Without the Tools - Festive Leopard Print Nail Art

Since starting Makeup Savvy nearly a year ago I've really gotten into nail art more and more...but I rarely seem to post about it! 

So I thought a small series of tutorials/How-to's would help encourage me! As I don't use anything overly special when doing my nails (no stamps, brushes, pens) I thought this would be a good starting point for the series - only doing tutorials with products that most people have or that you can easily pick up from anywhere. 

Anyway onto this tutorial, which is kind of two in one. You can either stop at the glitter and have ultra sparkly nails or you can carry on and add the leopard print! 

First, ofcourse you need to paint your nails...

I used Models Own 25 Carat Gold - if your using any type of metallic nail polish that applies quite streaky I'd suggest you buff and polish your nails quickly just with a multi-way buffer before painting them. This will give a lot smoother look to the nails. 

Next is adding the glitter...

Any glitter eyeliner will do..but the more dense the glitter the easier it will be to apply and dry. 

I love any of the Collection 2000 Glam Crystals Gel liners (which is what I used - in 'Funk') which are only £2.99 each and come in such a wide range of shades. But an even cheaper alternative is the MUA glitter eyeliner range at Superdrug for only £1 each!

This really doesn't need any explanation as it's so easy to do! But in case you haven't a clue you basically just use the glitter eyeliner applicator to apply the glitter to your dried nails. 

You may need to dip it back into the tube afew times per nail and then spread it about abit till it looks nice and even.

The benefit of using a glitter eyeliner instead of a glitter nail polish is it dries alot faster and it's such a fine layer than it won't chip as much as a glitter polish. 

As this dries so fast you can layer different liners over the top of each other...

As you can see here I've applied a bronze glitter over the middle finger - this is even easier to do as the glitter doesn't move around as it has something to adhere too, so all you need to do is brush the applicator all over the nail as if you are painting them. 

Next is creating the Leopard print...

For this any old felt tip eyeliner will work perfectly (I used one by Barbara Daly) and especially as you are applying it to glitter there no chance of the pen slipping! If you haven't got that type of eyeliner a normal liquid eyeliner will also work.

Basically the pattern consists of funny shaped C's and odd shapes really so nothing too complicated. If the pattern is looking abit to sparse on the nails after your done adding afew small dots in there will help it look more leopard print like.

Last but not least you must apply a clear topcoat - as if this comes into contact with water it will all wash off ! So it really is a must.

Any suggestions for upcoming tutorials would be greatly appreciated!