Distressed Sunset

Hello all! 

I hope everyone is doing well! This week has once again flown by! Before I know it, it'll be Christmas again. 


Today I have mixed two of my favorite techniques - dry brush & gradient - together to get this awesome design I call Distressed Sunset. It's edgy and cute at the same time. I love wearing this design.

Distressed Sunset Glossy Top Coat

The photo above is with a glossy top coat, but I ended up using a matte top coat to finish and I love the way it looks, I think it plays well with the pastel tones used and it kind of subdues the black so it's not as harsh. 

Distressed Sunset with glossy top coat & Barbie Boy - Chi Chi

So for this mani I used to the following
Barbie Boy - Chi Chi
Apricot Cockatoo - Essence
Lady In Black - OPI
Big Kwik Dry Top Coat - Sally Hansen
G'Day Matte Top Coat - piCture pOlish
Camo Coat - Celestial.

Distressed Sunset with Matte Top Coat

This was fairly simple. I applied two coats of Apricot Cockatoo & allowed to dry, then applied Kwik Dry top coat. I used Camo coat around my nails for easier clean up from the gradient. Once both were dry, I applied Apricot Cockatoo & Barbie Boy to a cosmetic sponge and dabbed it on all of my nails until a good opacity was reached. I removed the Camo coat once I was happy & cleaned up my cuticle areas with acetone and a clean up brush. Once the gradient was dry I applied Kwik Dry top coat to smooth it out. After drying, I took Lady In Black and wiped off as much excess polish as possible from the brush and applied it sporadically on all but one nail. Finished with G'Day Matte top coat, and voila! Here we have it. 

Distressed Sunset with Matte Top coat & Barbie Boy - Chi Chi

 As you have probably gathered by now, dry brush is my absolute favorite technique, and quite often my go-to. I've done a few others you can see here & here. Be sure to keep an eye out, as you will definitely see more of this. I've not done it like this before as I always thought it looked best over white, but I am slowly and surely expanding my horizons! 

Distressed Sunset with Matte Top Coat & Apricot Cockatoo - Essence

What are your two favorite techniques? Have you crossed them over before? Let me know and leave me links, I'd love to check them out!

Thanks for stopping by!