Animal Print Teeny Bikini

If you love 'bikini so teeny' from essie as much as I do, you will be dying to try this design. This baby blue polish served as the canvas to this cheetah and zebra print inspired layout.

Here is the tutorial:

1. Start with 2-3 coats of 'bikini so teeny' essie polish on nails that have been trimmed, filed, and base coated.

2. Use a silver polish atop the blue polish to create an ombré effect. To make the silver ombré more dynamic, use a fine silver glitter polish to start, then add chunkier glitter pieces on top. It is easiest to do so by using the kind that comes in viles or small cases. You can find this at any general retailer or art store.

3. After these steps, you should have a simple glitter ombré on your nails. Now, lets get started on the design! Start making white blobs all over the surface of your ring fingers using either nail polish or acrylic paint. These will serve as the center of the cheetah print, so spread them out enough to allow for black outlining. Repeat this on half your thumb, the upper half of your middle finger, and the bottom of your pinkie.

4. With the same white you used for the cheetah blobs, make zebra print in the areas of your nails that do not already have cheetah print. To do this, try to make your strokes even and thin, but not straight. Join them at the ends, start the stripes from either side of your nails, whatever you need to do to mix up the look of the print. 

5. At this point, your nails will most likely look like a work in progress: white blobs and stripes galore. But that's exactly what they should look like! Don't fret, nail art is a building process. Now it's time to add some orange. I used 'WHAM! POW!' from Color Club, but any neon orange color will suffice. Using a toothpick or nail dotter, place the orange polish on the white blobs that are located on the top third of the nail. This is the start of the ombré within the cheetah print itself.

6. Mix two parts orange polish with one part white, and apply this color to the blobs located on the middle of the nail. 

Then, leave the rest white. Continue this pattern for the rest of the cheetah blobs.

7. Now it's time to apply some black! Using a thin brush, preferably a trimmed one, outline the newly colored blobs. Leave some spaces open, so you will be roughly painting 'C' shapes around the blobs. 

8. Trace over the white zebra print you painted before, leaving some of the white showing. This will complete your painting for the day!

9. Apply gems down the center of the thumb, separating the two animal prints.

10. Use a shiny, protective top coat, and you're done! Enjoy your animal ombré mani! 

Summer Henna

Although the last couple weeks of summer are approaching, I couldn't help but try and capture the beauty and intricacy of boardwalk henna designs. They are a classic summer go-to at the beach, and a fantastic way to get inked without the commitment! I was inspired by these beautiful tattoos, and this is what came of it. 

A base nude coat from elf polish and a mix of black and orange paint were used in this nail art. Just as I said in previous posts, acrylics are the way to go! The manageable consistency allowed this pattern to come out better than I imagined! Here is a close up collaborative of each nail.

All that is needed to do this is photos for inspiration, a trimmed brush, and patience! I'd love to make this more mainstream, I had a great time painting these and had quite a few compliments! I highly recommend trying this out! The best part? You can wear these all the way into fall. Happy summer!

Tribal Chevron French

Recently, I've been told by many bloggers and nail enthusiasts that acrylic paints are the way to go, as well as trimming your own brushes. I took advantage of this advice, and I'm more than satisfied with the results! I highly recommend using these tactics when creating your art. My first try was with this tribal and ombré mash up. 

One thing I've learned and will continue to preach: acrylics are so much easier to maneuver with! The paint doesn't clump during application, the brushes aren't constantly being dunked in remover, and the designs are much cleaner and precise. (Not to mention no need of a makeup sponge for the gradient!) I'm definitely a fan. 

  Of course, nail polish was still used, but not nearly as much. I used a nude polish from elf cosmetics overtop a generic base coat. The rest was all acrylic besides the top coat! I would advise those of you who are going to switch to use runnier brands of acrylics. If you only have access to globbier ones, that's fine, just add water. Although, careful about adding too much; the paint will lose it's opacity fairly quickly!

  

  As for these specific nails:

1. Prep nails with any shaping, strengtheners, or filing necessary. Apply a base coat and 2-3 coats of a nude polish. Paint both of your ring fingers white.

2. Using a trimmed brush dipped in white acrylic paint on all your nails except your ring fingers, make 3 very small dots: one directly in the middle of the edge of your nail, and two midway up your nail on either side. (These should be parallel to each other.) these will serve as guides for your chevron shape and will avoid painting off center tips.

3. Connect the middle dot with the two on the sides of your nail. Fill these in completely white. You should now have a generic white and nude chevron manicure.

4. Now you're ready to add color! Using 2-3 different colors, ombré the tips and your white ring finger by using your trimmed brush. Allow the color to blend with the one next to it.

5. With black, line the inside of the ombré tips. Paint straight, geometric lines throughout the colored areas. Then, finish the look by painting another chevron on the nude paint. 

6. Add a top coat!! Many people skip this step, but it's imperative that you do this. (Especially with acrylics, or else the paint will wipe away and fade.) Lock in your look and you're done!

I hope that tutorial wasn't too complex to follow, but if all else fails, the picture is there to help! 😊

To Start Things Off

With spring comes the end of the school year, and we all know what that means: prom time. Just yesterday, I went to one! I had days of contemplation of nail possibilities beforehand, and eventually, this was the product: 

Using OPI You're Such A Budapest, China Glaze Pizzazz, and Sephora brand White Hot, I painted this glitter mani. I started it off by painting them white, then adding the purple ombre to the tips using a makeup sponge. The gems on my dress weren't true to silver, so I picked up some gems from michaels craft store that had an aurora of color to them. After the purple lines and dots were added, I finished it off by piecing through my glitter polish and placing the silver pieces in an arrangement!

The best part about doing an ombré effect with a makeup sponge over white is that the purple is lighter than it would be if you applied it with a brush. By using this technique, it gives you two shades that compliment each other perfectly. No need to mix polishes, so it's super easy!

Hope anyone else who went to prom had a great time! 

- Kathleen

A Little About Me..

Hi everyone! My name is Kathleen Mensing, and I am a huge nail enthusiast. I am currently 16 years old and have been addicted to the art ever since I got in the habit 5 years ago. This blog is meant for sharing my designs and tutorials with you. I hope to get as many photos of nails I've painted on the site, but if you're interested in more frequent updates, you can find me on Instagram as @kmensi

•• Hope you enjoy the art! ••

Yours truly,

Kathleen