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I Tried the "Skittles" Manicure | Editor Experiment

I Tried the "Skittles" Nail Trend, and I'm Obsessed With the Mismatched Look

Nov 15 2019

I've always been one of those people who has the hardest time making small decisions. (Granted, I am a Gemini.) I can make big or important decisions in a second but have to look at the menu for 17 minutes just to end up ordering the same food I've had 25 times before.

This is why when it comes to nail polish colours, I'm more inclined to stick to what I know and love: a french manicure or either Essie's Wicked or Bubble Bath polish colours. I know — boring, right? But recently, I wanted to do something different and try the "skittles" manicure trend, which involves painting a different colour on each nail. So I went ahead and booked an appointment at Paintbox in New York City. Check out the full process and my takeaways ahead.

Image Source: Instagram user betina_goldstein

Step 1: Prep For Your Manicure

My nail artist started filing my nails to give them a square shape. She didn't need to clip my nails, as they were short already. After getting the right shape, she soaked my cuticles in oil and pushed them back. Then she grabbed a cotton ball dipped in nail polish remover and removed any remaining oil or debris from my nail.

Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Balim Tezel

Step 2: Pick Your Colours

When it was time to pick all the colours I wanted, I got a little stressed. As someone who can't make up their mind in 10 seconds, I felt like I was under pressure. (Let's face it, no one wants to be that person who tries every nail polish on the shelf.) The best thing about the "skittles" trend, though, is that you don't have to stay within the same colour family (like you might with "paint chip" nails). All I knew was that I wanted to use a mixture of warm and cool pastel tones, so we picked a violet, baby blue, soft green, yellow, and a darker blue-grey from Essie, Smith & Cult, and BeBio.

Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Balim Tezel

Step 3: Apply the Colour

My nail artist applied the nail colours very meticulously. She was done with the pinky and middle fingers after two coats, but other colours were very light so they needed three coats in total.

Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Balim Tezel

Step 4: Finish With a Top Coat

The top coat is one of the most important parts of a manicure, because it smooths over any ridges. After the top layer was applied, my nails looked even more bright and clean.

Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Balim Tezel

Step 5: Enjoy Your Colourful Nails

To be completely honest, I wasn't really sure if I was going to enjoy the rainbow-ish look. Even though I liked these pastel colours separately, I didn't really know if my nails would look like an Easter egg bag after the manicure. But I ended up loving this "skittles" nail look! This manicure gave me an opportunity to try all these different colours and express my creative side in a way.

Also, I love the attention my nails are getting from various people. Maybe this is the trend my indecisive nature has been waiting for, and I have a feeling I'll be wearing my "skittles" manicure for a bit.

Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Balim Tezel

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