Lace on nails: how to make a design with your own hands at home

Refined and graceful, lace manicure until recently was in demand only at weddings, but now everything has changed and any young lady can get neat nails decorated with a delicate lace pattern in a matter of minutes. We will tell and show inspiring examples of lace manicure.

Lace or, as it is also called, openwork manicure is a type of nail art in which a lace pattern of any complexity is created or glued onto the nails.

Features of lace design

Lace nail design is a method of decorating the nail plate that involves the use of lace elements or its imitation.

Such incredible patterns are created using the method of smooth interweaving of thin lines.

Example of lace design on extended nails

Benefits of lace manicure

Lace in nail design is suitable for everyone who pays close attention to their appearance.
Pairs especially well with a classic and romantic look.
Emphasizes the aristocracy and fragility of the owner.
This manicure is perfect for a celebration: the openwork on the nails looks festive and elegant.
At any event and at any time of the year, this manicure will make you irresistible and dazzling.

Delicate mint manicure with lace

For which nails is lace painting suitable?

Lace manicure on short nails

For openwork design, there are no strict rules for choosing a specific nail shape.

However, oval, soft square and round shapes remain preferred.

It looks less attractive on sharp-shaped nails. There are no restrictions in determining the length: the main thing is that it is convenient.

Lace patterns are often made on extended nails rather than on your own. Painting on extended nails looks nicer and more beautiful, and the design is easier to do due to the length of the nail plate.

Stickers in nail design

This method is one of the easiest of those that will be listed below.
To perform this you will need special water-based stickers, a protective coating, base varnish, a glass of water and tweezers. Now let’s figure out how to draw lace on nails. To do this, cover the nail plate with the selected varnish and wait until it dries completely. Then the stickers are removed from the protective coating and soaked a little in water, and then attached to the nail surface using tweezers. The sticker sticks quickly, so this process should not bring any difficulties. Finally, cover all nails with protective varnish and wait until it dries completely. You can add rhinestones and sparkles to this manicure.

Color scheme for lace manicure

The basis for lace painting is delicate and light pastel shades of flesh and beige colors; transparent varnish is often used.
Openwork elements on a French manicure look relevant and successful.
Often color combinations are based on classic contrast: a white or red base with black lace.
Other bold color combinations are also allowed for those who want something bigger and extravagant: with a pink, turquoise, burgundy base.
The combination of a transparent base or jacket with white color is mainly suitable for festive motives and weddings.

Options for color combinations in lace nail designs

Stamping in nail design

This method is also considered very simple. For such “lace” on nails, you will need a specific stamping kit, which consists of a disk with lace shapes, a scraper, stamps and varnish, as well as a clear varnish as a base coat. After all the tools are prepared, let's do the manicure itself. We cover the nails with base varnish, and then wait for it to dry completely. We paint the selected mold on the disk with varnish and remove the excess coating using a scraper, then apply a stamp. The prepared stamp is pressed firmly, but does not budge. After this procedure, the nails are covered with a final coating. With this procedure, “lace” can be placed on any part of the nail, thereby creating a more playful manicure.

Ways to create an openwork manicure

There are several techniques for applying a lace pattern to the nail plate.

Of these, there are 4 main ones:

Using natural lace.
For this method, you need to acquire lace fabric, tulle or mesh.
The thinner and more elegant the materials, the better and more sophisticated the manicure will be.
- The fabric needs to be prepared by first cutting out selected areas according to the shape of your nails.
And while it is still wet, carefully apply the cut out lace shape using tweezers.
Afterwards, we coat it again with protective varnish so that it better bonds the fabric and gives it shine and smoothness.

The peculiarity of this method lies in its originality and uniqueness.

Nail design with natural lace

Applying an openwork pattern.
The essence of the technique is to perform lace painting with varnish or acrylic using a thin brush, toothpick or other means.
- For this technique you need to have good imagination and perseverance.
The image is secured on top with a topcoat.

Watch a master class on drawing guipure on nails:

Applying stickers.
Now stores sell special stickers with a wide variety of patterns.
They are very easy to use: cover your nails with a base color and stick on the selected design.
True, such a pattern does not last long and quickly wears off.

Lace stickers on nails

Stamping - the simplest method of applying a lace pattern.
It does not involve making the pattern by hand.
To perform it you need to have a special disk, stamp and decorative varnish.
- First, the base color is applied to the prepared nail.
After complete drying, the manicure is covered with a protective agent.

Lace nail design using stamping

Additional accessories

Very often, a wedding lace manicure is complemented with accessories: rhinestones, sparkles, velvet sand, pearls, stones.

They will add even more shine to a delicate manicure.

Red lace manicure with pearl and rhinestone decor

It is important to determine the extent of the use of additional accessories, because lace should remain the main thing in the design of nails.

How to do it right

Start creating a manicure by preparing your nails - this is a very important stage, on which the resulting result will directly depend. Remove the cuticle, treat the side ridges, file the nails. Don't forget to sand the surface of each nail and then degrease it.

Apply antiseptic to your hands and wait for it to dry, this happens quite quickly. Prepare the lace: cut it to the size of each nail.

Apply two layers of nail polish, you can choose a soft beige or pink, and start attaching the lace on top , slightly pressing it into the wet polish. Be sure to level it over the surface, giving it the desired shape. If you use regular varnishes, then don’t hesitate - it will dry quickly and you won’t be able to adjust anything.

If the fabric protrudes beyond the edges of the nails, simply cut it off with thin scissors. Then apply a fixative in two layers to securely fix the lace and also level the surface, giving it a natural shine.

Beads, rhinestones, bows - such decor is added last. As you can see, even without proper experience, you can make an interesting manicure yourself. It is worth noting that hand painting or stamping will look neater.

If you have special vinyl stickers, they will greatly simplify the task. Treat your nails as described above and apply the base color. Next, transfer the sticker to the nail and carefully smooth it out. To do this, use an orange stick . You need to do the same with stencils, only after applying it, apply a thick layer of varnish of the main color on top. Then quickly remove the stencil from the nail and admire the resulting pattern.

Of course, such stencils have many small details and not all of them can be printed, but any patterns can be completed independently with a brush. Don't forget to secure the result with a top coat.

How to draw lace on your nails yourself at home

Before you start painting your nails, you need to provide yourself with all the necessary materials and tools:

a regular needle or toothpick;
dots (a special needle with a ball at the end);
thin brush;
basic nail polish;
acrylic paints;
fixative

Instructions for beginners step by step

Prepare your nails for manicure: even out the length, file, trim the cuticle.
Cover the surface of the nail plate with a base polish of the color you have chosen. Wait for it to dry.
Use the tip of the brush to pick up some acrylic paint. It is important to know that before use, acrylic must be diluted with a small amount of water on the palette to give it a more liquid consistency.
Make the first strokes on paper first, practicing the required degree of pressure for the thinnest lines possible. Hold the brush vertically to achieve clear and even stripes.
On the nail plate where you decided to make the pattern, draw several convex lines. They do not necessarily have to be identical and symmetrical. The ornate design looks much more interesting.
Draw a thin mesh inside the semicircles.
Take some paint onto the dots ball and place dots where the arcs intersect, as well as above the grids.
Finally, coat your nails with a sealer or clear varnish.

To learn how to draw a beautiful openwork pattern on your nails at home, watch the video tutorial.

How to create such a design

You can do this manicure in one of three ways.

Manicure lace, which is designed specifically for creating designs on nails, is the basis for your work. The step-by-step process is as follows. Fragments of the required shape are cut out of the fabric and simply glued to the nail plate. This material is impregnated with a water-repellent solution, which prevents its premature destruction from moisture. After the glue has dried, the work can be secured by applying a protective layer of varnish to the surface of the nail plate.
Stickers imitating lace, stamping. This method has been used in nail salons for quite a long time and facilitates the work of the master in creating various designs. You can draw the ornament in exactly the same way. Its essence lies in the fact that the varnish is applied to a stencil, with the help of which the design is transferred to a rubber brush, and then to the nail plate. Before applying the design, the base is painted in the main color, and the surface is fixed.
Perhaps the most difficult way to imitate lace is to draw it with a needle. This requires some artistic ability. You can take any material you like as a sample. Recreation of the drawing is done step by step, in successive rows. After the design layer has dried, secure it.

Fashionable manicure ideas with lace

It is appropriate to make a lace design on nails for wedding manicure.
The most spectacular are nails that are hand-painted with unique patterns.
And additional inserts of pebbles will further reveal the festive and delicate motifs of the design.

Wedding lace manicure with rhinestones and pearls decoration
Openwork on a French manicure looks incredibly elegant and aristocratic.
This design is suitable for both everyday wear and going out (especially if you add decorations with sparkles, rhinestones, and stones).
By choosing a pink or beige polish as a base and combining it with white or gold lace, you can’t go wrong with your manicure.

Original lace jacket, decorated with stones

There are also many ideas for placing lace on the surface of the nail: on a horizontal strip with lace in a contrasting color, along the nail hole, etc.

Beautiful manicure with lace and stones in white and blue tones

Nail art options with lace decor

We can talk for a long time about the popularity of the design and how lace manicure won the hearts of many girls. However, lace on nails really fits into many looks, especially in the glamorous chic and romantic trends.

Fashionistas use different palettes to create bright and pastel variations with lace. The standard option is a beige background with a black pattern. There are several ways to perform popular nail art, with a grid, monograms, and a darkened background. It all depends on the preferences and style of execution, and a glossy or matte topcoat will also be used in the coating.

In addition to the choice of design, lace painting can have thick masks or a barely noticeable thin line. The elements of the pattern change depending on the tool used to make the ornament.

Ornate fragments are modeled in several ways, using a brush, stamping, dots or airbrush. Accordingly, the result is surprisingly different. Therefore, when choosing a design, girls find themselves in a difficult situation.

We have created a stylish selection of photos that will delight you with their colorful execution. The presented options are perfect for a romantic dress, an elegant outfit, and will also fit into a casual look with a warm sweater.

Wedding Manicure of the Bride with Lace

Openwork French

The most harmonious combination you can come up with is a French jacket with lace. French manicure fits perfectly into a wedding look; the bride’s fingers become neat and delicate. The design is suitable for creating a flirty look in soft pink and white tones. And even in a business look, an element with lace using the French technique is perfect if you keep the color scheme.

Many women like the bed style, but sometimes you want a bright manicure. In this case, a red jacket with a black nylon will delight you with a colorful, rich design. The line on the index and ring fingers can be modified, made obliquely, and along the edge of the smile a three-dimensional drawing can be made with black paint.

A cobalt-colored jacket with white voluminous openwork patterns looks quite festive. Sand or acrylic paint for painting will help to visually enlarge the drawing. The original combination will be completed by a matte top coat that will cover the plate without shine. It effectively complements the stylish design.

Moon manicure with lace

To see the elegance of nail art, look at the soft pink openwork moon manicure. Lace elements are located at the bottom and top of the plate, made in the form of a border on the nails. The accent in this design is the middle and ring fingers, on which monograms are painted with white paint along the perimeter of the entire stock.

An openwork manicure made using the lunar art technique will never get boring. There are quite a lot of variations, for example, an accent finger among a plain coating. The main background can be any color scheme, which ranges from pastel tones to dark, rich shades.

Do not forget about the color of the hole and nail bed. With the right combination, the design will not only have a stylish look, but also give aesthetic pleasure. It is no longer relevant to make identical patterns on each finger as a carbon copy. When working with lace, a creative approach and a non-standard view of design are important.

Openwork matte manicure in pastel colors

An openwork manicure using beige varnish can easily be called a design in the negative space style; the details are shown in the photo. This is due to the fact that the color scheme creates the illusion of naturalness, as if the nails are not covered with varnish at all. The natural effect is enhanced by the matte coating, which creates minimal gloss on the plate.

It’s a pleasure to look at a pink manicure with openwork patterns. Firstly, the color scheme makes the plate very natural and natural. Secondly, the drawing turns out to be delightfully delicate and weightless.

But this only applies to light pastel colors; in the case of rich shades, black paint looks better. Regardless of the color content, you can decorate all fingers with lace or just one if accent options are chosen.

Often, masters create voluminous nail art, using acrylic paint or casting techniques to model a visually enlarged pattern. But a voluminous design is best done on a rubber top, with which you can achieve a matte effect.

Manicure with lace on a bright background

One of the design options could be a bright mesh nail design. The bright background makes the drawing very clear. The detailed drawing of each element looks very impressive on bright pink or purple varnish. We will not deny the blue background; it is also suitable for lace decoration. But in this case it is better to use a silver color to make the ornament.

Red manicure looks amazing with white paint. You can decorate the middle and ring finger with white color, make an openwork ornament in the root part, or decorate the area of the nail bed diagonally with an openwork edging.

Adding rhinestone glitter bows

Decorative materials play an important role in any nail art. It adds flair to the design and makes it complete with a shiny element. Lace manicure is no exception, because it is also most often complemented with crystal or broth.

But here it is very important to know the golden mean. If the ornament is located on top, the decor is attached to the adjacent finger. If the drawing is made from below, then you can lay out stones in the form of a pyramid in the root part.

At home, rhinestones are most often used to complement a sticker with an openwork mesh. Nail art looks festive, complemented, complete. As an option, you can do an evening manicure with stamping, and then add polyhedrons to the center of the flower.

Using fabric to create openwork nail art

You will need thin lace or fine mesh fabric (tulle may work). It is important that the material is thin, then the fabric will not look bulky and sloppy.

In addition, prepare: scissors, base coat and sealer.

Cut lace from fabric to fit your nails.
Cover the nail plates with base.
Apply the lace to the not yet dry coating and smooth it out carefully with a toothpick.
All that remains is to fix the manicure.

If you want to experiment, use bright shades instead of a sheer base.