Digit-al Dozen: July Birthday Mani

Greetings and Nailutations!

It is the end of July and you know what that means?  We are celebrating Digit-al Dozen birthdays through a mani!  Today we are recognizing RoseLynn of Manicured and Marvelous and Tracy of Olivia Jade Nails!  Happy Birthday!!  They selected a fun photo for our inspiration.

Beauty Bigbang Nail Art Dotting Pen Review

Greetings and Nailutations,

*Press Sample*
Today I am sharing a dotting tool that is like none I have ever seen or used before.  This baby is from Beauty Big Bang and is under $5!  The Professional Nail Art Tool Nail Art Drawing Pen Brush Nail Dotting Tool is a tool that has a pen and 5 dotting sizes all in 1!  I was a little intimidated by it and was at a loss as to how to use the pen.  I've since decided I need to do some more intricate work to show the pen in all it's glory.

Edge Perfection Review

Greetings and Nailutations,

*Press Sample*
Today I will be sharing my thoughts on Edge Perfection.  It is a latex barrier product that assists in applying polish, and you can also use it for protecting your skin when doing nail art.  It is available online as well as in your local CVS in the nail/beauty section.

First impression:  The first thing I noticed is that it had a steel ball in the packaging to ensure smooth product and application.  I also noticed little to no scent, which is a major plus for those with scent sensitivities.  Application brush was short, sturdy and easy to use.  Formula was thin to allow the product to get into all the nooks and crannies to make clean up quick and easy.

I initially started using it for it's intended purpose - to help while applying polish.  I soon realized that the polish I chose had a really great brush - so I really didn't need any assistance in protecting my cuticle area.  Polish used is Nvr Enuff Polish Prototype topped with Glisten and Glow HK Girl Top Coat.

Next I wanted to test it out with nail art.  It applied nicely and dried quickly.  I like that it wasn't completely clear when dry (I like to know where I applied it).  I typically apply 2 coats to ensure a clean peel in 1 pull and Edge Perfection hit the mark with the formula to provide a clean peel.

Mani details: Big Bling Stamper from Clear Jelly Stamper, Tighty Whities from Drip Drop Nail Paint, It Girl Nail Art IG103 Plate.

Final thoughts: I love a good latex barrier and use them with nail art regularly.  Anything to make clean up faster is an A+ in my eyes.  While I typically tend to support indie brands, if I'm in a bind, I love the option to head to my local CVS to pick this product up.  I do recommend if you have have an allergy to latex to steer away from this product.

Happy Polishing,
Kristi aka BeginNails

Digit-al Dozen: 5 Days, 5 Continents North American Artist

Greetings and Nailutations!

Why hello there!  It is a Digit-al Dozen week and our theme this week is 5 Continents.  This theme threw me for a loop and I kept trying to think of I wanted to do for each continent.  I finally decided on artists and my husband selected the North American artist Georgia O'Keefe - my husband loves Sante Fe style art.  She did some amazing macros of flowers, adobe homes, mountains and skylines.  I was drawn to one of her skyline images called Sky Above The Flat White Cloud II (mostly because I knew I could do the look with my simple nail art skills).

Now let's get to the details!

Lantern and Wren: Mani Defender and Marianne Nails No. 77 Plate Review

Greetings and Nailutations,

*Press sample*
I'm back with some more Lantern and Wren goodies!  Today I'm sharing a latex barrier called Mani Defender and a few manis from Marianne Nails No. 77 Plate, which can be found at Lantern and Wren.  Marianne Nails plates are from France - this is a new-to-me brand, so I really excited to try it out.

Now let's get to the manis!

It Girl Nail Art IG118 Stamping Plate Review

Greetings and Nailutations,

*Press Sample*
Today I am sharing my review and thoughts on It Girl Nail Art IG118 Plate.  Every so often a stamping plate is created that says so much, that makes a statement and that resonates with me.  It Girl's IG118 plate did that for me.  Coinciding with LGBTQ Pride month (June), Nicole of IGNA has created a Pride LGBTQ, BLM, peace, safety pin, ally, equality plate.  So much is expressed in this plate, it made my heart warm.  There are so many images that I was familiar with but also some that I had to use the power of the internet to get information on (like all the different striped images).

Now let's get to the nail art!

Digit-al Dozen: Fashion Magazine Paper

Greetings and Nailutations,

It is our final day for the Digit-al Dozen paper prompt and I wanted to go through the magazine clippings I had in my mani-cave for mani inspirations.  I also wanted something that combined the prompt paper for the Digit-al Dozen and fruit for Nail Crazies Unite.  I happened up on a dress that said "MAKE A MANI OF ME!!!"

Let's get to the details!

Digit-al Dozen: Paper Sunset Puzzle

Greetings and Nailutations,

It is Day 4 of the Digit-al Dozen and we are continuing with the paper prompt.  I was trying to think what is made of paper products that I could do a pretty scene on...and then it hit me = PUZZLES!  I am such a lover of puzzles.  I use apps now on my iPad now, but there is something so soothing about putting chaos into beautiful order to me.

Now let's get to the details!

Digit-al Dozen:Paper Love Letters

Greetings and Nailutations,

We are on Day 3 of the Digit-al Dozen paper prompt!  I decided on love letters (and a few other gals below did too - great minds think alike!).

Now let's get to the details!

Digit-al Dozen: Paper Boat Sailing

Greetings and Nailutations,

We are now on day 2 of the Digit-al Dozen week of paper related manis.  Yesterday I was inspired by tissue paper and today I am drawing inspiration sailing paper boats.

Now let's get to the details!

Digit-al Dozen: Inspired by Tissue Paper

Greetings and Nailutations,

It is a Digit-al Dozen week!  Our prompt this week is paper - so you will see 5 manis from me all related to paper!  Today I decided to use tissue paper as my inspiration.  I have kept this piece of tissue paper for quite a while.  Drip Drop Nail Paint would pack her products in adorable prints of tissue paper and I knew I wanted to re-create this pattern.  This paper prompt was the perfect excuse!

Let's get to the details!

Digit-al Dozen: May Birthday Mani - Digital Neon Flowers

Greetings and Nailutations,

It is the end of May, which means time to celebrate with a mani inspired by a photo selected by the Digit-al Dozen member with a May birthday.  Cheyenne of CDB Nails selected this amazing digital image of neon flowers below.  At first I was really intimidated by this photo (Cheyenne sure knows how to challenge us!).  :)

More details below!

Nail Challenge Collaborative: Green Florals

Greetings and Nailutations,

Today I'm sharing some nail art (that I also have up on my YouTube channel too!).  This mani is for the Nail Challenge Collaborative and this month the theme is green.  When I was swatching the Drip Drop Nail Paint Swing Into Spring Collection - I found the perfect base!

Let's get to the details!

Digit-al Dozen: Rainforessssst Sssssnake

Greetings and Nailutations,

It is the last day of the Rainforest prompt for the Digit-al Dozen.  I wanted something edgy, something sssssnake like, a ssssserpentine mani!  I really loved how this turned out and I can honestly say I am hooked on multi chromes now.

Let's get to the details.

Digit-al Dozen: Rainforest Flutterbies

Greetings and Nailutations,

We are now on Day 4 and I had to do a mani with butterflies.  The images I see of the butterflies in the rainforest are exotic, colorful and vibrant (even if they are little "flying worms.")  (Sorry, I had to quote Sheldon Cooper of The Big Bang Theory.)  I wanted to go bold, so I went down the neon road and I think I will go down that road more often!

Now let's get to the details!

Digit-al Dozen: The Lady of the Rainforest

Greetings and Nailutations,

It is Day 2 of the Digit-al Dozen theme: Rainforest.  I decided to do a Ladybug (or Ladybird or Ladybird Beetles or Lady Beetles) mani.  Ladybugs are not just rainforest critters - they are everywhere (for the most part) but they are still adorable, so hence this mani.

Now let's get to the details.

Drip Drop Nail Paint Swing Into Spring Collection Swatch and Review

Greetings and Nailutations,

*Press Sample*
Hello dear readers, my apologies for not posting in a week.  After returning from Polish Con, it has taken some time to adjust back to a scheduled agenda of blogs.  I will start off with a 6 piece collection from Drip Drop Nail Paint!  This collection consists of cremes with a touch of scattered holo and they are all named for dances - Swing Into Spring Collection!

Now let's get to the photos!
Warning: Picture heavy post!  Photos shown in both filtered light and simulated sunlight.

Digit-al Dozen April Birthday Mani

Greetings and Nailutations,

Today I will be sharing a mani for the April Digit-al Dozen Birthday!  We have 2 members who are celebrating their special day this month: Katherine Marie from Procrastinails and Uma from Uma's Nail Art.  They selected a fun bubble image that was a bit intimidating.  (Photo at the end of the post.)

Let's get to the details.

Nail Challenge Collaborative: Pastel Floral

Greetings and Nailutation,

Today my blog post is for the Nail Crazies Unite group.  The theme is floral pastels and I had to bring in the Pastelly Jellies from Drip Drop Nail Paint - which were just re-released!  One of great things about the Pastelly Jellies is that you can create not only jelly sandwiches (glitter between layers of jelly) but you can create stamping sandwiches!  :)

Let's get to the details!

Nail Challenge Collaborative: Spring Daisies

Greetings and Nailutations,

This month I'm a little behind on some nail art challenges and I know I won't get caught up.  Having a nasty cold for week and sounding like a trucker who smokes kind of changed my schedule.  :)  Today I'm sharing a mani for the Nail Challenge Collaborative group with the prompt "Spring."  The goal is to do 1-4 manis with the same prompt.  What do I think of with spring?  Flowers blooming of course!

Now let's get to the details!