Create your own waves with this pastel sparkle design

Pastel colors have a way of showing up in Easter baskets and at baby showers. Be it blue, pink or mint green, pastels have a certain sweetness that makes them feel whimsical and carefree. If these hues bring a smile to your face, you’ll love this manicure.
Combining these shades in ribbons of color simulates the look of waves. But don’t stop there. Waves always have air bubbles in the foam, and this tutorial will teach you how to achieve that effect. Transforming nail polish breaks the color apart into little circles similar to the way cells look under a microscope. Here, you’ll combine gel polish with almond oil and nail polish remover to achieve a similar broken effect. Add a coat of pink and purple sparkle polish, and you’ll be ready for a playful event or vacation.
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Materials
- Pastel blue gel paint (Canni, 612)
- Square flat brush
- Pink gel polish (Presto, 173 Espirando)
- Mint green gel paint (Canni, 606)
- UV or LED lamp (Lumcrissy, not shown)
- White gel polish (Elite99, 1433)
- Waterproof sticky note pad
- Non-synthetic liquid oil (Natures Leaf Sweet Almond Oil)
- Toothpick
- Nail polish remover or acetone (Zoya Remove+ Nail Polish Remover)
- Short round brush
- Sparkle gel polish (Gelish Mini, Izzy Wizzy, Let's Get Busy)
- Clear gel top coat (Cheri Non-Wipe)
Fierce League
Instructions
1. Paint the tip of the nail and the area near the cuticle with pastel blue gel paint using the flat brush. Wipe off the brush before switching colors to avoid contaminating the paint.
2. Add a layer of pink paint behind the blue tip, then clean the brush again.
3. Fill in the remaining unpainted areas with mint green gel paint, and blur the edges of the colors together slightly. Cure the nail with the lamp.
4. Create a transforming white nail paint by combining white gel with two drops of sweet almond oil on a waterproof sticky note pad. Mix the two products together with the toothpick.
5. Add a single drop of nail polish remover to the mixture, and stir it with the toothpick.
6. Add another drop of white paint to the note pad, then drag the color over to the mixture with the toothpick, and stir once more. Note: Don’t apply the nail paint directly to the mixture, because it will contaminate the bottled polish when you reinsert the brush.
7. Apply the crackly liquid mixture to your nail with a short round brush. Place the white mixture in-between the layers of color in a patting motion. Cure the paint with the lamp.
8. Coat the entire nail with the sparkle nail gel, and cure it with the lamp.
9. Seal your artwork with a layer of clear gel top coat, and cure it with the lamp one final time.
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