Silver Glitter Ombre Nails

Completed Silver Glitter Ombre Nails.

Why we love these:

These nails are fun and easy, and require no extra-special nail art brushes or techniques! These nails are fun and the layered glitter adds a new dimension of sparkle. These nails are perfect for a night out, and can be done in any colour to match any outfit.

What you need:

• Grey Polish (we used OPI French Quarter For Your Thoughts, buy it here)
• Fine Silver Glitter Polish (we used OPI Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous, buy it here)
• Medium Silver Glitter Polish (we used Nails Inc. Sloane Square, buy it here)
• Chunky Silver Glitter Polish (we used Sephora by OPI Glitter to the End!, buy it here)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Paint two coats of the grey polish on to your nails, allowing some extra time to dry before starting the glitter polish so there is no running.
3. Take the finest glitter polish, remove all excess polish from the brush, and paint from the tip of your finger to 3/4 to the cuticle on each nail. (Note: The less polish you have on your brush, the more the glitter will appear to 'fade' out in to the next colour)
4. Using the medium glitter polish, remove excess polish from the brush, and paint from the tip of your nails to half  way to the cuticle on each nail.
5. Finally, using the chunky glitter, add some larger pieces of glitter to the tip area of each nail.
6.  Paint all nails with a top coat, ensuring to seal the tips of your nails, and allow to dry!

Striped Pink Ombre Nails

Completed Striped Ombre Nails.

Why we love them:

What girl doesn't love pink? Scratch that, what girl doesn't love every shade of her favourite colour? These nails can be reproduced with any colour, as well as with vertical or diagonal stripes, instead of horizontal. With so many different options, these nails are completely customizable... and we love being unique! These beauties look good with a little black dress and heels in the same shade!

What you need:

• 5+ shades of any one colour, organized by shade
• Scotch Tape
• Nail Art Brush (buy it in a set here)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Place the tape very close to the base of the nail but leave room for one colour. Paint with the darkest shade.
3. Repeating that step slowly moving the tape farther down the nail and changing the colour for each stripe. Try to keep the space between your last colour and the tape constant, for a cleaner look!
4. Once the whole nail is completed, fix up any mistakes with a nail art brush.
5. Paint on top coat after ensuring your nails are dry, and allow to dry!

Close-up striped pink ombre nails.

Saran Wrap Criss Cross Nails

The completed nails.

Why we love them:

We love the look of the criss cross pattern reversed on the accent nail! Also, we love using items that are already around our house to make cool nail designs, as opposed to shopping for costly items at a beauty supply store. This design looks much more difficult than it is, and will surely impress all your friends!

What you need:

• Light Blue (we used China Glaze Kinetic Candy, buy it here)
• Pink (we used Essie Fiesta, buy it here)
• Dark Blue (we used Nails Inc. Baker Street, buy it here)
• Tape
• Nail Art Brush (buy it in a set here)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Paint all nails light blue. Two coats may be required.
3. Cut pieces of tape and place them on the nails like the picture below -Step 1 (for the accent nail the tape is cut in triangles instead of strips). Make sure the tape has no spaces between the polish and the tape other wise you won't get your desired straight line once the other paint is on and you have peeled off your tape. 
4. Paint a nail pink, using the saran wrap roll it up into a circle and blot the pink right after you paint it creating this tie-dye look, repeat with all nails (Picture -Step 2).
5. Paint a nail blue, using the saran wrap roll it up into a circle and blot the blue right after you paint it creating this tie-dye look, repeat with all nails and make sure you can see the pink more blotting may be required (Picture -Step 2).
6. Make sure the polish is dry before removing your tape.
7. Fix up any mistakes with a nail art brush using the light blue for straight edges.
8. Paint on top coat after ensuring your nails are dry, and allow to dry!

Step 1

Step 2

Nautical Heart Nails

Completed Nautical Heart Nails.

Why we love them:

We love the look of these striped heart nails! If you like the look of striped nails why not play with it and add this fun little heart in the corner? :)

What you need:

• Nail Art Brush (buy it in a set here)
• White (we used OPI Alpine Snow, buy it here)
• Black (we used Essie Licorice, buy it here)
• Red (we used Nails Inc. The Hurlingham, buy it here)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Paint all nails white. Two coats may be required.
3. With the nail art brush, paint two or three thick black lines depending on how long your nail is. Two coats may be required.
4. With the Dotter Pen, dot and shape a red heart on the bottom corner of your nail, left or right is up to you (opposite on either hand looks nice).
5. Paint on top coat after ensuring your nails are dry, and allow to dry!

Single Nautical Heart Nail.

Messy Ombre Aztec Nails

Beginning messy ombre only.

Finishing result with aztec.

Why we love them:

We cannot get enough of aztec nail art! We wanted to play around with messy ombre and this design is a way to show off your ombre nails that are shown with an aztec pattern. :)

What you need:

• Nail Art Brush and Dotter Pen (buy it in a set here)
• White (we used OPI Alpine Snow, buy it here)
• Dark Blue (we used Nails Inc. Baker Street, buy it here)
• Medium Blue (we used ACO True Blue, view it here)
• Light Green (we used ACO Mint Cream, view it here)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Paint all nails light green. Two coats may be required.
3. Paint the medium blue, dark blue, and white in stripes across your nail using a normal nail polish brush.
4. With the nail art brush, create an ombre or messy look by brushing the colours together that are beside each other like the picture below.
5. With the dotter pen and nail art brush, paint on your white aztec design like the picture below or however you want to! Be creative!
6. Paint on top coat after ensuring your nails are dry, and allow to dry!

Close-up messy ombre Nail.

Close-up Tie-dye Aztec completed.

Black on Black Cheetah Nails

The completed Black on Black Nails.

Why we love them:

You may or may not be able to see the cheetah pattern in the picture but we love the textured look and having shiny detail that is the same colour as the matte background. This is a fun and cool twist if you usually wear black nails or if you just want to try a subtle cheetah pattern on your nails.

What you need:

• Dotter Pen (buy it in a set here)
• Black (we used Essie Licorice, buy it here)
• Base Coat (we used Essie, base coat here)
• Matte Top Coat (we used Nails Inc.Westminster Bridge, top coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Paint all nails black. Two coats may be required.
3. Apply the matte top coat to all nails.
4. Once the nails are somewhat dry, using the dotter pen shape and create your cheetah pattern. 
5. Top coat is not to be used with this nail art design otherwise the matte black background or the cheetah would be ruined whether you would use a matte or normal top coat, so just let dry!

Another completed look of the Black on Black Nails.

Burberry Nails

Full Burberry tape nails.

Why we love these nails:

These nails mirror the iconic pattern that is burberry. These nails look great as an accent nail or a full set, and are classy enough to wear everyday, or out at night! These are definitely a knailart favourite!

What you need:

• Nail Art Brush (buy it in a set here)
• White (we used M.A.C. Vestral White, no longer sold)
• Black (we used Essie Licorice, buy it here)
• Nude (we used Nails Inc. Basil Street, buy it here)
• Maroon (we used Chanel 18 Rouge Noir, view it here)
• Scotch Tape (available at craft stores or dollar stores)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Paint all nails nude. Two coats may be required. Allow to dry.
3. Paint nail polish onto long strips of tape.
4. Cut the tape into the desired widths.
5. Apply white strips, then black, and then red to all nails. Cut off the ends that stick out past the nail. Feel free to change where the whites meet to change up each nail a little bit!
6. Touch anything up with your nail art brush (although the lines should be pretty straight).
7. Paint on top coat after ensuring your nails are dry and the tape is completely stuck, and allow to dry!

The completed look.

The close-up Burberry Nail.

Rubber Ducky Nails

The completed Duck Nails.

What you need:

• Nail Art Brush and Dotter Pen (buy it in a set here)
• White (we used OPI Alpine Snow, buy it here)
• Blue (we used China Glaze Kinetic Candy, view it here)
• Yellow (we used Misa Nail Lacquer Hanging with the Girls, unavailable for purchase online)
• Orange (we used Misa Nail Lacquer Speed of Life, unavailable for purchase online)
• Black (we used Essie Licorice, buy it here)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat (this will increase the shine of your 'bare' nail at the end!).
2. Paint a blue tip on your nail, don't worry about being messy as the top will be covered with the bubbles.
3. With the Dotter Pen, dot large white circles starting concentrated where the top of your blue tip meets your bare nail, and move to the edge of your nail, becoming less concentrated (more space between the bubbles) as you get closer to the edge of your nail.
4. With the Dotter Pen again, use the edge of the dot dipped in light blue and make a lighter dot over each white bubble.
5. With the Nail Art Brush, draw the outline of the duck on top of your bubbles (on any nail you wish!) in yellow.
6. Paint the whole duck yellow.
7. Paint the beak orange with the brush.
8. Using the small end of the dotter paint one eye using black.
9. Paint on top coat after ensuring your nails are dry, and allow to dry!

'Missoni' Zig-Zag Nails

The completed Missoni Nail

This nail art looks great as an accent nail or a full set. It would also look fabulous on big toes!

What you need:

• Nail Art Brush (buy it in a set with a dotter from Sephora, here)
• Nude (we used Nails Inc. Basil Street, buy it here)
• Dark Pink (we used Essie Big Spender, buy it here)
• Light Pink (we used Essie Off the Shoulder, buy it here)
• Navy Blue (we used Essie Aruba Blue, buy it here)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Choose a pattern of nail polish that looks the best to you. We used Nude, Navy Blue, Dark Pink, Light Pink.
3. Start in the middle with your darkest colour. Put a dot in the middle of your finger so you can move outwards to the edges of your nail evenly. 
4. Move in one direction first (we went to the cuticle first, then move from middle to tip) using each colour in the pattern you set out, cleaning the nail art brush with nail polish remover and a cotton pad between each colour.
5. Paint on top coat after ensuring your nails are dry so there is no running, and allow to dry!

Tuxedo Nails

Finished Tuxedo Nail!

What you need:

• Nail Art Brush and Dotter Pen (buy it in a set here)
• White (we used M.A.C. Vestral White, no longer sold)
• Black (we used Essie Licorice, buy it here)
• Small diamond (available at Michael's)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Paint all nails white. Two coats may be required.
3. With the nail art brush, paint two black lines from the bottom corner of your nail to the middle on both side and then fill in with black polish once your lines are how you want them.
4. With the nail art brush again, design your bow tie however big or small you want it.
5. With the Dotter Pen, dot 2 black dots down the center of your nail.
6. Once the bow tie is dry, put topcoat on the middle of the bow tie and place the diamond down to dry.
7. Paint on top coat after ensuring your nails are dry and the diamond is stuck, and allow to dry!

Purple Fade Aztec Nails

Finished Purple Fade Aztec Nails

What you need:

• Nail Art Brush (buy it in a set with a dotter tool here)
• White (we used M.A.C. Vestral White, no longer sold)
• Light Purple (we used Essie Lilacism, buy it here)
• Medium Purple (we used OPI Do You Lilac It?, buy it here)
• Dark Purple (we used Ardene's Violet, see it here)
• Black (we used Essie Licorice, buy it here)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Paint all nails white. Two coats may be required.
3. Leaving about 1/2 a cm of space in the middle of your nail, paint the light purple from the middle to the edge of your nails, touching it up with the nail art brush.
4. Once the light purple has dried leave a bit of light purple showing and paint on the medium purple to the edge of your nail.
5. Once the medium purple has dried leave a bit of medium purple showing and paint on the darkest purple to the edge.
6. There is no other way to explain the designs other than to look at the picture (or just be creative!), but once the purple fade has dried paint on the black using the nail art brush to ensure the lines are smooth and exact.
7. Paint on top coat after ensuring your nails are dry so there is no running, and allow to dry!

Close-up Aztec designs

Half Moon Nails

A close-up of the finished Half Moon Nails.

What you need:

• Nude (we used Nails Inc. Basil Street, buy it here)
• Coral (we used Nails Inc. Portobello, buy it here)
• Hole Punch Reinforcements (available at Staples, or any school supply store)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Paint all nails with the nude polish. Two coats may be required.
3. Once the polish is completely dry (this may take 10-20 minutes), put the reinforcements on your nail so that the circle has half nail and half cuticle showing. Press the reinforcement gently on to your nail so no nail polish gets under and ruins the half moon!
4. Paint the coral colour from the reinforcement to the tip of your nail. This also may require two coats.
5. Allow the second colour to dry, and then slowly peel off the reinforcement from your nail. 
6. Paint on top coat over both polishes after and allow to dry!

After Step 3, before painting the coral colour.

After Step 4, after painting the coral colour.

Diamond Nails

What you need:

• Nude (we used Nails Inc. Basil Street, buy it here)
• Small Diamonds (available at Michael's)
• Base Coat and Top Coat (we used Essie, buy the top coat here, and base coat here)

What to do:

1. Start with clean, dry nails. Paint each nail with base coat.
2. Paint all nails with the nude polish. Two coats may be required.
3. Once the polish is completely dry, attach the diamonds by painting a thin line of top coat where you want your diamonds and then placing the diamonds however you want them. (Our line is just an idea, feel free to play around with the diamond designs!)
4. Paint on top coat over diamonds and all the polish after ensuring the diamonds are stuck, and allow to dry!

The Diamond Accent Nail