Nail Inspiration
Your source for the latest nail trends, tips, tricks, and more from the OPI Team and top salon professionals.
20.10.2026
Autumn Winter Nail Art Inspo
Meet award-winning nail technician and OPI Nail Boss Emma Brock, owner of The Mills Beauty Boutique and a true expert in creative nail artistry. Emma shares three stunning Autumn/Winter nail art looks exclusively for you to create this season: Tortoiseshell, Autumn Fawn and Blooming Black & Gold.
Emma's signature style combines wearable elegance with seasonal personality, drawing inspiration from rich autumnal tones, warm neutrals and subtle metallic accents. As a long-time OPI professional, she loves the brand's extensive colour range and versatility, using layering and colour combinations to create depth, dimension and eye-catching designs.
This season, follow Emma's step-by-step tutorials and discover how to recreate these beautiful salon-ready looks using your favourite OPI Intelli-Gel™ shades.
Tortoiseshell Nail Art
OPI Intelli-Gel™ shades used: Pale to the Chief, My Italian Is a Little Rusty, Grunge Queen, Put It in Airplane Mode and Lady in Black. Cure in the OPI Starlight Lamp.
- Complete nail preparation and apply your chosen OPI base coat. Cure for 30 seconds.
- For the solid colour nails, apply two thin coats of Grunge Queen, curing each coat for 30 seconds.
- For the tortoiseshell accent nails, apply a layer of Pale to the Chief and cure for 30 seconds.
- Using My Italian Is a Little Rusty and Grunge Queen, create irregular patches across the nail to form the first layer of the tortoiseshell pattern. Cure for 30 seconds.
- Apply a very thin layer of Put It in Airplane Mode over the design to soften and mute the colours, creating depth. Cure for 30 seconds.
- Repeat the irregular patches using My Italian Is a Little Rusty and Grunge Queen, slightly overlapping the previous pattern to build dimension. Cure for 30 seconds.
- Add smaller, irregular patches of Lady in Black to create contrast and definition. Cure for 30 seconds.
- Finish with OPI Super Gloss Top Coat and cure for 30 seconds.
Blooming Black & Gold Nail Art
OPI Intelli-Gel™ shades used: Put It in Neutral and Lady in Black. Cure in the OPI Starlight Lamp.
1. Complete nail preparation and apply your chosen OPI base coat. Cure for 30 seconds.
2. Apply two thin coats of Put It in Neutral, curing each coat for 30 seconds.
3. Apply loose glitter at the tip of the nail, gently fading it down towards the cuticle to create a soft glitter ombré.
4. Apply a layer of OPI Super Gloss Top Coat to seal the glitter and cure for 30 seconds.
5. Apply a second, very thin layer of Super OPI Super Gloss Top Coat, but do not cure.
6. Using a dotting tool, add small drops of Lady in Black into the uncured top coat.
7. Allow the black GelColor to naturally spread and bloom, creating a soft, organic pattern.
8. Once happy with the design, cure for 30 seconds.
9. Finish with OPI Super Gloss Top Coat and cure for 30 seconds.
Pro Tip: I always keep a separate bottle of top coat specifically for glitter work. This prevents loose glitter from contaminating my regular top coat and transferring onto plain colour manicure.
Autumn Fawn Nail Art
OPI Intelli-Gel™ shades used: Lady in Black, Brown to Earth, Chocolate Moose and Alpine Snow™. Cure in the OPI Starlight Lamp.
- Complete nail preparation and apply your chosen OPI base coat. Cure for 30 seconds.
- Apply a thin coat of Lady in Black to the plain brown nails and cure for 30 seconds.
- Layer Brown to Earth over Lady in Black to create a deeper, richer chocolate brown. Cure for 30 seconds.
- For the fawn print accent nails, apply two thin coats of Chocolate Moose, curing each coat for 30 seconds.
- Using Brown to Earth and a fine detail brush, add small, irregular patches across the accent nails to create depth and dimension. Cure for 30 seconds.
- Using Alpine Snow™, paint small, irregular white spots across the nails, varying their size and spacing to create a natural fawn print. Cure for 30 seconds.
- Finish with OPI Super Gloss Top Coat and cure for 30 seconds.
How do I charge accordingly for nail art?
One thing I’m passionate about is making sure nail technicians charge appropriately for their nail art.
It’s easy to underestimate the time, skill and creativity involved, particularly with designs that look simple but require precision.
At The Mills Beauty Boutique, we use a tiered nail art pricing structure, starting at £5 for simple designs, £10 for more detailed work and £20 for advanced nail art.
I always recommend considering the time needed, complexity of the design and products used when deciding which tier a design falls into.
My biggest piece of advice is to practise your designs and time yourself. This helps you understand how long each design realistically takes and allows you to price accordingly.
Nail art is a skill, and your pricing should reflect that. Don’t be afraid to charge for your creativity and expertise.
Why do you choose OPI to work with?
Having worked in the nail industry for over 20 years, I’ve used a wide variety of products, but OPI is a brand I genuinely love working with.
The colour range is a huge part of that. There’s such a fantastic selection of shades, from timeless classics to seasonal collections, which gives me plenty of scope to experiment and create different looks.
I particularly enjoy combining colours and experimenting with layering to create depth in my nail art, especially for designs like tortoiseshell.
As a nail technician I also appreciate the importance of understanding the products I’m working with and using them correctly. Having confidence in my products allows me to focus on the creative side of my work.
For me, nail art is about continuing to learn, experimenting with techniques and enjoying the creative process.
See more of Emma’s incredible work here: @emmab_opinailboss
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