Name: Courtney
Original Inspiration: http://pinterest.com/pin/262545853247955404/
What I Did: I saw this on Pinterest and thought it looked awesome. I love experimenting with my nails, and this seemed easy enough. I did exactly what the post said. Twice. Elinimated the toothpick stir on the third try because the polish immediately wrapped around the toothpick as soon as it entered the water.
My Result:
Next Time I Will: I have no idea. Three attempts failed. I am not sure I can do anything differently and experience the result I want!
I know what happened!!! It took me three tries to get this right too! You must use salon quality nailpolish…of everything I tried, only OPI, China Glaze, and Finger Paints worked. All the rest (sally hanson, revlon, NYC) all dried so fast i couldn’t get them onto my nails.
Distilled water makes a huge difference too!
Try it again, third time is a charm after all!
Hey Courtney,
I’ve done some watercolor nails myself, and theyhave yet to turn out perfectly, but these tips might come in handy:
-Use good quality nail polish
- Try adding an extra drop or two of each color
-Working quickly before it dries along the top of the water is the most important step in this. By leaving the top of the nail polish jar open, you can reduce the time the polish has to dry.
Hope this helps! 🙂
yep definite fail for me too. I wont even attempt that mess again.
I do water marble all the time with drugstore and salon brands. Use room temp filtered/bottled water and drop a large droplet of polish in the water. Work quickly-I usually unscrew all my caps before I begin. I’ve never had a problem, other than cleaning up the polish from my fingers. 🙂
I marble too, and Kerry is correct, it only really works with room temp bottled water. Once you’ve got the type of polish doesn’t matter.
I marble my nails all the time, even have my polishes sorted on my rack by what marbles and what does not, I even make mini canvas marbled polish art, it’s really trial and error with what polishes work and which do not. Sit down with several colors you would be willing to use and test which ones remain wet long enough and which ones combine well.
I have done the marble nail and it worked great! my sister helped me tape my fingers to avoid too much mess, and we made sure to use room temperature water. It was not bottled or distilled. I was even able to do two nails at a time a couple times. We used some Sally hansen polishes, along with other polishes and didn’t have a problem with any of them. It did take quite a while though!
Why is it that whenever I see these fails, the people picked the worst possible color combinations?
I’ve tried it and it has definitely worked! I used distilled water, and the trick is to work quickly so the paint doesn’t dry before you use it. I’ve used different brands and haven’t seen much ofa difference with quality. It is a bit tme consuming, but worth the effort.
I’ve done this a few times, too - I found that sparkle and very metallic polishes (regardless of quality) don’t seem to work as well as non sparkle polishes.
Best tip for not having to clean polish from fingers…. Use vaseline. Coat the skin surrounding the nail bed with it and then easily wipe off excess polish along with vaseline. As for what went wrong, a few suggestions as to what may have happened. Size of dipping bowl is important. I find a shot glass is a good size. And secondly play around with the angle and way you are dipping your finger at as it can really affect the outcome. Good luck
I have done water marbled nails a lot! And they always turn out well. Here are a few tips I have learned:
~Don’t breathe on the water when the polish is in it!!!
~Tape off your nails for easier clean up!!!
~Some polishes work better than others, try a few different ones - the less shiny the better! And the newer the polish, the better.
~You may have to change the water half way through. I find the more polish I put in, the faster the polish dries.
~Do ONE nail at a time!
~Work fast!!!
~Easy clean up - use a plastic or styrofoam cup
I do this nail design regularly, especially in the summer and I have never had a problem. I buy the Xtreme nail color from Sally Hansen (about $3 a bottle) and most colors work just fine so the polish quality is not that much of a factor in your success. The trick is to use opaque colors and similar types. If you mix solids with glitters, it can be tricky and it takes practice. It’s not going to be perfect the first time you try it.
TIPS
- Do not swirl the colors too much. The swirl is the water is exactly what will show up on your nail. Too much swirling can cause the colors to simply mix into a not-so-pretty color.
- A base coat of white or a silver color will help enhance colors that are not as opaque.
- Use those small plastic mouthwash cups for this. It makes for a smaller surface to swirl and you can dispose of them easily.
- Change the water (and the cup) after every few nails to ensure that the debris and residual skin oil doesn’t disrupt the process.
- YOU DON’T HAVE TO TAPE OR LUBE UP YOUR FINGERS BEFORE YOU APPLY THE DESIGN!! NO VASELINE NEEDED!!!! Contrary to what other commenters are saying, it is as simple as washing, drying and moisturizing your hands normally. One you apply to the water design, let it dry completely and the run your fingers under warm water and rub. The polish will come right off with NO STAINS!