Beauty | Painting Leopard Print Nail Art, Step by Step (Oooh Baby!)

A manicure by Christina Culver at Beauty Mark isn’t really a manicure at all — it’s more like watching her transform the tips of your fingers into tiny little canvasses. Here, the nail artist takes us step by step through vibrant leopard print nail art, which is something you just might be able to replicate because the whole point is to get all Jackson Pollock-y.

So how does she do it? These four easy(ish) steps…

1. Like any manicure, start with a base coat (you have no idea how long it took me to realize that this is the key to long-lasting nail colour — I use Revlon’s Quick Dry Base Coat at home). Then pick your bright. I chose Butter London’s Come to Bed Red, but a bold pink or blue would look smashing too.

2. Start your leopard spots, painting them randomly on each nail — two on one nail, three on another, four on another, etc. They trick is to make sure you vary the size and shape of the spots so you avoid a matchy-matchy look (“There are stickers for that,” Culver says). The silver she used is Tart with a Heart.

3. Layer more colours in the same family, like West End WonderlandDiamond Geezer, and The Full Monty. Again, make sure you vary the size, shape and number of the spots.

4. Transform the spots into dots with thin sweeps of black polish, like Union Jack Black.

Add a top coat (I love Deborah Lippmann’s Addicted to Speed Ultra-Quick Dry Top Coat) et voila! Juicy nails!

Thanks again, Christina!

P.S. Put those beautiful nails to the test and follow The Anthology on Facebook and @TheAnthology.

P.P.S. You know what I did after Christina painted my nails? Climbed a via ferrata and they didn’t even chip(!).

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2 Comments

  • Reply Lauren August 16, 2012 at 10:14 am

    Thank you for the New Kids reference. Rad.

  • Reply Kelsey Dundon August 17, 2012 at 9:24 am

    Thank YOU for catching it!

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