Showing posts with label Easy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Easy. Show all posts

Monday, May 21, 2012

Easy Half Moon Mani - Using Clippers and Tape!



Not all of us have a steady enough hand for a perfect French Tip or half moon mani for that matter. That's why when I heard mention of a simple clipper trick, I had to give it a try.

Basically to make your own nail guides you use a sharp nail clippers and ordinary tape. The result is less curved than hole reinforcer stickers (what I'd been using previously) and both easier to use and cheaper than ordinary guides. I've done a pictorial below to show just how simple this is.



Step 1: Gather your supplies. Plain tape, a sharp clippers, NYC's Pinstripe White, China Glaze's Flip Flop Fantasy & Model's Own nail art pen in black. 

Step 2: Place small pieces of tape on the back of your hand. This works to both cut them efficiently but also to make the tape tacky so it doesn't stick to your base coat and is easy to remove. 

Step 3: Using your white polish, paint two thin coats as your base. This is a great way to make your neon colour Pop! Allow to dry fully. 

Step 4: Place the tacky tape 1/4 the way down your nail bed, pressing onto the flesh each side and not your nail. Paint one coat of your neon polish. While your neon is still wet, remove the tape carefully. This will give you the sharpest line. 

Step 5: Using your black striper/nail art pen, paint zebra line haphazardly onto the white half moon. 

Step 6: Using a high shine top coat, seal in your design. This one is Sally Hansen's 4 in 1. It's a great all rounder. Gorge. 

Although this particular design isn't for the faint hearted, this trick can be used for straight forward French tips or more subtle half moon manis. 

What do we think? Will you try it? Have you any other little tips or tricks you'd like to share? 


Saturday, April 07, 2012

Super Easy Easter Nails



Easter is upon us, can you believe it? Any excuse for me to have a little go at some free hand nail designs.

These designs are pretty generic so I can't really take credit (though the Chinchilla like bunnehs are my own). Dots are courtesy of dotting tools from the lovely Karen's Birthday gift to me. So Yay, Karen!

Fancy a closer look?




As you can see, they're really simple to do and even simpler to recreate on your own pingies. Dots can be made using dotting tools, hair clips or toothpicks and the Easter egg design and more delicate areas are done using a toothpick too. Here's the colours I used but any pastels should do the trick nicely:




While I had said dotting tools out, though, I did try one more look, it might be a little easier to wear, it reminds me of the Easter ribbon D'Mammy used to buy D'Sister & I to plait our hairs up into Easter baskets (we were Rapunzels)



I've got to admit I'm a little taken by the pastels and that's coming from a notorious magpie! 

Have you tried any Spring time/Easter manis?