Elegant Silver Cheetah French Mani

Hi Nail Fanatics!

So today's nail art is not an original, but I fell in love with it when I saw it on Pinterest! (Here's the reference: Silver Cheetah French Mani.) On the 1-10 easy to hard scale, I would rate this about a 4. It's not really hard, but the french mani part can be tricky for some. The tutorial is after the photo:

1.) Apply a base coat to add a smooth surface for your polish and to protect your natural nail. I used OPI's "Natural Nail Base Coat."
2.) Apply two coats of a white polish to the tip of all your nails, except your ring fingers. Apply two coats of a white polish to the full ring fingers (see photo for reference). I used FingerPaint's "Paper Maiche." You can do this freehand if you are comfortable with it because we will cover up any mistakes or wobbly lines in the next step. (Side note: A french manicure can be tricky. Here is a great video tutorial by Meliney that gives you several ideas on how to achieve this look: 10 Ways to Create French Tips Manicures.)
3.) Take a silver striper polish and draw a line across the bottom of your french tip. This will help cover up any little mistakes or uneven lines. I used  L. A. Color's Art Deco striper polish in "Silver." (Side note: If you don't have a striper, you can make your own! Check out CutePolish's video tutorial: Make Your Own Nail Art Striper!. P.S. CutePolish is the BEST! Follow her!!)
4.) Next use either a dotting tool or a toothpick to drop some silver dots, irregularly shaped is best, onto only the ring fingers. Roughly 3-5 drops per nail, depending on the size of your nail. Refer to the photo to see an example of how to space them apart. (It might be best to put a glob of polish on a paper plate or similar instead of trying to use the brush or a bottle.)
5.) Using a smaller dotting tool or toothpick, use some black polish to ring the silver dots on your ring fingers. I used FingerPaint's "Black Expressionism." You will want to do either C shapes around the dots, or two half-U shapes on either side of the dot.
6.) Then use the black polish to make a few extra dots to fill up any open spaces.
4.) Wait a bit for the nails to dry before applying a fast dry top coat. If you put it on too soon, it might smear the polish. I used my #1 choice for top coat, Seche Vite.

I hope you find this fun, elegant, and easy to achieve!
 
If you have any questions, or if my directions completely lost you, just drop me a line at nailsbyneenie@gmail.com.

Have fun recreating this sparkly Cheetah french mani!

*XOXO*

NeenieChick