Mermaid Nails

Summer is pretty much right around the corner at this point, and the temperatures have definitely been rising in the city! It’s been making me crave a beach day, or at least some mermaid nails!

I started by painting my nails with a black soak off gel polish from Born Pretty. I applied and cured 2 coats of color and followed it up with a layer of Clavuz no wipe gel top coat. Each layer was cured for 60 seconds in a 48W UV/LED lamp, and then a blend of teal and green chrome powders from iMethod Beauty was applied with a sponge applicator and sealed in with another layer of gel top coat.

I applied teal chrome powder to the tips of my nails and green chrome powder to the rest of the area in order to create this gradient effect.

Review of Tiebeauty JV203 Fish Scale Nail Vinyls

If you’re into quick and easy nail art, nail vinyls are the answer to your prayers, and the ones made by Tiebeauty are great for beginners.

Pattern JV203 from Tiebeauty.

For those who have no idea what to do with these, there are some instructions printed on the back of the packaging.

Bare bones instructions, although the assumption is that if you’re buying these, you already know how to use them.

There are 12 vinyl stickers in each package attached to a clear plastic backing, and they are beautifully holographic.  Even if you did not want to use the stickers as a stencil, you could cut them down to the same size as your fingernails, apply topcoat and enjoy the holo effect.

So many rainbows!

 

Each stencil is fairly large, with the small rectangular section measuring 1 x 1.25 inches while.  The actual fish scale pattern covers an area of 0.75 x 1 inches.  For those with short nails, you can probably cut the size down in half and get double the amount of stickers.

Pro tip: Cut each rectangle out and take the sticker off the backing before painting your nails to prevent accidental smudges on your polish.

When using these vinyls, be patient about letting your base polish color dry completely first before applying the stencil or else you will run the risk of ruining your manicure when you take the sticker off.

Below are photos from when I did my mermaid inspired nails.  All polishes used are listed in the original post.

Apply the vinyl to your nail in the position that you desire. You can also opt to cut the sticker to the size of your nail and apply topcoat for a quick and easy manicure.

You can choose to use a single color over the stencil or jazz things up by sponging on a gradient effect as shown here.

Try to be quick about taking off the sticker before the polish dries or else some of the polish will lift off along with the stencil. Any mistakes can be corrected by tracing the lines with an orange stick to get rid of excess polish, and empty areas of the scale pattern can be filled in with the original polish color and a dotting tool.

The stencils are pretty foolproof and easy to use and make doing a fish scale pattern a piece of cake.

If you like the pattern, you will save a ton of time by using these nail vinyls versus trying to paint the design by hand.  Nail art beginners will love the stencils for their professional results, and nail art pros will love them for the speed with which you can finish a manicure.  I definitely recommend the product!

Diamond rating: ♦♦♦♦♦ (5/5)

If you are interested in purchasing these nail art vinyls (retail price is $3.99 USD), the link for the item is shown below.  Using code RSSPX31 will get you 10% off your order, and Born Pretty Store offers free worldwide shipping.  Happy polishing!

http://www.bornprettystore.com/tipssheet-fish-scale-nail-vinyls-nail-manicure-stencil-stickers-jv203-p-23525.html

http://www.bornprettystore.com

Mermaid Inspired Nails

I know it’s a little early to be thinking of the beach, but I know a few people who recently went on vacation to Florida and Barbados, and I couldn’t help but be jealous.  The closest I’m getting to any sand these days is on my fingertips!

I also wanted to take advantage of these beautiful holographic vinyl stickers I got from Born Pretty Store.  They have a fish scale design, so I instantly thought of doing a mermaid themed design.

These sticker templates are pretty even on their own. They are pattern JV203 by Tiebeauty.

As for the color palette, I tried to use glittery gold to represent sand and shimmery teal green and blue for the scales.

From left to right: Glitz by Formula X, Cuckoo for this Color by OPI, Keep Me On My Mistletoes by Sephora by OPI, and Shay by Julep

I started out by painting my middle two fingers with Cuckoo for this Color and my other nails with Glitz.

To help aid with clean up of the gradient, I applied some liquid tape from Born Pretty to the skin around the teal nails.

After making sure the polish was completely dry, I applied one of the vinyl stickers to my nail.

For the gradient, I dabbed Keep Me On My Mistletoes and Shay onto a plastic bag and applied the combination onto my nail with a sponge.

Keep sponging the mixture from the bag onto the nail until a nice gradient effect is achieved.

After removing the sticker, you can see some parts are not perfect. I cleaned up excess polish by tracing the scale outline with an orange stick and filling in any gaps with the appropriate color.

I repeated the process with my ring finger.  To finish off the design, I added a few pearl studs, securing them with Kiss Nail Art Glue.

She sells sea shells by the seashore.

Hope you’re enjoying the wonderful weather we’ve been having lately!  In no time, it will be summer.  Happy polishing!