Liquid stones on nails: peculiarities of manicure and subtlety of execution

For women's pens there is no better decoration than a neatly executed manicure. Varnished nails are the perfect companion for original rings, watches and bracelets.

The industry of the nail service does not stand still, constantly emerging new types of design. The “liquid stone” technique, which will be discussed today, applies to such. This design is so special and interesting that it is certainly worthy of a separate story.

For the first time this type of design was proposed by the Russian nail service master Ekaterina Miroshnichenko.

In a different way, the liquid stones on the nails are called casting. These are not rhinestones that are mounted on top of the applied varnish and often fall off in the process of wearing. This is a design with imitation gemstone. This technique looks pretentious, bright, and, probably, not every woman can afford to walk with such a manicure daily. However, as an option for the publication or for women who do not want to make their everyday life gray, this design is a great find.

To create the effect of a natural gemstone on the nail, a combination of polymer and sculptural gel is used. There are no projections and depressions, as when attaching rhinestones and sequins, on the nail there is no, it is perfectly smooth. However, due to the magnifying glass effect, an optical illusion is created that the stone on the nail plate is real.

Is this manicure technique beautiful? This question does not have a clear answer. Supporters of minimalism or naturalness will answer "no" and will be right in their own way - for them, such pretentiousness in decorating their own hands is equal to ugliness, unaestheticism. If a woman for many years is faithful to a classic jacket or a monochromatic scarlet varnish, she will feel uncomfortable with nail molding, and, of course, such a manicure will not decorate her.

Ladies who love diversity in decorating themselves, not afraid to experiment with appearance (and sometimes boldly going to them) will say their decisive "yes" and again they will be right - after all, such a design will not be excessive, vulgar, or the notorious "expensive-rich." On the contrary, it will be an organic addition to the image, a spicy detail that attracts the eye to the hands and shows them in a favorable light.

Without going into disputes about the beauty and aesthetics of such a design (after all, these criteria are for each their own), we will dwell on its other virtues.

• Stability and strength. Latex and polymer stones will not catch on tights or scarves, will not cause damage to your appearance. They do not tend to fall off at the most inopportune moment, spoiling the impression of the entire manicure.
• This design is easy to wear, despite its apparent "heaviness".
• With a neat worn keeps from two weeks to one month.
• Manicure is practical, does not interfere with household chores and routine daily work.

However, this exquisite design has its drawbacks.

• Like any other "heavy", multi-layered manicure, liquid stones spoil the nails. Therefore, you should choose only the highest quality materials, so as not to spend on the restoration of the nail plates in the future for several months.
• This technique requires great professionalism from the master of nail service. Made inaccurately, poorly or roughly, such a manicure, firstly, will not look elegant, but, on the contrary, will emphasize all the flaws of your hands, and, secondly, it can cause great harm to the nails.
• Even if you have found a master pro, you should not “pererenivat” nails for more than one month, and make designs one after another. After each “heavy” manicure, you need to give your nails a respite, make a medical manicure and at least for a week, pamper them with home or salon care of the baths, oils and creams. Of course, vitamin complexes to strengthen the nails also will not be superfluous.

If you wear short nails, this can be an obstacle to the design with casting and liquid stones. After all, for a beautiful application of manicure in this technique, it is necessary to have “space for maneuver” (the “stone” itself cannot be less than 3 mm), which is why it was originally conceived and used only for extended nails. Nowadays, modern materials allow you to wear liquid stones on natural nails, but they should be long.

There are a lot of types of manicure with use of molding and liquid stones. First of all, they differ in the color and size of the stones used - whether it will be “ruby”, “amber” or “emerald”. Or maybe pearls will sparkle on your nails? The size of the jewels also varies - from 3 mm to the length allowed on the free edge of the nail. For competitive works, where the design is done on the nails of long and very long, specially increased to the competition, the stones can take the most bizarre shapes and sizes, as well as fold in a combination of three, five or seven pieces.

Stones can be not only separate elements in the nail design, but also act as an independent manicure. For example, the now so popular marble on the nails is nothing but a liquid stone. In the same technique, you can make turquoise - as a bright blue, and artificially aged greenish. Malachite with its streaks and modulations will look great. Jasper, pearls, even diamonds - all conditions are created for fantasy! If the nail service technician is a real expert in his field, everything can be done by him - from amber with sand particles to marble with gold streaks.

You can make a design on one nail, on two or even on all - for example, marble or turquoise. The main thing is not to overdo it with an abundance of details and not to turn an elegant and sophisticated manicure into the hands of a Soviet saleswoman in the worst sense of the phrase. Even if you really like this type of design, you should consider how appropriate it is in your normal mode, whether it is permissible with a dress code existing in many organizations, whether you will feel comfortable with this manicure, whether it will not be excessive, well and, of course, does it fit your style and image. If you answered “yes” to all the above questions, it means that you can wear liquid stones without regard to the opinions of others!

Before describing step by step the application of a liquid stone on the nail, we will briefly discuss the materials that will be needed (and there are quite a lot of them).

So, what kind of "helpers" are needed to work in the "casting" technique.

• Color gel basis for the French manicure.
• Gel protection (can not be dispersed).
• Black gel polish, as well as a special paint for applying the contour of the stone. It is important to choose such a contour paint so that foil is printed on it without any problems.
• Gel with the effect of stained glass (needed to imitate stone texture). The hue is selected depending on the simulated stone.
• Sculptural gel with viscous texture.
• Brushes for nail art: angular to apply the base layer, “hair” for contouring and working for applying the other layers.
• Manicure foil in gold or silver.
• UV lamp or LED lamp for gel polymerization.

We now turn to the technology of applying liquid stones on the nails. How is this done?

• On each nail plate, on which it is planned to do this type of design, a “smile” of French manicure is drawn. For this fit angled brush. After applying the layer is dried in the lamp.
• Next, you should apply gel protection and re-place your hands in the lamp to dry.

• After this begins the preparatory stage for applying directly to the design. With a hair brush, the planned pattern is applied with a black gel. If you have no experience, do not use too complex ornament. If you do not have enough imagination to create your own, author's pattern, you can take any necklace or brooch with rhinestones or stones and transfer the print to the nail plate. The place where the stone will be located is drawn especially carefully. Next, you should again dry the nails.
• At the end of the drying on the drawn pattern you need to carefully apply the foil - silver or gold. This is done this way: a piece of foil is taken to match the size of the nail plate, applied to the previously applied pattern, pressed against the fingers and removed in one motion. This process is called "casting." So "stone" is placed in a frame, respectively, gold or silver.

• Further, colored gels are applied along the contour of the “stone” blank. This is done with a thin brush. Sharp color transitions are unacceptable, overflows should look very smooth and neat. After that, the nails need to be dried again.
• Take the selected gel with a stained glass effect and apply it with a “hair” brush to put it on the resulting “stone”. So he will begin to overflow. Reposition the nails in the lamp.

• After that, you should proceed to the formation of the volume of the stone. This will help sculpture thick gel, applied spherically. With this method of application, an optical “magnifying glass” effect is obtained, and the stone looks real and voluminous. The nail is dried again in the lamp.
• It remains only to apply the top with a basic brush. The nail with the applied top should not have hillocks, depressions and dents, should give a perfectly smooth glare. Layer top again to be dried in the lamp. Your design is ready.

This section shows some unusual works.

• The combination of lacquer with the effect of "cat's eye" and "marble" looks interesting and not banal. Suitable for both out and for everyday wear.

• Traditional service jacket in combination with a large purple stone looks subtle and inconspicuous. It will suit even the most modest young ladies.

• "Opal" in a gold frame on very long nails looks really luxurious. It is possible only on acrylic nails, however, the result will justify all the efforts.

• Moon manicure in combination with stones is original and even extravagant. Suitable for lovers of sports chic.

• The classic combination of scarlet, white and ruby ​​is the choice of brave women who are not afraid to be noticeable.

• "Malachite" looks great in manicure. In combination with the appropriate jewelry will make you the star of any event.

To learn how to design nails using the "liquid stones" technique, see the next video.