AW11: My favourite Fashion Week manicures (and how to DIY them)

You ladies weren't one bit impressed with Nonie Creme's New York Fashion Week finger bands, created by the nail maestro for Vena Cava, but I have a sneaking suspicion that you'll find more to like about her work for the Yigal Azrouel show.

Nonie tipped a Butter London Union Black Jack black paint job with the brand's gold glitter West End Wonderland to create a look that's luxe but super-cool and reminds me a lot of a twinkling skyline at night - and it's dead easy to replicate at home.

Start with a base coat and two thin coats of black nail polish. (Alternatively you could use navy: I've tried this with Chanel Blue Satin and it looks goood.)

For the tips, use a gold glitter suspended in a clear base. The one I use is a random cheapy number that my sister brought home from Tenerife; OPI Bring On The Bling and Models Own Gold Finger are similar. Wipe the brush on the neck of the bottle so that there's just a small amount of glitter left on it. Begin at the tips and drag the brush back towards the middle of the nail using a light touch: it's easier to get that jagged effect if you do this than if you paint on a glitter French tip horizontally and then try to pull out skinny strands of glitter.

Finish with topcoat, or skip it altogether to keep the glitter looking a little gritty and the overall look a bit more edgy.

If you're in the mood for something a bit more cartoonish, look to London and the Dalmatian print nails at Topshop Unique. Sophy Robson was behind the black on white spotted talons, which she says were created using a matte white polish and irregular splodges of Topshop black.

Pix via sophyrobson.com and refinery29.com