With an active lifestyle, the load is partly on the hands, the manicure suffers. Today for cover short nails gel polish is considered the actual form "squaw-square" or "oval". This allows you to embody design ideas of any complexity.
General recommendations
To make a manicure on short nails look aesthetically pleasing and elegant, you should control the height of the layers of the gel coating. Strict requirements are imposed on the thickness of the end of the nail. When applying varnish and fixing materials, the free edge is sealed.
Due to this procedure, an unwanted thickening may form, which will turn the appearance of the nail into a "bun" (the slang expression of manicurists about the thick ends of nails). According to the canons of international nail art standards, the thickness of the free edge should be about 1 mm (the thickness of a plastic bank card).
Particular attention should be paid to the influx of gel polish under the side ridges and the flow under the cuticle.
On short nails, such flaws in the coating do not look neat and are not masked by any design. After working with construction gels or rubber bases on short nails, you should carefully saw the surface of the nail, treat it with a soft buff, and only then proceed with applying a colored coating.
Scheme of sawdust before coating:
- It is necessary to process the end of the nail, working with a file in an arc along the end and along the length of the finger. To check the quality of work, you need to look at the end.
- Then the side rollers are pulled back and the lateral parallels are machined (the tool is directed parallel to the axis of the finger).
- With gentle movements, without pressure in an arc, the area near the cuticle is treated. In this area, the master must be extremely careful so that the file does not injure the skin roller.
- The platform is leveled over the nail, for this the file is placed on top parallel to the axis.
- After sawing off with a soft buff, you need to process the nail in a circular motion to level the surface under the base layer.
Techniques and methods
Gel polish manicure ideas for short nails are created by alternating several techniques within the same design. Before overcoating, determine the sequence of coats and the drying time.
What techniques are used to create designs at home:
| Vehicle name | Process description | Materials and tools |
| Stamping | Transferring the pattern from the engraving plate to the nail using a silicone stamp. | Plate with patterns, stamp, paint for stamping. |
| Sliders | Pasting pictures from a paper base. | Slider set, tweezers, water container, top |
| Rubbing | Gives a metallic sheen to a colored coating. | A set of multi-colored rubbers, a sponge or a soft brush for applying the material, top. |
| Foil printing | With the matte side, attach a sheet of foil to the sticky layer of the colored coating and tear off the foil with a sharp movement, often a more aggressive sticky layer is needed for printing, which is obtained when applying a special glue for foil. | Foil kit, glue, silicone brush for leveling the foil sheet on the nail, top. |
It is necessary to start creating a design with a high-quality manicure, which will remove the pterygium and prepare the nail plate for applying polymeric materials. The strength and durability of the design also depends on the correct drying time.
Each layer is dried separately for 30 seconds. Today, craftsmen prefer to use a top without a sticky layer for the finishing layer. It is also possible to use a top with a matting effect.
Monochrome manicure
The colored coating is made in one color for all fingers. As a popular design option, the application of two (adjacent on the color wheel) shades is used on different fingers of one hand. For example, the pinky and ring finger are shaded darker, while the rest of the fingers are shaded lighter.
A trendy manicure for short nails is considered to be “cat's eye” gel polish. Manufacturers produce varnishes with 3d and 5d effect, which is provided by the alignment of metal particles under the influence of a magnetic field.
Manicure in different shades
The ideas of manicure with gel polish for short nails, when implemented, involve the use of several shades. They can flow into each other in a gradient or weave in abstract designs.
With the help of modern techniques, it is quite possible to create any type of gradient on short nails:
- horizontal;
- vertical;
- radial;
- angular.
It is also not difficult to create colored abstractions yourself:
- with a thin brush;
- using a stamp for stamping;
- based on spreading base.
To make the borders of the abstract drawing clear, use a thin brush. The elements are alternately drawn in different colors and dried in a lamp by elements. This will allow you not to mix different colors and draw thin lines with a brush.
Matte manicure
On short nails, manicure ideas under a matte top coat look elegant and are distinguished by noble simplicity. The glossy shine of the gel polish completely disappears thanks to a special polymer coating, which is marked with the word "matte".
Any color is suitable for applying a matte finish coat. Nails acquire sophistication and do not require additional decoration. However, to create inlays from rhinestones and broths, matte manicure is often used as a background layer.
Before the appearance of special polymer tops, craftsmen removed the gloss from the coating using a buff after applying a regular top. However, this method did not guarantee the durability of the matting effect.
Variants with patterns
Ideas for manicure with gel polish for short nails include drawings and patterns of varying degrees of complexity, regardless of the length of the nail plate. Thanks to modern design techniques, this process is not difficult even for beginners in nail art.
Methods for creating patterns on nails:
- stamping - creates monochrome patterns of varying degrees of complexity;
- sliders (paper-based or volumetric silicone) - attached to a colored coating without a sticky layer;
- transfer foil - bright shiny prints or holographic patterns (depending on the version of the foil, it can be with pictures);
- dot patterns with dots.
The longest and most expensive design is considered to be hand-painted with a fine brush. To create colorful drawings, craftsmen use acrylic or gel paints. Acrylic paints dry in the air and are therefore considered more difficult to work with. They can bleed under some of the top gels.
Gel paints can be applied in stages, with each layer drying in a lamp for 10 seconds.
The "stamping" technique allows you to create monochrome patterns of any complexity. To complete them, you will need to purchase a special tool (a set of items is described above in the article). Manufacturers produce special stamping gel varnishes that are highly pigmented and air-dry.
Stamping can also be done with gel paints, but they require drying in a lamp after application. To add variety to stamping, the masters have developed techniques using rubbing and reverse stamping (painting a drawing on the plane of the stamp and printing a color picture).
How to stamp with neon pigments:
- It is necessary to prepare the nail with a custom-made manicure.
- Perform a monochromatic coating with colored gel polish, dry it in a lamp for 30 seconds.
- Buff the surface of the nail to increase roughness and remove gloss.
- Apply stains with dry neon pigments on the plane of the stamp using a cosmetic sponge. Multiple colors can be used.
- Apply stamping paint to the engraved plate and spread into a thin layer.
- With a stamp (with applied neon pigments) in a rolling motion, remove the pattern from the plate.
- Reprint the pattern onto a prepared monochromatic nail cover, dry in a lamp for 30 seconds.
- Apply the top and fix it in the lamp for 30 sec.
After retyping the pattern on the outside, there will be a pattern painted in neon colors. Rubbing will not transfer to the surface of the nail, which is treated with a buff. In order for the pattern to be distinct, it is advisable to choose patterns using thick lines. Any rub and dry color pigment is printed in the same way.
With decor
On short nails, you can successfully create inlays with rhinestones and decorate with self-adhesive tapes.
Decor options that are used for design:
- glass or acrylic rhinestones;
- Pixie crystals (fragments of glass colored rhinestones of irregular geometric shape);
- Yucca flakes, which can be used as glitter or as a rub in with a metallic sheen;
- self-adhesive tapes of various thicknesses and colors;
- silicone sliders (adhesive), silver or gold;
- transfer foil - with holographic patterns, pictures (can be shiny or matte);
- broken glass foil.
How to use broken glass foil for decoration on short nails:
- The nail with a colored coating is covered with a top layer with a sticky layer and cured in a lamp for 30 sec.
- A sheet of foil is cut into pieces of the required shape with nail scissors.
- With tweezers, the cut parts are transferred to the nail and laid out in the drawing. It should be remembered that a surface with a sticky layer will glue the material the first time, it will not be possible to move it along the nail.
- Dry the design with foil in the lamp for about 30 seconds.
- Cover the surface with a layer of finish and dry for 30 seconds.
- If the surface of the nail is not even, then cover the design with a second layer of top using the alignment technique. Final drying takes about 60 seconds.
Designs with its use are distinguished by originality, it provides gentle play of shades when exposed to sunlight. Any turn of the hand causes a play of shades on the nail and attracts the attention of others.
Fashion trends in 2019-20
The fashionable shape of short nails in the 2019-20 season. a square, soft square or oval is considered. Do not expect that the master will be able to create an "almond" shape on a short length of the nail plate.
An unexpected surge in popularity was noted for the bubble design, which is performed using soap foam. On the Internet and among craftsmen, it was designated as "foam design".
How to perform a "foam" manicure:
- It is necessary to prepare in advance a container with soapy foam. To prepare it, you will need ordinary water and a dishwashing detergent or shampoo (the product must be highly foaming). To do this, beat the product with water into a strong, stable foam.
- Apply a colored coating to the nail and dry in an ICE lamp for 30 sec.
- Cover the surface with a thin layer of top and do not fix it in the lamp.
- Put a cap of foam on a wet layer with a fan brush or a spatula and immediately send the design to the lamp for 30 seconds.
- After drying, if sharp edges have formed in the texture on the surface of the nail, they are removed with a soft buff.
From above, the "foam designs" do not overlap with the top, you can emphasize the structure of the bubbles with a colored rub. If you want to get a flat surface, the nail can be overlapped with two layers of rubber top.
Relevant for the design of short nails in the 2019-20 season. there will be the use of silicone charmikons with inscriptions. Motivating texts are attached to a plain cover without a sticky layer and do not overlap with a top. The letters have a convex, three-dimensional relief. These sliders initially have an adhesive base, which is firmly attached to the nail covered with a top.
On short nails, you can make designs with gel polish of any complexity. The most original manicure ideas are implemented regardless of the length of the nail plate, if you choose the right application technique and materials.
Video about manicure for short nails
Best and worst designs for short nails: