Interview with Samantha of Gothic Gala Lacquers - Something's F*cky, Shop Teal You Drop, Njord

Hello Lovelies!  Sorry for the lack of post last night but I was exhausted!  I went and picked up my son for his 24 day visit and man was that hectic!  I had to rush through security to get to the gate on time!  I don't do well with crowds so being at JFK airport with thousands of people was a rather nerve racking experience for me.

Anyway tonight I have a very special treat for you lovelies!  I have been singing the praises of Gothic Gala Lacquers for a while now and thought that you all would be interested in a small peak at the life of an indie maker!  I was able to sit down and chat with +Samantha Rigge, the maker of Gothic Gala Lacquers, who was kind enough to answer my questions.  This is my first interview ever so please bear with me while I stumble through! My questions will be in blue and the answers in red!

Why did you decide to start your own line?

I had never been much into polish.  Always thought most of what was out there was pretty boring.  Then I discovered Digital Nails or Accio Lacquer.  I can't remember who came first but one led to the other and I was like "whoa, what is this goodness???"  So I drooled over a few and did some learning about indies in general before discovering that I could actually make polishes.  So I though about it and since my salon business wasn't really doing well I figured I would at least try and see what happens.

 That is super cool! Where do you get inspiration for your polishes?

Everything around me is a possible inspiration. A TV show, a song, a book. I honestly never know what is going to pop into my head. Sometimes I will just have materials sitting in front of me and wonder what would happen if I mixed this, this and this.

I can totally see that! you said you also have a salon business as well? How long have you been in the beauty industry? 

I have been a licensed cosmetologist for 9 years. Working in salons off and on. There was about 5 years that I was off due to medical issues, but once those had been remedied I jumped back in with both feet.

Cosmetology is a very creative field! Would you say you have always been a creative person or is it something you have to work at? I guess I mean is it second nature to you?

I've always had some outlet for trying to be creative. I have my little crafts that I've always done. Tried my hand at photography, even in nerdy ways such as Role Playing where I would have to write and create a storyline. Most things that really draw me in though seem to involve color.

Oh how I love crafting! I am really into cross stitching right now but I love to crochet ... Once you have an idea for a new polish what is your process?

I totally have an on again off again relationship with cross stitching! ... Once I have an idea then I try to take the picture in my head and put it into polish form. Mixing colors and adding glitter, swatching it, hating it, figuring out what I need to tweak. Then it has to sit to make sure the polish doesn't turn weird, nothing has bled. Lots of just random swatching

Is there anything you would like to add? I am a huge fan of your polish and can think of a million things to say about that all the time but when it comes to interviews I generally draw blanks.

I love what I do, it's hard work and can be really challenging at times, but I still enjoy it. Sometimes you get negative feedback back and that can be tough to deal with but I just try to make it a learning experience and move on from there.

There are so many talented women out there and I appreciate everybody in the nail community that has been so supportive and encouraging.

 You are awesome! Do you have any tips for someone looking to start their own line? 

Research research research! When I got into this I didn't know anywhere as much as I probably should have. But if somebody really wants to do it, then I say go for it! Don't let negativity around you stop you!

 You are so awesome for doing this! Thank you so much for your time.

Glad to do it!

 So there yo have it lovelies!  A little peak into the world of Indie Polish Making!  I hope to do more interviews in the future but for now onto the polishes of the evening!

First up is Something's F*cky.  This polish has a scattered holo in a creme teal base.  The holo in this leans toward linear but I would definitely classify it is a scatter.  I am showing two coats of Something's F*cky with one coat of Seche Vite.  Teal is usually not in my favorite colors but the holographic properties make this polish absolutely stunning!  I am also happy to report that there is no staining with this polish which was a big concern for me with how rich the blue is in this teal.

Next we have a limited edition called Shop Teal Your Drop.  This polish was released with the Black Friday deals and it was free with an order totaling a certain amount!  This polish is a gorgeous metallic teal with a slight holographic effect to it!  If you ever see one of these up for swap I highly recommend getting it!  My swatches show two coats of Shop Teal You Drop with one coat of Seche Vite atop!

 

And last, but certainly not least, we have Njord.  Njord is an aqua base with dark blue shreds, green/blue micro flakes with various shades of blue hex glitter!  The glitters in this polish are absolutely amazing!  I love shard glitters and they came out and onto my nail with no issue at all!  The base is pretty sheer so I did three coats in my swatch and I am in love with the result.  I am planning on wearing this New Year's Eve over black!

Well there you have it lovelies!  Now I am off to fix my battle station up and clean off my desk!  I need to do some SERIOUS organizing.  Do any of you actually believe that I am going to go do this? HA!