Monday 24 September 2012

Nail Marbling Design Without Water!


On the weekend somehow I got sidetracked and started watching random YouTube videos of nail art and designs. And I was absolutely fascinated by the ones that depicted water marbling. The designs looked so arty and unique and like a pretty kaleidoscope. But the process looked ridiculously tiresome and like it would take hours to achieve to get an average result (for a beginner like me!). So then I googled nail marbling without water to see if there was another way to do it, but everything that popped up looked so average and unimpressive.

So then I thought OK Kate this is a challenge! So then I proceeded to do my take on nail marbling, and I’m actually very pleasantly surprised with the results...



This is what to do to recreate this nail design:

- Paint a base coat. You could also paint a white nail polish base to make the colours POP more, but I skipped this step in my excitement to marble!

- Choose an assortment of colours that complement each other well, I chose pastel colours. I used the following pastel green, blue, pink and purple polishes:
Illamasqua’s Nomad, OPI’s Do You Lilac It?, OPI’s Pink Friday, and Maybelline’s Party Blue.



- Split each finger mentally into thirds and paint a pretty thick line of one colour on the left, one on the right, and one in the middle. Then quickly get a toothpick and drag and swirl the colours into each other. It needs to be fairly thick so you are able to drag enough polish across the nail. Also so you don’t ruin your polishes by combining colours, when you paint the middle joining line of polish, hold it just above the surface without touching and it will drip off into a line in the middle of your nail without getting the adjoining colours on the brush.



- Continue to paint each nail this way using different variations of the 4 pastel colours so that each nail looks unique.

- Once your nails are dry paint a top coat on. I did two layers because I wanted my artwork to last. Tidy up any messiness with a cotton bud and nail polish remover. Or have a warm shower and it just peels off afterwards!


Here is the finished product:





This took me only about 20 minutes to do, which is so quick compared to the water method of marbling. Plus the design is so gorgeous, and I think the pastel mix looks particularly effective. It reminds me of gelato or rainbow ice cream!

Also because there is so much happening on every nail, it’s quite good for hiding little flaws and potential chips. And it’s sure to attract a lot of complements because of the pretty colours and the apparent complexity of the design.

So what do you guys think? Have you ever tried water marbling or any other method of marbling? What is your favourite nail art design to do?

28 comments:

  1. wowww cutee tutorial :)

    Sophierosehearts x

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  2. Your nails look like a fairy has vomited on them. I mean that in a cute, endearing way.

    - Kate's sister

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    1. That is less appreciated, but hilarious nonetheless! I think it looks more like unicorn vomit thanks, just to clarify.

      You're just jealous that my nails are so rainbow and yours are probably just one normal single shade so there.*



      *Actually I just found out that they are a cool gradient progression of colours so I have to eat my words and apologise profusely.

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  3. This looks so cool! :) I'd never have thought to try it with a toothpick. xo

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    1. haha yeah I do all my nail art with tooth picks, i should probably buy brushes or investigate something more fancy, but they always seem to work fine for me! x

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    2. Awww thanks so much Maya! You are the sweetest! I will do it soon :) What a cute sounding award! x

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  4. That looks fantastic! I can't believe it was so quick too

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    1. Thanks lovely! Yeah it surprised me by how quickly I could do it too! Simple! :)

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  5. These look ace :)

    What a brilliant idea!

    I’m also running a giveaway so would love if you could enter! http://champagnelambinibudget.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/happy-friday-giveaway.html

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    1. Thanks so much! I'll definitely head across and check out this giveaway, I love them! x

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  6. This looks amazing!! I was googling marble nails this weekend and I thought it was too much work too, but this is a good alternative! The colours you picked are lovely :)

    X

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    1. Haha thanks! I know how ridiculously hard and time consuming does it look? This is way easier and quicker and less messy!

      Thanks for your kind comment! x

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  7. Oh my gosh, this is so neat! I can hardly wait to try it! It will such a fun way to mix up my nails with pretty fall colors :)

    http://lifeatruestory4.blogspot.com/

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    1. Aw thanks! If you try it you should definitely take pics of them, I'd love to see this with other colours! xx

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  8. I have never tried marbling but I've always wanted too~! I love these colours together!

    http://dulcet-sparkle.blogspot.com

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    1. You should! it's really fun and creative and arty! I love pastels so much! x

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  9. That looks really neat :) I've never tried water marbling as I'm sure I'll be hopeless at it haha

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    1. Thanks! Try this, it's easy and you can get a similar effect for a tiny smidgen of the effort! The water marbling really put me off, looks so hard and fiddly. x

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  10. Love nail designs! I'm always looking for something new to try for work! Thanks for my comment such a good idea about ikea I think I need to venture up there soon! Glad I found your blog :)

    Steph x

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    1. Me too, I always want colourful nails at work, makes typing a bit more fun! Just went to Ikea on the weekend, it has so many things I want and so many fun storage options!!! Thanks for the lovely comment Steph! x

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  11. These look so cool! I have tried water marbling before, but it never turns out like I want it to, so hopefully this will be a really awesome alternative! ~Lydia

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    1. Did water marbling sort of work? I still vaguely want to try it but it just looks like so much work! :(
      Hope this works for you and is way less bothersome! x

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  12. great idea! I wanna try this!

    http://confessionsofacanadianwallflower.blogspot.ca/

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  13. these are absolutely gorgeous! you did a wonderful job :)

    vickyhoang.blogspot.com

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    1. Thanks so much! It worked way better than I imagined :) x

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  14. Your nails look amazing! can't wait to try this ! thanks!! :)

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I'd love to hear from you, and I really appreciate you taking the time to comment! Thanks so much for reading :)