I’m sorry that the title for this Nail Friday sort of sounds like a high-sugar cereal you ate in kindergarten that had a mythical creature on the box. Unlike that made-up cereal, this tutorial is pretty vampy and sexy and was inspired by my deep longing for Tom Ford’s “Black Orchid” lipstick. It’s pervasive, y’all (and almost $50).

For this tutorial, you’ll need a base coat, top coat, and two polish colors. I used a deep and medium berry but as always, do whatever the eff you want. A peek of glitter and contrasting colors also look awesome. You can even experiment with matte vs. shiny.

I also used nail sticker number 3. I find that the nail stickers are a bit different than regular tape or other kinds of stickers and peel off of nail polish easier. HOWEVER, this doesn’t mean that you can’t use tape and other things for these tutorials because hey, these stickers cost money and some people have more important financial priorities then say, perfect lines on their nails. I get that. And that’s why for this tutorial there is a non-sticker option which I’ll go over at the end. Spoiler alert: It involves page reinforcers.

As always, start off with your basecoat and then paint on the color you want to use for the non-half-moon part of you nail. I used Essie’s “Bahama Mama.”

I then painted on a coat of Seche Vite to speed up the drying process so I could use the stickers without testing my patience. Place your stickers at the base of your nail, outlining the half-moon, and then press down firmly to make sure there are no bubbles or spaces between the sticker and your nails.

Paint the half-moon section with your second color. I used OPI’s “Miami Beet.”

Wait about 5 minutes and then pull the stickers off of each nail. Wait another 5-10 minutes before painting on your top coat so that the polish doesn’t streak.

Gorgeous, right? I was worried that two colors in the same family would look dopey, but I actually love it. Not only that, my manicure has gone four days so far without ONE CHIP. If you don’t have nail stickers but do have page reinforcement stickers (or can easily get some) the tutorial is pretty much the same except the sticker usage is reversed. You’ll want to paint your entire nail the half-moon color, let it dry (or shortcut with Seche Vite), block off a half-moon section with the rounded reinforcement sticker on each nail, and then paint the exposed part your other color! It’s that easy, people.

Comment below with suggestions, tutorial ideas, or cereal recommendations. Am I the only one that wants to see “Lucky Charms: Just the Marshmallows” in the grocery aisle?

Written by Taylor Blakin
Follow this nail expert and avocado-enthusiast on Blogspot and Tumblr!