As someone who has a deep love for romantic comedies and is generally known as a “softie” it may come as a surprise to some people that I don’t really celebrate Valentine’s Day. Don’t get me wrong, as a kid I loved it and had so much fun writing out Valentine’s Day cards to all my friends and whoever my “crush” happened to be that year. And the candy? What’s not to love?
But as I got older and started dating (and eventually got married) the holiday started to lose its lustre. I began to realize it just wasn’t for me and thankfully married someone who agrees. If you love Valentine’s Day and go all out, I think that’s amazing! To each their own. The more love the better!
Occasionally my husband and I will try to do a little something special on February 14th, but it’s usually in the form of take-out food and a cheesy movie. No gifts and no pressure. That’s just what works for us!
However, I’m still a hopeless romantic and will be showing my appreciation for Saint Valentine in the form of a little nail art!
What you need:
- light pink polish (I used Essie Eternal Optimist)
- dark pink polish (I used Essie Mod Square)
- top coat (I used Julep Freedom Polymer Top Coat)
- dotting took or a toothpick to create the hearts
- small piece of tin foil
Start by applying two coats of the base colour and allowing it to try for 5 minutes. You can use any colour for the base as long as it’s several shades lighter than the colour you plan to use for the hearts.
Dab a few drops of the darker pink nail polish onto a small piece of tin foil. Then dip your dotting tool or toothpick into the polish. Less is more, so wipe off excess if needed! Start by creating two dots side by side and then connecting them to make the heart shape. Try your best to use small dots rather than trying to drag the dotting tool along the nail (this will likely smudge the base coat).
Let the hearts dry for at least 10 minutes before applying top coat to avoid streaking. Don’t worry if your hearts aren’t perfect, mine certainly aren’t. They all look a little different and that’s ok!
I hope you enjoyed this little tutorial! How are you spending Valentine’s Day this year? Let me know in the comments!
Maria says
Really beautiful and sweet! Simple and lovely!!
Megan Joy says
Thanks Maria! I’m not the best at nail art so simple is better for me : )
Stephanie Lau says
eeeeee megan so cute :3
Megan Joy says
Thanks Steph! I’m still in awe over your monkey/banana nail art. *bow down to the queen*
Sarah M says
This is super cute! Simple but fun.
Megan Joy says
Thanks Sarah!
Chantal says
I love it! It’s so cute and perfect for VDay!
We don’t celebrate either. Our anniversary of being together is on the 11th so we celebrate that, but even then it’s nothing major. This year we’ll be going out for a kid-free lunch on the 10th since I’ll be working from home.
I do love do to nail art for it though, and hope to be able to do some this week.
Megan Joy says
I’m sure you’ll come up with a super cute mani idea! A kid-free lunch sounds awesome. A little grown-up time just for you and your husband : )
Nancy says
Omg thank you for reminding me!!! I need to do this to my nails again this year. I don’t remember what I did the other year, but I think I did an accent heart on one nail. Yours came out SOOOOOOOOO cute. I love the two colours you chose. You have pretty nails naturally lol… is that weird to say? I’m trying to grow mine out by Friday (ha!) so I can get shellac done on them.
Megan Joy says
Haha you can compliment my nails anytime Nancy, it’s never weird : ) XOXO Oh I can’t wait to see what you get done with the shellac. The place you go always does such a nice job. I loved the solid white you did last year, it looked awesome.
Jen @ Simple Nails and Beauty says
I am terrible at nail art (I typically stick to nail wraps if I want a design on my nails), but you made this look so easy. I may just have to give it a try. I really like that light pink shade of polish you used as well 🙂
Megan Joy says
Thanks Jen! The lighter pink shade I used is one of my favourites from Essie, it works any time of the year if you ask me! : )
Elaine Atkins (@heyelaineatkins) says
Very cute! I’m so bad at just applying regular polish to my nails – nail art would be a disaster for me!
So I LOVE romantic comedies and girly movies but I cannot STAND Valentine’s day LOL!
Megan Joy says
Me too! I am such a cheesy rom-com lover but I’m not huge into Valentine’s Day. I used to love it as a kid/teen. Picking out the Valentine’s I would be handing out in class was so much fun : )
Kristi says
So cute! Love this!
Kristi | Be Loverly
Megan Joy says
Thanks Kristi! Hope you had a great weekend and Valentine’s Day!
Jackie says
I really don’t think I could ever achieve such a perfect mani at home, let alone the hearts….but I LOVE it!!
When I do my nails, I’m lucky if I don’t have polish all over all of my cuticles!
Jackie
Something About That
Megan Joy says
There was a lot of clean-up around my cuticles before I took these photos don’t you worry haha! I don’t have the most steady hand but thankfully the dotting tool made it relatively easy : )
Brigette Ramos says
Love this! It’s super cute and looks like something I’d like to recreate. xo Brigette
Megan Joy says
You totally should! Hearts are fun for nail art any time of the year! ; )
Megan T. says
This is so cute and minimalist and could even be worn when it isn’t Valentine’s Day! Great post!
Megan Joy says
Thanks Megan! I had fun doing it and was so thankful I didn’t totally mess it up (I’m not the best at nail art lol)
Jodi says
This is so cute! I was thinking of attempting some Valentine’s nail art but then I realized I pretty much only have blue and purple nail polish. Not quite festive colours 😉
Megan Joy says
I have the opposite problem, I have too many nudes and pinks! I need to get some more variety in my polish collection lol
Jayne says
This is so cute! I think the hearts NOT being perfect is what pulls the whole manicure together. I always enjoy the manicures you do because they appeal to all levels of nail art and are always perfectly executed. Thumbs up from me!
KC and I usually spend time together on Valentine’s in the form of making a really epic meal that we can enjoy at home – usually a really good steak with a bunch of sides 😉
Megan Joy says
That sounds like the perfect way to spend V-day : ) We ordered in too and watched Netflix, it was so relaxing! P.s. getting the thumbs up from you means a lot as you are a QUEEN at nail art!
Maria Gridley says
So pretty! You make it look so easy! My hearts never come out so well. ♥
Megan Joy says
Nail art can be tricky, there’s no question about that! The dotting tool I used made it pretty easy but there were still a few spots I had to “fix” before taking photos lol
sharon beauty prime says
So cute, love this! I’m terrible with applying nail polish and mani would be a nightmare for me. But I love how pretty it looks. I’ll coming up with a “no makeup makeup look” for VDay!
Ursula says
I love your VDay Mani …I think I do this cause I have that dotting tool in my KISS galaxy kit!! 🙂
Ursula
http://www.blueridgebeautyblogger.com
Megan Joy says
Thanks Ursula! Ohh yes you should definitely give that dotting tool a try : )
Adele says
I love this design I’m going to use it on my daughter this weekend she will love it too
Megan Joy says
Yay I hope she likes it! : ) Thanks for commenting Adele!
Brianna says
Love that! It’s so simple but it’s cheery and festive. I really should get myself a dotting tool so I can play with my nail art a bit more. I tend to go with festive colors but not patterns and designs.
http://www.divaandthedivine.com
Megan Joy says
That’s such a great way to do it! You can just do one accent nail in a colour that works for the season and it looks so cute. I considered doing that and just doing my nails pink with red on the ring finger. Love that idea!