Espresso under a scatter of open Bare Rosé horseshoes and Bitter Chocolate accents — the rings never close.
3 bottles: Espresso, Bare Rosé and Bitter Chocolate. Espresso against Bare Rosé is a hard contrast, so the motif reads from across a room, and any wobble in the line reads with it. The bottles are not all the same finish (crème and sheer), so the pattern picks up light differently from the ground.
On a round shape the pattern has a shallow, even canvas and nothing to snag, which is why the small repeating motifs tend to end up here.
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Bottles for this nail
Tap a bottle to open it on the shelfWhat you need
How to paint Espresso Leopard nails
- 1 Buff, dehydrate and base coat, then cure. Two coats of Espresso. A dark base shows every ridge, so the ridge-filling base coat matters more than usual here.
- 2 Scatter broken Bare Rosé rings at different sizes and angles, then drop Bitter Chocolate flecks between them.
- 3 Gloss top coat, cure, then cuticle oil once it is out of the lamp.
Questions about Espresso Leopard
Is Espresso Leopard hard to do at home?
It is the hardest tier on the site. It is doable at home, but the technique is the point rather than the colour. Budget an hour or more for a full set, and three colours means three chances for something to bleed, so cure between each one rather than working wet on wet.
What polish do I need for Espresso Leopard?
3 bottles: Espresso (crème), Bare Rosé (sheer) and Bitter Chocolate (crème). Plus a base coat and a gloss top coat, which every design here assumes you already have.
Does Espresso Leopard work on short nails?
Round is already the shortest shape here, so yes, this is one of the designs that works at almost any length.
How many coats does Espresso Leopard need?
More than you would expect. Bare Rosé is translucent, so the colour builds over three thin coats rather than covering in two. Stop wherever you like the depth — that is the point of a sheer.