Pastel Checkerboard Daisy Almond
Description of Design:
A playful retro manicure featuring long almond nails covered in colorful checkerboard patterns and simple white daisies. Each nail uses a different two-tone combination, including burnt orange and white, mint green and white, powder blue and white, and chocolate brown with pale mint. Small white flowers with sunny yellow centers add a cheerful floral accent to the graphic checkered design.
Length of Nail:
Long
Shape of Nail:
Almond
Polish Details:
- Full-coverage checkerboard nail art
- Burnt orange and white checks
- Mint green and white checks
- Powder blue and white checks
- Chocolate brown and pale mint checks
- Crisp geometric squares
- White daisy petals
- Bright yellow flower centers
- Coordinated mismatched color palette
- Soft satin finish
Recommended Polish Colours:
- OPI – Alpine Snow – creamy white checks and daisy petals
- OPI – Have Your Panettone and Eat It Too – burnt orange checks
- Essie – Mint Candy Apple – mint green checks
- OPI – It’s a Boy! – powder blue checks
- OPI – Chocolate Moose – chocolate brown checks
- OPI – Exotic Birds Do Not Tweet – yellow daisy centers
Difficulty Level:
Hard
Estimated Time to Achieve the Look:
90–120 minutes
Step By Step Breakdown:
- Prep the nails and shape them into long almond silhouettes with smoothly tapered sides and softly pointed tips.
- Apply a base coat and cure completely.
- Choose a different two-color palette for each nail, using combinations of orange, mint, powder blue, chocolate brown, and white.
- Divide each nail visually into evenly sized rows and columns to establish the checkerboard layout.
- Paint alternating squares with the first shade, leaving the neighboring squares for the contrasting color.
- Fill the remaining squares with the second shade, keeping the edges straight and the checker pattern consistent from cuticle to tip.
- Use white polish and a fine detail brush to create a small five-petal daisy on each nail.
- Add a bright yellow dot to the center of every flower.
- Refine any uneven checkerboard edges and clean around the cuticles for a crisp graphic finish.
- Seal the entire design with a soft satin top coat to recreate the smooth, slightly muted finish shown in the photo.
