Nail Art Tutorial: Interlock

Hi Lovelies! As promised, I have a tutorial to share with you for the manicure that I posted yesterday. You may have seen this technique before, but I had a request for it a while ago, so I went ahead a created the tutorial. Somehow life got in the way between then and now so I didn't get around to writing it all up. Let's just chalk this one up to me being a bad blogger. Hopefully it is still better late than never.

Supplies:

• 2 polishes. I used Nicole by OPI My Sol Shines Brighter and Live in the Momentum
• Dotting tool. Don't have a dotting tool? Check out these dotting tool alternatives

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Start out with a base of 1-2 coats of your lighter shade.
   (The coral Nicole by OPI My Sol Shines Brighter is shown here)
2. Using the second shade, paint a diagonal line across your nail and fill in toward the tips. Don't worry if this is not perfectly straight because it will be covered up by dots.
   (The blue shown here is Nicole by OPI Live in the Momentum)
3. With a dotting tool dipped into your second color (ie. blue), add dots along the edge of the diagonal. Leave some space in between the dots as shown above.
4. Dip the dotting tool into your first color (ie. coral) and place a dot on your second color between two of the dots created in step 3.
5. Repeat step 4 to add dots along the edge of your second color, in between the dots of the second color created in step 3. 
6. Add a top coat and enjoy!

I think my instructions might be a bit confusing, but it is really easy once you actually do it, so don't let them intimidate you! Give it a try and I would love to see how it turns out! If you post on Instagram, tag me #lookwackylaki and I will be sure to see your creations.

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!

P.S. You can find lots of my other tutorials here!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Glitter Removal with Nail Clips

Hi Lovelies! I finally found a solution to my glitter removing woes! It seems that every year I end up with some sort of post about glitter removal. Just like a lot of you, I love glitter, but hate hate hate the removal. In 2011, I was excited to discover the foil removal method. The method still works perfectly, but I find myself dreading the whole foil wrapping process. In 2012, I learned about the DIY PVC peel-off base coat (aka Elmer's glue) and was convinced I would use it with every glitter manicure. Well that also didn't quite work out because I often add glitter to my manicure as an afterthought to spice it up and starting with a peel-off base takes planning. Turns out I'm just not much of a planner when it comes to manicures. In 2013, I tried gel-off clips from the Born Pretty Store which were a great concept, but failed miserably because they were not acetone resistant. Into the trash they quickly went.

I finally recovered from the failed gel-off clips and decided to try my luck with another brand. The price is just right and I figured I wouldn't loose much if they also failed. I have been using these for the past few months and find myself reaching for them time and time again!

Tutorial: Racing Stripes

Hi Lovelies! As promised, I've got a tutorial for my last manicure to show you today. It is a quite simple look when you break it down and I hope that will encourage you to play around with striping tape as well. Whether it is this arrangement, one from a previous tutorial or something you create on your own. Give it a try and remember to have fun!

Supplies

• 3 polishes of your choice. Shown here OPI Coca-Cola Red, My Signature is "DC" (silver) and Today I Accomplished Zero (black jelly with red glitter)
• Striping tape of any color (I purchased mine on Ebay, but there are lots of other places to get it!)

Steps

Instructions

1. Paint your nails the desired base color and allow it to dry completely. 
• You can speed this up by using a quick dry top coat or drops
2. Arrange striping tape as shown above. 
• For my thumb, I used a similar chevron arrangement as on my ring finger, but a simple stripe would work just as well. 
3. Using the silver polish, paint in between the two sections of striping tape.
4. Remove the striping tape closest to the cuticles while the polish is still wet to ensure a clean line, but leave the other piece(s) of striping tape in place.
5. Apply the glitter polish covering the nail tips up to the remaining striping tape.
6. Remove the striping tape while the polish is still wet.
7. Add a top coat to seal in your work and enjoy!!

I hope you enjoyed this quick tutorial! Please don't hesitate to ask questions and let me know what you think of this!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Tutorial: Aged Bamboo

Hi Lovelies! It is time for a tutorial again. After I posted my art inspired bamboo manicure last month, I got a few comments from readers who said that this type of manicure is too complicated and not something that they can do for themselves. I wanted to show that if you already know how to stamp, this is actually a really simple manicure that only looks like it takes a lot of work, but is actually rather simple. So let's get started...

Supplies:

• 2-3 neutral shades for the background. I used Zoya Jacqueline, Taylor and Flynn
• Brown polish for stamping. I used Zoya Emilia
• Sea sponge
• Stamping plate (I used Bundle Monster plate BM-424) and stamping supplies

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Apply the lightest color for a base and allow it to dry completely. Shown here is Zoya Jacqueline.
2. Put a few drops of the beige lacquer(s) on your palate and dip the sponge into it. I used a little bit of Zoya Taylor and Flynn. Dab the sponge onto a clean area of the palate to work the polish into the sponge and remove excess. Finally gently dab the sponge onto random sections of the nail, leaving portions of the base still visible.
3. Apply stamping polish onto the stamping plate, scrape and pick up the image as usual
4. Stamp the image onto your nail
5. Seal with a top coat and enjoy!

See? That was easy, right? I even struggled to make a full tutorial out of this because there are so few steps when you really think about it.

Please don't hesitate to ask questions if you have any!

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Tutorial: Simple Stripes

Hi Lovelies! How about a throw back Thursday post for you today? This is a tutorial for a manicure that I showed you back in April of this year and somehow just never got around to posting the tutorial. I guess I need to dig deeper through my archives and see what else I've forgotten to post. Shame on me!

Supplies:

• 2 polishes. I used OPI 4 in the Morning and Over & Over A-Gwen
• Striping tape (any color). I purchased the striping tape that I use on Ebay.

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Apply desired base color and allow it to dry completely. Shown here is OPI 4 in the Morning.
2. Arrange 4-5 short segments of striping tape to each nail in a random crisscrossing pattern.
3. Apply the 2nd polish shade over the entire nail (making a mess as I did is optional!). I used OPI Over and Over A-Gwen for my red shade. 
4. Quickly remove the striping tape before the polish has started to dry to ensure clean lines
5. Clean up the cuticles if needed, seal with a top coat and enjoy!

I hope you find this simple tutorial helpful!

Don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions!

For a little bit of variation, you can also create this look with a gradient on top. Check out my tutorial here for full instructions!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Tutorial: Color Block with Striping Tape

Hi Everyone! As promised, today I have for you a simple tutorial for the manicure that showed you yesterday. This simple technique with striping tape can be used to create a lot of different looks. I will show another similar look that I created with this technique soon. It is fun to play around with arrangement, colors and style.

Supplies:

• 2 Polishes. I used Dazzle Dry Sultry Samba and Waltz with Me.
• Striping Tape. I purchased mine on Ebay, but it is available in many beauty supply stores and online on sites such as Amazon.com and BornPrettyStore.com

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Start by painting your nails a base color and allow it to dry completely. For this manicure I used Dazzle Dry Waltz with Me
2. Cut short segments of striping tape and arrange them on the nails as desired for your look. You can use any color of striping tape at this step since it is being used just for the color block and will not be a part of the final look.
3. Using the second nail polish fill in different areas of the design as desired. You can use either the brush from the nail polish or use a small nail art brush for precision. I used Dazzle Dry Sultry Samba for my second shade.
4. Quickly remove the striping tape before the polish has started to dry to ensure clean lines.
5. Apply new/clean pieces of striping tape in place of the original ones.
6. Using cuticle nippers, trim excess striping tape along the edges of the nails. Try to trim as closely to the nail as possible so that you will seal the edges of the striping tape with a top coat and help keep them from lifting up
7. Seal with a top coat and enjoy!

I hope you found this tutorial helpful. Please don't hesitate to ask questions if you have any!

Until next time...

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Nail Art Tutorial: Sparkly Vampire Tips

Hi Lovelies! This manicure probably didn't need a tutorial because I consider it pretty straight forward to begin with, but please correct me if I'm wrong. Would you like to see more tutorials? Less tutorials? Only for complicated techniques? I don't want to spam you with tutorials, but at the same time I'm having fun making them at the moment! :)

The tutorial goes along with a manicure that I posted yesterday inspired by the InDecisive Lacquer polish and name Sparkly Vampire. I keep thinking a vampire would love a mani like this! Or maybe it is just because the tips remind me of fangs! Who knows, but I really enjoyed wearing this and I hope you enjoy this tutorial...

Supplies used:

• Polishes: InDecisive Lacquer Sparkly Vampire, SinfulColors Black on Black
• Red hex glitter (mine is from the Born Pretty Store, part of a set. Item #3103)

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Apply desired number of coats of your red polish. Here I used 2 coats of InDecsive Lacquer Sparkly Vampire.
2. Paint a corner of the nail using black. Depending on the length of your nails and how steep you want the final point to be, start at the edge of your nail and swipe toward the center of the tip. Don't worry if the line is not perfect since you will be covering it with glitter!
• You can do this using either the polish brush or a detail brush for more control.
• Additionally try marking a dot on the side and the tip of the nail to help guide if necessary. 
3. Repeat step #2 and paint the second corner of the nail. Again don't worry about making this perfect since you will be covering it up with glitter. 
4. Apply a coat of clear polish (to adhere the glitter) and arrange the red glitter along the edge between black and red polish as shown above, to create a glitter chevron.
5. Seal with a top coat and enjoy!

Please let me know what you think of this tutorial and as always don't hesitate to ask questions!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Nail Art Tutorial: Strawberries

Hi there once again! As promised, I have another tutorial to share with you today. I think I finally found my grove for making these and now I'm having way too much fun. The tutorial is for this cute strawberry nail art that I showed you in my last post. It is an intermediate tutorial and assumes that you know how to make a gradient. I will try to make a separate tutorial for gradients the next time I'm doing one. For now, I hope you enjoy this...

Supplies Used:

• Nicole by OPI Leapink for Joy, The Coral of the Story, Shaved Nice and Lay it on the Lime
• Cosmetic wedge
• Small nail art brush

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Start out by painting your nails using the the lightest of the two pink shades. Nicole by OPI Leapink for Joy is shown here
2. Apply the two pink polishes directly onto a cosmetic wedge and tap on the nail to create a gradient. Shown here using Nicole by OPI Leapink for Joy and The Coral of the Story.
• Note: you can skip steps #2 and #3 if desired to avoid making a gradient. If you are unfamiliar with making gradients, but want to try it, you can take a look at this tutorial which explains gradients in a bit more detail. 
3. Using a q-tip or brush dipped in acetone clean up the cuticles (you can save this step until the end if desired).
4. Apply a coat of glitter polish. Shown here with Nicole by OPI Shaved Nice
5. Using a small nail art brush and green polish draw the strawberry calyx (crown) on the nail half-moon. Don't worry about making it perfect since strawberries aren't perfect either. I used Nicole by OPI Lay it on the Lime for this manicure
6. Using the same detail brush and green polish, randomly dot strawberry 'seeds' on the nail
7. Seal with a top coat and enjoy!

I will leave you with this adorable turtle vs strawberry photo because I just couldn't resist including it here. I stumbled on it while trying to look up for the proper name of the strawberry crown. It is the calyx! My motto for the day is live, learn and find adorable photos in the process...

(source)

As always, I would love to know what you think of this tutorial and don't hesitate to ask questions if something is not clear!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Nail Art Tutorial: Neon Triangles

Hi again! I guess I have been in a tutorial making mood so I'm just rolling with it. Some might be quite simple, such as this one, but I hope you enjoy them nevertheless. This is for the manicure that I showed you this morning featuring neon accent triangles. They are fun and easy to do. Try them out in different color combinations...

Supplies used:

• InDecisive Nail Lacquer Jawbreaker
• OPI Blue it out of Proportion (also used OPI You Are so Outta Lime!, Life Gave Me Lemons, and Pink Outside the Box for the rest of the manicure)
• Striping tape

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Apply desired number of coats of base color. Here I used 2 coats of InDecisive Lacquer Jawbreaker
2. Arrange 2 pieces of striping tape to create a triangle at the nail half moon. Add another 2 piece of striping tape parallel to the first as shown above
3. Using your desired accent color, paint inside the half moon triangle and between the striping tape. For this tutorial, I used OPI Blue it out of Proportion.
4. Quickly remove the striping tape before the polish begins to dry to ensure a clean line
5. Add a top coat and enjoy!

Easy peasy, right?

Please let me know if you have any questions!

Would you like to see more simple tutorials such as this?

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Tutorial: Dotticure

Hi Lovelies! I thought I would share another tutorial today with you today. This is for a dotticure that I showed you a few months ago. I have been going through my mani archives and discovered a few tutorials that I never got around to putting together until now. I had even forgotten that I took photos for this dotticure tutorial so stumbling across it was a fun surprise.

Supplies Used:

• Polishes: Zoya Dot (pink base), Dillon (minty green), Hudson (lavender) and Rebel (sky blue)
• White nail polish or acrylic paint
• Dotting tool (don't have a dotting tool? Try some dotting tool alternatives)

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Start out by painting your nail using a base color. I used Zoya Dot for this look
2. Using white nail polish or acrylic paint and a dotting tool, place dots down the center of the nail starting near the cuticles and working down toward the tip. 
• You can make all the dots the same size or alternate between larger and slightly smaller dots as I attempted.
3. Add another row of dots on each side of the first row as show above. 
• If you chose to alternate the size of the dots in your first row then create your 2nd and 3rd row by starting opposite to the first one to ensure that each large dot is surrounded by small ones and vise versa.
4. Using your first color, add a smaller dot inside each of the white dots of the first row (that was created in step #2). I used Zoya Hudson for the lavender dots.
5. Repeat step #4 with a second color in one of the 'empty' white rows. I used the minty green Zoya Dillon here.
6. Repeat step #4 with the final color in the last white row. I used the sky blue Zoya Rebel
7. Using a small dotting tool or toothpick and white nail polish or acrylic paint, add a zig-zag of dots in between 2 rows of larger dots.
8. Repeat #7 to create a zig-zag of dots between the remaining rows.
9. Seal with a top coat and enjoy!

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial! Please don't hesitate to ask questions if you have any! 

As always, I would love to know what you think of this tutorial.

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Tutorial: Abstract Stained Glass Nail Art

Hi Everyone! I apologize in the delay of putting this tutorial together. I've been in a bit of a funk lately and I'm hoping it will pass soon. A few of you requested that I share a tutorial for this abstract stained glass manicure that I showed you a couple of months ago and I have not forgotten! I had actually created the tutorial at the time of the manicure, but have just now sorted through the photos and can finally share it with you...

Supplies Used:

• Polishes: Zoya Dillon (minty green), Hudson (lavender) and Rebel (sky blue), and Brooklyn (gold)
• Small detail brush

Steps:

piCture pOlish Blog Fest 2014 Featuring Nail Vinyls!

Hi Everyone! I am so excited today because once again I had the wonderful opportunity to participate in the annual piCture pOlish Blog Fest. For the first time this year the blog/insta fest features Nail Vinyls. piCture pOlish will be retailing a special exclusive 4 pack 'Nail Vinyls' containing Chevrons, Mini Chevrons, Straight & Right Angles.

My challenge for today was 2-fold, to swatch a gorgeous newly released lacquer named Eyre and to create nail art using Nail Vinyls and the creamy shades Marine and Mad Magenta. I had quite a bit of fun with this challenge so buckle up for a long post!

Tutorial: Leopards Spots

Today I would like to show you a quick and easy tutorial for how to create a leopard spotted manicure. This is a very common technique and I've seen many tutorials on how to create this look, but hopefully one more won't hurt. You can play around with different color combinations from traditional leopard colors to wild and crazy neon ones. I think this always makes for a fun manicure and is easy to create no matter what your skill level is since precision isn't key for this look...

Supplies:

• Three polishes of choice. I used Color Club Look, Don't Tusk (ivory), Lion's Den (gold shimmer), Nail-Robi (dark purple)
• Dotting tool (don't have a dotting tool? Try one of these alternatives!)

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Start by painting your nails your nails with an ivory (or your desired) base color. Apply enough coats to reach opacity and allow to dry as usual.
2. Using a shimmery or glittery gold apply random shaped spots to the nail using the polish brush
3. With a dotting tool dipped into the purple lacquer, draw 2-3 C-shaped curves around each of the gold spots
4. Add small purple spots using the dotting tool by drawing little 'commas' in the space between the larger spots.
5. Top coat and enjoy!

Once you 'master' the larger spots, you can try making smaller spots for a more detailed mani...

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial! Don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions and as always I would love to know what you think of this!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Tutorial: Stamped Ornaments

As promised, I've got a tutorial for you on how I stamped my ornaments which were featured in my manicure this morning. This tutorial assumes that you are familiar with stamping and does not attempt to explain the details involved in that process...

Supplies:

• Various nail studs
• Polish for painting the studs
• Polish for stamping + desired stamping plate

Steps:

Tutorial: Chevron Skittles

I got a few requests to do a tutorial for my Chevron Skittles manicure from last month. Dutifully I added it to my 'to do' list, which is about a mile long these days. Then I got to thinking that I might be able to show you how I created this manicure using the photos that I already have if you are willing to use your imagination. This really isn't my proudest moment and I still hope create a proper tutorial one day, but to avoid further delay I hope this will help those who wanted to recreate this look...

Supplies:

• 3 polishes of your choice (OPI Miss Universe lacquers used here)
• Striping tape
• Small brush (optional, but helpful)

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Start out by painting the nails using one of the polishes. OPI I'm Feeling Sashy used here.
   - When the polish is dry, place striping tape in a desired pattern (placement of striping tape illustrated here with gray lines). 
2. Using either the polish brush or a different small brush, apply your second color in sections between the striping tape. Shown here using the silver OPI This Gown Needs a Crown.
3. Repeat step #2 using the third color to fill in other sections between striping tape. Shown here using OPI Miss You-niverse.
   - Note: I did remove two pieces of striping tape on the index finger before adding the dark purple at the tip.
4. Remove striping tape right away, while polish is still wet.
5. Add a top coat and you're done!

For best results work one nail at a time rather than a full manicure as shown here. In other words, you can do step #1 to all the nails, but repeat steps #2-4 on each nail individually. It is best to remove the striping tape while the polish is still wet to get clean lines.

Please let me know what you think of this tutorial! Don't hesitate to ask questions if you have any!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Tips for Removing a Double Sided (Louboutin) Manicure

Ever since this OMG Viper Louboutin Manicure, I've gotten a lot of questions regarding the removal of it. I've done a tutorial on how to create a Louboutin manicure, but never realized so many of you would be worried about removing it. To save myself from having to explain, I thought it would be easier to just show you...

Supplies:

• Acetone or polish remover (I use my own remover which just happens to be in a pure acetone bottle that is in this photo)
• Cotton  or felt squares. Felt is a bit sturdier and what I always use for my polish removal. You can see how I make my felt pieces here...
• An orange stick or something sturdy and thin to wrap the felt around
• A cleanup brush. This is the same one I use for my manicure cleanup

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Remove the polish off the top of the nail as usual
2. Wrap a piece of felt around an orange stick and place underneath the nail. Hold it there for a few seconds to dissolve the polish and then gently rub back and forth to remove the polish. Re-position the orange stick to a clean area on the felt (or take a new piece) and repeat as necessary.
3. Optional: As you can see the nail is pretty much clean, but if there are some spots you can't get to with the orange stick, take a brush soaked in acetone and run along the underside of the nail.

All done! Nakie nails :)

Although there are a lot of photos here, it really is fairly easy to remove the polish under the nail. I might add it is much easier than removing glitter off the top of the nail ;)

When doing a Louboutin manicure, make sure to use a non-staining red polish. As you can imagine, it would be much trickier to remove if the polish stained the skin...

Okay, I think that about covers it, I hope you find this useful. Let me know if I missed something or you have questions!!

P.S. The green polish is Zoya Giovanna, the last thing I swatched last night. The red is OPI Danke-Shiny Red. Totally unintentional, but looks like a perfect Holiday Louboutin mani. I'll have to keep that in mind when December rolls around :)

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

piCture pOlish Blog Fest 2013

I'm so honored to once again get the opportunity to participate in the annual piCture pOlish Blog Fest. This year, piCture pOlish is celebrating the Year of the Blogger by challenging the participants to create our ‘most amazing nail art manicure ever’ using 3 piCture pOlish which were sent to us. In addition we were asked to create a step by step tutorial for the look. No pressure, right?

Actually, if that wasn't pressure enough, there is the promise of an amazing Blog Fest Award. Three lucky bloggers who are participating in this year's Blog Fest will get the chance to collaborate with the gals at piCture pOlish and create their own shade. One winner will be chosen by all the lovely fans, one by the participating bloggers and one by the piCture pOlish gals themselves. Since I have already had the privilege of creating Sea Jewel, I'm not eligible for the Award, but I'm so excited to see all the manicures and vote for my favorite. I hope you'll be doing the same.

With the Award off the table for me, the pressure was lessened and I got to dreaming up my manicure using the 3 shades sent to me... Citrus, Flirt and Splash...

Tutorial: Faded Glitter Flag

I am pretty pathetic when it comes to following through on creating tutorials. This is one was requested a year ago, after this 4th of July manicure. I actually made the tutorial a few months later, but it seemed out of place to post it with the holiday so far behind. Now with 4th of July just a couple of days away, it is the perfect opportunity to share this with you...

Supplies:

• White base polished (Wet 'n Wild French White Cream used here)
• Red glitter (OPI Gettin' Miss Piggy With It)
• Blue glitter (OPI Gone Gonzo!)
• White nail art polish or striping brush to use with any white polish

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Apply desired number of coats of white polish
2. As shown above, cover approximately two thirds of the nail at a diagonal with red glitter
3. Apply the blue glitter to the remainder of the nail, toward the base
4. Using a striping brush and white polish paint a stripe where the two glitters meet
5. Paint additional lines over the red glitter, parallel to the first line
6. Add a top coat and you are done!

That's all there is to it! Hopefully you can see how easy it can be and will give this a try yourself!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Tutorial Tuesday: Striping Tape and Gradient

Today I would like to share with you a tutorial for the technique used to create the striping tape and gradient manicure yesterday. If you read my spoiler alert at the bottom of that post, then you were probably already expecting this. It is a manicure that I think looks complicated, but is actually pretty easy to make. The fun part is experimenting with colors and tape placement for endless manicure possibilities. If you have not tried this technique yet, I hope this will encourage you to try it...

Supplies:

• 3 polishes of your choice (Barielle Banana Drop, Lilac Jelly Bean, and Green Apple Chew used for this manicure)
• Striping tape in any color 
• Makeup wedge or other sponge

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Apply desired number of coats of base color and allow to completely dry
2. Cut and apply pieces of striping tape in a desired pattern
3. Paint a stripe of each gradient color directly onto makeup wedge or sponge
4. Gently tap the sponge over the nail moving it slightly back and forth to blend the gradient
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 by applying more polish to the sponge and gently tapping on the nail  for a second coat of gradient. This helps build color opacity for the gradient
6. While the polish is still wet, carefully remove the striping tape one piece at a time
7. Using a Q-tip clean the cuticles of excess polish.
   Tip: clean up any fine details with a brush as demonstrated here
8. Add a layer of top coat (or two if the sponging is bumpy) and enjoy! 

As always, please let me know what you think of this or if you have questions!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Tutorial Tuesday: Double Sided Manicure

I love the new trend of the double sided manicures. The most common are Louboutin manicures with a red underside, inspired by the red soles of Louboutin shoes. More recently OPI created the Bonded Look with the underside in gold, as seen in the new Skyfall movie. I think this can be fun in any color combination to make a statement or just have a little hidden treat for yourself.

Each time I do create of these manicures I get questions about cleaning under the nail after painting or people tell me that they are afraid to try and make a mess. I thought I would put together this tutorial to show how I tape off my nails to avoid the mess and make painting the underside of the nail a little easier. I hope you find it useful and give this double sided look a try...

Supplies:

• Two polishes of choice. I'm using Zoya Dovima on top and OPI You Only Live Twice underneath.
• Tape (clear tape, masking tape, painters tape, etc...)

Steps:

Instructions:

1. Start out with clean dry nails
2. Slip a piece of tape between the nail and the finger to run along the nail line
3. Fold the tape down over the finger
4. Fold the sides down along the finger, avoid covering the front of the nail
5. Fold the two flaps down, one over the other, to keep them out of the way
6. This is what it will look like from the side, a little tape hat for the finger.
   The front of the nail is not covered and the back of the nail is taped off and held away from the nail
7. Paint the underside of the nail in chosen color. Repeat for a desired number of coats
8. Paint the top of the nails in the desired color as usual
9. Allow everything to dry and remove the tape. 

Enjoy your mess free double sided manicure!

Here are some examples of what I have done in the past. Click on the images to go directly to the post...

 

Let me know what you think of this and don't hesitate to ask questions if something is not clear!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)