So last night, I was sitting in front of my computer and a shoebox full of nail polish, trying to decide what I wanted to do with my nails. And then my Twitter feed exploded with the news that Benedict Cumberbatch, the actor who plays Sherlock Holmes in BBC's Sherlock, had landed the role of the main villain in the next Star Trek movie.

So, of course, I did what any self-respecting fan of Sherlock and Star Trek would do: flailed about wildly for a moment, then got down to business with a celebratory manicure.



Clearly, if I have an injury to my hand this week, it will be the index finger that will suffer the most. Redshirt!

It's no secret to those who know me that I adore television from across the pond. If you ever catch me in front of the TV and there's not a hockey game on the screen, you can bet it will be something British. Enter my latest addiction: Merlin! My husband and I were recently introduced to it and we marathoned the whole thing until we caught up.

While trying to think of a theme for my latest nails, I immediately thought of doing something Camelot-inspired. Here they are:

Top L-R: Excalibur, knight's helmet, Morgana's Fomorroh, chainmail, the Pendragon crest Bottom L-R: Fleur-de-lis, shield, crown, Holy Grail, Fisher King's trident

I used a single tool for the whole thing though, in hindsight, I wish I'd have used a fine paintbrush for the Fisher King's trident and maybe the crown and Grail. Here's the tool, which I got in my brush set:


I picked mine up at a local craft store... you should be able to find a similar brush set at any decent-sized craft store.

Chime in: what cool nail designs have you seen lately... or what British show should I watch next? ;)

For these nails, I used a variety of techniques and tools. The chain, the crown, and the crest were all created with paintbrushes. I used the water-marbling technique on my index fingernails, and created the straight-edge designs with clear tape.

Chime in: what do you like to do with your nails?