Raindrops and Cloudy Bubbles, with Tutorial

I recently purchased and wore Illamasqua Raindrops, which used to be a cult favorite (and difficult to find, at that). It was lauded for it's soft shimmer and delicate flakes in a pale grey-blue base, and I loved a lot of the swatches that I saw of it online. Unfortunately, the polish fell flat for me. I didn't think it looked great on my nails, and I expected it to be a bit more soft and jelly-like vs. opaque. I decided to embellish it with some cloudy bubbles.

Though I think the technique has been tackled by a few people, I first saw this specific technique, with acrylic paint, on @madamluck's Instagram, though a few people have mentioned that nail artists may have been doing it for a while now. I filmed a video while I was doing this nail art, and the process is pretty easy.


Thin out acrylic paint with one part paint and one part water. Place a bead of the thinned paint on your nail and then use a dry brush to soak up the excess paint from the middle of the bead. This should leave a ring of paint on your nail like a bubble. Repeat as necessary, wiping off the brush in between bubbles. Finish with topcoat.

I do think the cloudy bubbles helped me enjoy this manicure a bit more, though probably not enough to make me keep this polish in my collection. Sorry Illamasqua! While I normally love your lacquers, this one just didn't do it for me.