Polished: Spot-On Leopard Print Mani Tutorial

RAWR! I know I've been gone for ever and a day because of MCAT, but I can't resist putting up a new post and fighting stagnancy. I finally finished all the review materials, have 4 compositions full of handwritten, painstakingly-taken notes. Right now I'm just blitzing through the 1001 Problems books, which means over 5000 problems by the time I'm done studying. Is this all possible within 14 days? I sure hope so, because ready or not, the MCAT is coming. Dun dun dun! It makes me feel better that a potential failsafe school only requires a mere 21 for admissions ... so at least I can get into SOME med school : )

Also, I've changed up things a little bit while I was gone. I added links into the linkbar, wrote an About Angie page, shortened my posts on the main page with Suzy's help, and made the "Click to see more photos" link more noticeable by fixing the background colour (thanks to Jean and AN). Blogger friends really are the best :D Coding wizards to the rescue! What I want to know is what you guys think of the shortened posts. I know I'm the queen of picspam, but I think that was a characteristic of my blog. Lots and lots of huge pictures and building up your scrolling skills. However, it does clean up the site a lot. Please vote in my poll above - I'm considering changing it back to unshortened because I personally am too lazy to click the "read more" button most of the time if I'm not at the direct post. I've left this post unshortened for testing. Please see my main page for a feel of the shortened posts.

I first got the inspiration to do this mani from Lisa of LisaDrivesaVan (see her version here). I haven't really been into leopard prints because I think they look kind of tacky and too club-goer for daily wear but who says you can't put a little ferocious feline into your nails? I was going to do a makeup look to complement this mani but that day it was a sauna outside - at that temperature it'd only melt off. I've been doing random looks though and taking pics : ) They will all be posted after 8/5, Judgment Day. I will also get back to all your sweet comments too.

Wet n Wild Craze in Goldmine, 3 coats

Maybelline Express Finish in Mink in a Moment (dots)

Wet n Wild H2O Proof Liquid Eyeliner in Black (squigglies)

Sanofi Aventis Topcoat, 2 coats

Sunshine:

My crazy leonine hair

 Shade:

At first I was afraid that I didn't have the right colours and that the base coat would be too yellow, but it turns out a nice and warm gold when opaque. If you like what you see, try your hand at it by following the picture tutorial I made :D It was so hard trying to take pics with my left hand while not smudging the polish I just painted on the right hahaha.

Spot-On Leopard Print Mani Tutorial

Step 1: Start off with clean nails. Remove your nail polish, let the acetone dry, wash your hands, etc. If you want, apply base coat. I'm not that fancy though.

Step 2: Apply base colour until it becomes opaque. I'm using Wet n Wild Craze in Goldmine, with 3 coats for it to become the opacity I wanted. It's a very yellowish gold colour.

I absolutely love these Craze nail polishes because their brushes are so short so you don't have to flail around to apply. They deposit polish evenly and the formula dries fast. Perfect! These are only $1.99 USD each at drugstores - super awesome deal. I just love cute packaging too!

Step 3: Apply dot shade randomly. You don't have to be perfect! Draw kidney shaped little things or dots or hearts whatever you want - it's going to be covered with the black polish/eyeliner later. I'm using a super old bottle of Maybelline Express Finish in Mink in a Moment I got with a magazine subscription in like ... 7th grade HAHAHA.

Now it looks like giraffes!

 

Step 4: This is easier than it looks! I'll break it down in the pictures below. Draw squiggly C's around the dots you made. Be messy! I'm using Wet n Wild H2O Proof Eyeliner in Black (yes, waterproof eyeliner - a tip from Lisa) because the tip of the wand has a lot more control than flimsy nail art polish brushes. If you have the pro materials, go for it. Otherwise, you can choose a cheap eyeliner you don't use anymore and use it as an alternative. I suggest you don't use that eyeliner on your eyes after this.

 The top nail is in the process. I just made a C wrapping the brown dot I made earlier.

 And I made another C on the other side. Leave some gaps!

I really love this eyeliner too ... I'll have to pick up another one because I used it for this mani and plus it's drying out xD The tip might get destroyed after you use it on your nails.

Step 5: Be very careful! Gently glide topcoat over the nail. Use a super light hand and let the first coat dry before applying another layer. It will smudge a little but that's okay! I'm using Sanofi Aventis topcoat .. very random one I found in the drawer. If you press down hard with the brush, it will smear like on my pinky nail and end up not-so-pretty. Barely touch the brush to the nail and let the topcoat kind of drip down.

From a distance, you can't tell there are smudges or smears at all : ) After a few days the eyeliner will start to wear off if the topcoat chips. My nails have lasted for over a week now and they look fine. Enjoy your new hot leopard print nails! Feel free to use different colours. I went for a conservative (if you could call it that) colour palette. I've seen cute snow leopard ones, or hot pink and turquoise, etc. Have fun!

I leave you with some art I did years ago. Very suitable for this post, eh? I titled it "Savage" - animals were and probably always will be my favourite to draw. I'm going to run along and get back to cramming! Please tell me what you feel about the shortened posts in the meantime. Muah! ♥