Hi guys! Today I'm going to be going over some helpful tips for those of you who are interested in working with water-based paint for nail art.

Follow the cut for more information!

When I first heard about people using paint for nail art a question mark literally appeared above my head. Okay, maybe not REALLY..but I couldn't figure out how it would work. It would surely wash off, and even if you applied a top coat it would have to smear..wouldn't it? Not even close.

After watching several tutorials on YouTube (two of my favorite nail gurus to watch who use paint regularly are LOVE4NAILS and robinmosesnailart) I decided I just had to try it out for myself. If you guys have seen any of my previous nail videos or NOTW's, you'll know that I'm not very good at nails. Period. Even things that would seem like they would help out a lot, like the Migi Nail Art pens or nail art polishes with extremely thin brushes, just don't work for me. Nine times out of ten I make a huge mess, resulting in me removing my entire manicure and starting over. Those days are over!

I picked up the set of Crayola paints pictured above for less than $5.00 at Walmart. Each tub contains a whopping 2 oz. of paint, compared to somewhere around .5 oz. in a nail polish. Not only are these going to last you forever, but they're not as sheer as some nail polish..so you're not going to have to go over your design two or three times just to get it to show up. Another plus is that it will definitely come out of any brush you want to use very, very easily.

My favorite part? If you make a mistake, you can wipe it right away with your finger. No smudging, no gross sticky mess..nothing. If you make an even bigger mistake you can get a Q-Tip wet and get rid of the whole design, leaving your nail still perfectly polished underneath.

Making these work (and LAST!) is extremely simple. Apply your regular base coat, whatever polish you want and let it dry completely before you get started (that way, if you do make a little mistake, you're not going to smudge your mani!) and then just go to town with your paints. Make sure they're completely dry (you'll know when the paint looks matte instead of shiny) and go over it with a coat or two of your favorite topcoat. I've tried three different ones, including a glitter topcoat, with these paints and had the same results. If you want to keep your manicure looking brand spanking new, just apply a thin topcoat every day so none of it wears off..and voila! Awesome manicures on the cheap.

I hope you guys found this helpful and make sure to check out the artists I mentioned above..the designs they come up with are absolutely stunning! Have a wonderful day!