A few of my favourite things... nail edition.

Something you don't know about me is that I am obsessed with nails and makeup!

I've always been interested in fashion and beauty and in the past few years I have become very passionate about makeup and nail care.  At uni I gained a bit more confidence with both of these things and began experimenting more and more.

I've been spending a lot of time pissing about with nail art since uni finished and I've found a few of my new favourite products and designs in doing so.

So, for your viewing pleasure here're some of the nail art designs I've been loving this season.

This particular look was created using five nail colours and some striping tape.  It is a little fussy but not too difficult and looks great so is worth it.

The Process.
I started by applying a base coat of BarryM Silk Nail Paint in 'Pearl' - I did this because I wanted the white lines in between each colour to be of a different texture and to have a ethereal shine to it.  Then I left this for a minute to dry.

Next I put a few strips of striping tape along the nail in the design I wanted.  I decided upon slightly diagonal stripes as it was a little different without being too faffy.
The next step was putting the bold colours over the white nail pigment stopping each colour at the tape.

The colours and brands I used are:
BarryM Nail Paint in 'Shocking Pink'
City Color Nail Polish in 'Hollywood Hills'
W.I.P. in 'light blue'
Essie Nail Polish in 'Resort Fling' (Resort Collection)

I allowed these colours to dry, topped them off with a second coat and allowed them to dry again.  Then I peeled away the striping tape to reveal the white silk nail varnish beneath.  I find that if you leave the top colours to dry before removing the striping tape it doesn't smudge the colour.

For this look I used three nail colours and a nail art pen.  I would recommend using nail tip templates to do this look but they are not necessary.

The Process.
For this look I used the same pink nail varnish as before; I gave it two coats and allowed each to dry fully before beginning on the 'rind' of the watermelon.
I wanted to create a dual layer 'rind' for the nail as the inside of a watermelon usually has a pale green/yellow colour running between the outer shell and the flesh inside.  I used a nail colour that came as a free sample with a magazine.  The above nail polish is from Company magazine, most high street shops will carry a similar colour; the one I used is a mint green shade. I allowed this to dry and then moved on to the outer shell.
For this I used a dark green shade similar to that of a watermelon's shell.  I chose another BarryM paint.  I painted the tip freeform but would recommend using a tip template for a neater finish.
Once this had dried I took one of my black nail art pens and created the seeds of the watermelon.  I allowed all of this to dry and then sealed it with a topcoat of clear nail varnish.

The colours and brands I used are:

Barry M Nail Paint in 'Shocking Pink'BarryM Gelly hi-Shine Nail Paint in 'Watermelon'BarryM Nail Art Pen in 'black'

For this look I wanted to use a silk texture nail paint again as it leaves a nice shine to the nail without looking glossy - sometimes I don't like glossy nails.  I wanted to create a bee that had a 3D body and 2D detailing.  The product I used to give the 3D effect took quite a while to dry which infuriated me as I am impatient as hell!! However, I really enjoyed creating this one.

The Process.

I applied a base coat of the pale blue silk polish and allowed it to dry before applying a second coat.  This created a solid foundation for the main design to be placed upon.  I chose a pale blue silk to look a tad more like the sky than a glossy polish would allow...
Once the base had dried I took my 3D nail art pens and put a small ball of the product onto the blue base.  The product I used it slightly spongey when dried and is full of air bubbles when wet - these do go away once the product is dry - I used the applicator to spread the colour out into the size and shape I wanted.  This product took an hour or so to dry but would dry much faster under a lamp.
Once the body of the bee had dried I took a black nail art pen and drew on the bee's stripes, sting, antennae and face.
I waited for the black nail polish to dry before applying the wings as I didn't want the two colours to bleed together.  Once completely dry I then used a white nail art pen to draw on the wings.

The colours and brands I used are:
BarryM Silk Nail Paint in 'Mist'
Fringed Iris 3D-Art Pens in 'yellow'
BarryM Nail Art Pen in 'black'
Barry M Nail Art Pen in 'white'

I didn't apply a topcoat to this look as I didn't want the clue to be glossy.  I prefer it to be silk and ethereal but topcoat can be applied if this suits your preference.

This nail was created using three nail colours and a dotting and marbling tool.  I would usually use a nail art pen to create flower petals but decided against it for this look.  I wanted a rustic finish that wasn't too neat but was still quite neat.  One of the products I used for this is 11 years old so the label has worn off but fortunately I can still remember what shop it's from and have checked to make sure they still sell it, which they do!

The process.
First I chose a pale blue nail polish that would show the design off well without drawing attention away from the daisies.  I decided on blue over green as I thought it made the yellow stand out a bit clearer.  I applied my base coat and a second coat to create the foundation of the nail.

Next I took a plain white nail polish and put a few drops onto a piece of card.  I then got a dotting/marbling tool and roughly drew on the petals.  I placed them quite far away from each other to prevent them from bleeding together.
Once the petals had dried I took a yellow nail varnish to make the pollen inbetween the petals.  I chose a neon nail colour to add a little bit of shine to the centre of the flower drawing all of the eyes attention to the flower as opposed to the base colour.

The colours and brands I used are:
Essie Nail Polish in 'Find me an oasis' (Resort collection)
BarryM Nail Paint in 'Matt white'
Claire's Accessories's nail varnish in 'neon yellow'

I added a clear topcoat to this design to keep it intact and add a little more shine to the neon yellow polish.

Of course there are a tonne more designs which are out there, several of which I daren't attempt, but these are my current four favourites.  I think that all of these work really well as feature nails and should be worn on only one finger per hand and paired with a block colour on the remaining digits.  The daisy design however is simple enough to apply to all nails without looking too fussy.  I hope you've enjoyed looking at these designs and will attempt to have a go at some of them yourself.  If you have done a similar design to one of these or have an idea you'd like to share let me know below.  If you have any different products you'd like to recommend I'd love to know about them.

Take care,

nicholaannexx