Artists have no business adhering to the limits of reality. They are constantly looking to push the boundaries of what’s logical, and the results are often magnificent. Many agree that skill at par with traditional artists is at play when creating beauty looks, especially makeup and nails. Out of the two, nail art has recently been experiencing a renaissance where it’s been elevated to a cultural moment. The craft has truly become limitless; we see celebs donning OTT nails on the red carpet, a space that was earlier reserved for minimalistic manicures. But this is just the tip of the iceberg. Go deeper into the gullies of TikTok and Instagram, and you will find a treasure trope of alternative forms of nail art that will leave you stunned. One such nail artist that I have been following (stalking more like it!) for the past year is Nadia (ILYSM nails). Her work with encapsulated nails, where she uses materials like peanut butter, dishwasher sponge, and even vials of fake blood, has left me shooketh!Â
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I decided to hunt her down and understand what exactly goes on in the mind of someone who can turn actual M&M’s into nail art. Nadia, based in Canada and a preschool teacher by profession, has been creating encapsulated nails, and other manicure styles, for twelve years. “I took nail courses as a hobby and continued nail art on myself. I’ve always been passionate about creating unique nail art with bright colours,” says Nadia. Her process keeps revising with every kind of nail she creates. This prospect seems highly enticing for someone like me who loves to OD on creative projects and the technique that goes behind them. “My ideation process depends on what type of nail I will be creating. I try various things, and it’s definitely trial and error to see what works out. Growing up, I would always have different ideas about nail art. I always had my nails painted bright and was known for bright nails,” she elaborates.
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It just isn’t me who likes to binge on her content, mouth gaped open. With over 9M followers on TikTok, Nadia’s unique brand of nail artistry has many takers. The origin story of the encapsulated nails she creates is quite unexpected. “I first started creating these types of nails on my TikTok for fun. My followers really enjoyed them, so now it’s the main theme of my page,” reveals Nadia. What pulled audiences in were the outlandish styles she created, all of them super imaginative but equally unorthodox, sometimes even bizarre! “The first nail that gained attention would be the onion peel nail. I used a piece of red onion peel as a nail extension and encapsulated it with gel. I also created a functional tea strainer on my nail which got attention worldwide and was covered in many news articles,” confesses Nadia. We can see how onion peels and dainty tea strainers as nails got people talking; they are so indulgently clever!
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Sure, her nail art is addictive to look at and makes for great shareable content. But how wearable are they really? “I do not work on clients, but I have followers always asking for these nails. They are wearable because they are fully encapsulated,” confesses Nadia. We’ll say this, it’s definitely for people who struggle to be functional with crazy nails. Even Nadia has witnessed failures with some of her wild ideas. “I always try my best to make it work in the end. I extended my nail with toothpicks once. However, it didn’t get the end result I hoped for,” she reveals. The most impressive part about Nadia’s content is that she does it for fun, removing any inclination to remain proper all time of the day. “I could never imagine this craft would be possible with nails. I am a preschool teacher, so I often combine children’s ideas with nails. I enjoy expressing my creativity through videos and unique nail art, and I’m glad people like to watch the creations that I do for fun,” says Nadia, making me respect her even more! Nadia shares detailed tutorials on how to do the nails on her multiple social media platform so budding nail artists can learn from the best.
