood Countess, with or without Embalming Fluid. Embalming Fluid glows a bright, white-green in the dark. Just be careful and gentle when removing it. The glitter can rough up your nail surface and leave scratches.

Lastly has been Hell's Belle. The color is drop dead gorgeous, a metallic pink with a gold sheen and the tendency to look a little bit lilac in bright sun. However, I think I got a bottle that overheated in the mail or something. The cap was gunked on, and the polish seems unusually thick. I've had to shake it between every nail and wasn't able to get a perfectly smooth, even coat. It also took three hours to dry fully. I like the color enough to try this again in cold weather, and since the other colors have been so high quality, I can't help but think this was probably a fluke. On the plus side, I had it on two weeks before it started to chip, a record for me on my hands!

BPTP an BPAL, you're turning me from my tomboy ways, slowly but surely. All I need now is a fan and a fainting couch.