DIY Fancy Nails

I don't know about you, but I love fun - unique nails... something pretty that looks professionally done. But I don't usually like the price attached to it, so I can't justify it very often. So, this means I have to get crafty with trying to do it on my own. I know they make all sorts of things you can buy to make doing your own nails easier... all the fancy things. But I also don't want to pay for all that and end up with a drawer full of nail stuff... I already have one full of polish colors :)

Anyway, I wanted something like a french tip - but with a little bit of color and something simple. And what I ended up with - was something I liked so much that I actually did it for my wedding nails. And so I splurged on a pedicure instead of my nails since I liked these so much :)


All you'll need is some tape - your main tip color, your highlight color, and a light over coat. 

Here's my step by step explanation - sorry for the poor pictures, when I did this all I had with me was my cell phone... and when I re-did it for my wedding, well honestly, I didn't take the time to worry about taking new pictures. 

Now this one, I don't have a photo of... sorry... But you'll start by placing the tape diagonally across the bottom of your nail. Only leaving the part of your nail that you want your tip color on exposed. If the tape doesn't cover your whole nail, that's ok - you just want the line drawn so that when you paint the tip of your nail, you end up with a straight line. 

After you've painted the tip and before it's dry - remove the tape. You'll end up with a nice straight line (see pinky nail).


After your tip is completely dry, tape off your color line area... tape above and below. If your polish is not completely dry - when you peel off the tape some will come with it and you'll ruin it. Do this one nail at a time too because if the tape sits too long, sometimes it can still ruin the tip polish.


Now that your tape is on, paint on your color.


Peel off one piece at a time - starting with the one over your tip just to be safe. 


And when you pull off the bottom one, you'll have a nice stripe of color. (I had a photo of just the pinky afterwards, but it's a bit blurry) After the color polish is dry - you can coat with clear or a light shimmery type color. 


Wedding day nails I used a light shimmer polish for the top coat instead of clear - it doesn't make a big difference, but I do think it added a nice touch.


Step by step photos:



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