Galaxy Nail Art Tutorial

Surprise! I have a tutorial for you today and I will be showing you how I get my galaxies to look really similar to the image I take inspiration from. All I want you to know is that it is not a matter of technique, it is a matter of being able to break down the composition of the galaxy (layout and colour-wise)!
All the wanderings of how I do my galaxies comes down to how I see the image in layers. A lot like in art (for those who aren’t familiar), a work will contain a:
1. Background
2. Middle ground &
3. Fore ground

The image I will be using is this image from the Black Milk website. This will probably be the last of the parts I do. There are only 9 (including this one), but I am a bit uninspired to do them now and have found other areas of interest. However if I do regain that inspiration, I will do the last one! This tutorial may be long, but I’d like to cover everything so that you are all informed about the decision process I go through to create these look. The more you know, the better :)

Have a look at the image. What colour is the background?

I see a dark purple for the top half and a lighter purple for the bottom and a bit at the top left. For the first step, I will be panting China Glaze Urban Night over the whole nail and will be sponging China Glaze Grape pop at the bottom. I also sponged a bit of OPI Ink over the lighter purple to add some sparkle.

Next, look for elements in the middle ground. In this case, the pinkish red part in the centre will be in the middle ground, as well as the pinkish parts under the white glow near her armpit and other stray bits. This part is after the background but before the foreground (indication for this is that you can still see the background and the blue stars are on top). I used a combination of OPI Red and Charged Up Cherry.

I really wish I didn't try to fix this up in the next step, because I think I ruined it! I thought the red was too dark and not noticeable so I tried to lighten it up by putting some white underneath, but I should've put it way before the red step so that it was smooth. Now it looks like a donut LOL I used Colour Club Paris White and then Milani Red ontop and then added OPI Miss Congeniality and then it looks really weird now :(

You want to highlight areas and add finishing touches, like the stars. White is the preferred colour for highlighting and in this case should be done before applying the stars (the stars overlap some white areas). Sponge on every bit of white you can see (including those large glowy blue spots).

After, I sponged some blue around the circles and in the top corner. This would be the time to add any additional colour that may have gotten lost during the sponging process. I added a bit more white in the centre of the spots and added a bit of purple in the top corner and pink in the centre. The middle is so distracting! I totally regret it!!!

Next, add some tiny stars. I used white acrylic paint and a fine brush to get the stars on. For the tiny star particles, I applied fine silver glitter in certain areas, not over the whole nail to achieve a starry look.

To finish, add a top coat. I used Seche Vite :)

You have now completed a galaxy nail! I hope this was easy to follow. The concept behind it is not hard at all and if you apply it to future galaxy inspired nails, you will get pretty galaxies :) It's not as pretty as the blue one I did before, but it'll do for a tutorial test!

Some tips
- Observe the composition of the image and look at the colour and the order that they appear
- Sponge bits a time and add more when needed
- Add white FIRST to lighten up dull colours. This acts like foundation primer, make sure it goes under the layers you'd like them to be on. For eg, If you'd like to lighten the red, add it FIRST then apply red and for the stars, if you'd like to lighten them, apply white and then add colours. What i'm trying to say is adding it first per layer, not all at once. You don't want to reapply the white because chances are they will be sponged over if added all at once.
- DO use glitter for stars if it is easier
- Colours will appear lighter when the top coat is added


I will be adding this tutorial to the tutorial tab for easier access. If you have tried this out, please email me a pic of them and I will feature them in a blog post. Thanks for reading!


Starry
//Linda