MANI MONDAY: BLOODY GOOD

To be honest, there wasn't much of a contest for favorite nails during the spring '13 shows. With many designers opting for bare nails (and Chanel going for the controversial--mostly for being boring--French manicure), we found the nails at Prabal Gurung to die for. Literally: Each finger featured what looked like dripping blood. Ever since then we've just been counting down the days until Halloween to put the horror-inspired nail art (Carrie was mentioned as a big beauty inspiration backstage).

But we didn't want to just guess our way through a DIY; we wanted to get the step-by-step instructions from the person who knows it best. So here is how celeb manicurist Tracylee did the nails at Prabal Gurung--and how she thinks you can make them your own.

Tools:

- A striper brush--Tracylee removed a few hairs so that the brush had just five remaining (if you don't have one on hand, she recommends using a bobby pin or a toothpick)

- A base coat polish

- A blood red nail polish (Tracylee likes Sally Hansen Insta-Dri polish in Cinna-snap and Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Red Zin

- A top coat polish

Step 1:

Apply a base coat on your fingers, since Tracylee points out that "red polish can stain your fingers." After all, not everyone wants to look bloodied come mid-November.

Step 2:

Using your striper brush, dip it into the nail polish and then press the bead down at the free edge of your nail to begin creating drips and drops of blood. Tracylee recommends creating a mix of different sized shapes. "The nails for the show were uniform, but if I were to do it myself I'd mix it up a bit--even make one finger entirely red, for example," she adds.

Step 3:

Do a second round of blood drips, overlapping some painted the first round while adding in a few new ones. "This gives the drips a multi-dimensional look," says Tracylee.

Step 4:

Once the blood drips have dried, use the striper brush to create what is almost like a French manicure tip along the free edge of the nail, so that the blood drips are connected.

Step 5:

Allow the red to dry, and then cover with a top coat to protect your designs. And that's it! Scary easy, right? Send us your finished bloody manis on Twitter and Instagram (@nylonmag).

LOOKING FOR MORE MANI INSPIRATION? We've got the must-have looks for fall, as picked by It Brand Floss Gloss. If you did love the French mani look at Chanel, here's our simple DIY trick. Textured nails have been everywhere...we put two new kits to the test.

Sally Hansen Diamond Flash Top Coat - $6.49

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Red Zin - $6.49

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri polish in Cinna-snap - $4.04

Prabal Gurung spring '13 nails

Prabal Gurung spring '13 nails