Category — Nails

Here is an adorable nail art design for Christmas that was sent to me by a reader. I haven’t tried this yet, but it looks fairly easy!

Start with a clear base coat as always. Then give your nails a nice glittery green color. Next cut some masking tape into strips. Apply two larger pieces on the sides to mask off the triangle tree shape, then some smaller strips to make the tree garland areas.

Give it a coat of gold or even silver would work. Then remove the tape and cover with a clear top coat of polish. Beautiful.

Thank you to the reader who sent this to me.  I couldn’t do this without the support of my wonderful readers!  Happy holiday!  Please click my Amazon link to support my site!!  You might find some great beauty and makeup deals while you’re there!

These cute cupcake nails turned out great!

They took a few steps to do, so you need some patience, but they are well worth it.

Before you start, give your nails a clear base coat. Then you are ready for the design.

First, paint the top part of your nail a background color that will contrast with the frosting. We chose a blue color. Then paint the bottom half of your nail with the cupcake paper color. We chose a red. See the inset photo at the left.

When that dries, you can add the stripes fro the cupcake paper using a dotting tool or a very thin brush. Use a similar but contrasting color. We used pink.

Next, add the white frosting using a thick layer of nailpolish.  When that dries, you can add different colors for the sprinkles using a dotting tool. Finish it off with a cherry using a dotting tool and red polish. Too cute!

Posted from my Instagram @makeupbeautytips

See more designs and fun stuff for kids on my Youtube channel!

Image posted from my Instagram @makeupbeautytips

My daughter made these  cute M&M nails and did them herself.  She is only 13 years old and loves to pain her nails.   I am trying to help her learn how to clean up the manicure a little bit though so that her cuticles are a little neater.  That is a skill that definitely takes practice.  (FYI, I cleaned up her cuticles in this photo with Photoshop before I posted it to my beauty blog.)

To get this look, use 5 super-bright colors of polish that are candy colored such as blue, pink, green yellow and red. Then use a white detail nail pen to draw the m’s.  Cover it with a top clear coat to make your nail art last longer without chipping.

You can see more of my nail art design ideas here.

I’m planning on adding a lot more photos of our nail art ideas. You can also follow me on Instagram @makeupbeautytips or Twitter @makeupbeautytip

I just got this spontaneous purchase of plasticized awesomeness for nails!  It’s a nail art stamping kit.  The first day I had it, I spent  a couple of hours trying out the different designs.  Basically it has a metal disc stencil where you add some polish, then you  transfer it to your nails using the stamping tool.

A few tips if you use this:  Start with one of the simpler designs first so you can get the feel for how the transferring works. Use thick paint. The directions say to use a certain brand, but any polish worked well for me as long as it was thick.  Be sure to remove the blue film from the discs before you use them (some directions don’t tell you to do that!). An old plastic credit card might give you a cleaner swipe than the metal one provided. Make sure you already have a nice dry coat of base and colored polish before you begin, and use a high contrasting color for the stencil for the best effect.

It takes a little bit of practice, so I suggest practicing on bare nails a couple of times until you get the hang of it since you can remove your mess-ups easily without messing up your manicure.  When you get good at it, it’s a great way to add some panache to your polish!     Posted from my Instagram @makeupbeautytips

Here is some more beautiful nail art created by my 13-year-old beauty assistant! She did these nails herself.

She started with a clear base coat , then two layers of blue glitter nailpolish.   Using a dotting tool (you can make one with a straight pin stuck into a pencil eraser), create small dots near the base of the nail in light blue, yellow, white and pink.   Cover it all with a clear top coat and you’ll have a magical nail design that will make you ready to swim with mermaids!

Posted from my Instagram @makeupbeautytips

Ahoy!  To get this cute sailor look on your nails with little anchors, you’ll need patience, but it will be worth it!  My thirteen-year-old assistant did the manicure pictured here, all by herself.

Start with a clear base coat, then paint your nails with a layer of white polish.  Get some clear tape and touch the sticky side a couple of times with your fingers to remove some of the stickiness. This will help keep the tape from sticking too hard on your white polish and pulling it up.  Cut the tape into very thin strips (see insert at the photo), and lay several of them on  your nails.  The stripes do not have to be completely parallel, but the closer you can get them to match, the better.

Then paint over your nails with a thick layer bright red polish.  When it has COMPLETELY dried, you can pull up the tape and you will have stripes!  Make sure you wait long enough.

For the anchor nail, you are going to have to get creative and use your artsy skills.  Paint the nail Navy blue.  When it is completely dry, draw a tiny anchor in white polish. You might find it helpful to use bits of tape to block off parts of it.  Use a touch of blue in the center of the white at the top in order to draw the hole for the anchor rope.

Cover it all with a clear top coat to make it last a long time. Anchors away!!   (Posted from my Instagram @makeupbeautytips )

For a cute nail decoration, try mustache nails!  They are super easy and perfect for teens and pre-teens. My thirteen year old assistant did these herself.

First, prep your nails. Give your nails a good cleaning, trim the cuticle, apply lotion, file the nails to a good length.  Now you are ready for painting.  Apply a clear coat first, as your base coat.  Next, apply two coats of pink or hot pink nail polish. Let each coat dry completely before doing the next one.  Then, using a smaller detail brush, paint tiny mustaches near the tips of each nail with black nail polish. See the photo for a guide.  Finally, cover it all with a clear top coat to make it last.

Your friends will love it!

Posted from my Instagram @makeupbeautytips

It’s easy. Just paint some different colored nailpolish onto some clear matte tape.  Give your nails a clear base coat, and then a light background color.  When the tape polish dries, cut it into tiny shapes with some scissors and stick them to your nails.   Give it a final top coat of clear polish.

Posted from my Instragram @makeupbeautytips

No matter what time of year it is, bright happy toes are important. Keeping feet soft and smooth is a must all year long.

Add some bright polish to those little piggies and you have an instant mood-lifter! To help keep feet smoother without the weekly trip and expense of a pedicure, try mixing two tablespoons of Epsom salt with a tablespoon of olive or baby oil.  Spread the mixture on the bottoms of feet, giving a little extra massage to the rough spots. Wrap feet in plastic wrap, throw on the flip-flops, and do a few things around the house that need to be done anyway or just walk a couple laps around the kitchen island.

When it’s time to remove the wraps, either hop in the shower or clean feet with a warm washcloth. Finish the process with a quality moisturizer. If you’re planning to polish the toes at the end of this process, remember to go over the nails with a nail remover before applying polish to remove any leftover oil or lotion.

When trimming toenails, remember that gently rounded edges are better in avoiding painful ingrown nails. The square shape may look great, but those corners are more prone to growing inward. If you must have the square look, leave nails a bit longer. No matter which polish you choose, always use two coats and a top coat on toes to keep them looking good longer.