Purple Heaven

This is one of my favourite nail art designs yet. I tried my first one stroke flower and used gem stones for the first time. 

Step 1

Apply a base coat. Paint on the base colours: white on the index, middle and little fingers; lilac on he ring finger and dark purple on the thumb. 

Step 2

Use a striping brush to apply dark coloured diagonal stripes on the index finger, and a lilac on the little finger.

Step 3

Dot on a lilac onto the middle finger with a smaller sized dotter. 

Step 4

Create a one stroke flower on one side of the ring finger. You need a one stroke brush to do this, its got a slight angle to its straight top. Make sure its damp but the excess water is wiped off. Dip the longer end in the purple and the shorter end in a white acrylic paint. Make a few brush strokes to mix the colours slightly. Make curved strokes to form each petal. I created two layers, one on top, then three petals on the bottom to finish the flower. 

Step 5

Time to apply the "gems". Have 4 lilac gems on the surface right way up and a dotting tool with a blob of topcoat at the ready. Stripe a line of topcoat down the thumb. Dip the dotting tool in topcoat and use it to pick up the gems, place them evenly down the stipe of top coat on your thumb. Using the same technique apply a silver gem to the flower where all the petals meet. 

Step 6

Apply a base coat to all the nails. 

Bunny Rabbit Nail Art

Step 1 

Apply a base coat to your nails. 

This provides a good base for your nail varnish to stick to and protects your nails from staining. I go for OPI Nail Envy, I believe it helps my nails grow stronger and longer. 

Step 2 

Apply two coats of a base colour. In this case I have gone with a lilac colour. Any colour except white can be used at this stage. 

Step 3

Add a large rounded white tip to your nails. I use the nail varnish brush at this stage: make a brush stoke in the middle about a quarter up your nail, then join that stroke to the corners of your nail with a rounded stroke. This stage often needs two coats. Don't worry if it's not perfect, bunnies are fluffy anyway!

Step 4

Add two ears to each rounded tip. I use a dotting tool for this (tooth picks, or bobby pins can be used but if your interested in nails I'd invest in some dotting tools since they're about £2 from Amazon... ). I place a blob of white nail varnish on some paper, dab my dotting tool in it and dot two fairly straight lines, slightly fatter on top just off centre on the rabbit's head. 

Step 5

Add the eyes. I use a dotting tool again with a black or very dark colour. I dotted below each ear. 

Step 6 

Add the nose. I use a dotting tool with some pick. I dotted just below and between the eyes. 

Step 7

Add the pinks of the ears. I use the same pink that I used on the nose. Use a very small dotting tool to place the pink inside the white of the ears, making a small line, again, fatter on top than bottom.

Step 8

Seal in your design with a top coat. I chose Albert Bridge Top Coat by Nails Inc.