How To: Painting Your Nails

Although it seems pretty straight forward a good guide can help make painting your nails a breeze. I know that people paint their nails in different ways but this is the method I have developed from my many failures which works for me perfectly!

So what do you need?

• Base Coat - Revlon Quick Dry Base Coat
• Nail Polish - Maybelline Racy Red
• Top Coat - Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat

Step 1: Before you start painting always make sure that you're starting with clean nails! This means removing any old polish and then washing your hands to get rid of excess nail polish remover. You also want to make sure your nails are dry as the moisture can cause your nail polish to bubble.

 

Step 2: A base coat. Always apply a base coat! This helps to stop your nails from staining especially when using dark colours. I am personally fond of Revlon's Quick Dry Base Coat since I'm very impatient and it dries so quickly that I can get on with my nail polish colour.

 

Step 3: Once dried you can begin painting your nails. I place the brush right to the bottom of the bottle and then lightly scrap one side of the brush on the rim. Once a drop has collected at the bottom of the brush I place it in the centre of my nail just above my cuticle.

 

Step 4: Then I carefully guide the drop towards my cuticle leaving just a small gap. This small gap makes clean up easier later and gives your nails a healthier and longer appearance.

Step 5: Now that the brush is at the bottom of the nail guide the brush in a straight line to the very tip of the nail.

Step 6: Move the brush back to the centre at the base of the nail. Then guide it across to one side following the curve of the nail and still keeping the gap between the cuticle and the nail polish. By going slowly you can better control the brush and therefore have less clean up to take care of later.

Sorry about the blurry photo, it was the best one I had :(

Step 7: Like Step 6 move the brush back to the base of the nail near the cuticle and then guide it across to the one side of the nail, following the curve of the nail. Then guide the brush up to the tip of the nail in a straight line as before. If you need more nail polish you can add another drop to your nail, push it towards your cuticle and then guide it up that side of your nail.

Step 9: To ensure your manicure lasts it is best to "wrap" the tip. To do this I remove most of the polish off my brush and then sweep it across the edge and under the tip of the nail.

Step 9: If you require more coats repeat Step 3-8 once your previous coat is dry.

Two Coats of Maybelline Racy Red

Step 10: If necessary clean up your nails. I have a tutorial on how to clean up your manicure which can be found here: How To - Clean your Nails.

 

 

Step 11:  Finish your manicure by applying a top coat. Apply the top coat in the same method you applied your polish and again wrap the tips for longer wear. A top coat is designed to seal your manicure for longer wear and for added shine. You can also re-apply your top coat to extend the life of your manicure. I prefer Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat as it doesn't pull my manicure, is long lasting and dries faster than other top coats I have tried.

 

 
The finished product:

 

 There you have it, a Step By Step description of how easy it is to paint your nails!