Accessories aren’t just limited to shoes and handbags nowadays, just as we’ve seen with the latest luxurious iPhone cases and tech carryalls, you also can’t escape the cultural importance of the ultimate chameleon accessory: beauty.
Namely, nail art has exploded onto the scene, from drugstore Sally Hansen stick-ons to Lady Gaga’s recent blood red talons bedecked in Swarovski crystals and silver hardware as seen in her “Born This Way” video.
This is awesome, but could you eat your cake with it? “It’s My Party And I Cry If I Want To” by Marlene Vinha and Fred Gomes
“Nail art has almost crept into the mainstream a couple of times,” says Linda Wells, editor in chief of Allure magazine said to the Los Angeles Times. “The closest call came when hip-hop artists Mary J. Blige and Missy Elliott were doing nail art with crazy designs like dollar bills and designer logos in the late 1990s and early 2000s. But then it disappeared.”
For 2012, the art of embellishing your nails is so, so back, welcoming personal creativity just as hair dye and tattoos have. But, can it go a bit overboard?
Portuguese artist and image consultant Marlene Vinha decided to explore how unusual materials could be used to create beautiful and thought-provoking nail art designs, collaborating with photographer Fred Gomes and illustrators Raquel Graça and Joana Gomes. Although I’m pretty sure they’re not feasible in everyday life, they sure are some serious nail art eye candy.
“The Grass Is Always Greener On The Other Side” by Marlene Vinha, illustrated by Raquel Graça.
See also: Why can’t my nails look like this after gardening?
Check out the rest of the images here.
What’s the craziest nail art you’ve ever had on your digits or have ever seen?
