NYC Nails 2015 + How-to: Leopard Print Manicure

NYC Shine in a Minute Polishes, €1.79. NYC Gel Gloss Polishes, €1.99. Press samples featured. Leopard print manicure via Tropical Popical. Disclosure policy here.

See, the thing about nail polish is that it works when everything else has gone to pot.

You don’t have to diet, dance or wiggle to get it on. It doesn’t engulf your entire head when it starts to rain.  Most importantly, you can get a bloody brilliant one for tuppence.

I had a go of two new launches, NYC Shine in a Minute and NYC Gel Gloss polishes.

The former is pitched as a high-shine, quick-dry polish, available in twenty-fugging-four shades. The latter is a gel-like polish. You won’t get weeks out of it, but better longevity than run-of-the-mill polished is promised and the shine off ’em is whopper. In the Gel Gloss range, you get a choice of of twelve shades.

On the swatch wheel above, counter-clockwise, we’ve got New York Spring, Statue of Liberty, NY Taxi (surprisingly opaque for a yellow!), Staten Island Blue, Upper East Side and Broadway Purple (my mam has already stolen this one). Shine in a Minutes done, onto the Gel Gloss. Same direction, we have Fifth Avenue Princess, Tribeca Style, NY Haute Couture and Pink.

I tested ’em out with a leopard print manicure, done by one of the nail artists at Tropical Popical. It was done in all of four seconds, which puts my own previous efforts to shame. I’ve tried my hand at a leopard print manicure a few times and it’s never been awful. Check this attempt on the John, It’s Only Makeup! Instagram. Not shabby, eh?

My tips for getting it right are:

• Make dots, ovals and slightly rounded lines of different sizes. No uniform circles.
• Dot some on right at the edge of your nail, so it looks like the pattern would continue.
• Line your dots with a dark colour.
• The outline shouldn’t be solid. Draw a ‘c’ shape on one side, and a ‘v’ on the other. Never connect ’em!
• Use colours that look together. You can hide a lot of cack-handery if you’ve got the base looking good.

That’s it! I’ve every confidence that anyone can make a good go of it, just don’t blame me if you lose a finger.

You’ll find the NYC Shine in a Minute and NYC Gel Gloss polishes in chemists and Penneys. If none of the shades pictured catch your eye, there are a zillion (estimated) others in both ranges.

What’s your pick of the bunch?

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