PinspiratioNAIL – Fishtail Nails with the L’Oréal Paris Versailles Romance Collection
Okay, so I’ve never been one of those people who tears pages from magazines or uses the clever reminder tabs that come with Lucky when I see something I like. Instead, I’m the one who saves decades of magazines and then has to ransack them looking for that one thing, I saw that one time, that I now want, but can’t remember the name of. Brilliant system, eh?
Fortunately, there’s Pinterest and it’s been a revelation, and a giant time suck, for me. I credit Pinterest with changing my mind about nail art. Not gonna lie, I’d been drinking the nail art hatorade. When nail art took off, a lot of what I saw was too over-the-top for my taste. Seeing tons of it roll by on Pinterest has warmed my heart, though I prefer the simpler, more geometric designs. It also helped me find amazing nail art bloggers like Chalkboard Nails and Lucy’s Stash.
Over the past year I’ve been collecting nail art designs on Pinterest that I want to try someday. Well, today is that someday. I’m going to attempt to recreate my fave nail art looks in this new series PinspiratioNAIL. I’ll put my spin on an image I find on Pinterest. My first look is a Fishtail Manicure using the new L’Oréal Paris Versailles Romance nail polish collection.
The Pinspiration: I’ve seen quite a few fishtail manicures on Pinterest but there was something about this one from Nailderella that struck a chord with me. The color palette is just very me and the lines are so well balanced.
Turns out, Nailderella used a technique found on The Beauty Department that creates clean lines but takes way more time than I’m willing to spend. I went the less labor intensive route by following the tutorial on Lucy’s Stash.
Image from Nailderella.com via beazley1976 on Pinterest
As much as I love the bright and shiny look above, I was in the mood for something more subtle. The L’Oréal Paris Versailles Romance collection fit the bill.
I polished all of my nails, except the ring finger, with L’Oréal Paris Pistachio Dream, a soft mint green with a hint of shimmer. It goes on a little streaky so I opted for three coats of color. On my ring finger I used L’Oréal Paris Lacey Lilac, a pink-tinged pastel purple. Lacey Lilac has great pigmentation so I only needed two coats.
Using L’Oréal Paris Royally Yours (baby blue creme) and Macaroon Me Madly (pale peach creme) along with Lacey Lilac, I painted overlapping diagonal stripes of color starting at the cuticle. Since you’ll be covering up part of the stripes as you go up the nail, make sure you concentrate on the inside edge being straight. The flat L’Oréal Paris Colour Riche brush makes it very easy. Repeat the stripes, rotating colors, until you reach the free edge.
Add a layer of top coat and you are ready to go. The final result feels very spring-y and because the colors are so soft, it’s not overwhelming. It would look great on Easter Sunday, for those of you who celebrate.
I took this with my cell phone which doesn’t pick up the detail as much but shows how the colors will look in indirect light.
The L’Oréal Paris Versailles Romance collection is limited edition and available now at drugstores and mass retailers nationwide. The collection includes a pale yellow (Creme Puffs) and a baby pink (The Palace Life) that aren’t shown. L’Oréal Paris Colour Riche nail polish retails for $5.99/ea for a .39oz bottle.
Thoughts on my first fishtail manicure? Is this a look you have/will try? Which technique do you prefer? Are you into my color choice?
Also, if you’re on Pinterest, follow me (Pinterest.com/AllLacqueredUp) and leave a comment on my PinspiratioNAIL board for the nail art design you’d like to see me try next.
Disclosure: Product samples were provided by reps for L’Oréal Paris. For more info view my Disclosure Policy.
Lisa N.
Ms Meatballhead
Birdie
Spa pediccure chairs
Perfect Spring colors
These are all very pretty,but the only color I don’t have in my stash is peach,so I’ll want to get Macaroon Me Madly.Thank you for the swatches and pretty nail art!
I’m loving a lot of the colors that have been coming out for Spring.
Love it! I’ve never seen a fishtail design before, but it looks so easy to recreate! Thanks for the tutorial.
This looks lovely, and doesn’t seem like it would take forever. I think I’ll give it a go
And I love the colours you chose!
Let me know how it turns out!
Love it. How long did you wait between painting the overlapping stripes?
Thanks! I waited like 60-90 seconds in between. The usual amount of time I would wait between coats of polish when doing a regular manicure.
I really like what you did with the colors, really fresh and sweet, perfect for spring !
Such a cute collection! And the mani is adorable
Love this, it came out so well!
Perfect for spring, love these colors!
Perfect spring shades!
I am loving this L
OMG thank you so much for the mention, you’re a blogger legend! I feel honoured that you like my nail art, really! Thank you!
Wow, you are too kind. I’m in envy of your skills and love your videos. I’m so glad you aren’t offended by my amateur attempt to copy you.
Are you kidding? I’m over the moon you’ve followed my tutorial AND credited me
I actually got quite a few people visiting my site because of you. I’m so glad my tutorials inspire people, even better – you 
I don’t know how you feel about it, but these and other recent L’Oreal nail polish colors are awesome. I don’t know if they redesigned the formula or what, but they last a long time without chipping and the colors stay vibrant. They are a major improvement on their old formula. I have several, about 15 different colors and I love them all, this coming from a serious Chanel and Dior fan. I loved the fishtail manicure on you. I tried it myself and while my results are not as good as yours, I think it looked pretty good and I got a lot of compliments on it and questions about where I got the idea and I told everyone who asked about your blog. I am so glad that you are back, I have really missed you. Keep the good nail colors and art coming and God bless you.
I totally agree. I mentioned it in my CoverGirl post that I’ve been harsh on drugstore brands in general based on past experiences but they are really stepping up to the plate. Have you tried the Revlon ColorStay?? Ah-MAZ-ing. Totally makes up for what a shitshow the regular Revlon formula has been to me.
This turned out really nice! I’m very tempted to try it (though I’m not very talented / have much of a steady hand).
Also, if you’re looking for more nail art – my absolute favorite nail art blog is: http://pshiiit.com
Thanks for the rec. I’ll check it out.
Thanks for the shout out!! I love the colors you used!!
Just trying to re-create this mani, its so lovely!!! Lets hope I can do it