Nail art to get you in the Halloween spirit

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Halloween nails don’t have to be plain old black or a creepy swamp green. Think about incorporating actual Halloween candy and décor right onto those fingertips with just a couple bottles of nail polish and about 30 minutes of free time. Celebrity nail artist Kimmy Keyes shows us some simple steps on how to get fun and freaky nails in time for Halloween.

Candy corn – I love to eat them more than look at them, but painting my nails to look like candy corns is hilarious, plus my nail beds are already close to being the right oval shape. To get this look, Keyes polished the entire nail with Milani Nail Lacquer in White and let them dry. Then using the Milani Nail Art Lacquer with Precision Brush in Yellow she drew a curved line just above the cuticle. She advises re-dipping the brush to get a little more polish and filling the entire space at the base of the nail. Last, Keyes used the Milani Nail Art Lacquer with Precision Brush in Orange Graph and drew the top curved line near the nail tip and continued by tracing the line where the orange and yellow meet. Tip: this design looks best on a pointy nail. And always finish with a clear top coat to smooth out the design, add shine and protect the nails from chipping.

Glittery spiderweb – the deep purple and intricate black lines aren’t as obvious as the candy corns. Wear them with a witch costume or alone for a frightful fashion statement.

Keyes polished the entire nail with Milani’s Nail Lacquer in White. Then using Milani’s Nail Art Lacquer with Precision Brush in Black Sketch she drew a straight line down the center of the nail followed by a horizontal line directly across the center making a plus. Then Keyes created diagonal lines from the right corner to left corner and vice versa

Next, she created small curved lines connecting each straight line for that spiderweb effect. Continue all the way around. For a little more color, Keyes took Milani’s Nail Art Lacquer with Precision Brush in Purple Outline and filled in spaces between the webs. For extra sparkle, she laid two coats of a clear, glitter polish on top and sealed with a top coat.

Boo... scary eyes – These “boo” nails are cute, a little cartoonish and undoubtedly a conversation starter.

Keyes started by polishing the entire nail with two coats of Milani’s Black Magic Nail Lacquer and let that dry. With Milani’s White Canvas Nail Art with Precision Brush she drew the circles for the eyes, “Don’t worry about being perfect on the lines for the eyes, because you will be filling them in completely,” says Keyes.

Next, continue using the precision nail art brush. Wipe the brush after dipping into paint to make sure it’s skinny with no excess polish. Using a light touch write the words “boo” in the spaces between the eyes. “I also added exclamation points and expression lines around the eyes,” says Keyes.

Lastly, using the Milani Nail Art Lacquer with Precision Brush in the shade Black Sketch, she added small dots in the eyeballs. “Be creative! Make the eyes silly or crossed,” she says. Tip: If some of your edges aren’t perfect around the eyes or you get a little outside the lines, trace over the white with the Black Sketch Nail Art Lacquer Precision Brush and it will cover your mistake

For a little added fun, Keyes wiped off her nail art brush and dipped it into a neon color called Totally 80s, also by Milani, to make some eyes yellow, and also a color called Ruby Jewels to make other eyes a bloodshot red.

Milani Nail Lacquers: $4.09; Specialty Nail Lacquers: $4.99; and Nail Art Lacquers with Precision Brush: $4.59 are available at CVS.

-- Melissa Magsaysay

Halloween nail art by Kimmy Keyes; Credit: Milani Cosmetics