MANI MONDAY: African Sunset Gradient Nails

by - August 17, 2020



Hey guys! Continuing with the Summer Lingo theme for this month's #CBBxManiMonday, I chose the word "Heat" and did a mani that I've been wanting to try for a really long time. Gradients are such a favorite technique of mine, but I tend to stick to a much cooler toned colour palette when it comes to my nails, so I'd never done this really fiery sunset kind of gradient before. And, of course, I wanted to pair it with a silhouetted landscape, which I always think really adds a lot of depth to a sunset gradient.

Keep reading for more!


For this gradient, I knew I wanted to use shades from the OPI Mexico City Collection from this past spring, but I couldn't quite get the really smooth and gradual blend without adding a lighter, brighter orange shade so I grabbed one from elsewhere to ensure I got the look that I wanted. I started with one coat of the lightest shade in my gradient and let that dry completely before going in with my gradient. It took three layers of sponging to get the depth and blend that I was looking for.

To smooth out the gradient and get that final little bit of blend as well as to prepare for the overall look, I then went in with a matte top coat. I feel like silhouette sunset gradient designs tend to look best in a matte finish and when I'm adding black stamping, I generally add the top coat before I go in with my stamping to keep the design crisp and add that little difference in texture between the base and the stamping that I think adds some dimension.

For the stamping, I grabbed for the Nicole Diary L10 Stamping Plate, which has a great selection of images that you can use to build out the design. I stuck with elephants, giraffes, birds and baobab trees for a fairly classic silhouette design. I just sort of built it out slowly, making each nail different and trying to get a good balance and composition for the overall landscape. 

And voila!


All Products Used
OPI - Don't Tell A Sol*
OPI - My Chihuahua Doesn't Bite Anymore*
OPI - ¡Viva OPI!*
Essence - Hello Summer
Born Pretty Store Stamping Polish - Throne
Essie Matte About You Top Coat
Nicole Diary L10 Stamping Plate
BeautyBigBang Clear Stamper


Head over to @pblnails today to check out the video tutorial I did for this mani. Admittedly, I'm still working a little bit on my lighting and the brightness of the yellow in this mani got a little bit blown out in the video, but I think it turned out pretty well. If you want to see more of my nail videos, check out my feed and follow me there to see all of my upcoming tutorials!


I swear, I just... absolutely love a sunset silhouette gradient and will probably do one for every season this year because there's just so much versatility from the colour choices to the images you add over top that it's a bit of a free for all - which is really where I like to live when it comes to nail art. Anyway....

Be sure to head over to Cosmetic Proof and See The World In PINK today to check out how they used the Summer Lingo theme this week - and of course come back every Monday to check out our themed #CBBxManiMondays!

Thanks for reading!


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