Tutorial - sugary texture stars

Way back in July last year I posted this manicure which I'm still more than happy with. I even got some requests to do a tutorial for it and I'm finally delivering it. Different colour but overall same manicure. 

I've decided to post the Swedish text in a separate post. Click here for it!

One thing to note first, I find that with all nail there are multiple ways of doing things, the process can be adjusted based on your tools and preferences so there's no need to follow things exactly! In fact, I did this with different tools and in a different order than last time now, both methods work.

What you need to get started:

• Polish of your choice, textured preferably to get the right effect. I'm using KIKO 640. Note that the colour is off in the tutorial but correct in the picture above and at the end of this post!
• Matte top coat
• A zip lock bag or other thickish plastic  
• Something to lift the polish from the zip lock bag with, I use a pointy dotting tool but a toothpick should work too
• Something to create the stars with, if you have a craft punch that you can use you're saving lots of time but it's not necessary. Last time I used a scalpel or a knife, see below for some examples.

Step 1, paint your polish onto the zip lock bag. Do paint a slightly larger area than what the stars will actually require. Especially if you're cutting by hand, you're likely to need a little extra for mistakes :). Make sure the polish is opaque by for instance holding the bag against a window to see any bold spots. They can otherwise be easy to miss against the table!
Step 2, wait until the polish is fully dry. I waited for 2 hours.

Step 3, use the pointy dotting tool to lift the polish from the bag. If the polish is dry this should be simple. I slide in the dotting tool and carefully move it sideways to lift it.
Step 4, you're now ready to start creating your stars (or other shape of your choice!)

Step 5, I picked up this crafts punch in Japan (Tokyo hands), it really makes this process as easy as can be. I've been on the lookout for one with such small stars (the more common variety has stars of roughly 1cm diameter) for a while, this one gives you 4mm and 7mm. If you have one at hand then simply put your polish inside making sure the polish covers the cutout. Punch it and you have perfect stars in no time. 

Step 5, alternative if you don't have a star punch. Last year I didn't have the punch above so I had to cut the stars by hand. It is trickier, but not at all impossible. I start with cutting out a small square from the polish and remove corners from it until I have an okay star. I'm not able to get them perfect this way and a few might have to be discarded because the polish break into pieces but it works well enough I think.

Step 6, when you have all your stars ready, paint your nail with matte top coat. I painted it on a bare nail but a coat of nude to even out imperfections and discolouration could of course be added before the matte top coat.
Step 7, before the top coat has time to dry, take your stars and add them to the nail. Make sure you get the side of the polish which is textured to face up (the side that sat on the bag will be flat/without texture). I used the same dotting tool and my fingers to get them into place.

Step 8, add striping tape to the tip of your nail. Even if you can paint fairly steady without the help of it, I find that this step helps ensuring that the final manicure has nice and crisp lines.
Step 9, paint the tip with the polish you're using and remove striping tape. 

That was the full process. I included as many details as I could so it might sound like a very slow process but it's really not too bad! 

Some more pictures of the final look.