All posts tagged ‘water’


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Geeky Nail Polish: Water Marbling

Polish Marbling Image (c) Jennifer D.

While doing some serious research for fun things to do this summer, I came across an unusual nail polishing technique. It is called water marbling and it is a geeky way to paint your nails. I say geeky because it involves floating nail polish on water and, in our case, involved an impromptu science lesson for my soon-to-be third grade daughter. It is a multi-step process but to water it down, pun intended, you start by putting petroleum jelly around your nail to keep extra polish off. Then you take a small bowl of room temperature water and drop complementary colors of nail polish in a bullseye pattern onto the water. Next you take a toothpick and make a pattern. Finally, you dip your finger into the polish/water, use a tooth pick to remove the excess, and then remove your finger. Clean up around the nail and you have a funky pattern.

So this interesting little process got my daughter and I wondering the following:

  • Why did the nail polish float?
  • Why did some of the nail polish we tried sink?
  • Why did the colors stay separate and not mix together?
  • Why did the extra polish stick to the toothpick?
  • Why does petroleum jelly work to keep the extra off our fingers?

So we set out to do some research and answer these questions about our new found favorite way to polish our nails. Now I am by no means any sort of expert on chemistry, physics, or the like so if you are an expert on these and any of our conclusions are wrong, please let us know.

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Geek Celebrates Hanukkah With Science: Day Six

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  • Fill a tall drinking glass or glass bowl with water.
  • Darken the room as completely as you can.
  • Shine a flashlight through the water onto a white wall.
  • Voila! Roy G. Biv!


Geek Celebrates Hanukkah With Science: Day Four

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  • Pour honey into a clear container.
  • Observe!