Simple French Manicure

I was in a 'playing around' mood a weeks ago and did my nails (by "did" I mean try do something other than just painting them a solid colour like I usually do). I don't normally do french manicure designs because they are such a mission to do and it turns into a big mess. Then I found a very handy white tip painter by Essence and gave it a try. Here is what I came up with (as shared on Instagram);

View the original design here.

What I used:

1. After filing and buffing my nails I applied one coat of ZOYA's Anchor Basecoat. This is my current favourite basecoat.

2. Then I used Essence's white tip painter pen (R29.95). This pen is so simple to use and gives a really precise line from it's thin tip. I made my french manicure tips free handed but you can always go ahead and apply those strips if your hand isn't too stable.

3. I mixed some acrylic paints to make my coloured stripes. I wasn't really going for a specific colour so I just played around a bit until I was happy. I used a striping brush from my nail art brush collection to paint the stripes. Very simple. (I actually forgot what the original design looked liked so I made a star instead of a pretty flower. I might redo it later)

4. After that was all dry I applied my Rose French manicure topcaot from Rimmel. This adds that pretty seal to french manicures.

5. Luckily I had some diamante drops from my Nails Inc Rebel set (review coming soon) so I stuck one at the base of each star and voila!

I love how simple this design is and it is rather inexpensive. I will try do more simple ideas that anyone can do at home. Let me know what you think in the comments below or Tweet me!