Sunday, February 28, 2010

1st post + Zebra Nails Tutorial

after a few weeks of contemplating whether to make a nail blog or not, i decided that i wanted a blog. but after a few days of trying to come up with a "clever" blog name, i failed, gave up, and decided to go with a mundane blog title--and now i finally have a nail blog.

im not exactly sure if anyone is going to keep up with my blog, but i know one thing, Natasha is going to see this post. haha hopefully other people will follow my blog?...if not, oh well...

just to add, im an amateur nail art girl. i just do it for fun so, i cant guarantee perfection or the "proper" way of doing things.

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Zebra Nail Tutorial !


here's the look we're going for ^
i had this on for a week and received a lot of compliments. a lot of people also asked me how to do the blend [on the ring finger] so i decided to do a tutorial. plus, Natasha specifically requested a tutorial for this one. haha


these are the polishes i used, from l-r:
Poshe Topcoat, Poshe Treatmeant Basecoat, Sally Hansen Lightening, N.Y.C. Taxi Yellow Creme, Sinful Colors Cream Pink, & L.A. Colors Art Deco Black.

*if you do substitute the colors, i do suggest having a really sheer polish of either colors; for example, the N.Y.C. polish is a really, really, really sheer yellow.

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french tip + zebra stipes


start with a base coat.


using a tip guide, place it where you want the tip.


using either the pink or yellow, paint the tip & then take off the tip guide.


once the tip has dried, using the art deco polish, or any other thin brush w/black polish, start making the stripes. [i, honestly, had to watch a TONNNN of youtube zebra print tutorials in order to get some-what decent at making the stripes. so if you're not that good at making the stripes, it'll be a good idea to watch some tutorials on youtube.] remember to keep in mind: start at the outside-edge of the nail & swipe the brush coming towards the middle-inside of the nail. when swiping the brush, put more pressure on the brush when you're at the outside of the nail and as you come towards the middle of the nail, use less pressure on the brush. and make the stripes squiggly; perfectly straight lines dont look that good.


go on the opposite side of the first stripe & make another stripe. continuously add more stripes on both sides.


try not to bunch the stripes too much so it doesnt look messy. this would be the end product after you apply a topcoat.

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blend + zebra stripes


again, start with a basecoat.


[eek, this is superrrr blurry. sorry!] paint half the nail yellow, using the Sally Hansen Lightening polish.


once the yellow is dried, paint the other half pink.


just before the pink dries, use the N.Y.C. Taxi Yellow Creme polish and paint along the middle line of the yellow and pink. paint horizontally and the pink should start to drag with the yellow. keep painting horizontally, , going back and forth, until it turns orange enough. [if it isnt orange enough, add a little more of the yellow creme to make it lighter.]


once the blend has dried, start doing the stripes.


sorry i didnt take pictures while doing the rest of the stripes, i totally forgot! haha but its basically just like doing the strip on the french-tip except the stripes are going to be all over the nail. here's a tip though, when you come to the yellow-orange & orange-pink blend section, try to put a stripe where the two colors meet to make it look like it really blends. -i hope that made sense, sorry if it didnt!

add a topcoat & you're finished!

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wow, that was a long first post, but its done! if anyone, besides for Natasha, read this...and tries it, please show me =) i'd like to see. and leave me comments/feedback, if its possible. feedback is always appreciated =)

have a good week,
<3KATRINA

19 comments:

  1. Greatly done!
    Nice tutorial. =)

    Welcome into the blogworld! =P

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  2. What a great first post! And I LOVE that manicure. It's so creative and bright! I'm going to try it soon. I've never tried a gradation on my nails so wish me luck! :) I'll show you if I'm successful. Thanks for the tutorial!

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  3. thanks!

    and Jessica Leigh, definitely show me if you try it =) haha

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  4. wow great tutorial! my sis bought that bright pink and yellow some time ago and she nvr really put them on. this is such a great way to make use of them! thank u, Katrina!

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  5. aw, thank you =) i used to not use those polishes too, haha. but i hope you or your sister get to try it out, its really fun. haha

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  6. It is AMAZING !!! Thanks for sharing :-) !!!!!

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  7. The Biche, thanks =) and thanks for looking!

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  8. Thanks, I really like it! Ill have to try this sometime. =3

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  9. thanxs i really liked this one. i was lookin for nail designs and this one popped up. so i took a pic nd im goin to take it to the nail salon hopefully they do as good of a job as yuh did :D

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  10. love this guunna du this xx

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  11. This is awesome!! Thanks!!

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  12. 2 yrs later & you're just getting even more Awesome!...love ur Art Work & Copying them,lol...=)

    "Spicey Mami of 2"

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  13. Yes, two years later and going strong. I still love this mani, by the way. Had to come look at it again!

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  14. Nice i would have to try it soon thanks!! keep up the good work =)

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  15. Great tips on the zebra striping. Sounds like the research you did paid off. Makes me want to try it.

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  16. whoa im doing this right now!! lol

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