Try Your Hands At These 5 Easy Nail Designs Without Tools

Painting your own nails meets all the rewarding therapeutic self-care experiences. The precisely careful attention takes your mind off stressful thoughts, leaving you with fancy nails and a boost of confidence. But for a beginner with no fancy tools, is simple and easy nail art at home a possibility? Yes, you absolutely can ace easy nail designs without tools at home with some patience and a pair of steady hands. Even better, all you require is some everyday household items in place of nail tools to flaunt effortlessly chic nail designs. Get scrolling!

Easy Nail Designs Without Tools For Beginners

We all have some gorgeous nail designs saved and not tried just because they look complex to paint when it is just you and a pair of nail colors. Not to speak of all the pretty Instagram posts that seem rather a piece of cake on the screen. In all seriousness, can you do easy nail designs without tools to give your nails a much-needed makeover? Good news, you can and we have listed 5 easy nail designs that do not require expensive tools or high levels of skills in nail art.

Before we start painting, let us prep your nails to create a smooth and even canvas.

How To Prepare Your Nails For Nait Art?

First things first. You need to clean up your nails as tidily as possible to ensure your nails are in good shape. Follow these steps:

1 – Remove any old nail polish. 

The first step is removing old nail polish by dipping a cotton ball in an acetone nail polish remover and placing it directly on the old nail polish(1). Rub it off after waiting a few seconds. Even if you don’t have any nail polish residue, this step ensures your new clear base coat or base color sticks on your nails properly. 

2 – Shape your nails.

It is always better to file your nails before you paint them instead of afterward to prevent peeling. So, once you remove old nail polish, cut and trim your nails to your desired length. Then, file your nails to shape them and buff your nails to make them smooth.

3 – Clean under your nails.

Make sure that your nails are cleaned thoroughly, especially the dirt under your nails, to avoid unsightly mani.

4 – Apply a clear base coat.

If you apply a base coat before painting, it will even out the ridges in your nails, protect your nails from staining by dark nail polish, and help the nail polish go smooth.

Basic And Easy Nail Designs Without Tools

We have the prepping of your nails covered. The next part is, of course, painting your nails. News flash: French manicure is not the only simple nail design. Luck is on your side because many of the coolest and chic trending designs are doable at home without tools. If not tools, what can you use? Well, you can easily find handy household items lying around, such as:

• Toothpicks
• Bobby pins
• Sponges
• Scotch tape
• Tip or cap of a ballpen
• Nail stickers and stencils
• Wax paper
• Loofah

As a beginner, you may get discouraged by pesky smudges while painting. But there is nothing some strokes of acetone cannot wipe! Remember that nail polishing is fun and expressive and you get to feel whimsical and classy because there is a look to suit every occasion. And not all designs take hours! Rounded up here are the 5 creative yet simple and easy nail designs without tools for beginners with shaky hands and pros with little time to spare. 

Monochrome Daisies

1. Apply a nude shade of nail polish on a clear base coat.
2. Once fully dried, press scotch tape firmly on your thumb, middle, and pinky fingers to where you want your tip to end.
3. Paint the exposed tip with white nail polish, including the corners.
4. Using the tip or cap of a ball pen, or the end of a bobby pin or a toothpick, make five dots in circles creating a daisy on the forefinger and ring finger.
5. Make another smaller daisy adjacent to the daisies, using contrasting shades.
6. Once dried, finish with a clear topcoat.

Polka Dots

1. Using a nude shade, apply two thin coats of nail polish on the clear base coat. 
2. Pick a toothpick to make tiny polka dots using multiple shades of nail polish.
3. Once dried, finish the look with a clear top coat.

Neon Candy Lines

1. Apply a clear base coat.
2. With or without using tape, paint multiple vertical lines on your nails using neon shades of nail polish.
3. Once dried, seal with a clear top coat.

Ombre Nails

1. Apply a clear base coat.
2. Apply two vertical coats of purple and white shade on your sponge.
3. Press the sponge lightly on the nails of your middle finger and ring finger until you get an ombre finish.
4. Apply two vertical orange and white as well as blue and white shades on your sponge to press on your forefinger and pinky finger.
5. Apply a clear top coat once completely dried.

Water Marble Swirls

1. Apply a thin coat of clear base.
2. Add drops of different nail polishes to a cup of room-temperature water.
3. Swirl the polish using a toothpick.
4. Dip your finger into the swirl.
5. Then, clean up the edges with acetone on the buds.
6. Continue dipping each finger.
7. Once dried, apply a clear top coat.

There are numerous nail art with toothpicks on the Internet. In fact, almost every easy nail design without tools includes nail art with toothpicks. You can recreate any of the above at home.

Types Of Nail Art Techniques

Now that you know the different easy nail designs without tools you can recreate at home, let’s talk about types of nail techniques. Nail art is not only about painting using the brush. There are other nail art techniques —most of which give you a hand in painting simple and easy nail art at home without tools. Check them out below.

1. Sponge-Bob Technique For Nail Art

To paint ombre, achromatic, and gradient nail designs, the sponge bobbing technique gives the perfect finish. Once you apply a base coat on your nails and let them dry, take a sponge and swipe two shades of nail polish on one side. Dab it onto your nails (swiftly or gently) to create an ombre effect. You can use any sponge you have, depending on the effect required.

2. Taping Technique For Easy Nail Art

Scotch tapes are incredibly versatile when it comes to doing easy nail designs without tools. You can cut tiny pieces of tape to place on your nails to create designs of different shapes or to paint a second color separately.

3. Nail Art Stickers

Using nail decals or art stickers is one of the easy nail designs without tools for beginners. There is not much effort either. All you have to do is place the stickers that fit your style on your nails.

4. Splatter Technique

For simple and easy nail art at home, you can always use a toothbrush to get splashy, splatter nails. To nail an artistic finish, say a graffiti design, use the splatter technique by making sure one color dries completely before applying another.

5. Stenciling For Easy Nail Art Designs

Another quick and easy nail art technique is simple stenciling to create cool designs, particularly symmetrical designs. Likewise, you can use loofah to create a fishnet design. Always end with a clear topcoat to finish the look.

Tips For Maintaining Your Nail Art

To maintain your nail art, keep these tips in mind.

• Wear gloves to protect your nail polish
• Avoid using nails as tools
• Apply cuticle oil regularly
• Reapply a clear top coat every few days
• Avoid using harsh chemicals
• Don’t peel or pick at your mani
• Stop biting your nails(2)
• Trim and clean your nails regularly
• Don’t spend too much time in hot baths

Useful Tips For Enhancing Your Nail Art Skills

• Plan and sketch your nail designs
• Play and mix colors and finishes
• Experiment with different tools and brushes
• Learn about layering shades of polishes 
• Practice and improve your skills

Final Take

If aesthetic nail polish posts on Instagram piqued your interest to pick up some polishes, you can master easy nail designs without tools using household items. You get to save both your money and time by painting your nails at home. We hope you found the inspiration and nail art ideas from the listed designs above.

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