behind the brush: frances liang

name: Frances Liang

city: New York City

what’s your favorite essie shade / essie love story? my favorite essie collections are the serene slate collection from 2019 and (this is so long ago, but) the essie fall 2016. my favorite essie shade ‘beau-tie’ from essie gel couture.

how would you describe your design style? my preferred nail art technique is painting with a brush. I would describe my style as two dimensional abstract art, often in opaque cream shades, with solid shapes and lines/curves.

what’s your biggest source of inspiration? probably from aspects of architecture and interior design.

fun fact? I’m a sagittarius with a taurus rising and a leo moon.

what’s your favorite project that you’ve worked on? the watermelon nail art I sent over recently was really fun to make. I got to get messy in creating the look with sponge on nails without getting messy all over the skin. I really hope tons of people get to try it. I was really happy with the way they turned out and want to do another round in video form, maybe in yellow instead of red.

what’s your #1 nail tip or trick? wait for the paint to dry all the way through. this is a tip people might find useful to make a regular polish manicure last. After applying a layer, wait *at least* a full minute before applying the next layer. same with waiting enough time before applying a top coat.

what’s a question you get asked most often about nails/your work, and what’s your answer? people ask how I get polish so close to the cuticles or how I make the lines super clean. the answer is always good lighting. seeing well in bright lighting is truly everything.