How I Do My Nails at Home

Nails are an accessory to women. Just like most other accessories we wear, we like to adorn our nails. We like to accessorize our nails with nail polish. Most girls spend their time on their nails since childhood. As a child, it becomes a playtime thing for most girls, but as a woman, it becomes more than that. It becomes a thing of beauty.

Applying nail polish is a form of art. There are so many things you can do with it. You can play around with so many colors. You can change the color based on your outfits as well. It is one of the most fun things to do. 

Nowadays, getting your nails done has become more commercial. There are so many options in nail salons. But most of them are hard to do on your own like, acrylic nails. Without professional help, it is becoming harder to do nail art as well as they do in the nail salons.

Let us face it, salons are expensive. You cannot just pay for getting your nails done every time you want. But that does not mean you cannot do nail art at home at all. I have come up with a few easy nail art ideas that help you save both your time and money. Let us dig in.

The Basics

To do nail art, you do not need to be a professional. You do not even have to be an artist. You just need to know the basics. You should get some practice doing your nails to get better at it.

At first, you need to, of course, get your hand on some nail polish. Get the colors you want to experiment with. But never forget to get the top coats and the base coats. They are the most important ingredients in this process. They secure your nail polish and lock them down. They help your art to survive for a longer period.

Secondly, you have to prep your nails. Getting a manicure can be expensive. But guess what, you can do that yourself at home. All you need to do is clean your cuticles and get rid of the dead skins that adhere to the nail bed. Then, you need to file your nails down to the shape and size you want. You can also buff the nails but do not file your nail bed as it will harm your nails severely. Now you are all set to paint your nails.

Always remember to put the base coat on first. It secures the polish and gives you a plain canvas to be working on. After painting your nails and getting done with whatever art you have chosen to do, remember to lock it down with the top coat. It will leave your nails looking shiny or matte depending on what you used.

Simple Is the Way to Go

Painting your nails can be the easiest thing in the world. When you are in a time rush, you just put on some polish in the color of your choice and you are good to go. In this case, simple is the way to go. 

Choose your polish first. If you are thinking of using just one color, then make sure it is opaque after one application. If it is not, you can always apply a second coat after the first one dries. Never forget the base coats and the tops coats no matter what. Even if you are in a hurry, if you want your polish to survive, you better use top and base coats. 

Another simple nail painting idea is that you can use multiple colors in one nail! What you do here is that you put the first coat normally on your nails and let it dry first. Then, you put tape on the painted nails diagonally, horizontally, or vertically, as per your choice, to cover up the first color. Now you put the second color on top of this. Carefully pull off the tape before it dries. You can add as many colors as you want.

French Tips

French tips are one of the classiest and yet the easiest nail art to do. Ultimately, it means you have to use two different colors. French tips are done usually with white nail polish, applied on the tip of your nails.

To do the basic french nails, you have to prep your nails first. Then you put the base coat on your nails. After that, you paint the tips of your nails with white nail polish in the shape of a crescent.

You can put a second coat if you need it. Make sure to always paint with the white polish from the ends of the nails to where the white parts of the nails end. And remember to put the top coat on.

You do not have to only use the conventional way to do french tips. You can switch it up. You can use two different colors instead of just the base coat and the white polish. Also, you can do an ombre instead of directly applying the white polish.

Dotting

Dotting nail art is another fun and easy art to do. It is very simple to do and yet it gives the nails a colorful look. All you need to for this form of art is gather different shapes of dotting tools. If you do not have access to dotting tools, then you can use a tiny, flat, and round end of a brush.

To start with this nail art, prep your nails. Apply a base coat on your nails and let this dry. Choose a fun color and apply it to your nails. You can apply two coats if the first one is not opaque enough. Select one or multiple pretty colors to use for dotting. 

Now pour a little polish on a palate. Dip the dotting tool on the polish and start dotting a design on your nails. You can put multiple color dots on your nails and even cover the whole nail with dots. You can put small dots or big dots on. You can also put small dots on top of bigger dots with different colors.

Dry Marble

We nail enthusiasts have all once tried water marble. But, alas, most of us could not get the hang of it! Guess what? There is another way around this. You can get those marble swirls without having to wet your finger through dry-marble. 

For this nail art, you might have to waste a bit of nail polish. You start by pouring a chosen color on a flat surface. Then you pour another color right in the middle of the first one. Repeat this same process with as many colors as you like.

When you are happy with your color choices, take a pointy ended stick like a toothpick, and drag the colors into one another starting from the middle to make swirls. You can also tilt the surface to make marble-like patterns.

Now you let the design dry for a few hours till it becomes soft enough to bend. Do not let it harden completely. Carefully peel off the polish and cut it into the size of your nail. Put a base coat on your nail and out the marbled polish on it before the base coat dries. When it sticks to the nail, clean off the rest of the polish. Put a top coat on and you are ready to show off your nails.

Ombre

This is my favorite nail art so far. You get to mix vibrant colors and blend then, into one another with this nail art. The great thing about this one is that it looks like it was done by swiping one color on your nail that changes into another or more.

What you need for this art are the colors you want to make an ombre with, a triangular makeup sponge, and definitely, a white polish. After you have put on a base coat, apply a white polish and let it dry. You can apply two coats to make it opaque. You can add a top coat here if you want a barrier between the white polish and the ombre.

Now take tape or latex, depending on what you have at your disposal, and cover your fingers near the cuticle. Then, take the makeup sponge and apply a thick coat of nail polish at the end of it. Apply another color ride beside the first one and try to blend the two at where they meet. 

Position the sponge, covered with polish, to your nail where you want the colors to go. Dab it on gently and you will see the colors coming to life in an ombre. Apply polish on the sponge again and repeat the process two or three times. Finish it off with a top coat.

Bling Bling

There are so many things you can do with your nails to not let this be boring any longer. If you like shiny things that sparkle, then you can always add a dash of glitter. There are glitter nail polishes and different shapes of loose glitter that you can work with. Glitter nails are the hype nowadays. Glitter nail polishes are easy to use too. Just swipe it on and you are ready to go out.

Glitter nails can be boring sometimes as well. There are a lot of other nail products you can use that will give you the same sparkling effect. There are stones of different shapes, sizes, and colors that you can use to make intricate designs on your nail.

Nail foils are also another option when it comes to making your nails sparkle. The foils are easier done on gel nails. You have to put a gel polish over a base coat first. Then, get rid of the shininess of your nails or the foils will not stick to it. Press the foils gently on your nails and carefully peel it off. Now you have beautiful nails after you are done with the top coat.

You can also use nail glitter foils on your nails. They easily stick on gel nails and give you a unique look. No two nails will be the same if you rub on these nail glitter foils and lock it down with a top coat.

Gel Nails

Gel nails are a personal favorite. All you need are gel polishes and a UV or LED lamp. Do not forget to get the gel base and top coats. You can also choose from shiny and matte gel top coats depending on the finish you crave for. 

Salons use gel polish very frequently. But you can do them at home on your own. They stay on for a longer period. They are a bit more superior than normal nail polish. They harden a lot more than regular nail polishes. So, your nail art lasts longer for about a week or more.

Start with prepping your nails. Apply a gel base coat and cure it under the UV or LED lamp for 30 seconds. Then you put your colored gel polish and cure it for about a minute under the lamp. When it dries, out on the gel top coat and cure that for a minute or more depending on the brand. And this is how you will get amazing gel nails. You can also do other simple arts instead of keeping the nails in one color.

Finally!

As we all know, nail art is in fact a form of art. And art has no bounds! You can come up with so many different ideas. If you are having trouble coming up with something original, then go ahead and search the web. Go to Pinterest if you will. There is no stopping you, looking for ideas. 

Easy nail art is not confounded by the ideas that I have shared with you today. There are more amazing ideas that you can try out by yourself at home. You can always find inspiration from your friends or social media. The ideas we have discussed today can be done by just about anyone. Even someone without the knowledge of art. If you are good at art, then you can even enhance these ideas and make them yours.

Do not be satisfied with boring nails anymore. Go ahead and explore with different colors of nail polishes and different styles. Accessorize yourself with the art form that is displayed by your nails. Share your ideas with people that are around you. You never know what inspiration they might help you find.