Peekaboo leopard print

I actually did these nails on Monday but just haven't had a chance to post. So I'll miss out my usual preamble and get to it...

I've come to realise I have a slight obsession with animal print... the other day I had a pink leopard print top on, a grey leopard print umbrella, a purple leopard print phone cover and these leopard print nails! Eek! Need to be careful I don't tip over into tragic thirty-something.

This design was a Models Own extraganza! The base colour is two coats of Models Own in Mushroom. Once dry I added an angled tip with Models Own in Concrete Mixer. I then free hand painted the leopard print using black and white Models Own nail art pens. Finished off with some Seche Vite quick dry top coat.

Happy painting... the nailist xxx

Snow leopard

I sorted my nail polish collection out this weekend (I know.. rock n roll lifestyle!) and it's official, I have a serious addiction! I own 366 nail polish, 22 nail art pens and a ridiculous amount of base coats, top coats, nail wraps and nail decorations! No doubt there are more lurking in the recesses of handbags and drawers yet to be counted! I had to relegate 11 to nail polish heaven as they were gloopy beyond repair.

So after dealing with my silent shame, I have beautifully arranged them all by colour in a variety of boxes so at least I can start to make use of my whole collection, rather than the same old faithfuls. I would say that I  have enough and won't be buying anymore... but I would be lying!

Apart from my undeniable obsession with nail polish I also love animal print. Be it zebra or leopard I always find myself heading straight for the bold prints when clothes shopping, although I draw the line at zebra print trousers! Lucky for me animal print looks fab on nails too... check out today's design

Here's how..

I used Sally Hansen's Miracle Nail Thickener as a base coat as my nails seem to be splitting a lot recently. Once your base coat is dry, apply a base colour in a light grey or beige, I used Models Own Nail Polish in Concrete Mixer. Then create a gradient by sponging on three layers of a metallic grey or silver such as No7 Stay Perfect Nail Polish in Sunshine, going about half way down each nail.

Step 1 - created a graduated base with a grey/beige and metallic grey/silver

Now for the animal print... using a black nail art pen draw on a leopard pattern. Best way I can describe to do this is by drawing jagged circles, interspersed with a few blobs. So if you don't have a steady hand.. don't worry because shaky is a bonus!

Step 2 - Animal print it up!

Then to accent the print, fill the jagged circles in with a dot of white, again using a nail art pen or thin brush. Let it all dry, clean up the edges and finish with a high shine quick dry top coat.

Happy painting... the nailist xxx

Quick fix crackle

So I'm currently away on business in the NYC hence no posts for a while... as I'm in one of the fashion capitals of the world I couldn't have arrived without my nails looking good. However, in my usual style I ran out of time to do a full on design so resorted to my 'go to' quick fix. It's simply a bright nail with a side sweep of crackle coat. Easy but very effective as it looks like you have an animal print painted on one side.

Here I used Butter London Nail Laquer in Snog for the all over colour and W7 Nail Polish Earthquake Crackle in Black for the diagonal sweep.

Happy painting... the nailist xxx