Nails By Redkoletz | Feature Friday

Ever wondered how popular nail artist get started and how they improve to be the great artist they are now?  I invited MD of Nails by RedKoletz to share with us her nail art story.  Please come and be inspired by her experiences and helpful tips.

"Never give up...Just remember,

all popular nail artist started just like us.  

They are just very willing to try new things  

and really have the passion in doing nail art."

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Introduction: Please tell us something about yourself:

Just call me MD to make our life easier 'cause my name is way too long to read and hard to memorize.

"When I was younger,
I used to paint my nails with the real house paint."
I was raised in the beautiful island of the Philippines and I’m currently living in the “Big Apple”, the amazing NYC!   I am a nurse. Doing nail art is just my hobby. When I was younger, I used to paint my nails with the real house paint. Fortunately, I am able to buy the real polishes when I got to college. Now, I am luckier because sometimes I have sponsors that send me nail polish to swatch. I joined contests like like Preen.Me and Sally Hansen. Born Pretty Store and @myprettypieces also send me stuff like nail charms for review.  And I get big discounts when I order.  

oh yes! I am a certified NPA or nail polish addict and there’s no cure for that. I believe that this is my therapy - I’m creating my own world by doing nail art.  A rest from being a hard worker in the world of reality. This makes me much happier compared to watching movies.

What is you Favorite Polish?

Sally Hansen. It’s not because they send me gifts (that's a great bonus!) It's because of the quality and good price. I also like Essie and China Glaze, but they're a bit more expensive than Sally. I’m not a fan of OPI.  Although I like their glitter and toppers. My favorite color is pink and blue.  Right now, its summer, I am having fun playing with the neons from American Apparel.  I think their consistency and brightness are better than other polishes. It's neither matte nor creamy, if that makes sense.

You mentioned you used real paint on your nails when you were young, Is that how you got started with nail art?

Yes. It was hard so I stopped.  I couldn't afford polishes. In college, I was able to get a black and a white polish. Then I stopped again. We were not allowed to paint and grow our nails longer, especially when I started on duty at the community and in the hospital (as a nursing student).

What's your favorite nail art technique?

I like the Freehand technique.  Sometimes I use vinyl or striping tapes and nail charms for extras.  No, I am not gifted when it comes to stamping.
I only use real polish for painting. Though acrylic paint maybe easier, I use real polish as I have a lot of them, might as well use them. I don't want to waste, I want to use all the resource that I have.

The vintage roses and polkadots mani designs are what I'm known for. Leopard print is also one of my faves. I’m learning how to do flawless gradient now since it’s one of my weaknesses.

Any Tips you can give for nail art beginners?

*Clean up is very important in doing nails. There should be no spots or excess polish. Making your mani pretty neat even without or just simple design is an A+.
*Must have peaceful and nice environment, no interruption and in a good mood.
*Taking better picture is very important. If you don’t have light box for picture taking, you can personalize it. Just search YouTube how to build it. But it’s not necessary to have one. I don’t own one. I just take my pics in my bedroom. Yes! in my bedroom at day daytime with the lights on - the ceiling lights and the two table lights beside my bed. I like the glowing effect better than taking pictures outside the house, under the sunlight. And also, I’m using a white comforter to make the effect more brighter.
*High camera resolution is necessary. I’m just using an iphone5s. But I have seen Samsung galaxy pictures that is more awesome.

Would you like to share any "Words to live by"?

Never give up. Try and try until you succeed. Doing nail art is a step by step process. You cannot have it all at the same time. So if you already know you’re strength, try to work and improve your weaknesses. If you can’t do it today, maybe tomorrow or the other day. Just remember,
all popular nail artist started just like us. They are just very willing to try new things and really have the passion in doing nail art.


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 Did you enjoy getting to know MD from Nails By Redkoletz a little bit better?
Who would you like to be featured next?