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Delft Blue Nails

Materials used:

Tips glued to toothpicks
Basecoat
White nailpolish
Water based paint colour medium blue
Vrushpen
Topcoat

Work description:

I started with the basecoat and then applied 3 layers of white nailpolish to get good coverage.
Then I used the smallest size Vrushpen to dip in the medium blue water based paint.
My inspiration came from various Delft Blue tiles and souvenir stuff I bought in Delft.
My Delft Blue is painted with only one colour of blue, I just added more or less water to get the typical 'watery' Delft Blue-look.
Made sure I let the paint dry real good and then covered the tips with topcoat.
The photographs are made with my Sony Cybershot DSC-S30 digital camera on Macro zoom.

Background:

I was born and raised in the beautiful city of Delft.
Delft is known far across the Dutch borders for various things.
The canals, the burial tombs of the royal family and off course the handpaited white and blue porcelain called 'Delft Blue'.
The story of 'Delft Blue' or 'Delfts Blauw' started in the early 1600's when the Dutch East India Company shipped home porcelain from China. Why the dutch porcelain makers where mostly concentrated in Delft is unknown. In the beginning mostly tiles where made. Those tiles where used for decoration in churches or wealthy homes.
When a new superior white-baking clay was discovered in 1746 more precious items where made like vases and plates.
By the 19th century the advances in machinery for making pottery and usage of wallpaper, decreased the demand for the hand-made tiles.
Nowadays Delft Blue has become a sought-after item with the returning interest of handicraft.
Delft Blue tiles and vases are collectors items around the world and the historical value of preserving the tiles in their original environment such as farms, cottages and houses are increasing.