Guest Post: Rainbow Stripes Tutorial

 Thanks to Ana for this awesome tutorial that really goes with my blog! ~ Megan

INTERMEDIATE TUTORIAL: Rainbow Candy Cane Nail Art  

When Megan asked me to do a guest post, I immediately knew that this design belongs on her page! I originally completed this design for a nail art contest hosted by Tip Top Nails South Africa (and won, by the way.) I love this design so much because it reminds me of the rainbow candy canes you can buy at Disneyland. I could almost lick my fingers! :D You can see the winning design on my Facebook page because today's tutorial was just the first half of the final design! I used nail polish because it was a requirement of the contest. If I did this design again, I would do it with acrylic craft paint—it's much easier. Have Fun! ~Ana  

Instructions

STEP 1: Basecoat – to protect your nails and create a surface that nail polish bonds to STEP 2: 2 coats of your favorite white polish STEP 3: Using any color, create a stripe diagonally through the approximate middle of your nail. I started at the cuticle and rolled my finger toward me. This finished the line at the side of my nail. STEP 4: Continue making lines in your rainbow pattern down toward your cuticle. STEP 5: Then continue making rainbow lines on the other side, moving all the way to the tip of your nail. STEP 6: Topcoat – To seal in your design and give it a high gloss shine. Remember to topcoat the free edge and underside. This extends wear and reduces water absorption, which causes peeling and chipping  

TIPS:  

• To load the paint or polish on the long striping brush, drag the brush through the paint several times, while rotating the brush in your fingers. This way you will have enough on the brush to paint without reloading.
• Do not paint the stripes by dragging the brush across your nail. Instead, put your finger on a tabletop, place the brush on your nail and ROLL your fingernail under the brush. This will create a much straighter line. As you can see, mine were still a little curvy.

• Why do I start in the middle? This will help you keep your lines straighter. Just like when you're trying to write in a straight line on plain paper, a natural twist will happen. When you start in the middle, it minimizes the twist.

• I also used two different polishes for yellow and orange. The first coat was pale and didn't have much pizazz. Since all the other colors were shimmers, I repainted over the yellow and orange stripes with a shimmer to make the design pop. It took me 90 minutes to do one hand! This is why I recommend using acrylic paint for a full nail design. It won't have the shimmer, but it will be much easier and still be beautiful.

• If you do chose to use nail polish for the stripes, I would recommend just doing one rainbow, in a diagonal at the tips of your nails. I would also recommend starting at your nail tip and moving toward the center.

Materials Used

Striping Brush: The longest brush from the Mash Nail Art brush set. (Available on Amazon.) I trimmed a few of the bristles off to make the brush thinner. Base: Sally Hansen Hard As Nails - White Tip Red: Nicole by OPI - OMB! Orange: Orly - Crush On You / LA Colors Color Craze Orange (from the Shimmer Brights collection) Yellow: LA Colors Color Craze Yellow #567 / LA Colors Color Craze Yellow Shimmer #570 Green: Wet n Wild FastDry - SaGreena the Teenage Witch #226 Teal: Wet n Wild FastDry - Teal or No Teal #227 Blue: Wet n Wild FastDry - Saved by the Blue #230 Violet: Wet n Wild FastDry - Buffy the Violet Slater #231 Note: this polish stains—as I found out upon removal :( Thanks so much to Megan for inviting me to guest post for her while she's on her honeymoon! We appreciate you stopping by! Please feel free to visit me (Ana at www.SimpleNailArtTips.com) on Facebook and ask me any questions. Have an amazing day!  

Will you be trying this design?