Express yourself from head to toe - and fingers, too!
One of the hottest and easiest fashion trends to literally get your hands on is nail art. You have 10 tiny canvases at the tips of your fingers just begging for a quirky design to express your favorite color, animal, food, or video game.
There’s no need to hit the nail salon to get a unique nail art application. If you have an artistic side you can create some amazing designs with a few bottles of nail polish and the right brushes. Don’t feel crafty? Pre-made nail art designs are easy to come by at any beauty store and pre-painted nails are becoming a hot commodity on online craft hubs.
Getting some trendy nail art doesn’t have to take hours or break the bank. We’ve got a few easy-to-achieve nail art looks that won’t eat up your time or your money.{relatedarticles}
Do-It-Yourself Nail Art Looks: Polka Dots
Hollywood cuties like Katy Perry have been rocking polka dots lately and their fingers are no exception. The basic polka dot pattern is easy to do with just two colors of nail polish and an additional small paintbrush. Here’s how to speckle your nails.
You’ll need:
- two contrasting colors of nail polish, preferably the same brand;
- a small paintbrush;
- clear-coat nail polish;
- Q-tips; and
- nail polish remover.
- Wash and dry your hands, making sure your nails are trimmed to the shape you want and ready to paint.
- Apply a single coat of the dominant color to each nail. Lighter colors may require multiple coats to achieve the desired color. Allow the base coat to dry completely.
- Using the small paintbrush, dot the contrasting color onto the base coat in a scattered pattern.
- Allow the dots to dry completely before covering with the clear-coat to protect the polish.
- Use the Q-tips dipped in nail polish remover to clean up any stray nail polish on your cuticles.
Don’t feel that you have to place each dot in a pattern or that they all have to be uniformly sized. A little variety in the dots can give your fingers a quirky style, especially if you slip in a few other colors!{relatedarticles}
Nail Art Solutions for the Not-So-Crafty
Whether you’re pressed for time or you just don’t have that creative streak to paint your own, easy nail art can still be yours with pre-made stickers. All you need to do is clean and shape your nails, then apply the removable decals. Check the nail care section in the makeup department of any store and you’re likely to find a variety of patterns and designs.
The stickers typically come in a one-size-fits-all package and can be easily shaped and filed down to fit your nail. The best part is that you can change nail art looks as quickly as you change clothes, letting you match your daily fingernail design to your outfit with little effort.
Press-on nails are also an easy buy when you don’t want to attempt painting the designs on those yourself. There are professional acrylic nail sets you can pick up at beauty stores that come pre-designed with everything from the basic base colors to jazzy designs. You can use these as a base to work from if you’re attempting your own design, or grab some pre-painted nail art looks for instant gratification.
Many artists are making press-on nails their own tiny canvas and selling them on the Internet. Craft sites like Etsy and even auction hubs like eBay are great places to find some talented nail artists who create any number of popular designs. You can find styles that range from abstract to trendy and a huge variety of designs to show your nerdy side (Space Invader nails, anyone?).{relatedarticles}
Nail Art is Hot
Your nails are a blank canvas where you can express yourself with the right manicure tools. Anything from sci-fi fandom to landscapes can grace your fingers when you unleash your crafty side. Even the Obama campaign is on the nail solidarity bandwagon. After seeing Michelle Obama wear a bluish-gray nail polish at the Democratic National Convention, a run on the color by admiring supporters has depleted all stock of the color. And guys think nail color is trivial!
Actually, guys are taking more notice of your nails than you think. According to a New York Times article, “For Some, ‘Bruised’ Cuts to the Quick,” men reveal that they loathe the green and yellow trend for nailcolor. They compare the colors to ghost Slimer from the Ghostbusters movie and Hi-C flavors.
That doesn’t stop celebrities from jumping on the nail art bandwagon with quirky designs like Zooey Deschanel’s tiny tuxedo fingernails seen at the 2012 Golden Globe awards. Huffington Post fashion writer Katie Wright recently penned a column investigating the sudden Internet popularity of nail art blogs and Tumblrs.
“Whatever the reason, with such a huge surge in interest online it looks like nail art, in terms of both sales and popularity, is going to keep on growing,” said Wright. Her article also mentioned an interesting fact from the New York Times - nail polish sales increased by 67% between 2010 and 2011.{relatedarticles}
For the Emmys, Deschanel featured tiny televisions on her nails for a themed look. It is easy to achieve the same fun, flirty fingers. Here’s how:
- Paint the fingers a basecoat of light yellow;
- Add a second coat of peach for a multi-faceted look;
- daub chunky silver metallic lacquer on random areas of nails;
- for fancy ladies, add a few Swarovski crystals on the glittered areas; and
- paint on the retro televisions last.
Even more official support for the nail art trend comes from the fashion runways, Wright notes. During the fall/winter 2012 fashion shows, designer Henry Holland’s models sported black and blue houndstooth-patterned nails, while the models in Meadham Kirchoff’s collection had nail wraps in a Halloween motif.{relatedarticles}
The next time you’re considering a new look for your fingertips, skip the French manicure and take a walk on the wild side with some funky nail art!