Spray-On Nail Polish Could Be The Next Big Thing, So We Tried It

Here's a step-by-step guide, complete with GIFs

The at-home manicure is one beauty treatment that—despite our most earnest attempts—often ends in failure. Paint your nails before bed, and you'll wake up with sheet marks in your topcoat. And of course there's the whole non-dominant hand situation, which means 50 percent of your nails likely look like they were lacquered by a third grader. To make the process just a little more painless, beauty companies have introduced endless product innovations over the years, whether it's wider, easy-to-maneuver brushes, ridge-filling base coats (to give smoother results), or quick dry drops so you don't screw up your nails while they're drying. But the latest launch we've seen is blowing them all out of the water: Enter Nails Inc Paint Can, which makes doing your nails easier (and—TBH—messier) than we could have ever imagined.

Here's all you have to do: Wash and dry your hands, apply the special base coat, let it dry a few minutes, spray on the polish, add a topcoat (it's the same as the base), and wash off the extra polish from your fingers. Sounds easy, right? As a bonus, it's insanely fun and sort-of feels like you're doing arts and crafts...on your hands. There is, however, a bit of a learning curve, which is to be expected with any entirely new product. My biggest pointer: You'll need to put down a generous, disposable workspace (I used the lid to an old box I don't need) to protect your furniture—and you'll want to throw it out after. Seriously, Paint Can is super messy, and it doesn't fully set up without the top coat, so you want to trash your backdrop unless you're cool with hot pink pigment all over your apartment. Which, if that's the case, then graffiti away.

Check out our step-by-step how-to so you can DIY!

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Step 1: Paint on base coat

If you're going to pick a moment to be precise, spend the time making your base coat extra perfect. This is what the spray-on color will adhere to, so you'll want to make sure it's covering your entire nail bed—try to avoid your cuticles, too.

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Step 2: Spray nails

Try leaving a good 6 inches between the can and your nail. While it's tempting to mist super close to your fingers (less mess), go too close and you'll end up with rippled, uneven polish that looks sprayed on.

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Step 3: Add topcoat

Consider two layers of topcoat. One application didn't quite cut it—you'll need two to make your nails extra glossy.

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Step 4: Wash your hands with warm, soapy water

Make sure your nails are dry before you wash your hands. Encouraged by how easy/quick the whole process was feeling, I accidentally washed a nail-full of paint down the drain.

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The finished look:

Our consensus? Oh, yeah, it works. It might take a few tries and look slightly bumpy at first, but the convenience of it is unparalleled.