Forget fiddly fingerwork and complicated techniques, these easy-as-pie nail art hacks can be pulled off with minimal effort.
1. The half moon
Don’t have time to hand paint half moons on your client’s digits? Just paint nails the colour you’d like the half moon to be – a light shade like ORLY Naked Canvas, is usually best – and let set. Then, grab a dot sticker and stick it to the base of the nail bed, so that half of the sticker sits on the skin under the nail and the other half forms a semi-circle, or half moon, on the nail. Now paint over the rest of the nail in a contrasting colour like ORLY Goth, using the dot sticker as a stencil. Let the polish set and peel off the stencil. Presto! Half moon digits in a flash.
2. Romantic florals
For a truly detailed look you can pull off in seconds, this one is a winner. Simply paint nails white to create a base, then to create the roses for your floral pattern, using a pale pink like ORLY Lift The Veil, randomly dot polish in tiny splotches over each nail and allow to dry. Now using a darker pink, like ORLY Pixy Stix, dab smaller splotches inside each rose to create a 3D look, then allow to set. Finally, pour a small amount of your leaf shade (try ORLY Gumdrop) and use a toothpick to draw a tiny leaf on the side of each rose, seal with a clear topcoat and let set. Floral perfection.
3. Easy ombre
Skip the fuss of creating an individual gradient pattern on each nail with this shortcut that looks just as effective. Simply paint the thumbnail of each hand in the darkest shade of your client’s selected colour (For a purple ombre look, try ORLY Saturated) then paint the next nail in a slightly lighter hue of the same shade, graduating with each finger until you reach the lightest shade on each pinkie nail (To finish off the purple ombre look, try ORLY Lollipop).
4. Polkadot perfection
To create the look of random, sprakly polkadots minus the painstaking fingerwork, simply paint nails in a dark base coat, like ORLY Naughty, and allow to dry. To create a sparkling random polkadot contrast, apply a large glitter particle polish to the top, like ORLY Glitter Bomb. Set with a clear top coat and voila! Heavenly sparkling polkadot nails.
5. Geometric nails
For a bold geometric look, paint nails in a bright base colour, like ORLY Glowstick, and allow to set. Next, mask half the nail off by applying a piece of sticky-tape on an angle across the nail, so that a triangle shape of uncovered nail remains. Now paint over nails in a contrasting bright shade, like ORLY Neon Heat, allow to set, remove tape and seal with a clear top coat.
6. Stone faced
To give nails an impressive granite look with effortless ease, paint digits in a pale khaki, like ORLY Country Club Khaki, and allow to set. Next, grab a disposable glove or piece of cling wrap and tightly scrunch up. Pour a small amount of a dark metallic shade like ORLY Take Him To The Cleaners onto a piece of paper and lightly dip scrunched plastic into the polish. Dab scrunched plastic lightly over nails to create a speckled granite finish.
7. Glitter gradient
For a really impressive party-worthy look that’s deceptively easy to pull off, simply paint nails in a bright base colour, like ORLY Tropical Pop and allow to set. Now, take a fine glitter polish, like ORLY Bling and simply apply to the tips of nails only. Neatness is not necessarry, since a messy look will create a more authentic gradient finish. As always, seal, set and enjoy!
Have your say: What’s your fail-safe lazy nail artist trick for pulling off popping digits?