Aquatic Ombré Nail Art

Salut mes amis, I'm back from my Cape Cod getaway and am eager to share this fresh, aquatic "summer vacay" nail art! This design is a literal interpretation of the ocean seafloor and was inspired by the current ombre nails trend. Looks complicated? NOT! It's super easy to duplicate -- come with me for the how-to!

Read more for pix, deets & tutorial :)

Theme: "Under the Sea" / Aquatic Ombré DIY Nails

What you'll need:

1. Base and Top Coat -- Mine: Duri Rejuvacote Base / Top Coat
2. 1 sea foam green colored nail polish -- Mine: Quirius Nail Lacquer in Jamaican Dream with Revlon Nail Enamel in Bright Sky on top
3. 1 yellow or neon yellow/green nail polish -- Mine: Sinful Colors Nail Art in Me First
4. 1-2 dark green nail polish -- Mine: Sinful Colors Nail Enamel in San Francisco; Soo Nails Nail Lacquer in #s27
5. 1 turquoise nail polish -- Mine: Tropez Super Pearl Nail Enamel in Aqua Pearl
6. kitchen sponge & scissors, a cup of water, and a piece of cardboard
   
7. Optional:

• 1-2 iridescent glitter nail polishes -- Mine: Old Navy Color in Ice Skate; Milani Jewel FX in Teal
• shimmery orange/gold nail polish -- Mine: Zoya Surf Collection Summer 2012 in Myrta
• a toothpick or a fine tipped nail brush

 

OMBRÉ SPONGED AQUATIC NAIL ART DIY / HOW-TO / TUTORIAL:

1. Apply 1 or 2 coats of the sea foam green nail polish on top of your base coat. Optional: Top the polish with an iridescent glitter polish
2. Cut off a nail sized section from the kitchen sponge, dampen it and squeeze out the water.
   
3. Add a few drops of the yellow or neon green nail polish onto the piece of cardboard and dip the small sponge into the polish. Stamp the sponge once on the cardboard to remove the excess polish and then stamp once directly on top of your nail. TIP: For a cool gradient effect, stamp from the center of the nail to the tip. Repeat on each nail.
4. Repeat step 3 with the green polish, but start stamping closer to the nail tip. 
5. Repeat step 3 again, this time with the turquoise color and stamp just the tip of your nail. TIP: For a darker and truer ombré effect, stamp the sponge several times to achieve your desired opacity.
   
6. Wait a few minutes for the layers to dry and finish the design with a top coat
7. OR Optional: Add a coat of iridescent glitter on top of the design and/or use a fine tipped nail brush (or a toothpick) to draw a starfish on 1 or 2 accent nails. Finish the nailart with a top coat.

Whale watching is one of the coolest things I've ever done -- what an energizing and powerful experience! I highly recommend it, if you're ever in Cape Cod.

bisous,

Maryam Maquillage

♥

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