How to Do Nail Designs

Nail designs are small pictures, charms, flowers, jewels or painted designs that are applied after a manicure is completed. They can be as simple as a single jewel on each nail or as complicated as airbrushing. Adding nail designs to your manicure is an easy way to create a look that is uniquely yours. You can mimic a floral pattern in a wedding or prom dress or even a bikini for an upcoming vacation. Nail designs are usually done in a salon but can just as easily be done at home.

Things You'll Need

• Clear nail polish
• Nail jewels
• Nail stickers
• Small paint brush
• Nail polish (assorted colors)
• Airbrush with paint
• Nail stencils
• Non-acetone nail polish remover

Instructions

1. Use jewels or gems. There are a variety of jewels and gems created for decorating nails. Some are self-adhesive. To apply self-adhesive nail jewels, use tweezers to remove them from their paper backing. Gently press them to the surface of the nail. After all jewels are attached, use clear nail polish as a topcoat to seal your jewels to your nail and protect the jewels. If the jewels are not self-adhesive, the same technique is used; however, after picking the jewels up with the tweezers, they will need to be dipped in a tiny amount of nail glue. These jewels often come with this glue.

2. Paint your own design. You can use various colors of nail polish and small brushes to free-hand paint your own designs. Try sketching your design on paper first to make the application of the design onto the nail easier. Use a small brush dipped in nail polish to paint the design on your nails. Clean the brush off with non-acetone nail polish remover when you are ready to switch between colors. Allow the polish to dry, then protect it with a coat of clear nail polish. Clean your brushes with nail polish remover to keep the polish from caking on as it dries.

3. Use nail stickers. There are many stickers on the market designed to make nail decorating quick and easy. You can find them in almost any drug or department store. These stickers peel off of their paper backing and are applied to the nail with tweezers or carefully by hand. If you make a mistake and peel them off, they may ruin the polish underneath or the adhesive of the sticker. If this is the case, repaint the nail and allow to dry halfway. Apply the sticker to the half-dry polish and use a coating of clear nail polish to set and seal the look.

4. Use airbrushing. You can make nail designs using a nail airbrush. Be sure that you are using the nail airbrush paints recommended by the manufacturer. You cannot pour nail polish into these machines, as it will dry, clog and ruin the spraying mechanism. The easiest way to use nail airbrushing is to use a template. See the resource section for a large variety of templates. Hold the template firmly over the nail and use the airbrush to spray a thin layer of color. Using thin layers prevents drips. After this layer dries, in only a few seconds, a second layer can be added. Protect and seal the finished look with a coat of clear nail polish.

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• Nail Art Stencils
• Nail Design Tools