Extra, Extra! Beaut.ie How To: Newsprint Nails

This is possibly the easiest nail art DIY ever, assuming you can get your hands on some real newspaper (a digital subscription will be no use to you here, I'm afraid.) It's perfect for back-to-school season, considerably less messy than the splatter mani, requires a minimum of ambidexterity and zero nail art tools, and it's pretty fun to do.

What's not to love?

You will need:

• Base coat and top coat
• A nude, neutral, or pastel polish to show off the print to best effect - try white or cream to mimic the look of a book or light grey for full-on newsprint nails
• Solvent - you can use rubbing alcohol, drinking alcohol, or surgical spirits - decanted into a dappen dish, eggcup or similar
• 10 pre-cut newspaper clippings (each one should be a little bigger than your nail)

1. Apply a base coat and two thin coats of your chosen pale colour. Allow to dry (if the polish is wet, the paper as well as the print will end up stuck to it.)

2. Dip a newspaper clipping into your solvent for a couple of seconds and drain off excess on the side of the dish. Apply to the nail, with the print you want to appear on the nail facing down. Firmly press the newspaper into place all over the nail for 30 seconds with a dry thumb. Avoid rubbing or moving the clipping around the nail - this will cause smudging.

3. Carefully remove the clipping from the nail by gently peeling it away at the edges.

4. Repeat steps 2 & 3 until all nails are done. Allow a couple of minutes drying time for the solvent to evaporate and the print to adhere to your polish.

5. If you've used surgical spirits or rubbing alcohol, you can use a small brush or cotton ear bud dipped in solvent to tidy up any rough edges. If you want to re-do any of the nails, you can simply use the solvent to remove the print without destroying the polish underneath and start again (this doesn't really work with drinking alcohol, though.)

6. Finish with top coat and amuse yourself by asking friends and family "What's black and white and read all over?" before brandishing your new talons in their faces. BOOM.

You can also use this technique to transfer the cartoon, crossword or sudoku pages to your fingertips.

What do you reckon? Would you give print a chance?