Movember Moustache Nails

The month of November has literally been taken over by the cause against Prostate Cancer and other cancers that affect men.  In support of this cause, people have started to grow moustaches to raise money. 'Movember' is a movement which has caught on pretty fast, so if you notice all the moustaches surrounding you during that month, you'll know why! Fore more information on this charity and the Movember movement, visit: Movember.com.

Since women are unable to show support on their faces, what better way to support your man or this great cause than with moustache nails!   Moustaches are so cute (on fingernails) so sport them, ladies! Even if it's not for Movember, moustache nails can still be super unique and fashionable.

What I used:

Sally Hanson's Diamond Strength - Pink Proposal

Sally Hanson's Double Duty Base & Top Coat

Black acrylic paint

Dotting tools

Very fine nail art brush

After you have applied your base coat, choose the lightest pink you own and paint your whole nail.

Using your dotting tool, make two medium-size dots in the middle of your nail with the black acrylic paint.  You will want to overlap them a little bit, but not too much. You can use black nail polish, but acrylics are easier to work with when getting detailed like this.

Next, make two really small dots on the opposite sides of the two bigger dots, like so...  You can use a toothpick for this if you do not have a dotting tool. However, a toothpick will not work for the larger dots. 

Now, this is the hardest part. Using your dotting tool, 'dot on' a line that starts from the bottom of the large dot, downward, and then upward towards the very small dot. It helps to look at a picture and see how the lines should curve. From the top of the large dot, dot a line downward, and then upward until it connects with the small dot. When using your dotting tool, do not try to to paint a line on (it wont work), rather use the dotting motion and with several dots complete the line. It also helps to keep adding paint to your tool to keep it wet.

You can now fill in your moustache with the dotting tool using the same dotting motion. Apply a top coat, and you're done!

If you want to add something a little extra, you can leave a nail or two with just the pink polish on and do pin stripes. Using your finest tip nail brush, apply three or four thin black lines. It's really easy! To add a little man, use your dotting tool to add two eyes, then draw on your little hat. It takes 5 minutes and will surely impress anyone who notices.

For questions on what kind of polishes to use, or what kind of tools you need, please visit my first post on this blog here: www.amberlynnheltonnails.blogspot.com/nails

Orange & Pink French w/ Brown Flowers

 Nail art can be so much fun and, like anything else, it gets easier the more you practice.

First, you have to buy your tools. Ive learned that the best polishes for nail art are the ones that have a quick dry element. The most difficult part of doing nail art, I have found, is playing the waiting game. You MUST wait for your paint to completely dry before painting another color over it. Otherwise, it will turn into a muddy mess, which actually can look cool sometimes depending on the colors you are using. ;) The best brands for this kind of polish are China Glaze and Opi. Also, using a hair-dryer works well to dry them in between colors. Additionally, acrylic paints are great to have when doing detailed nail art, like flowers, hearts, etc. You can find acrylic paints just about anywhere, even super cheap at Wal-Mart. They are great to use when you're first learning.

You will also need a base coat and top coat clear polish. Sally Hanson has a two-in-one 'tough as nails' polish that works well for both purposes and you only have to purchase one bottle, rather than two.  It's also great for strengthening your nails if you have a hard time growing them.

Finally, you will need your brushes. You can purchase nail art brushes online at Amazon.com / nail art brushes for all the brushes you will need and at a very cheap price. I found mine for $10.00! To learn how to use each brush, find tutorials on YouTube, like this one here: How to Use Nail Art Brushes.

The above are the basic tools for nail art. You can also purchase dotting tools, however, you can find things around the house to use as a dotting tool, rather than spending the $5. I've used the back side of my nail art brushes, toothpicks and pen tops. Be creative! You may also want to purchase rhinestones, beads, or other 3d nail art accessories to add to your 'art work.'

What I used for what I am going to show you today are the following:

1. China Glaze: Sun Worshiper (Orange)
2. China Glaze: Pool Party (Hot Pink)
3. Sally Hanson: Double-Duty base and top coat
4. Brown and Off-White Acrylic Paints
5. Fine Nail Brush

First, apply your base coat, allow to dry, then paint your nails with the Sun Worshiper Orange. I used three coats.

After allowing time for that to dry, paint your french-like hot pink over the Orange. I used the brush that comes w/ the polish, but if you are still trying to figure out how to stop those shaky hands, try practicing w/ one of your finer-tipped nail art brushes.

Next, using a dotting tool, add one dot to each nail of the off-white acrylic paint.  Practice dotting on a piece of paper before trying it on your nail. It will help you to figure out how big you want the dot. The dot will serve as the flower's 'stigma' or center.

Then, apply the petals of the flower using the same off-white color and dotting tool. You want the dots for the petals to be a little larger than the dot for the stigma. I use 4 and 5 petals for each. It's completely up to you.

Using the brown acrylic paint, add one small dot in the middle of your flower. Look how cool..and easy!

Finally, don't forget to apply your top coat. I apply at least two coats to make the paint last longer. When painting on natural nails, paint can chip easier, so don't forget your base and top coats! The top coat will also give it that shine you want. And...Wah-la! You have beautiful, professional-looking nails that you can show off. ;)

Hope this helps! If you want to learn more techniques, subscribe to this blog. 

I will be posting new designs weekly!  

Thank you! :)