Sunday, September 18, 2011

Rockstar (or glitter) Nails & Toes

Next up I have a tutorial for how to do Rockstar nails/toes (or Glitter nails/toes).  


It's a really, really easy process!  It's just like doing a regular mani or pedi, just with one extra step - you scrub glitter into the lefty tackiness of one of your layers!  Yep, that's really all there is to it!  


  1. Prep your nails as usual - file and shape, do your cuticle work, clean off any dirt or filing dust, etc.  
  2. Apply dehydrator and let dry a few seconds
  3. Apply bonder if you need it and let dry
  4. Apply thin layer of base coat, cap free edge, cure 1 minute in UV lamp
  5. Apply a thin layer of color, cap free edge, cure 2 minutes.
    • What color you choose is up to you, but I recommend using a color that's similar to your glitter color.
    • For Example here I used a dark metallic silver because I was using silver glitter.  If I was using red glitter, I might use something like Gelish Hot Rod Red or Stand Out
  6. You can apply a second layer of color if you want to, but if you are covering the whole nail with glitter as we are here, it's not really necessary.  
  7. Using a small brush dampened slightly with alcohol pick up some glitter and gently pat and "scrub" it into the tacky layer
    • Keep picking up the glitter and scrubbing it in until the whole nail is covered
  8. After the entire nail is covered, take your brush and quickly brush back and forth and from top to bottom to brush off any excess glitter.  This also help make sure all the glitter pieces are laying flat.
  9. If I'm using a larger size glitter, like 0.008" or larger, I generally will apply a coat of Structure gel over the glitter to help smooth it all out.  Alternatively, you can use two layers of topcoat if you need it.  
  10. Apply top it off, cap free edge, and cure two minutes.  
    • It has been recommended that you use a separate topcoat for glitter work so you don't end up with glitter mucking up your topcoat.  
    • Personally, I haven't had an issue with this and have never used a separate topcoat.  Applying a layer of structure after the glitter would be done with a separate brush, thus your topcoat bottle brush would be protected anyway.  
    • If a rare piece of glitter does end up in my topcoat brush, I just wipe the brush with a clean paper towel and it's fine.  I'm still using my original bottle of topcoat that I bought almost a year ago.  

1 comment:

  1. Can you define what you mean by "scrubbing" it in? How do you do that? This is exactly what I'm looking for but I can't really remember how my manicurist did it, it sounds exactly like what you're saying, but I've been having some poor luck with the glitter remaining rough (and its fine powder), so I have to be pressing it the wrong way..also, do you have a ferret then? Mine is sleeping on me right now lol (:

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