Water marble nails is the pretty mani trend that Margot Robbie is loving

In amongst the minimalist manis that have dominated fingertips recently, there's a more maximalist design currently vying for attention. Water marble nails aren't exactly new, but the psychedelic print has just been given the seal of approval from Margot Robbie, while she completes the global circuit on her Barbie movie tour.

We spotted the mani details on the Instagram of Margot's nail artist, Betina Goldstein. Tying in with the mishmash print of Margot's mini dress (based on the 1992 "Totally Hair" Barbie, despite the sixties-inspired outfit), Betina brought a colour clash to Margot's nails with a pretty marbled design.

It's a shift from the Barbie pink Frenchie that Margot wore for her lap of Sydney and it's a departure from the simpler designs that have hogged the spotlight lately (we see you: glazed donut nails and lipgloss mani). Instead, it's bringing a little bit of artwork to your outfit.

When you consider your nails to be little dinky canvases, it makes sense to apply some of the basic elements of art into our manicures. But, despite water marble nails looking like they could have been dreamed up by Vincent Van Gogh, they're actually easier to achieve than you might think.

Posting a follow-up video to her grid, Betina told fans: “Here it is, the tutorial on how I created Margot Robbie's nails for @barbiethemovie press in Mexico City, inspired by Totally Hair Barbie.” In it, Betina showed a cup of clear water before adding nail shades featured in Margot's dress.

She dropped a bead of orchid purple into the water and let the shade seep outward before dropping a lilac into the centre, followed by cream, white, rose and coral. She swirled the shades together with a tiny detail brush. Once ready with a pattern she was happy with, she placed Margot's nail in on top to pick the pattern up (you've only got one shot, since double dips don't work). Then she cleaned up the edges and set the design with a top coat.

It's not the first time Betina has called on the shade to add interest to fingertips. She previously shared a yellow and blue rendition that has autumn written all over it.

The mani combines the intricacy of luxe, swirled marble with the softness of watercolour. And, each individual nail is interpreted with different ripples to give it a truly unique finish. Impressive, right?

We've seen this trick done with a few different shades. You can go for opposing colours like yellow and blue for high contrast, or stick to several gradients of the same shade, like Melanie at Overglow Edit, who chose lilacs and white for a more subtle take on the trend.

If you're struggling with water marble nails, nail pro Michelle Humphries has an alternative. Paint three stripes of clear polish onto a palette or old dish, add three stripes of your first polish colour in between, then a second shade in the space left and a third shade on top. Using a cocktail stick, swirl the colours together. Add a topcoat of clear polish to your naked nail, then while it's still tacky, take an old eyeshadow brush and scoop the marbled pattern onto your brush. Apply it to the wet top coat and allow it to blend. Once touch dry, add a top coat and you're done.

Not a bad trick for mani novices, eh? So, if you want to jump on the water marble nail trend, at least this is one you can diy at home because the inconsistency is exactly the point, and each design will be totally unique.

For more from GLAMOUR's Beauty Editor, Elle Turner follow her on Instagram @elleturneruk.