We're gonna start this feature with a pretty complex technique called "water marbling". I remember learning a similar technique in the 90's for colouring paper... but recently, I saw that our friend & past model, Rachel had tried it out & it looked really cute! It seems like a pretty long process & it does require both patience and a lot of time, but the result turns out unique.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-00.jpg)
This was our first time trying it & some nails were ugly & some looked awesome. So I'll preface this with telling you that it may require a bit of practice to achieve a nice look.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-02.jpg)
you'll need a bunch of nails polishes. 3 at minimum!
one for a base coat (we used the peach) and the others for the marbling.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-01.jpg)
tools you'll need:
- room temperature bottled water (apparently it works better than tap water)
- a cup or bowl that is disposable (the nail polish will ruin it)
- toothpicks
- nail polish remover
- cotton balls/makeup remover pads/q-tips for cleanup
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-03.jpg)
first, base coat your nails with a light colour. then set up your work area!
fill the glass with the water (i'm using a disposable shot glass), put down the paper towel in case you spill and have all your nail polishes open so you can access them quickly.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-04.jpg)
Now taking a generous brush full of polish, drop a drop (ummm) on the surface of the water. I found that I really had to load up the brushes by tipping my bottles to the side. You'll instantly see the polish disperse across the surface.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-05.jpg)
Working quickly, grab another colour and drop it in the center of the first colour. It will spread as well...
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-06.jpg)
Then quickly drop another colour in (or if you're only using two colours, you can just alternate)
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-07.jpg)
Continue dropping as many colours as you would like, I typically did about 5 or 6 drops.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-08.jpg)
Then grab your toothpick & begin dragging the tip through the surface of the nail polish, pulling the design.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-10.jpg)
these are some designs I was able to create by just dragging the polish across to a single point.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-11.jpg)
Now take one of your fingers & dip it in at an angle.
Make sure to hold your fingernail UNDER the surface of the water. JUST HOLD IT THERE.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-12.jpg)
You'll notice that there's a bunch of nail polish still surrounding your finger.
You have to take a toothpick & pick up the rest of that nailpolish so that your finger doesn't end up looking double-dipped. get it? :)
take what's left on your toothpick & just wipe it on the papertowel.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-13.jpg)
Now when you pull your finger out, your nail is marbled!
but so is your finger... a lot of people like to tape their fingers to avoid that, but I didn't want to waste tape :(
I'm debating whether using tape or nail polish remover is less wasteful though!
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-14.jpg)
So continue the process with all of your nails!
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-15.jpg)
It's a ridiculous mess on your fingers, but a quick cleanup with nail polish remover is easy!
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/0823-00.jpg)
Then just topcoat!
At first, I was a bit discouraged because the first few nails were kinda ugly. It's quite a bit of work for an okayyyyy result and it wastes quite a bit of product too, but I'll give it another try with some different colours before I say that it's more trouble than it's worth.
Have you tried water marbling yet?
xoxo
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/syl.jpg)
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