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If your social scrolling has increased tenfold this past year, then chances are your beauty files are brimming with aspirational nail art you’ll never
a) have the time or patience to maintain
b) have the funds to consistently support, or
c) have the hand-eye coordination to DIY
But should all this make nail art so inaccessible? Two inspired women think not.
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With nail art becoming a dominant trend of 2021 for its joy-sparking capabilities, coworkers and pals Bridie Alman and Crimson Dunstan identified a huge gap in the Aussie beauty industry when they realised that the reality of nail art at home leaves much to be desired. Even for those of us that are decent with a pen, it hardly translates, and even our cute polka dots end up looking like shapeless blobs.
After taking cues from some of their favourite designs, Alman and Dunstan set out to create a genderless, low-maintenance alternative that would be achievable for all. And so Flowerbed was born.
“Our main goal was to make the stickers easy enough for anyone to use themselves at home without compromising on quality,” Alman tells Refinery29. “A lot of the other 'nail stickers' in the market feel like you're literally putting gold-star-kindergarten stickers on your nails and we wanted ours to be both long-lasting and completely flat against the nail.”
Sounds great, but how do we actually use them? Alman explains that these decal-style stickers were created to be amateur-friendly. For faultless application in mere minutes, “peel and stick on a sticker, push it down for 10 seconds before swiping on a coat of clear nail polish to seal it in and you're good to go!”
“Just make sure your nails are clean and dry,” she advises. Using nail polish remover on your nails prior to application can work a treat.
The best part about using something like stickers is that as long as you're maintaining that topcoat, your nails will remain chip-free. And once you're done with your designs, removing them is a cinch — just swipe some nail polish remover or acetone over your topcoat and peel off the stickers. Too easy.
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Oh, and did we mention that the Flowerbed team are keen to hear from readers on the kind of designs you'd like to see next from them? Yeah, that too. So shoot them your personal suggestions on Insta and you could be responsible for chic nails everywhere.
In the meantime, you can shop their Drop 001, which will serve you plenty well with a delightful array of designs from sweet smiley faces and daisies to the edgier chillies and lightning bolts.
And if you’re after a different kind of vibe, peep our picks of the best nail art stickers that allow you to level up your manicure game, without actually having to level up your skillset.
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