I recently profiled Lynn Lammers for our Top 25 List feature in the September issue, and I asked her how she’s able to make such detailed drawings on a surface as tiny as a nail.

“One of the most important techniques is thinning out the paint,” she says. “The paint has to be really thin because when you’re using such a small amount of paint, it will dry really fast — just breathing on it can dry it. So I add a little water to the paint to thin it out.”

This Vegas-themed entry was for the recent Hand-Painted Nail Art competition at IBS Las Vegas.

Lammers also uses very fine-tipped paint brushes. She gets them from her local paint supply store in very fine sizes, (from top to bottom) 5/0, 10/0, and 18/0.

When Lammers sits down to make the tips, she tries to do them all at once so she doesn’t lose her momentum. This set took her about six hours to complete. She entered these in the ISSE show in Long Beach. The theme was insects.

Lammers also prefers airbrush paint, because it has a thin viscosity. “If it gets too thick, I just add a little water.”

Lammers’ last words of advice for painted nail art are, “Take care of your brushes, and don’t paint with the brush you mix with. Use a scrap brush just for mixing colors.”

— Tim