The Devil is in the Detail – Part 2

The fantasy aspect of nails is where I see boundaries stretched the most, and over the years I’ve seen amazing creations spawned all over the world at various Nailympia events. Moving parts and flashing lights are no longer a surprise and really quite easily incorporated into designs since battery packs can come in very small packages. Inspiration for themes can be gleaned everywhere. A walk in the park, a visit to the zoo, a train journey, a city break, a film, book, a podcast or trip to your local newsagent or supermarket.

Inspiration is literally everywhere we are and everywhere we go. It’s about being in tune with our environment and present to each moment, then through this new perspective ideas will be revealed and once they start, they will flood into the mind and the rate at which they arrive becomes blinding as you get more engrossed in the theme.

Once the theme has been established research is the next stage of creativity. If you’ve found your theme through books or media make sure you check if its protected by copyright. As some competitions, such as Nailympia, do not allow copyrighted material to be showcased.

Once you’ve secured the theme, it’s time to create a mood or vision board. Start collecting imagery, quotes, textures, colours and shapes and add them to a board that threads the theme. This way you are collating necessary details to help you form the growth of your piece. Naturally, when I say piece, I mean many, many tiny, detailed pieces that must birth from each nail into one giant theme that one hopes will wow all judges.

My top tip for those moving into this competition sphere is that judges want to be see something they’ve never seen before. They want to see minute details, tiny, careful precision of miniature replicas with an accuracy that blows their minds. Make sure your theme is unusual, unseen before and cleverly executed with some ingenious touches that show you’ve done research and beyond!