MF_NAILS26 the nail artist of mercy high school

Sophomore Mary Flanagan has a talent. Inspired by the intricate designs, vibrant colors, and complex styles of nail art on Pinterest, Mary started doing her own nails in 7th grade. Since Mary came to Mercy and displayed her nail art weekly, she has gained attention from the Mercy community. Now, other girls are requesting that Mary do their nails for Prom, birthdays, holidays, and other special occasions.

Sophomore Mary Flanagan -- the renowned nail artist of Mercy High School.

This is just one of the many examples of Mary's art. She often dedicates two hours of her Sunday to carefully painting every detail and making her nails look like the photos she finds on Pinterest. For her, it's a fun and creative way to relax.

Grace Denning proudly shows off Mary's design.

A few weeks ago, Mary did Senior Grace Denning's nails. After Grace showed her a Pinterest photo of white nails with orange stars, Mary gathered her supplies to do them after school. "Mary is so talented!" Grace shared. "I love being able to support people following their passions, especially ones who I am close with."

Mary says her purple butterfly design as one of the hardest nails art she has ever done. The intricate placement and dexterity it takes to draw the lines and dots is truly a talent. She shared that sometimes when the nail art goes wrong, it can be frustrating, "but [she] stays patient and starts over." The end result is always beautiful!

For her birthday, Freshman GeGe Hoge wanted pink nails, specifically painted by Mary. "Mary was so time efficient when doing them!" GeGe commented. She shared that birthday nails lasted for three weeks, and she got compliments on them daily.

Sophomore Jillian Wallich asked Mary to do Christmas-themed nails for the holidays. "They were the best nails I've ever had," Jillian commented. She expressed her amazement that Mary was able to draw so much detail on such a tiny space. "She is truly talented at doing nails!"

Mary loves to do other girl's nails, as it makes her happy and proud for her friends to wear fun, colorful nails. Her nail business is growing within Mercy's community, and she is always willing to do other's nails. Search mf_nails26 on Instagram to find more photos of her nail art!

For more photo essays like this, visit TeaTime at mercymonarchs.org.