First Time Attempting Isolated Chrome

I recently created two different press-on sets that gave me the chance to experiment with isolated chrome. It was definitely a challenge as I tried out two different techniques and made a couple mistakes along the way. However, after creating this set pictured here, I am happy to say that I finally feel like I have mastered the skill!

Isolated chrome is a nail art technique where chrome powder is applied to a specific spot on the nail, and the rest of the nail is a different color. If you refer to the photo above, I demonstrated this technique on almost all of the nails except the two featuring the 3D blobs (nail 4 on the top, nail 1 on the bottom).

My first attempt was a nude version of the design pictured. I aimed to try out the matte top coat method first. I started by applying and curing my base color. After that, I painted on the Beetles Matte Top Coat and cured it. I use Beetles 3D Clear Gel to create a design I liked. Unfortunately, when I pressed on the chrome and brushed off the excess, the isolation wasn’t successful.

After this attempt, I tried out a different technique I’d seen online. I buffed the surface of the nail until it lost its shine, created my design, and applied the chrome. The results were better than the prior method, however it wasn’t quite right and some chrome was still left behind on the base color.

Eventually I discovered the best way to do isolated chrome which was to apply a shiny top coat before buffing the surface. This one little step made all the difference!

After finishing the nude set, I created the one pictured above using the same method. I am extremely proud of how it turned out and it’s definitely my favorite set yet!

Thank you for following along with me on my nail journey! I am constantly learning and refining my skills and I am so excited to share that with you all. Stay tuned for more designs and feel free to reach out to me if you are interested in a custom set of your own!