VIBGYOR Nails For Seven Colours Of The Rainbow
Updated: Apr 28, 2021
The sight of a rainbow makes us forget our rainy days. Such is the power of a simple #rainbow. Although it may be nothing more than light reflected off of water, it’s strong symbolisms have stood the test of time. We’ve all heard about the pot of #gold at the rainbows edge, well here is another kind of gold, nail art gold. So here it goes, 7 nail arts inspired by the colours of the rainbow.
1. VIOLET
The colour #violet or purple has been associated with royalty, power and wealth for centuries. In fact, Queen Elizabeth I forbade anyone except close members of the royal family to wear it. Purple's elite status stems from the rarity and cost of the dye originally used to produce it. Here we are taking a more exotic route with royalty with Moroccan Patterned nails.
What You Need: Two shades of violet, one light and one dark, quick dry top coat.. Quatrefoil stencils (easily available online) or a bobby pin.
What To Do: Paint your nails with the lighter #purple shade of nail polish. Let dry completely. Apply a layer of quick dry topcoat and let it dry for a good half hour (this will prevent the polish being ripped off with the stencil we are gonna use in the next step). Now carefully peel a stencil. Stick it nicely onto your nails to ensure no polish can leak through the sides. Now take your dark violet nail paint and paint a thin layer over the stencil. Don’t put too much nail polish or else it’ll spread all over once you remove the #stencil. Now carefully remove the stencil before the polish dries. If you let the polish dry, the dried paint will rip up with the stencil and you won’t get clean lines. Let dry completely. Seal with a glossy top coat. Voila, royal violet nails ready!
You can make the #quatrefoil (Moroccan) pattern freehand using a bobby pin as illustrated in the diagram, but the effect isn't as smooth and the polish gets thick, so I wouldn't recommend it.
2. INDIGO
Indigo, a deep midnight blue, is a combination of navy blue and violet and holds the attributes of both these colours. Rarely occurring in nature, its symbolism is shrouded in intrigue. It invokes feelings of mysticism and intrigue about the deep dark secrets hidden beneath its surface, just like the #night sky. So for indigo, we have a just as enigmatic Dark Sky nail art!
What You Need: Indigo nail paint. White acrylic paint or golden nailpaint and a toothpick.
What To Do: Paint your nails with the #indigo nail polish. Let dry completely. Now tip some white acrylic paint or golden nail polish onto a flat surface. We are using #acrylic paint because white nail paint tends to be translucent and it won’t show up well on the dark base. Taking a toothpick paint tiny dots to represent stars. Using the same toothpick, draw a cross to mimic shining stars. Add elements of your choice, but don’t overdo and make it cluttered. Let dry completely. Seal with a glossy or matte topcoat.
There you have it, the mysteries of the night sky on your nails.
3. BLUE
Is blue your favourite colour? Well you are not alone. It is the most common favourite colour around the world! Blue is a very calming colour and often symbolises serenity, stability, or inspiration. One of the first things that comes to the mind when hearing the word ‘blue’ is scenes of vast #blue #oceans and waters. Here we have a Marbled Blue manicure to represent just that!
What You Need: White nail paint. Different shades of blue nail paint. A piece of plastic wrap. Elmer's or PVA glue and tweezers.
What To Do: Paint your nails with white nail paint. This gives a solid bright base for our water marble. Let dry completely. Now using elmer's glue, apply a thin layer of it around your nails to reduce the mess the marbling process will create. You can use liquid latex too if you have that. Let dry completely. Now place little dots of different shades of blue (light to dark) onto one nail, sufficient enough to cover the entire nail. Now while the polish is wet, take a piece of plastic wrap and place it gently on top of the nail, effectively ‘smooshing’ all the colours together (see pictorial). Squish the colours gently using your fingers to create a marbled effect. Lift off the piece of plastic. Don’t worry if it looks uneven, it’ll settle down. Using a pair of tweezers, peel off the #elmer's glue to take off the mess without any hassles. You can use a cotton bud dipped in acetone to clean up any mess left behind. Seal with a glossy topcoat.
Voila, the surface of the ocean, on your nails!
4. GREEN
Green, the colour of life, nature, and energy, is associated with meanings of growth, freshness, safety, fertility, and environment. Green is also traditionally associated with money, greed and envy, but we are not focusing on that. Going with the #nature theme, we are recreating the cutest foliage out there, the understated Cactus.
What You Need: Green and white nail paint. Thin paint brush.
What To Do: Paint your nails with a green nail paint, if you just want to add white lines for an abstract cactus; or paint your nails white if you want to draw whole cacti plants. Let dry completely. Now using the pictorial as a guide, draw your cacti onto your nails. You can keep it simple or add eyes and a mouth for a more #kawaii style #cactus. Once happy with the design, let dry completely. Seal with a glossy or matte topcoat. There you have it, cute cacti aesthetic nails.
You can use acrylic paint instead of nail polish for painting details, as nailpaint tends to dry quicker and get goopy.
5. YELLOW
Yellow is the brightest colour of the visible spectrum, and it is the most noticeable of all colours by the human eye. It is a cheerful colour, and is associated with warmth, sunshine, and positivity. #Yellow is abuzz with optimism and energy, and on that note, here is a Honey Bee inspired nail art to represent it.
What You Need: Yellow and black nail paint. A thin paintbrush.
What To Do: Paint your nails in a bright yellow shade and let dry completely. Now take some black nail paint and tip it onto a flat surface. Using a thin paintbrush, draw an outline of a bee on one nail (preferably the pinky or pointer). Draw a line of black dashes to represent the bee’s flight path. You can use black acrylic paint or markers instead if you don’t have black nail paint or you find painting with nail paint hard. Let dry completely. Seal with a glossy top coat.
There you go, a simple bee-autiful manicure that's the bee’s knees.
6. ORANGE
What came first? The colour orange? Or the fruit?
The fruit, the fruit came first. The colour was named after the appearance of the ripe orange fruit. Now that that’s settled, what does the colour orange invoke other than such deep philosophical questions? It is the colour of joy and creativity. In nature it's the colour of vivid sunsets, fire, vegetables, flowers, fish, pumpkins and many citrus fruits. Going with its namesake, here is a very citrusy nail art for you.
What You Need: Orange and white nailpaint. A thin paintbrush.
What To Do: Paint your nails in a bright #orange shade. Let dry completely. Now using the pictorial as a guide, draw segments of a cut orange using a thin paintbrush and white nail paint. You can use white acrylic paint instead if you want. You can leave it as is or add more details to make it look realistic. Let dry completely. Seal with a glossy topcoat.
There you have it, orange coloured orange inspired orange nail art. Phew, that was trippy.
7. RED
Red is the colour of extremes. It's the colour of passionate love, seduction, violence, danger, anger, and adventure. Our prehistoric ancestors saw #red as the colour of fire and blood, energy and primal life forces; and most of red's symbolism today arises from its powerful associations in the past. So let's stray from the strong connotations, and focus on something tiny and sweet. The humble ladybug.
What You Need: Red, white and black nail paint. A thin paintbrush and bobby pins.
What To Do: Paint your nails in a bright red colour. Let dry completely. Now taking black nail paint and a thin paintbrush, draw a vertical line in the centre of your nails. Follow the pictorial and make the ladybug’s face. Let dry. You can make the eyes for a more fun and #cute cartoon like look. To do that, take a bobby pin, dip it into black paint to make polka dots. Using another bobby pin, mark a do for the white part of the bug's eyes. Let dry completely. Place a tiny black dot on the white dots to finish the eyes. Let dry completely. You can use acrylic paint instead of white and black nail paint if you want, it’s easier to use. Now seal the design with a glossy top coat.
There you have it, totally adorable, bright red ladybug’s on your fingertips.