gold dust
Friday, September 2, 2011 by jennie 
while looking at nearby nail salon websites, i had a flashback to a time i saw ombre nails online. i decided it was time to try it. because i'm on a budget now (student loans DO come back to haunt you), i thought i'd save some cash and do it myself. after searching high and low, i couldn't find anything that didn't use loose glitter. i knew i had to give it a shot without the glitter and document my own method in case it worked. and well, it did! (thanks to a tip from from a friend, i learned the secret to DIY ombre is a makeup sponge.)
you will need two nail polish colors, top coat (and base coat if you desire), nail polish remover, a few q-tips, a makeup sponge and plenty of free time. i used essie's poor lil rich girl (blood red) and shifting power (gold). i like that they are thin, making it easy to blend the two. and the gold has a nice shimmery effect.
1. apply base coat and then the darker shade of polish. allow to dry for several minutes.
2. drip your next color onto a tray. (i used a thick ad page from a september magazine. it was a perfume ad, which conveniently helped to mask the nail polish scent.)
3. dipping your makeup sponge lightly into the nail polish, dab it onto the dry nail starting at the tip and moving inward. add more layers, each time starting closer to the tip of the nail until the it is completely covered. let each layer dry before doing the next.
(don't worry about making a mess on your skin around the nail or getting a bumpy effect on the nail.)
4. paint on a generous layer of topcoat to smooth over the bumps created by the sponge.
5. clean around the nail by dipping a q-tip in the polish remover and rubbing off the excess.
voila! ombre nails.
21 Comments | tagged diy, inspiration, style tips 
Reader Comments (21)
Wow, this is so pretty! I think these two colors complement each other so well! And are perfect for fall! Last night I did a manicure with a black base coat and some silver glitter - looks a bit like a galaxy. I love nail art, hope to see more posts like this in the future!
Awesome! I love nail polish and I'll definitely have to try these colors.
cool cool, gotta try :)
brilliant!
Bises,
monkeyshines
http://monkeyshines-monkeyshines.blogspot.com/
so pretty! I really want to try this out next! I'm going right now to my nail polish to see what combos I should try
You are very talented -- I have a bit of a shake, so I'm not steady enough to do arty things on my nails. But yours look great.
This is so awesome! I saw someone else the other day online with a similar version but with no base and red glitter ombre. This one is just on another level. Have you ever tried this topcoat thing by this company called Out the Door, it's probably the best top coat I have ever tried. The stuff dries your nails completely in like 2 minutes!
This makes me want to try this out! Super cute
Cute!! I love the idea of ombre nails haha great diy project, and they turned out great!
This is such a great DIY...I just tried the galaxy nail art look last week, and yes the secret magical tool to that is the makeup sponge as well!
♥, Jamie
www.TheFancyTeacup.com
i'm not much for glitter, so this option and the way you did it is something that i would definitely love to try
so cool nails!!! love your blog! its amazing!
and your style...STUNNING!!
i follow you!!
http://udontthinktwice.blogspot.com/
xoxo
Love this. We need to have a nail painting, hair braiding, bracelet making party STAT. <3
such a cute/creative nail tutorial! looove your style girl! xx
I like this article! It's cool.
super sweet!! will definitely give this a try. :)
xx Love & Aloha
Swing by to enter my $100 Shopbop Giftcard Giveaway!
such a cool idea! I may have to try it... I would love it in a grey & black combo.
http://mallratcouture.blogspot.com
Oh I love this! I must try it. The gold and red look really good together :)
xo
Margot
Hey Jennie, this is a really awesome tutorial! I'm going to try it out this weekend :) Hope you're well.
I LOVE this and am going to try it soon. I just did the half moon mani and I love that too! This fall has some good nail trends!
Love, love, love those nails! Must try that out!