Dreaming Nails

Cobalt Little Sardine nails

Round · Little Sardine

Doable at home

A little sardine in Milky Cobalt over Cobalt, body outlined and tail forked.

3 bottles: Cobalt, Milky Cobalt and Deep Cobalt. Cobalt and Milky Cobalt sit a comfortable distance apart: the motif is clearly legible without shouting, which is the easiest range to freehand in. The bottles are not all the same finish (crème and sheer), so the pattern picks up light differently from the ground.

It sits on a round nail, filed to follow the fingertip, which is the shortest shape here and the one that chips least, so the motif gets a soft frame rather than a pointed one.

Make it yours

Pick a part of the nail, then a shade
Base: Cobalt · Crème Open the bottle

Bottles for this nail

Tap a bottle to open it on the shelf
Cobalt Base · Crème
Milky Cobalt Motif · Sheer
Deep Cobalt Accent · Crème

What you need

Base colour cured
Striper brush clean lines
Gloss top level the paint

How to paint Cobalt Little Sardine nails

  1. 1 Buff, dehydrate and base coat, then cure. Two coats of Cobalt. A dark base shows every ridge, so the ridge-filling base coat matters more than usual here.
  2. 2 One Milky Cobalt outline for the body and tail, then the Deep Cobalt fin and a dot for the eye.
  3. 3 Gloss top coat, cure, then cuticle oil once it is out of the lamp.

Questions about Cobalt Little Sardine

  • Is Cobalt Little Sardine hard to do at home?

    Yes, with a steady hand. The motif is freehand, so the first nail is usually the worst one. Budget around 45 minutes for a full set, and three colours means three chances for something to bleed, so cure between each one rather than working wet on wet.

  • What polish do I need for Cobalt Little Sardine?

    3 bottles: Cobalt (crème), Milky Cobalt (sheer) and Deep Cobalt (crème). Plus a base coat and a gloss top coat, which every design here assumes you already have.

  • Does Cobalt Little Sardine work on short nails?

    Round is already the shortest shape here, so yes, this is one of the designs that works at almost any length.

  • How many coats does Cobalt Little Sardine need?

    More than you would expect. Milky Cobalt is translucent, so the colour builds over three thin coats rather than covering in two. Stop wherever you like the depth — that is the point of a sheer.

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