Toffee Giraffe nails

Stiletto · Giraffe

Doable at home

Toffee showing as a network of lines between blocked Milk Glass shapes.

3 bottles: Toffee, Milk Glass and Walnut. Toffee and Milk Glass are close in tone, so the design is tonal rather than graphic. It shows up in daylight and softens indoors. The bottles are not all the same finish (crème and sheer), so the pattern picks up light differently from the ground.

On a stiletto the nail narrows the whole way, so the pattern reads as tapering with it, which is worth allowing for before the first stroke.

Make it yours

Pick a part of the nail, then a shade
Base: Toffee · Crème Open the bottle

Bottles for this nail

Tap a bottle to open it on the shelf

What you need

Base colour two coats
Print paint fine liner
Accent liner broken outlines

How to paint Toffee Giraffe nails

  1. 1 Buff, dehydrate and base coat, then cure. Two thin coats of Toffee, curing each one.
  2. 2 Block Milk Glass patches over cured Toffee, leaving an even gap of Toffee between every pair.
  3. 3 Gloss top coat, cure, then cuticle oil once it is out of the lamp.

Questions about Toffee Giraffe

  • Is Toffee Giraffe hard to do at home?

    Yes, with a steady hand. The motif is freehand, so the first nail is usually the worst one. Budget around 45 minutes 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 Toffee Giraffe?

    3 bottles: Toffee (crème), Milk Glass (sheer) and Walnut (crème). Plus a base coat and a gloss top coat, which every design here assumes you already have.

  • Does Toffee Giraffe work on short nails?

    Stiletto needs length, because the point is most of the shape. On a short nail it files down to something closer to almond, and the design still reads, just less sharply.

  • How many coats does Toffee Giraffe need?

    More than you would expect. Milk Glass 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.

You might also like

Try it on a hand Try it in your hand