In season 5’s final Last Chance Design Lab challenge sponsored by CND, Ashton Harlan and Hemi Park will battle it out one-on-one to see who has a chance of going on to the finale at Premiere Orlando. CND’s Jan Arnold will select her favorite look by Wednesday and you’ll find out who made the Top 3!
All Last Chance challenges are done on a single nail tip. Contestants are also asked to describe their looks. There are no other elements to this battle.
Since Hemi packed her paintbrushes after the Nails on Point challenge, this week’s Last Chance challenge is loosely related.
Hatching It Out: You’ve used dots to create a mural, now use Hatching or Cross-Hatching ( a technique using lines) to create an image on a single tip. You can use any mediums.
Here are the looks they created:
Ashton
I can’t believe how much I have learned and grown from NTNA in such a short amount of time. To actually be within reach of the finals is not something I ever expected, and it’s such an honor! So for my nail this week I wanted to portray my excitement about making it this far. Because the finals are in Orlando, Fla., this year I created an overall “Sunshine State” theme for my design with palm trees, oranges, etc. I then created a sculpture of my hand (wearing my favorite square ring, and manicured, of course) to be reaching out toward my goal of making it into the finale. I sculpted each piece of my design with 4D Gel and painted it with acrylic paint using both the hatching and cross hatching techniques.
Hemi
When I got this Last Chance Design Lab challenge, I immediately thought of etching/engraving from printmaking, which was my favorite back when I was in college. So my crazy head goes to money because money is often a symbol of a prize or reward. Although dollar notes are engraved on plates and printed, the detail is done with very fine lines, which can be very hard to achieve with nail products. But I wanted to challenge myself on this one because why not? I used acrylic to build the base for the money, and used all gel products to detail including cross hatching designs on the banners and all the shadings in the face. But then a picture from last year came to me — a picture of Jan with a big smile and my face squishy from crying. I met Jan for the very first time during the Best ‘Lil Nail Show Texas, and I was so stunned by Jan’s vibrant, stunning smile. She’d already heard about this fan girl, so when she said “Hi Hemi” with a big smile, I broke out in tears. Next thing you know, I was in her arms and crying like a kid who just met Santa. All I remember is her big smile and bright sparkly eyes, so I really wanted to catch her shine in my design, along with all things NTNA. The nail that’s holding the money says “The ultimate prize,” because of course I want to become a Top 3 finalist!
Congratulations to Hemi Park for winning the final CND Last Chance Design Lab challenge! Hemi went up against Ashton Harlan to show us a cross-hatched pattern on a single nail tip. CND’s Jan Arnold chose the winner.
Jan said, “Wow! What a ride you have had this season! We saw nice steady growth every week from you. You took in our advice and refined every aspect of your skills. You have blossomed as not only a great and talented nail artist but also as a thoughtful story teller! It’s been a joy to witness this! Welcome to the top three!”
This means Hemi is officially in the finals along with Halley and Valerie. The Top 3 will move on to the final challenge, sponsored by CND, ending at Premiere Orlando!