Where to Get Nail Art Ideas and Inspirations

Where do you get your nail art inspirations from?  Where do I begin at making my own nailart?

For some of us who are new to nail arts, looking at already made designs can be helpful.  It can be easier to copy a design that's already made compared to creating our own ideas.  These can be found in some health and fashion magazines and books.  When I come across these, I clip them and save them in a folder for future reference.  Here's an example.

Tutorials on how to do certain designs also abound in the internet.  Pinterest and Instagram are great sources of How To's and tutorials.  Even blogs just like mine! Bloggers have tried many different polishes and nail art designs and techniques that can help you.  They might even have some cheats for you... I mean tips to make things easier.  YouTube has many easy to follow video tutorials made by talented artists worldwide. And because you can see while the artist do the designs, it can be much much easier to follow.  Don't worry about copying a design... Have you heard? Imitation is the greatest form of flattery.  Just be mindful of giving credit to the original artist if you decide to post it on public media.

Then, as the famous adage goes: "Practice makes perfect," one can adapt skills as different techniques are implemented.  Later on, you may discover your own nail art personality and design style.  

The Dragon Fly Sunset | Click Image to see full post.

Creativity and imagination comes easy to some... For many of us, though, it takes more work than usual.  But that doesn't mean it can't be done.  I have mentioned a few times that I have resolved I could never draw.  Never is a strong word and I suggest never to say it without even trying (There you go, I just said it... Haha!) I have made pretty decent nail art work that involved drawing.  And because our canvass, the nails, are tiny, even a simple drawing can look really cute and attractive.  So don't despair - just try!  These little achievements can boost your confidence and motivate you to keep trying.  As you try, you get better. (A tip: cleaning up around your nails will do wonders! Even if you have a simple design, it will look really pretty if your cuticles are clean and well conditioned. See basics of Nail Art here.) Even if you really can't draw (after trying a million times!) then you can try designs that don't involved drawing - the use of tape, stencils, stamps and stickers are great... How about rhinestones and gems? I can't draw a dragonfly so I placed some rhinestones on my nails in the shape of the pretty insect - dragonfly.

Like I said, you can start from already made designs.  I fell in love with nail art when a friend of mind did a simple, pretty floral design on my nails.  For so many times, I re-did the same design over and over on my own nails and my other friends.  Then I ventured out as I got better.  As you get better, yourself, you can change things around, too. Instead of doing a replica of a design, why not adapt some of the things that you like and then insert your own personality?

Royal Lady Bug | Click Image to view full post.

Take for example this lady bug that I drew.  I got inspiration from a magazine.  I studied the picture a little bit and made a little drawing on paper to remind me later what ideas I thought about.  I am not able to do the nail art right away, most of the times, so I keep tract of my ideas by writing them.  Sometimes, I even plan on several designs and end up combining them together. ~ You know, mismatched nails are in now a days ;) As I thought about the design, I figured, instead of copying the picture as it is! I inserted some if my ideas.  The sparkle on the ring inspired the silver glitters on the nails.  Then because I intended to take photos outside by the bushes, I inserted sort of a garden theme to it as well.  It started from a magazine pic to my own personal design of a lady bug nail art.  You can do something like that as well.

Here's a book I found at the Supermarket.  I found it by accident while grocery shopping. It provides some cute nail art ideas as well as some of the tools needed to get started. This is perfect for beginners.  In the next post, I will show you some of it's features.  If you like it, you might want to keep your eyes open for things like this next time you go grocery shopping.

Are there any other places where you think you can get inspiration from?  Please leave a comment below ;)