Quick and Simple Scaled Nail Art [VIDEO TUTORIAL]

Quick and Simple Scaled Nail Art [VIDEO TUTORIAL]

ella and mila nail art nude red scales turquoise tutorial video tutorial

I wasn't (and still am not) sure what to call this look. It seems kinda scaly, kinda alien, kinda fantasy-esque, almost like alligator skin... In the end, I decided on scaled. You can call it whatever you like, but the fact is that this nail art is super easy and pretty chic! Read on to check out the video tutorial.

I used three Ella & Mila shades.

Ella & Mila Honeymoon Bliss
Ella & Mila Ibiza Breeze
Ella & Mila In Line For Wine

In Line For Wine is actually a satin-matte polish! It's luxe either way, but in this instance, I've covered it with topcoat and stripped it of its leather finish.

To achieve this nail art for yourself, all you need is a small nail art brush. Just dip the brush in your polish of choice and dab it onto the nail in rows. Don't worry about being too precise, I like the spots where the dabs were larger or smaller than average.

And of course, as promised, here is the short video of this nail art in action!

A video posted by Chalkboard Nails (Sarah) (@chalkboardnails) on Apr 15, 2015 at 2:47pm PDT

Dragon Scale Nail Art with Chloe & Bella

Dragon Scale Nail Art with Chloe & Bella

chloe and bella flakies gradient indie polish multichrome nail art pop culture scales

There are some new polishes on the block and they are gor-geous! You may have tried ultrachrome flakies, but you haven't lived till you've tried them infused with platinum-silver reflective flakes. Indie brand Chloe & Bella has two variations on this formula, inspired by Dragon's Skin Ammolite and Dragon's Breath Opals. I've created some nail art with both lacquers, as well as swatched them individually for your viewing pleasure.

Seeing as both lacquers were inspired by dragon-related gems, it was only natural that I created a dragon scale pattern for my nail art!

I began by creating a full coverage gradient as my base. I've got Dragon's Skin closest to my cuticles, and Dragon's Breath on my free edge.

Then, I grabbed Chloe & Bella's black nail polish, Black Out. I painted black dragon scales, one by one, beginning at the cuticle and working my way to the tips.

While I'll never say no to nail art, these polishes can definitely stand on their own, as well.

Here is three coats of Dragon's Breath. You an see the ultra chrome flakies shift from pink to purple to gold to olive, while the silver flakes shine throughout. This polish is completely smooth and sits flat on the nail (I'm not even wearing topcoat here)!

Dragon's Skin tells the same tale: three easy, smooth coats. This one shifts from copper to gold to green.

So, I'm dying to know - are these your jam? Cause I sure enjoyed playing with them! Dragon's Breath has particularly captivated me. Swoon city.

These two shades are available from Chloe & Bella for $11.95 per polish. You can also keep up with the brand on Facebook and Instagram for more information.

P.S. If you are into bottle porn, be sure to check out the Chloe & Bella website, and if you wanna see more, check out additional swatches via Allie's Blog.

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Chloe & Bella. All opinions are my own. 

Stylized Goldfish Scales Nail Art

Stylized Goldfish Scales Nail Art

31DC2014 animal print china glaze favorite freehand nail art opi orange pop culture red scales television yellow

It's animal print day of the 31 Day Challenge! This is always one of my favorite days. I do a lot of animal print in my regular nail art work, so I like to take the challenge as an opportunity to get inspired by some unusual animals. This year, I've gone with a freehand stylized goldfish scale print, inspired by Queen Otohime from the One Piece anime. Does anyone else watch?

Nail polishes used:
OPI My Paprika Is Hotter Than Yours
China Glaze Happy Go Lucky
American Apparel Hassid

Without giving too much about the story away, Otohime wears a kimono with this stylized fish scale print on it. I tried to directly mimic the way it looks in the anime, and I think I did a nice job! I painted my nails with the red-orange first, then added the yellow detailing, and finally finished it off with the black lines.

I'm pretty enamored with this pattern. It definitely looks like fish scales, though I can also see phoenix feathers or dragon scales. Very bold and cool.

Animal print from years past:

• Blue poison dart frog nail art
• Manta ray patterned nail art
• Nudibranch sea slug nail art