I had a bit of a mani disaster and needed something easy to cover my nails with. I’d already started with a white base so I decided to use a set of Peacock Feather water decals from Milv. I picked these up at the Professional Beauty show in London earlier this year. 

Peacock Feather Nail Art left hand

Peacock Feather Nail Art left hand

Polishes and tools

Your favourite base coat and top coat
Cirque Carpe Diem
Milv N156
Bowl of lukewarm tap water
Tweezers
Scissors
Clear Jelly Stamper The Bling Brush
After my base coat, I started with two coats of Carpe Diem and a thin coat of Seche Vite top coat.

I used the scissors to cut up all ten decals and laid them out in order for my nails.

One at a time, I used the tweezers to hold each decal in the water for about ten seconds, and then slid the backing off between my fingers.

With damp fingertips it’s easy to position the decals on your nails. My nails are quite short at the moment, so I had to trim about a quarter of the length off the ends. It can be a bit of an issue to make the flat decal fit curvy nails like mine, but you just need to be patient.

On the plus side, they would be good when I have long nails too!

When the decal was in place I used acetone and my clean up brush to remove the excess.

Once all ten nails were done, I sealed them in with more top coat.

Peacock Feather Nail Art right hand

Peacock Feather Nail Art right hand

Peacock Feather

Water decals are great for when you want a quick and easy manicure that looks really bright and detailed.

The only downside – for me – is doing a white base. It always seems like such a hassle to get it to look good.  But generally these decals do need a white base, because they are so thin and translucent.

The decals are also really cheap. I bought a bundle of them and I think it worked out to just over a pound each.  They are single use and you get enough for ten nails per pack. You can stretch this out by using them for feature nails only.

In the UK, She Sells Seashells has a great selection of water decals from Milv

What do you think? Would you use water decals as an easy manicure, or do you prefer a handmade design?