What a whirlwind this December has been! The entire point of Christmahanukkahkwanzaasolstice is to celebrate all holidays, all people, and ... admittedly, to keep the party going all month long. We started off strong with Hanukkah, shimmied through the winter solstice, pulled out all the stops for Christmas, and now we've arrived at the showgirls-with-feathers-worthy finale of our all-inclusive holiday spectacular — Kwanzaa.
This manicure, with its Kwanzaa-esque colors (just missing the red, which you can wear in a sweater or some fierce lipstick), touches of mixed metallics, and modern use of negative space is 100% party ready. All you'll still need are the drinks! (Which, coincidentally, I have recipes for coming out in 2 days.)
One thing to note: this is a tutorial for a gel manicure, as it helps maintain the metallic nail tape. However, the steps are super simple to adjust to a normal manicure! Just use your regular polish and make sure to top with multiple layers of a strong top coat.
Prep It:
Base Coat Green Nail Polish Black Nail Polish Thin nail 'striping' brush 1/64” Metallic Nail (striping) Tape Nail scissors Top Coat Gel Polish LED Lamp
Do It!:
Do It!:- Apply the base coat to your nails, and cure.
- Paint the tips of your nails black, using a thin brush to get a straight edge across the bottom. But don’t worry about going back to clean up or even out any lines, the nail tape will eventually cover it! For nails where you intend to put green stripes, only paint the top 1/4 of the nail. For nails without green, paint the top half.
- Dab a little green polish onto a piece of foil or paper plate. Use the thin nail brush to paint a stripe horizontally across your nail. Once the stripes are done, cure your nails.
- Now it’s time for the tape! I found it easiest to precut a bunch of small pieces, about 3/4 inch in length, and hang them off the UV light to have handy when I needed to grab one! Place your piece of tape across the edges of each stripe, working carefully to cover any uneven edges. Once placed, use the nail scissors to trim the excess tape as close to the edge of your nail as possible.
- Apply a generous layer of top coat, cure once more, and voila!
