Give a butterfly a longer life span with this unique, divided design

When creating nail art, you’re limited only by your imagination. With spring flowers in full bloom, you’re bound to see butterflies flitting about. Those ethereal wings and cheerful colors are great inspiration for a manicure that celebrates nature.

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to paint a divided butterfly. Pick two nails, preferably your ring and middle fingernails, and paint half of the design on each one. Keep the darker colors on the perimeter, and don’t forget to draw internal lines and circles to mimic the intricacy of these lovely creatures.

Materials
- 99 percent isopropyl alcohol in a small cup
- Peachy pink sparkle gel (Bio Seaweed Gel, "03 Icing")
- UV/LED lamp (Akzentz Hybrid-Pro, not shown)
- Yellow nail gel (Presto, "86 Con Amore")
- Long and medium liner brushes
- Pink nail gel (Presto, "Tokyo Swag #5")
- Orange nail gel (Presto, "227 Mandarino")
- Dark orange nail gel (Presto, "Tokyo Sway #6")
- Black and white gel polish (Akzentz Gel Play)
- Small dotting tool
- No-wipe top coat (Kupa)

Instructions
1. Pour a small amount of 99 percent isopropyl alcohol into a small cup and set it aside.

2. Apply two coats of peachy pink sparkle gel to your nails, and cure it in between coats with the UV/LED lamp.

3. Choose two nails that are side by side, so you can paint a half set of butterfly wings on each nail.

4. Use the long liner brush to paint two abstract yellow wings on each nail. These should look like feathery, elongated triangles and form an hourglass pattern. Clean your brush in isopropyl alcohol before beginning the next step.

5. Use the same brush to paint a pink half-moon above the top of each yellow wing. Clean the brush once more.

6. Paint an orange rectangle below the other end of the yellow wing.

7. Clean the brush in the alcohol again, and then blur the pink and yellow together to form the large top of each wing.

8. Repeat step 6 by blurring the yellow and orange together to form the smaller portion of the lower wings. Cure the wet gel with the lamp.

9. Paint a small circle of dark orange onto each yellow and orange wing, then cure the wet gel with the lamp.

10. Use the long and medium liner brushes and black gel to outline each wing and to draw the inner lines that give the design dimension.

11. Get creative with the top and bottom of each wing by drawing open circles with the black gel, so the underlying color shows through. Cure the gel with the lamp once more.

12. Place a series of white gel dots on the top and bottom of each wing using the dotting tool. Cure the gel once more.

13. Protect your pretty butterflies with no-wipe top coat. Cure the gel to finish the manicure.

Stay pretty!