Hi everyone! Today I've created a mani for The Polish Party's December instalment. This month's theme is 'Black & White', which I first assumed to be pretty simple, but in fact turned out to be rather tricky. There's only so much you can do with two colours, and I decided to challenge myself further by not allowing the use of any extras, like gems and glitter. After a bit of pondering, I decided to try a zebra design. Rather than sticking to zebra stripes on all of my nails, I thought I'd attempt to add a face in as well. I'm not really that pleased with this design, partly because I painted the eyes too big so there wasn't any room left for a nose, and also because I ran out of top coat so the final product is a bit bumpy and lacks a good finish. Never mind. I'm not exactly selling this manicure am I?! Anyway, keep on reading for a few more pictures and details...

The polishes I used are Sinful Colors 'Snow Me White' and 'Black On Black'. I applied three coats of white, and once dry, I added the details using a fine paintbrush. I hunted Google Images for some inspiration, and picked the zebra that appealed to me the most (there are a lot of zebras on there). For my thumb, index and little finger nails, I picked a small section from an area of the zebra and then copied the stripe pattern from that. 

For the eyes, I painted a small circle and then gradually thickened it up until I was happy with the size (though, as I said, I wish I had done them smaller). Then I added the other details, including a 'glint' in white. I painted more zebra stripes around the eyes, trying my best to replicate the zebra's face and create a 'rounded' look. Since I'd run out of my favourite Essie 'Good To Go', I used Jessica quick-drying oil to try and speed up the drying process and protect the design. I really recommend this product if you're in a rush, but I still don't think it matches up to the lovely smooth finish of Essie's top coat.