So, you don't like
Valentine's Day huh? I get that.
It's a weird, super
commercialised holiday that focuses on romantic (and usually hetero) love and
public expressions of it. It can be super cringeworthy and sometimes sad and
alienating for those who aren't in relationships, and I know there are a lot of
anti-Valentine's polish lovers out there - heck, I'm one of them!
This post is
dedicated to those who love to hate Valentine's Day, with three manis that say
screw you V-Day!
MY BLACK HEART
What you'll need:
- a sparkly metallic
base, like Emily de Molly Courtly Love
- a black crème
- a fine detail
brush
- a medium detail or
striper brush
- a thicker quick
dry top coat, like Gracefull Angel Glaze or HK Girl/Seche Vite
I largely avoided
the heart motifs in my Valentine's Day nail art, but it was hard to avoid here!
Wear your black heart on your nails while showing you can still sparkle without
needing a Valentine.
Start with your
sparkly base - apply as normal until opaque, and finish with fast dry top coat.
Make sure you use a top coat that leaves a smooth finish over glittery polish
so your hearts don't look lumpy.
Paint the outline of
your hearts with a fine detail brush and fill in with a medium brush. If you
have an appropriate stamping plate this might make it a little easier, but I
didn't find these too difficult and I'm not a great freehand artist!
Finish with some
more quick dry top coat over the black hearts.
EFF YOU V-DAY
What you'll need:
- a dark sparkly
jelly, like Illyrian Polish Fuck
- Ya Qin An stamping
plate Y021* (from Born Pretty Store)
- orange stamping
polish
- quick dry top coat
- optional: 'fuck
you' nail charm from Hex Nail Jewelry
- optional: nail
glue
Give Valentine's Day
the finger with a quirky stamped mani. Tell the world what you really think!
Paint on your chosen
polish as normal until opaque, and finish with quick dry top coat. If you're
using a nail charm you can add it at this point either on the wet top coat or
with a spot of nail glue.
Once your polish is
completely dry stamp your image, then finish with quick dry top coat. If you're
talented at freehand you could also just paint a similar image with a fine
detail brush, but I'll stick to stamping.
REJECTED CANDY HEARTS
What you'll need:
- assorted pastel
cremes (at least 4)
- a white crème
- an opaque red
crème, or red acrylic paint
- a fine detail
brush
- a medium detail or
striper brush
- a stamper
- quick dry top coat
- optional: liquid
latex/tape
- optional: matte
top coat
Okay, hearts again!
But I love the idea of rejected candy hearts and wanted something cutesy to
round out my anti-Valentine's manis. Plus apparently I like a challenge with
those teeny tiny letters!
Start with a white base - don't worry if it's not
totally opaque as it will be covered by your art. Paint the skin around your
nails with liquid latex, or tape it up to protect against the mess you're about
to create.
To create the
marbled background, select the three
palest shades of your original selection and dot your polish onto a silicon mat (you can also
use a piece of paper or other kind of disposable surface). Working quickly,
lightly press the stamper into the dots, slightly moving until the colours
combine. Roll the stamper gently across your nails to transfer the marbled
patterns. You may need to do this twice to cover your entire nail.
Once finished remove
your liquid latex/tape barrier and clean up, then finish with quick dry top
coat.
Using the fine
detail brush create the outline of a heart in different colours on each nail,
then fill with the medium detail/striper brush. Top coat your nails again -
this will smooth out the hearts which makes it easier to paint detail over.
Before you start on
the lettering make sure your fine detail brush is super clean. Slowly and
carefully paint your letters - I recommend starting from the centre and working
outward. Keep your brush clean to help
with keeping the lines super fine.
Once you're done top
with either glossy or matte top coat - I prefer my pastels matte!
What's your
preferred look here? I'd love to see your recreations and other
anti-Valentine's Day nail art!
Disclosure: *Products in this post were provided as press samples, which in no way affected my opinion of the product.
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