Real Feather Nail Art Tutorial

This tutorial is for the feather nail art I posted yesterday. I tried my best to explain the way I did it, but as they say, a picture speaks a thousand words so I think you'll find this tutorial much easier to understand!

You will need...

A base colour. I chose Essie Glamour Purse.

A few top coats - one that's very thick (I'm using a bottle of Essence Better Than Gel Nails that's a few months old) and one that dries quickly (like Seche Vite).

A nail file

A small pair of scissors

And, of course, some feathers! The thinner and lighter the better.

I got mine from Hobbycraft in a huge bag for £2.99 but you should be able to find something suitable in most large craft stores. I think Michaels is the US equivalent of Hobbycraft in the UK.

Before you start, prepare all of the feathers you plan to use by cutting off the ends. This is the only part we need to use. Pick out feathers that match the size of your nail(s) so that you don't have too much overhang at the cuticles which can be a pain to trim. 

Paint on your base colour, let it dry, then add a thick coat of your thick clear top coat.

While the clear coat is still tacky, carefully place the feather on to your nail. Try to only cover the part of your nail that has colour on.

Lick the index finger on your other hand and use that to very gently press the feather down in to the sticky nail polish. Don't worry about the unwanted feather hanging off the end of your nail just yet.

When that's completely dry, apply a few coats of your fast drying top coat. Carry it on past the end of your nail to make the feather hard and easy to cut/file. I used 3 coats of Seche Vite to give it a thick glaze!

Once that's dry, use scissors or cuticle clippers to trim off most of the excess feather hanging off the end of your nail.

You can remove what's left with a nail file which also leaves you with a nice smooth edge. This will stop it from annoyingly catching on your clothes and remove the temptation to pick it off!

I like to clean up around my cuticles with pure acetone and a small paintbrush, especially after piling on all that top coat!

And here's the result...

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