Monday, August 5, 2013

Nail Art: Black Leather With Gold Zippers

Hi chickadees!



I have so many new nail art ideas I want to share with you. Today, I thought we could start out with something simple. I've never tried this design before but I think it turned out pretty well. I was inspired by a leather bag with gold zippers in my Inspiration book.

You Will Need: 
A black polish (I used Confetti Nail Lacquer in 95 Black Tie)
A gold polish (I used L'Oreal Nail Color in 580 Because You're Worth It)
A matte top coat (I used Essie Matte About You)
Nail Art Tools (I used a small brush and a toothpick.)

1. Apply your base coat.
(I used Milani Smoothe Base Coat.)
2. Apply your black polish. Apply as many layers as necessary to get an opaque base for the design.
(I used Confetti Nail Lacquer in 95 Black Tie and applied 2 layers.)
3. Paint vertical gold stripes over your nail. Remember to leave enough space between the stripes to add the zipper tabs later. You could also paint one zipper at a time if you're not confident that you'll have enough space.
(I used L'Oreal Nail Color in 580 Because You're Worth It and made the stripes with a brush from an art store. You could also use a nail art brush or a striper.)
4. Paint the zipper tabs over each stripe. My style of zipper tab is a circle on top of a triangle. Remember to space your zipper tabs at different heights on adjacent gold stripes so the tabs don't overlap. Finish each tab by adding a black dot to represent the place where you would grip the zipper tab. (I used L'Oreal Nail Color in 580 Because You're Worth It for the zipper tabs and Confetti Nail Lacquer in 95 Black Tie to paint the black dots. I used my brush to paint the zipper tabs but if you're more comfortable with other painting implements, you could use a dotting tool.)
5. Make small black lines or dots on either side of the stripe (leaving the zipper tabs untouched). This will make your design look more like a zipper. It is not a necessary step. I originally didn't do this and I liked the way it looked but you will definitely get more of a zipper effect if you don't skip this step. Be careful. Don't let the adjacent lines touch or your zipper won't be connected. If you do make a mistake, just go over the gap with gold polish. (Again, I was using Confetti Nail Lacquer in 95 Black Tie.)
6. Using your most precise tool, draw three lines inside the circular part of the zipper tab as though you're making a rectangle but you don't close up one side. (Look at the swatches if this step is unclear).
7. Make sure your design is dry. This is very important!!!
8. Add your matte top coat over the design to create the leather effect. 

Note: If you don't want the gold polish to be matte, you can apply the matte polish after step 2. Then instead of painting the stripes normally, make thinner vertical stripes. Then after step 4, draw thin horizontal lines through the vertical lines, creating the same zipper pattern. You can then skip steps 7 and 8, though you should be careful and make sure that your nails are dry before attempting to do something with your hands.

MORE PICTURES


Inspiration
Original sketch





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