Friday, August 8, 2014

Raindrops and Cloudy Bubbles, with Tutorial


I recently purchased and wore Illamasqua Raindrops, which used to be a cult favorite (and difficult to find, at that). It was lauded for it's soft shimmer and delicate flakes in a pale grey-blue base, and I loved a lot of the swatches that I saw of it online. Unfortunately, the polish fell flat for me. I didn't think it looked great on my nails, and I expected it to be a bit more soft and jelly-like vs. opaque. I decided to embellish it with some cloudy bubbles.


Though I think the technique has been tackled by a few people, I first saw this specific technique, with acrylic paint, on @madamluck's Instagram, though a few people have mentioned that nail artists may have been doing it for a while now. I filmed a video while I was doing this nail art, and the process is pretty easy.


Thin out acrylic paint with one part paint and one part water. Place a bead of the thinned paint on your nail and then use a dry brush to soak up the excess paint from the middle of the bead. This should leave a ring of paint on your nail like a bubble. Repeat as necessary, wiping off the brush in between bubbles. Finish with topcoat.


I do think the cloudy bubbles helped me enjoy this manicure a bit more, though probably not enough to make me keep this polish in my collection. Sorry Illamasqua! While I normally love your lacquers, this one just didn't do it for me.
Share:

21 comments

  1. This makes me want it to rain now, lol. Its nice.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Haha, I feel you girl. It's dry as a bone here.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think there are actually 2 versions out there of Raindrops, which might explain your disappointment. I still like what you did with it though, but I can understand you weren't as pleased!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Raindrops kind of reminds me of I Don't Give a Rotterdam by OPI -- I love what you did with the bubbles on top of the grey though!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Oh, that would make sense if that's true! I hate when brands do that.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think I saw this technique on some japanese nail artists first but yeah, totally love it! It's so easy to do and looks so great! Love your grey on grey mani <3

    ReplyDelete
  7. Yeah, I'm not saying she invented it, that's just where I saw it first! :) I definitely wanna try this again!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Love the bubble nail art. I don't know why, but it kind of reminds me of a burning film reel, but gray.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Now those are what I call raindrops! LOL That's an awesome look. I feel the same you do towards Illamasqua Pink Raindrops, it just didn't do anything for me. Was so excited to receive it, and it fell flat on me. Think I am going to try this technique with the Pink and see if it changes my mind. Thanks for the inspiration!

    ReplyDelete
  10. nah that's not what I meant, just wanted to share where I saw it first xD Sorry if it comes off the wrong way >///<

    ReplyDelete
  11. No it's okay! I appreciate you sharing. I'd love to see some versions of this from Japanese artists.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Good luck! Let me know how it goes!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Love the cloudy bubbles! Even if the polish was a bust. :(

    ReplyDelete
  14. Love your nails:-)
    Tina
    http://mariahoffbeck.blogspot.dk/2014/08/dyppet-i-den-bla-lagune_8.html

    ReplyDelete
  15. Very cool! Thanks for these tutorial)

    ReplyDelete
  16. Sarah, I find grays are hard to wear for some people. I think it depends on the color of the undertone of both the polish and one's skin. I guess it's a matter of trial and error! I still enjoy this mani, though, and your quick tutorial.

    ReplyDelete
  17. I normally really enjoy grey polish, I think the unexpected opacity was what disappointed me the most. :(

    ReplyDelete
  18. I tried this technique and it's surprisingly easy, plus looks great too! Thanks for the tutorial :)

    ReplyDelete
  19. I have to try this! Looks great.

    ReplyDelete
  20. The bubbles have a lovely effect. But I think the polish looks great as well. It has the lovely sparkle to it and looks like such a soft milky colour. Maybe it was the application?

    ReplyDelete
  21. I haven't tried it with polish, so I can't say. I think to use polish you'd have to mix it with acetone vs. water, which could be very messy and would obviously evaporate much more quickly. That would make "soaking up" the bubble much tougher. If you do any experimenting, make sure you are careful with the acetone. It can eat through wood and plastic (would recommend working on an aluminum foil palette).

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to comment! Please avoid link dropping and spamming. I reserve the right to remove any comments that I feel violate this policy.

© Chalkboard Nails | Phoenix, Arizona Nail Artist | All rights reserved.
Blog Design Handcrafted by pipdig