I've been really wanting to give myself rainbow nails lately, but I wasn't in the mood for something full on neon and crazy. On account of me having a lot of that going on with my neon red hair & tattoos. I thought the perfect solution would be a hint of rainbow by giving a french manicure a little more personality.
This uses an easy method that anyone can make look beautiful, it requires no freehand painting and gives a cute, colorful look that's not too crazy to wear to work. It can be a tiny reminder of your creative heart whenever you type ;)
Step One: Paint a neutral colour as your base coat & wait until it's completely dry so your hard work will pay off!
Step Two: Cut a small section of scotch tape or washi tape so it has a semi-circle bend to the edge.
Step Three: Apply to the nail, leaving a small section of the tip exposed. Repeat steps two & three for one hand.
Step Four: Paint your nail tips every colour of the rainbow
Step Five: Carefully peel back the tape when you've finished painting. Apply a top coat after the tips are dry to the touch.
Then enjoy your work!
I realized that I didn't have pinks or reds when I was gathering my colours, so mine isn't as rainbow-y as it could be, but I have that taken care of now and will be re-doing the manicure later this week. I think I need to do a CMYK version next…
LAST UPDATED ON: March 27th, 2012
CATEGORY: All Posts
Yes, these are so pretty and dainty! Love it!
I love this idea. Seriously. You are too cute!
Side note: I miss you.
SO pretty! I love painting my nails and love fresh new ideas. Washi tape is great to use for nail design!
Absolutely! I am in love with that ring I’d been searching for one similar but hadn’t had any luck! And 6 1/2 to 7 is my size perfectly!
Loving the idea of passing it on. Keep in touch if you have another made, good luck! :)
I need to try this. thanks!
I have short squareish shaped nails that i usually keep pretty short so I wonder if this would look good.
That’s very similar to mine- I think it could be a good experiment :)
I need to try this.
I have short squareish shaped nails that i usually keep pretty short so I wonder if this would look good.
I need to try this once I let my nails grow out a little longer..
P.S I am in love with that gold ring! Where did you find it?
I wish I could give you details, if only for my own sake! I bought it 7+ years ago at a tiny shop in Winnipeg, and it’s my perfect ring- except it’s a little too wide in one spot that makes it uncomfortable for me to wear for long periods. I keep trying to find one I like better, and I’ve even tried to find out who made it (the shop has no idea & it has no marks!) so I’m looking into have it re-made in gold – with that slight adjustment – so I can wear it comfortably forever.
If I get that done this summer (it’s not a sure thing) I would be happy to mail it to you. It’s adjustable and fits a Size 6 or 7 figer well, and has brought me much more happiness than I thought it would when I bought it. If that’s approx. your finger size I’d love to pass it on if you’d be willing to pay it forward to someone else once you’re done with it :)
This is the coolest! Im gonna try this on my toes!
Oooh, love this idea! Thanks so much for the tips. I might need a few more colors before I can try this, but I’d like to! <3
So so cute!! I painted my nails the other day in a new color called “Cloud,” which I swore was gray, but it’s actually purple! Oh well, still cute!
ACK! I am sooo doing this!! Too cute & relatively goof proof– thank you!
http://aclosetintellectual.blogspot.com/
Your new hair color is just perfect! Wish I could be that bold to do something like that :) You look great, and I love these rainbow french tipped nails! I’m gonna have to try this with my best friend! We love painting our nails together.
Minestrone Soup For the Teenage Soul
This is such a good idea! I always want fun nails but don’t quite feel brave enough to experiment with the whole nail- now I can play with all the colours in my nail polish collection and not feel too wacky. Thanks for the idea!
So cute!! I love that, Kyla. You are so creative!
I love doing this with a grey base too. So pretty!
Simple and beautiful. Love it!! :)
LOVE it! Looks so great!
love this! the idea is too cute!
This is beautiful. Great for these spring days.
they look so pretty! i need to try the tape trick. my right hand looks like a 3 year old did it because i’m not a lefty lol
I know how you feel! Have you seen the crazy (in a cool way) nail art blogs where women are doing amazing, intricate freehand art on both of their hands? It blows my mind! I hope they’re making a living off their blogs or have found a marketable, scalable use for those skills, because they’re super human :)
I have wanted to do this for awhile now. I’m glad you posted this! haha. I’m going to try this out tonight. Thanks Kyla!
Okay I am in love with this idea. For some reason a lot of the blues and greens that I love make my hands look wierd if I do the whole nail but I think this is a perfect, colorful, more subdued look for everyday. And now I can do more than just look at my pretty nail polish collection. : ) Now I just have to find some tape.
Love this! I learned a cool thing from The Dainty Squid not long ago, if you stick the tape to your skin first it will have a little oil on it and not stick so badly to the nail. I used to always make a big mess using this method, but since I heard that simple missing step I feel like a pro! ;p
Yes, that’s a huge help- especially if you’re using reinforcements or printer labels. I’ve found that just from handling the tape while I’m cutting it I don’t have problems with it pulling up nail polish, but that might be because I’m not as precise and efficient as you ;)
I want to do this so badly, but trust me I will mess it up big time :(
That looks like fun! Time to stock up on nail polish!
This looks great. I’m sure it’ll be cool with the pinks and reds too, but I actually really love this palette as is. A bit of a sophisticated rainbow… :)
I’m constantly trying to freehand myself a french mani, with only occasional good results. I’ve used printer labels, but why did I never think to just use scotch tape? Thank you!
Definitely going to trying this…so effective and different:)
oh, what a great idea! I have to try it too, thank you for that inspiration :oD
I love this idea! My nail polish is starting to chip off, so I think it’s perfect timing to try this out!
So cute and simple! Having that little burst of color is a wonderful idea :D
I have cmyk nails right now! Dooooo iiiiiiit. Although I like the idea of tips (I have full nails with quadrants on the thumbs & they draw too much attention. I have to explain twice a day what a nerd I am)