Manic.Monday: Hands of an art lover

If there's a brand you can count on to come up with great innovative concepts for nail polishes it's Nails Inc  and at the moment they have a lot of new and fun textures and looks, just in time for the party season. A collection that has really caught my eye is Modern Art (£12), which is a limited edition of shades inspired by abstract art that has a very urban edge to it. The nail polishes are made up from millions (at least that that's what it seems like) of miniscule particles in different sizes and colors that are so densely packed that you can't even see the clear base that holds them all together. The collection has 4 different eye catching looks, all named after famous art locations in London: 

 Cromwell Road - Green, black and gold 

Bankside - Red, gold and black

 St. Martin's Place - Peach, black and gold

Millbank - blue, black and gold 

 

The formula itself is very easy to work with and because it's jam packed with these little particles, you will automatically get an even coverage of across the nail. You can wear just one coat for a more subtle look, however these polishes deserve to be shown off and they look their very best when you've got a solid, opaque finish. That means that you need to apply at least 2 coats of the polish, but since it dries very quickly it won't take you long to do. The look turns out best if you wait a minute after the first coat, not necessarily to just let it dry, but so that it really sets on you nails and then apply the second one. As with most other textured polishes you shouldn't apply a top coat with this one - it won't ruin the effect but it won't give that textured, layered, grainy look that is the intention.

Because it's so tactile and textured you might think that it's impractical and won't wear very well, but on me it lasts about 4 days which is pretty standard. I would recommend that you stick with 2 coats however, because if you apply too thickly it's more sensitive to chipping, which will also take off the entire coverage in one go. Speaking of taking off things - unlike shimmer or glitter polishes this is easy to remove since the finish is quite thick, even using dip and twist removers, so no need to take out the strongest, nastiest acetone you can find.

Cromwell Road

Bankside

St. Martin's Place

Millbank

This will not be to everyone's liking, but I love this gritty, textured, "industrial" look and wearing black, leather or monochrome outfits really makes the nails stand out. The whimsical mix of primary and bright colors create a very contemporary and expressionist look, and it is a bit like wearing a Jackson Pollock painting on your nails. What do you think - are you an art lover too?