Monday, April 28, 2014

Daphine Polish Swatch and Review

Greetings and Nailutations,

*Press Sample*
Today I am reviewing Daphine Polish.  Daphine is a 3-free indie brand that is a newer kid on the block.  These 3 polishes are part of her Spring Top Ten Collection.

Let's get to some swatches!

First up is Wallflower, which is a pretty lavender glitter crelly. Wallflower contains silver holo shards, iridescent squares, purple hexes as well as purple micro glitter and lavender flower glitters.  Formula was great and easy to apply, with some glitter fishing for the flowers with placement.  Photos show 2 coats with shiny topcoat.





Next is another glitter crelly called Fistful Of Rain.  Fistful Of Rain is a fresh minty green crelly with white hexes in 2 sizes, teal hexes, purple micro glitter and magenta circles.  Formula was perfect and there was no glitter fishing.  Photos show 2 coats with shiny topcoat.





Lastly is Bad Moon Rising, a wonderful glitter jelly.  Bad Moon Rising is a magenta jelly containing holo rainbow dust, black and red small glitters, magenta crescent moons and black stars.  This delicious glitter jelly was easily applied and there was plenty of stars and moons with each dip of the brush.  No glitter fishing!




Loves:  Fresh spring colors and glitter combinations make for fun vibrant manis.  Formulas were perfect with easy application and little glitter fishing.  An added bonus is that all Daphine Polishes are 3-free, so they don't contain any of the nasty 3 chemicals that are found in some polishes.

Wishes: If I were to change anything, I would have liked to see a dark purple flower in Wallflower to keep with the purple/lavender theme, and it would make the flowers pop more.  They hid like....well wallflowers.  Haha

Information:
Store: Daphine Polish
Facebook Daphine Polish
IG: @daphinepolish

Happy Polishing,
Kristi aka @beginnails




Sunday, April 27, 2014

Beginnails' Sunday Six Week 20 and 21

Greetings and Nailutations,

It was a slow week for nail art and I was out of town, so I'm combining last week and this week.  These are my top 6 favorite manis from the last 2 weeks.  I'm excited because there are actually 6 nail art manis!

First up I was wanting to do some cute daisies with a pretty sky blue.  (Jennifer's Blue from Above The Curve Nail Lacquer)


Next is my mani with green studs from the Born Pretty Store.  Green and pink go really well together.


Water decals are always a great way to make a mani look really nice and they are easily applied.  Water decals are from the Born Pretty Store.


This mani is using 3 Drip Drop Nail Paints and doing a water marble.  (Polishes used: Drip Drop Nail Paint So Chill, 70's Chick and #Pink.)


This mani was for a collaboration with 50 other gals with the theme of pastel rainbow.  I love that when you give that theme to 51 people the vast collection of creativity that emerges.  I went with a pastel rainbow dotticure.


The last one is my FAVORITE!  I had been wanting to recreate my valentine's red heart tree for a while with rainbows.  And Jessica (@b_jessica_3 on instagram) and I had been chatting and she suggested doing Best Twin Nails.  I told her what I was wanting and she was up for the challenge!  I LOVE how they both turned out.

Here is m solo shot of the rainbow heart tree nails.  :)


Happy Polishing,
Kristi aka @beginnails

Saturday, April 26, 2014

Born Pretty Store Review 1

Greetings and Nailutations,

*Press Sample*
I was contacted by the Born Pretty Store to review a few nail related items and provide my honest feedback.  I selected some nail studs and water decals.

The first item I selected were some black and white water decals: Item 10263  They were very easy to use by cutting out the image with a pair of scissors and peeling off the plastic.  Then I placed the image in a cup of water for a few seconds and retrieved with a pair of tweezers.  After a few more seconds it easily slides off the backing paper and can be applied to the nail.  I used the water decals in the 2 manis below.



The next item I selected was a wheel of brightly colored studs.  Item 12408.  Easily used, these studs are applied on a nail that is still tacky or by using clear nail polish as glue.  I did a few manis with the studs from something simple to more complex designs.




If you are looking to purchase nail supplies Born Pretty is the perfect place to order.  Prices are reasonable, shipping is free and when you buy in bulk, items are lower in price.  Please note, since these products are shipping from another country (outside the U.S.A), it may take 2-5 weeks to receive your order.  I have ordered twice from Born Pretty and each took ~2.5 weeks.  In addition, I recommend paying the extra to get a tracking number if you are concerned about your package.

Want to save 10%?  Use code DGJ61


Happy Polishing,
Kristi aka @beginnails

Friday, April 25, 2014

MicroBrew's Hometown Collection Swatches and Review

Greetings and Nailutations!

*Press Sample*
MicroBrews is back this time with a collection inspired by her current hometown landmarks.  As a reminder you can follow MicroBrews on all their social media sites such as instagram (@microbrewsNP), Facebook and their store.

Let's get to some swatches!  I will put my initial thoughts about it and then the included information that Wendy, the owner of MicroBrews provided for me.

First up is Sinclair Rock, which is a deep maroon bronze glitter jelly.  In the light you can see the gold shimmer and the purple glitter.  Photos show 3 coats for total opacity with a shiny topcoat and also a matte topcoat.  Love this color!
Sinclair Rock (or the "Westford Knight") is a rock with a carving with a primitive outline of a human face.  Much speculation is made about the Knight -- is it really an ancient historical artifact or the result of active imaginations?  Either way, it's a bit mysterious, just like this semi-sheer maroon polish.







Next is I Believe In Grey Ghosts, which is also a glitter jelly.  This light grey jelly contains white hexes and circles as well as purple smaller hexes.  I placed this polish over a grey undie to get the full pop of the glitter.  The larger circles did require some glitter fishing.  This polish is fun!
The local high school mascot is the "Grey Ghost", lending itself to puns like "We have spirit!"  This grey jelly has maroon micro glitter (maroon and grey are the school colors), with white dots.






A La Mode is a peachy shimmery glitter polish.  A La Mode contains gold shimmer, broze hexes and yellow larger hexes.  Photos show 3 coats over a white undie with shiny topcoat.  This polish was on the thinner side, so fishing is required.
Nothing says summer in New England like ice cream, and Kimball Farm has the best ice cream around.  Waiting in the long lines are worth it - especially for my favorite Butter Pecan.  This peachy polish has shimmery gold undertones with dark brown and yellow glitters mixed in.




Last of the collection is That's So Fletch.  That's So Fletch is a fun glitter topper containing holo micro dust and iridescent glitter.  I have one generous coat over a navy blue undie and a shiny topcoat.
You can find a little bit of magic at your fingertips with either this silvery glitter topper with micro holographic and iridescent shimmer...or a good book.  "That's So Fletch" is my homage to the JV Fletcher Library.  Never leave home without a good glitter topcoat and a good book and you're all set!






Loves:  Again the creativity and imagery Wendy has is astounding!  My favorites of this collection are Sinclair Rock and I Believe in Grey Ghosts.  I have an affinity for darker colors and these were fun and amazing.  Additionally all MicroBrews Polishes are 5-free so they don't contain the 5 nasties that polish can contain.

Wishes:  Enjoyed this collection as I did the last one!  I was able to see all the locations and landmarks in each polish.  I would have liked to see A La Mode a littler thicker so glitter fishing wouldn't have been needed and as a cream it would have gone with ice cream theme.

More info:
Store: http://www.microbrewsnailpolish.bigcartel.com
FB: MicroBrews
Instagram: @MicroBrewsNP

Happy Polishing,
Kristi aka @beginnails


Thursday, April 24, 2014

Polish Pusher Winnings Swatches and Review

Greetings and Nailutations!

Today I write from the city of Las Vegas!  YAY!  Vacation is always fun, but I wanted to try to do a blog post or two since I spent the day prior to leaving swatching polishes like a mad woman!

The brand reviewed today was part of a giveaway/raffle prize and I wanted to do a review on it as well because it was donated for a good cause.  The brand is called Polish Pusher.  I have never tried Polish Pusher (Instagram @polish_pusher) before and was excited to try a new indie.

Let's get to some swatches.

First up is La, Quelque Part which is a gorgeous blue glitter jelly.  This royal blue jelly contains gold/yellow hex glitters and holo rainbow dust.  Photos show 3 coats to get total opacity along with a shiny topcoat as well as a matte topcoat.







Next is Homme Serieuse which is a lovely grey glitter jelly.  Homme Serieuse contains rainbow holo dust, pale blue circles, black squares, white hexes in 2 sizes, iridescent glitters and black bars.  There was no fishing for glitters.  Photos show 3 coats to get total opacity along with a shiny topcoat as well as a matte topcoat.





Unique Aumonde is a maroony-pink holo.  This holo is absolutely gorgeous.  Photos show 2 coats with shiny topcoat.





Next is On Ne Sait Jamais, which is a fun thermal.  It applies as a yellow maize colored holo and when exposed to cold water it turns a darker orange holo.  Photos show 2 coats with shiny topcoat along with photos in cold, warm and transition state.





Lastly, I have Poseder Les Etoiles.  Poseder Les Etoiles is a fun glitter topper.  It contains iradescent glitters as well as holo rainbow dust.  I decided to create a galaxy accent night.  Photos show 1 generous coat with shiny topcoat over a navy blue undie.




Loves:  Jellies, holo, thermal and a glitter topper...all with amazing formulas!  I loved the color combinations in the glitter jellies which show originality and creative thinking.  Added plus is that Polish Pusher polishes are 5 free so they don't contain 5 of the nasties that is normally found in polishes.  I'm looking forward to adding more Polish Pushers to my collection.

Wishes:  I would not change a thing other than me obtaining more Polish Pushers!

Additional info:
All Polish Pusher polishes are sold on Etsy.  Make sure you are following on instagram for the latest sales and promos (@polish_pusher).  The current polishes in stock are gorgeous and cuticle oil is also carried in the store.  For the summer, Polish Pusher is working on a sheer polish collection.  I can't wait!

Happy Polishing,
Kristi aka @beginnails