A real 2012 retro nail art idea is the micro bead manicure; it's a simple but kind of messy nail art tutorial but it can look really effective for a special occasion.
I got this idea from Coleyyyful when she posted about her little ebay buy, I had to try them just out of curiosity. The ebay seller has a number of different colour beads so there's probably something for everyone depending on what sort of colour you are wanting. I got silver (pictured above) and rainbow so I could have two different looks.
You get 20g for £1.75 which isn't bad at all; because these are so tiny 20g is actually a lot! After using them once I still have enough for at least another 3/4 applications I reckon, if not more! As Coleyyyful's tutorial suggests, this is a really easy look to recreate; there are 3 simple steps (after the obvious prepping beforehand which you do before any manicure). All you need is a little pot to keep the beads in, a bigger tub (where excess beads drop), a nail colour of your choice and a top coat.
- Choose a base colour and paint it onto your nail (I used one quite thick coat)
- Hold your finger over the larger tub and pour beads over the nail until completely covered; repeat on all nails and let them set for a minute or two.
- Paint some good quality topcoat over the top to try and seal the beads onto the nail.
And there you go, a Micro-Bead manicure for £1.75!
I love the look of these especially for a special occasion; not so sure about the feel of them but they are very eyecatching. Unfortunately for me longevity is pretty much nil, they are so easily flicked off but as I say it'd be ideal for a night out or 2 days absolute tops because after that they start to look scruffy as some of the beads have fallen off. This isn't anywhere near as messy as I first thought, they don't drop off in bed like I thought they would, they just come off during everyday activities (i.e. Washing up, opening cans etc.)
