The Insider: Art at her fingertips
Clockwise from top left: 2015 graduate Lauren Wilkin shows off her nail art including a commencement theme, Crawfest, Mardi Gras and a look representing her favorite Green Wave basketball player. (Photos from Lauren Wilkin/Instagram)
While many of her fellow graduates were decking out their mortarboards for Commencement 2015, Lauren Wilkin, who earned a degree in marketing and is continuing at Tulane University for her master"s in accounting, took to her fingernails to express her excitement for the monumental occasion.
About two years ago, Wilkin says she realized that she was skilled at nail art when her friends began asking her to paint their nails. She began posting to Instagram under the name alldemnails, which led to her gaining nearly 12,000 followers. She also plans to start a YouTube page where she can post tutorials for her designs.
“I used to be a terrible nail biter, but wearing polish helped me stop,” says Wilkin, who adds that all of her designs are done on her own healthy nails. “It"s only a hobby, but I get so much great feedback from people about how my creative designs inspire them.”
Her Instagram page features several dozen samples of her work dating back to 2013. The looks recognize holidays and her favorite Starbucks drink. Nature or vacations inspired some of the more abstract works.
Because Wilkin uses nail polish and acrylic paint so often, her parents have made only one request of her “wear a face mask.” And she does, since she often changes her polish every few days.
As of late, it seems her hobby may be growing into more than she initially expected.
“I have been hired to paint the nails of a wedding party this summer,” says Wilkin. “It"s my first paid job.”
“I used to be a terrible nail biter, but wearing polish helped me stop.”—Lauren Wilkin, class of 2015
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