Hi lovelies,
I hope you are having a good week so far. I think I am getting back in the swing of things so that makes it a good week for me too. Now if only I can get caught up on reading my favourite blogs and commenting then I will really be winning.
I mentioned the Essence Paper Print Manicure back in this post and I had a really easy time of applying and using it. I have since seen quite a few people mentioning that they just can’t get it to work. Last week Tyler from Polished Tickles and Beauty asked me if I would do a post on how I did it the last time. When it came time to do it I couldn’t remember if I did it a specific way or followed the instructions on the bottle. I did a little test run so stick with me while I try to explain it in a way that makes complete sense 😉
This is the paper print patterns that I have. I have used the the 4 prints that are not maps. I started with 2 coats of Essence – That’s what I mint on all my nails and while that was drying I proceeded to cut out my pieces of paper.
I cut them into pieces bigger than my nail. On the edges I actually kept the extra white border because it gave me a piece of the paper to hold on to. Once the polish is completely dry you can start to do the transfer. After trying it exactly as instructed I got a good result but I knew I got slightly better results before so this is how I did it and how I got my results.
I used the transfer solution and covered the piece of paper with it. I made it quite wet. I also noticed that it evaporates pretty quickly so if you can make it nice and wet you will have a little more time to get it on your nail. I also put the transfer solution on the front (on the print) as well as on the back.
Like I mentioned, the quicker you can get the wet paper onto your nail the better. Because I cut it bigger than my nail it is pretty easy to just plonk it on my nail and not worry about alignment. If you want a specific piece of the paper print to be on a specific part of your nail it could take a little more time. Don’t worry though, there is a solution for that.
I put it on my nail with the print side facing the nail and make sure I gently rub and pat it down all over my nail. Remember, the print can only transfer to your nail where it touches your nail. So make sure you gently rub it down on the sides and edges. If you feel you took a little longer to put the paper down or just want to be sure you can paint on a layer of the transfer solution on the back while it is on your nail. The quicker you can do all this the better. Hold the paper down for just under the 15 seconds recommended on the bottle. I found if I held it down too long the paper started sticking to my nails.
If you find the pieces small and difficult to work with you can use a cotton round. I put the piece of paper on the cotton round and do the transfer solution on the paper while it is on the cotton round. I then align it on my finger and hold it down with the cotton round as well. Or you can just use the cotton round to press it on your nail after the solution and after you’ve put it on your nail. This just makes the working space a little bigger and easier to handle. If you don’t find the small pieces of paper a problem then it isn’t an issue. Topcoat when you’re done and voila!
You can see here my middle and index fingers is where I used it this way. (except on my index where I accidentally moved the paper half way through. I wouldn’t recommend that :P)
I hope this all made sense. If you have any questions or need me to clarify please don’t hesitate to ask. Have you tried the Essence paper print? Did you have any problems or did you find it pretty easy to do?
Thanks for reading!
This paper print kit is generally a good idea, but you can achieve the same result with ordinary newspaper and some alcohol. Not sure if special kits with transfer solution etc. do not make this easy manicure too complicated…
NailCentric recently posted…Essence spring/summer 2014 nail polish collections: Preview
I definitely agree with you. I do think this is a nice idea (and seems everyone and their uncle has it) but you could just use the old fashioned way. Which i believe might actually work better for some.
You are an absolute star. Thank you so so much. Going to give it a try tonight. Xxxx
Tyler Vivier recently posted…Essence Colour & Go 109 Off To Miami
You’re very welcome 😀 I hope it made sense and works 😉
I bought the Justin Bieber paper print (don’t judge me-i just wanted the little guitars) and failed miserably following their instructions so I decided to use my rubbing alcohol since it works with regular newspaper for me…..and I didn’t get any better results so in a fit of rage I squashed up the paper print n threw it away….#nopatience
Hahahah Renita, no judging from me. I have all the JB polishes too 😛 LOL sorry you chucked the paper away. Perhaps try it the old way with just alcohol and newspaper?
I agree with NailCentric. I haven’t ever actually done a newspaper print mani (on my to-do list!), but I wouldn’t go buy the special kit for it. I would use the alcohol and a regular newspaper. Thanks for the instructions though, will be helpful no matter what I use 🙂
acidicice recently posted…First Day of Playschool
I agree too but these things are so cheap it might work out the same price anyway. Worth a shot too.
Awesome Mich , I’m also gonna give it a try this week as I got a set in my last #Delishbox
🙂
x x H
Yay thanks Heather. Hope to see how it goes for you 🙂
I’m getting back to the reading blogs/commenting now. I’m so behind!
Nice to see the paper print with a color!
I am SO far behind as well. I am finally able to start catching up today but it is going to be slow going 😉
I love the effect of this, but I don’t think I’d have the patience to sit and do it :/ But it looks great! 🙂
Loren recently posted…Hello 2014
Thanks Loren. It is actually much quicker than it looks. I did all 5 nails in less than 7 minutes. The longest part was waiting for my polish to dry and while I did that I cut out the paper 😉
Thank you so much!
I love this idea by Essence but I can’t get myself to buy it though. I have newspaper and alcohol (HMMM! VODKA! :P). I’ll rather by an actual bottle of polish with the money!…oh who am I kidding! Of course I want it! I’m just broke! *cries*
You killed this tutorial! Love it M! 😀
Bwahahahaha That just made me laugh so hard!! Look, Obviously if you have the tools to do it the old way then I would do it the ‘old’ way. I do however think that some of the prints are really cute, not something y ou would easily find in your average newspaper 😛