Fading Green Glitter

     While perusing the internet for a new, different nail art design that I hadn't tried before I came across a youtube video published by, frmheadtotoe (From Head to Toe), which showed how to do a fading effect on nails (she referred to it as the gradient effect). I've seen this technique used quite a bit in various nail art blogs and so I decided I should finally give it a try. To see frmheadtotoes's video click here.

The finished fading effect on my nails.

Nail Polishes I Used:

• Sally Hansen Ultimate Shield Base and Top Coat
• Wet n Wild Wild Shine in Hallucinate (Sparkley polish)
• Simply Sweet (the green nail polish, no colour name was given on the bottle)
• Sally Hansen Clear

Let's Get Started!

Step 1: Paint all of your nails with a clear polish to protect your natural nail and to add shine to the lower portion of the nail which won't be painted with the coloured polish.

Step 2: Using a translucent (not opaque) polish (I used the simply sweet green polish), paint the top three quarters of your nail making sure you have left a portion of your nail unpainted near the base;  do not paint the entire nail!

Step 3: Next paint a second coat of your coloured polish in the top portion of your first coat. Make sure you leave the lower part of the first coat of polish visible.

Step 4: Continue this pattern of painting just above the bottom of the previous coat of polish until the tip of your nail has a much darker colour than the base.

Step 5: Add Sparkles!!!!! Paint a sparkly coat of polish over the entire nail once it has dried to make the fading appear more natural and thats it, you now have a beautiful fading effect on your nails!

Half n' Half With a Touch of Flower

       Its been over a week since I've done a nail post, I know...c'est tres tres terrible. Last week was a super busy week for me, so I decided to go and get a manicure done. Which of course meant I spent a week making sure my manicure lasted... thus the lack of nail design posts. To remedy this, this week's nail design is combining both the "colour blocking" technique which has become very trendy as of late in addition to a flower. So what are you waiting for read on and try it yourself!

Polishes I Used:

• Wet n' Wild in Lilac Champagne
• Simply Sweet (the magenta nail polish, no colour name was given on the bottle)
• Sally Hansen Hard As Nails in White Tip
• Sally Hansen Ultimate Shield Base and Top Coat
• Sally Hansen Lacquer Shine in Lustrous (Centre of flowers
• I also used a silver nail striper but its from the dollar store and kind of tempermental...

Now to the Design!

Step 1: Paint you rnails a solid base colour, I painted mine the unnamed magenta coloured polish.

Step 2: When your base coat has dried, paint your alternate colour (mine was Lilac Champagne) over half of your nail diagonally (if you aren't steady handed enough to do this free-handed you can get the same results by using scotch tape to create a line). psst... this is what all the trendy people are calling "colour blocking" or "color block" nails.

Step 3: Using a dotting tool dipped in white nail polish, create two dots opposite each other near the centre of the nail. Then add two more dots to make a t-shape.

Step 4: If you want a tear drop shaped flower you can drag the polish in using a toothpick, it will make a sort of cross-like shape.

Step 5: Make a black dot in the centre of the flowers. If you made your flower to be tear drop shaped you can drag this out (using the toothpick) should you desire a hint of black in the centre of your flower's petals.

Step 6: Using a silver striping tool (or a tiny paint brush dipped in silver nail polish), paint a silver line along the line where the two colours (the light and dark pink) meet each other. Now just paint a a topcoat over your design and you're all done!

 I'd love to see pictures if anyone decides to try this themselves! Also, if you want further clarification on how to use tape when "colour blocking" let me know in the comments and I'll write a tutorial post!

 

Sparkly Polka Dot Bow

        This design though it might seem a bit more complicated at first than some of the designs I've previosuly posted, is actually not that difficult at all! All you need to get your own Sparkly Polka Dot Bow is a bit of time and patience :)

Polishes I Used:

• Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear in Blue it
• Sally Hansen Hard As Nails in White Tip
• Sally Hansen Ultimate Shield Base and Top Coat
• Wet n Wild Wild Shine in Hallucinate (Sparkley polish)

Let's Get Started!

1. Paint your nails a solid base colour, I chose to paint mine blue.

2. Using a dotting tool dipped in White nail polish, create a diagonal line of polka dots from one corner of your nail to the opposite corner .  

3. At each corner of your nails paint a diagonal line of 3 polka dots (parallel to your original line of polka dots) on either side of the original polka dot line.

4. Using your sparkly nail polish, paint sparkles over the white dotted design. Finish by painting a topcoat over your nails to seal the design and that's it you now have your very own sparkly polka dot bow!