Hey there! Nail It! Magazine has posted their latest submission prompts on their site and I have been thinking up ideas and working on manis. Obviously, today’s mani is the result of their matte prompt! I decided to tackle it by using some untried polishes!
This was a multi-step mani. To start it off, I painted one coat of Nicole by OPI – Pretty in Plum on all of my nails. I used it for the base because it is fairly thin and doesn’t come on as strong as the other polish (Nicole by OPI – Candid Cameron) in the gradient. I gave it about a minute to dry then applied both colors to a latex-free makeup sponge and began to sponge on my gradient. It took 3 passes to reach full coverage and I applied one coat of Seche Vite to help the colors blend and to preserve the gradient for my stamping. The result was pretty amazing!

I’m not afraid to say that I completely fell in love with this look. These colors go together so well and the combination is so electric. Wah! However, I started this mani off with a mission so I went ahead and covered this up.

I stamped on a lovely filigree pattern from Born Pretty Plate BPL-027 using Essie – No Place Like Chrome. I gave it about 30 seconds to set then topped it with a coat of Seche Vite. Once the Seche was dry to the touch I applied a coat of NYC – Matte Me Crazy to get to that final result.


POLISHES:
- Essie – Grow Stronger Base Coat
- Nicole by OPI – Candid Cameron
- Nicole by OPI – Pretty in Plum
- Essie – No Place Like Chrome
- Seche Vite – Dry Fast Top Coat
- NYC – Matte Me Crazy
- BPL-027
I admit, I was a bit disappointed with my final mani (which is dumb, because it turned out just how I had envisioned) but I was so in love with the original gradient that the final result left me feeling a bit meh. The matte finish dulls out the electric brilliance, which I think is the killer for me. However, as far as manis go in general, I really do like this one, though I wish my stamping was a bit straighter.
Stunning. Love everything about this mani x
Beautiful gradient, and great pattern to stamp over it!
I absolutely love both results!
Whaooooo ♡ your gradient is perfect and the stamping really add a more whaooooo effect. Awesome mani !
This is absolutely stunning!
Oh.Good.God. You matted the crap outta this. GORG!
I didn’t even notice the crooked stamping, I was too busy looking at the gradient and the beautiful mani in front of my face. That gradient is flawless!
This is totally stunning!!!!
The gradient on its own was stunning but your stamping just put it over the top!
Another stunning mani! Everything about it is flawless and I can’t decide if I like the plain gradient or the stamped version better!