Two hot trends this summer are ocean hues and ombres, showcased on nails, accessories, and apparel. I decided to combine both of them on my nails using a variety of polishes from my collection. You can buy an ombre kit at Sephora right now for $22 (click HERE for details), but by using polishes I already owned, and a sheet of white scrap paper, I didn’t have to spend any cash. Plus, each of the colors I used was purchased at a drugstore and would total under $17 anyway– about $5 in savings! Here’s how I achieved the Ocean Ombre look.
First, I picked out the five blue shades I was going to use. Luckily I currently have exactly five blues! To ensure that I would achieve light to dark shading, I painted two light coats of each polish on a piece of white scrap paper, cut out each sample, and rearranged the order. Once I was happy with the colors, I got painting! I started off with the lightest color on my pinky, and ended with the darkest on my thumb. Lightest to darkest, I used Empire State Blue by NYC, Blu by Sally Hansen HD, Blue Me Away! by Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear, Plenty of Fish in the Sea by Spoiled, and Party Palace Blue by Confetti. Even though each of these colors was from a different brand, with some being cremes and others metallic, they all looked great together.
What do you think of the finished product?! I received many compliments on this manicure from my coworkers and from customers at my retail job. And even though it looks fancy, it was so easy to accomplish! The ombre trend can be perfected with any color palette. If you don’t have 5 shades of one color like I did, try sunset colors– pink to red, red to orange. You could also use neutrals with white, cream, grey, and black. Or, if you’d like to stick with the ocean hues, but only have a few shades of blue, alternate the colors. The key is to use the polishes you already own in a new way. You don’t always have to spend money for a new look!
Try out one (or both!) of these trends and let me know how it turned out in the comments section or on my Facebook page!
You picked the perfect blues!!!
Thank you!