Bundle Monster Plates, Detailed Review and Konad Comparison.

Okay, anyone who uses Konad has probably heard of the Bundle Monster plates by now.
If not then let me help you out,  Bundle Monster is the name of an Amazon.com seller that has created their own fauxnad plates.  There are currently 21 plates and they are the same kind of thing as Konad, various designs etched into the round metal plate.

There are some really cute designs too, I actually bought mine for one single design! LOL  Sad eh?  Sorry, but the lipstick design was so flipping cute it had to be done, see my French Kiss mani here.

They are really good value for money as you get 21 plates for $17.99 plus shipping.  I got mine for $22 including shipping from the USA to the UK.  The shipping was very fast too.  I ordered on Sunday, they shipped on Monday and I got them by Saturday!  Pretty good eh?

Okay, so what do I think now they are here?  Well, as I said, I only bought them for one design, so anything I liked above that was a bonus.  I actually have to say I like from 2 to 4 designs on each plate, so pretty good going.  There are some really fun designs too, loving those. They are packaged in three sets of seven plates, in clear plastic wrappers similar to Konad.  They are the same size as Konad plates too.  All good so far huh?

 

BM plate compared to a Konad plate

Well, it's not all great news........
The plates are just metal, there is a layer of clear plastic on the top that you have to remove before stamping and there is no paper backing as you get on the Konad plates, and herein lies their biggest issue.......they are super sharp!!!  I mean seriously scary to handle.  Luckily I already knew about this before I bought them so I handle them with care, keeping my fingers from the edges, but if you were not aware of this, you could very easily cut yourself, and probably pretty deep too (I have seen a few pics online of BM cuts already, ouch!).

If you get these plates, please do be very careful when handling them.  I would hate anyone to get hurt. When removing the plastic layer I found it best to lay the plate on a paper towel, press in the middle of the plate to keep it firm as you scratch near the edge with your nail, after a few strokes it will begin to come away.  Keep scratching until there is enough to peel it back.  This way you don't put your fingers near the sharp edges. This worked for me, easily and safely.

The lines etched on the plates seem a bit thicker than konad, so a few designs lack detail, but the huge majority are really good.  Though there are a few bizarre ones, chilli peppers anyone ;o) LOL.  
To those that don't know, there is a chilli pepper design that really looks like a scrotum, no honestly, it actually does.....

They don't appear to be etched quite as deeply as Konad plates, but I had a quick try with one design and it seemed to be okay as long as you don't scrape too firmly, otherwise you will remove the polish from the larger more solid designs.  They don't always seem to scrape cleanly either, sometimes leaving too much polish on the surface of the metal, meaning you have to scrape again.  Some practice soon gets it right though, so all good there.
Also the full nail designs and tip designs are small, smaller than Konad, and I already struggle with Konad full nail designs on one of my thumbs, so I will have to adapt these to suit.  Shame as there are some nice full nail ones, if only they were made just a tad bigger.....

 Here are two pics showing the difference in size of the BM full nail compared to Konad full nail, plus the BM tips compared to Konad tips.......Both stamped using Konad Special polish in Black and stamped onto white paper. Luckily they both had a full nail and tip design that was the same on both brands, made the comparison much more accurate. Sizes for both can be seen also, using mm's.

 Full Nail Houndstooth

 See how the BM plate doesn't finish the design as cleanly as the Konad. BM seems to cut off the design whereas Konad ends it more neatly.  Plus the design is smaller, more so on the width, which could cause problems as I struggled with the width of the Konad plates on one of  my thumbs, the BM will not fit my thumb at all now, so some inventive use of patterns will have to be done.  Either turn design sideways and try to match pattern (not easy) or just use a partial design on thumbs in a creative way, or just scrap the full nail altogether and use them as tip designs.

Tips Checkerboard

These have the same neat finish to the pattern but the size is quite different on these ones, 

much more obvious than the full nail ones.  

It may still fit my thumb, but only just, whereas Konad tips give you plenty of room to play.

So, do I think they are a good deal?   Yes
Would I buy them again?  Yes
Do I think they are as good quality as Konad?  No

Okay, so they are a bit on the sharp side, but if you know this beforehand, you can be extra careful and not touch the edges.
The full nail designs are too small, but you can adapt them with some thought.
The designs are good, some cute ones too and more choice is always a good thing.
Above all, they are great value for money, 21 plates for $18, $22 (£15) shipped to the UK, you can't really complain about that, great deal and lots of fun.

I will be having a go at some more designs using these plates soon, so keep watch.  To recap, my French Kiss design posted yesterday can be seen here. In the meantime you can get your own set from Amazon.com marketplace.