Pistachio with Milk Bath smiley faces — two dots and a curve, no more than that.
3 bottles: Pistachio, Milk Bath and Fern. Pistachio and Milk Bath are close in tone, so the design is tonal rather than graphic. It shows up in daylight and softens indoors. The bottles are not all the same finish (crème and sheer), so the pattern picks up light differently from the ground.
On a stiletto the nail narrows the whole way, so the pattern reads as tapering with it, which is worth allowing for before the first stroke.
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Bottles for this nail
Tap a bottle to open it on the shelfWhat you need
How to paint Pistachio Smiley nails
- 1 Buff, dehydrate and base coat, then cure. Two thin coats of Pistachio, curing each one.
- 2 Two Milk Bath dots and one curved stroke per face; do not tidy them up.
- 3 Gloss top coat, cure, then cuticle oil once it is out of the lamp.
Questions about Pistachio Smiley
Is Pistachio Smiley hard to do at home?
Yes. There is no freehand work that has to be accurate. Budget about 30 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 Pistachio Smiley?
3 bottles: Pistachio (crème), Milk Bath (sheer) and Fern (crème). Plus a base coat and a gloss top coat, which every design here assumes you already have.
Does Pistachio Smiley work on short nails?
Stiletto needs length, because the point is most of the shape. On a short nail it files down to something closer to almond, and the design still reads, just less sharply.
How many coats does Pistachio Smiley need?
More than you would expect. Milk Bath 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.