Photography by Christine Holding Photography

Bio Sculpture Gel educator Terri Silacci of Euphoria Lounge in Monterey, Calif., has been getting a lot of attention for her sensational snakeskin mani-pedi offerings. The pedicure has been featured in the pages of Vogue magazine and on “The Today Show.” This could be a terrific service to add to your own salon menu.

Silacci explains how she came up with it and shares her step-by-step. “Everything I look at, I look at with a creative eye. One day walking through a shopping venue I spotted a beautiful faux-finished Betsey Johnson bag and bought it as to not forget the colors and design of the snakeskin to put on one lucky client’s nails.

For months I pondered that design until one day my children, Olivia and Jackson, 4 and 6, brought home naturally shed snakeskin from my neighbor’s home. (He runs a reptile boutique in the area.) This shed skin would soon be sandwiched between layers of Bio Sculpture Gel.” Silacci says it took quite a bit of trial and error, but her determination and the products’ flexibility triumphed. This nail service lasts up to 10 weeks on toenails and four weeks on fingernails. All products named in the step-by-step below are from Bio Sculpture Gel. For more info, visit www.biosculpturegel.com.





1. Cut Bio Snake-Shed naturally shed snakeskin to the size of the nail, leaving a 1/6” border around the nail. Don’t cut to the exact size of the nail.



2. Prep the nail and apply a layer of either Clear or Sculpting Gel. Cure for two minutes.



3. Apply a layer of Color Gel to be the main color on the nail (the color shown is #2010). Cure for two minutes. For very dark colors, a second paper-thin layer may be used.



4. On a small piece of wax paper, apply a small amount of Clear Gel (about the size of a nail) and lay the Snake-Shed into it. Wet the Snake-Shed on top with a little extra Clear Gel. Use tweezers to gently flip the Snake-Shed back and forth through the Clear Gel, saturating it.



5. Apply a thin layer of Clear Gel to the nail. Before curing, apply the Snake-Shed onto the nail, smooth side down.



6. Use a brush to gently push the Snake-Shed down onto the nail, starting from the center working toward the eponychium, making sure to push out any air bubbles. Leave a 1/6” border along the eponychium, side walls, and free edge; don’t apply Snake-Shed there. Cure for two minutes.



7. Remove the sticky residue with Sanitizer. Use a 180 Grit White File Patch to remove any loose pieces of Snake-Shed. Some of the pieces between the lines will come out while filing. You want the loose pieces to come off.



8. Sanitize the nail, then use a Nail Art Brush to paint the natural Snake-Shed lines with a different color gel (the color shown is #2011).



9. Don’t paint all the lines at once or the lines will move and become thick. Instead, flash cure for 30 seconds between lines to ensure a neat application.



10. Extend the natural Snake-Shed lines all the way to the eponychium, side wall, and free edge where the 1/6” gap was left.



11. (Optional) Fill in all of the holes with a third color gel (the color shown is #2012). Cure for two minutes.



12. Apply a finishing gel that’s appropriate to the client’s nail type.

If using real snakeskin gives you the creeps, Silacci has a synthetic version of this mani-pedi for you. It uses Bio Sculpture Gel Mimic-Mesh and a Multi-Use Metal-Tool. You can get the complete step-by-step at www.nailsmag.com/fauxsnakeskin.