Video: How to Create a Unique Nail Polish with Mineral Pigments

Hi everybody,

Hurray! Today's post is special: this is My Makeup Blog's first video clip! I filmed it a while ago when my hair was still long. This video clip is going to show you how to create a unique nail polish using mineral pigments. That way, you can have an extra use of your own pigments to create some very unique shades. All you need are your base coat, top coat, a piece of wax paper (or foil), and some pigments.

Here is how to do it:

I finally learned how to edit a video clip using Windows Live Movie Maker. My current laptop did not have Windows Movie Maker installed when I bought it and it was available for downloading yesterday. I filmed this video clip from the webcam of my laptop, hence the Blair Witch quality.

Jump for the written instruction and more!
For those need the written instruction, here it is:

You'll need:

• A base coat: I used Avon Nail Expert Lasting Lengths lacquer in the video. I no longer use it because my bottle is really old. However, it is a good base coat. I highly recommend it. The reason for a base coat is to help your pigments bond better. Also, it prevents your nails from staining.
• A clear top coat: I used Rimmel London top coat. Also, I don't use it anymore. I replaced it with Rimmel London Faster 60 seconds top coat since this one dries faster. Rimmel London makes some really fantastic top coats that are shiny.
• Some pigments: I used "Cookie Monster" and poured a bit out to a piece of wax paper. Regular paper or foil would do, too. I would not recommend dipping the nail polish brush straight into the pigment jar, though. Treat your pigments with care.

How to do it:

• Apply a coat of base coat and wait to dry
• Dip the top coat polish brush into the pigments in the wax paper, then proceed to painting your nail as if using regular nail polish. use more pigments and/or top coat if needed.
• Re-apply a second coat if needed.
• To finish off, apply a fast-dry top coat (not shown in the video.) That's it, you're done!

I find putting a dot of top coat on the wax paper helps accelerating the process. Also, you can mix a bit of top coat and pigment together before applying. However, you need to work fast before the nail polish mixture dries. Another alternative is to add some pigments directly to the clear top coat. You can make a whole bunch of nail polishes this way and they can last forever, as long as you cap them properly. In fact, the founders of Urban Decay started their companies from mixing nail polishes with pigments for their own use.

The only caveat I have with this method is the chunkiness of the nail polish. Mineral pigments are lovely but they don't mix as well as dyes. If you are used to Zoya, the nail polishes created by the above method has the same texture as Zoya glittery nail polishes, which is not so bad I reckon.

I am so happy that I got a chance to edit this video. I hope you enjoy it. Please give me some comments as well as editing tips, as I am a newbie.

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