Top 5: Nail Art Trends
No more ghetto nails!
Nail art tends to get a bad rap - right now, you're probably thinking of two-inch long acrylics with Louis Vuitton logos painted all over them (case in point). However, I'm here to (hopefully) change your mind. Nail art's inherent ridiculousness makes it incredibly fun, and with the advent of super long-wearing Shellac nailpolish (which we've posted about before), you can go about your daily business without worrying about ruining your creation. Just look at those hands and tell me you're not craving a burger and a fuschia manicure with fancy stripes (head to Nail Burgerlar for more). Here are five of the best nail trends around:
1) Gradients
Gradients are a bit of a challenge. There are a few ways you can do them - a sponge is the easiest method, and also what they've used here, but for a smoother gradient you'll need to use a brush. If you wanted a fade from nail tip to nail bed, you would paint the tip a solid colour, then use a runny base coat to brush the colour gradually inwards. (NB: I just made that sound approximately 1000 times easier than it is in real life. Head to YouTube and get lost in the sea of tutorials!)
2) Animal Print
Animal print, on the other hand, is easy. You'll just need to buy some special nail-art polish, which comes with a super-fine brush and is available at most salons and beauty wholesalers (such as S.A. Hair, Nail and Beauty in Sydney). I, for one, couldn't draw a cat if my life depended upon it, but I can manage a pretty decent giraffe print when I need to.
3) Half Moons
Half moons look deceptively tricky - all you really need to do is steal some of those circular stickers from the stationary cupboard at work, and Bob's your uncle. What are those stickers really for, anyway? For extra inspiration, check out the 'half-moon' section of the Wah Nails website.
4) Lace
Lace manicures are hugely popular for weddings, but they require a very steady hand - this may be why some people like to use real lace in their manicures. CND created a nice juxtaposition at Joy Cioci SS12 (above) by using a lace nail with a lucite tip, because lucite is what stripper shoes are made of.
5) Art!
It's hard to do actual nail 'art' well, but no-one does it better than (wildly confusing) Japanese blog Disco Nail. Nagi seemingly has a nail for every occasion, including that time you ran into Anna Wintour and Karl Lagerfeld on your way to a wedding (above left).
SEE PART TWO HERE!
Ariane Halls
