Amidst a ‘clean-girl’ era is maximalist nail artist Ghazaleh, known for her work as LEHNAILZ. Since launching LEHNAILZ whilst studying Psychology at university, Ghazaleh has been using her work as a means of artistic expression for over three years. Growing up with an interest in “painting, imagery, fashion, colour and creating a certain aesthetic around something”, Ghazaleh knew that she needed a creative outlet, even if ultimately it meant that her career ended up being less traditional than she had imagined.
This creative outlet has evolved into her own personal brand with a distinct identity- determined to continue to inspire with a fun and ornate take on nail art.
I don’t think nails always need to be tasteful, timeless, or universally liked. Sometimes they could just be weird, funny or crazy because the person just feels like wearing it.
Using nails as a canvas for high-concept art isn’t just a recent phenomenon; it builds on a creative legacy popularised by sports and music icons like Florence Griffith Joyner, Missy Elliott, Lil’ Kim and celebrity nail artist Bernadette Thompson. Later, the 2000s and 2010s became dominated by elaborate nail art- with bold colours, intricate designs and textures. However, a resurgence of the minimalist 90s nail across social media has fueled the current popularity of ‘clean-girl’ milky pinks and micro French tips. Ghazaleh explained “I think trends like the doughnut glaze nails from Hailey Bieber were interesting because suddenly everyone wanted this very simple, effortless look which, I emphasise there’s nothing wrong with, but it’s interesting how quickly individuality can disappear when the internet decides there’s one ‘correct’ way to look.” Elaborating that, “The whole ‘clean-girl’ era sometimes reduced femininity down to being very polished, neutral, expensive-looking, and effortless.”
I feel like as women so much of our beauty culture has historically revolved around making ourselves more conventionally attractive or presentable but nail art can be completely different because it’s genuinely just decoration on your hands for the sake of enjoyment and art. There’s something so freeing about spending time and money on a detailed set that has no practical purpose except that it makes you happy. Which kind of links to why maximalism feels so rebellious.
The ultimate revolt against trend cycles, both minimalist and maximalist, is radical personal authenticity- choosing things simply because you like them, instead of using them to build a temporary, marketable identity. Ghazaleh explained, “It isn’t technically about what makes something maximalist but more about resisting the idea that you need to transform yourself or remodel yourself around the newest trend or social aesthetic. So I guess the revolt is ‘I like this because I like it’.”
“Nails are one of those forms of expression where you see them constantly since they’re on your hands. I’ve noticed the instant confidence boost it gives all of my clients, it changes how people carry themselves. But they’re also relatively temporary, which gives people permission to experiment so you don’t need to commit to this identity forever.”
Ghazaleh iterated that she doesn’t dislike minimalist sets. Adding “There are beautiful minimal sets and obviously there are people who genuinely identify with that style. I currently even have a plain set on right now, in fact, most times I do- but mainly because it’s easier to do on myself since I do my nails on my own. I just dislike when one particular aesthetic becomes treated as though it is objectively the most sophisticated or desirable one.”
No stranger to a creative block, Ghazaleh finds that the best method for regaining her artistic imagination is time spent offline: “I tend to go on holidays and recharge or long daily walks in nature or near waters, something that connects me with myself again.” Emphasising that she tries to “stay away from comparing myself to others online because it can be toxic for yourself and your journey.”
Ghazaleh’s inspiration for her sets can be found “everywhere”. Some prominent muses of hers are found amongst “fashion, textiles, paintings, interiors, nature, jewellery, photography, architecture”. Detailing her design process, Ghazaleh explained, “I might start with a colour combo, texture, or one tiny detail rather than an entire finished design in my head.” Though later added that, “maximalism doesn’t mean throwing everything together randomly. My work has a lot of thought process behind it, I created a framework for it specifically to help other nail techs create cohesive freestyle sets 1. shape, 2. colour, 3. placement, 4. design and 5. Cohesion.”
“Florals are probably the thing people associate most strongly with my work. I love flowers especially when they feel less like traditional acrylic nail-art flowers and more like illustrations/painting inspired. Some of my favourite themes I’ve done have involved florals, lace, impressionistic style painting, and very layered maximalist sets. I love when nails don’t necessarily match but together they all make sense.”
As a young creative founder, Ghazaleh has plans to grow in her career as a nail artist whilst also branching LEHNAILZ out into multi-faceted creative brand, “Long term I would love to see LEHNAILZ to be more involved in editorial work, celebrity nails, campaigns, brand collaborations, creative direction and opportunities where I’m hired specifically because of my visual identity. I’m also becoming much more interested in documenting what it’s actually like being a young creative founder- including the uncertainty, changing your mind, burnout, ambition, success, not always feeling the way you imagined it would.”