Finished design from this tutorial |
Tools for this project |
- Q-tips
- Toothpicks
- Nail polish colors (at least 2, must not be fast-drying)
- Top-coat (can be fast-drying)
- Nail polish remover
- Nails (real or fake will do)
- Tape (any kind really)
- A disposable cup
- Room temperature water
- Paper towels
You will want to prep your nails before you do anything else and make sure they are well cleaned, and apply a coat of nude colored nail polish so that the variation in color in your own nails does not affect the water-design and show through. Then you will want to set up your work space by placing down a paper towel to cover the table you're working on so you don't get it all dirty. Fill your disposable cup about three quarters of the way up with room temperature water (you can use filtered or tap water, some people say filtered water is better because there will be less bubbles in it). It is important that you use room temperature water because hot water will cause the polish to spread too fast and cold water won't let it spread enough. Place tape around your nail and on your fingertips so that you don't get your fingers all messy and have to go back with tons of acetone to clean them off. This step is a definite time-saver, although it may not seem so at the beginning.
Open your nail polishes up because time is of the essence when you are doing this, this doesn't mean rush, be meticulous but quick. Carefully place a drop of nail polish in the water and then place the next color inside the middle of the previous color. Do this over and over until you have your desired bulls-eye of colors.
Then use your toothpick to swirl the polish or drag it in and out to create a pattern. My personal favorite is starting from the second line and dragging it into the middle, but make sure you do not pull up, push the toothpick into the middle so that the nail polish does not separate. Wipe your toothpick clean after each swipe with the toothpick because the colors will stay on it and affect your design in a not-so-pretty way when you place it back in.
Before removing the tape |
After removing the tape |
Apply a topcoat as the final step to stabilize your design and make it glossy and this will also help to get rid of any excess water bubbles floating on the surface of your nail. You can make all kinds of designs with this technique, I only experimented with two nails so far but I've seen some beautiful designs on Google!