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RIYADH: Japanese nail artist Hikaru Morishita is bringing her intricate nail designs inspired by anime and K-pop to Riyadh later this month. 

Based in the UAE, Morishita will kickstart her 2025 Gulf tour with a stop in ����ֱ��’s capital from Jan. 23 to 25.

She is serving a new and loyal Saudi clientele who are fascinated by her eccentric creations. 

The self-taught nail artist told Arab News the story of her humble beginnings in 2019.

Morishita said she was left uninspired by the designs for nails in the industry at the time and decided to move in her own direction. 

She quickly earned recognition: “People started asking me a lot about nails, and I told myself maybe this is the thing that I should pursue.” 

She added: “Then I took my first client; she’s a girl that lived in the same apartment building that I used to live in … I spent five hours doing medium-length extensions.

“When I completed it (and) after she left my room, I had this joy that came from inside of me, and I screamed from joy … That is the kind of sensation I have never experienced, and I want to experience it over and over. It felt legitimate.” 

For three years, she balanced the life of a nail technician with a job as a secretary at a corporate firm. And in 2022 she began her first international nail tour, landing first in Riyadh. 

Today, she works as a fulltime nail artist and owns two businesses: TAMAMONO, a fine jewelry brand, and Chapa, a merchandise store for a penguin character she designed.

When Morishita begins filing and carving her transcendent nail designs, she enters a world of colorful self-expression, with the aim to instill a sense of confidence in her clients.

“What I really love about the way I do nails for my girls is not about me doing my favorite design on them, but I always try to make sure that I somehow recreate her innate personality into the design — like what she’s hiding and what is still sleeping inside of her.

“I try to make it shown on her nails, and when my girls see that, they say wow and have so much power.”

Morishita said she draws inspiration from “all the best nail techniques from each region worldwide” to create her self-coined style called “Universe No. 1 Almighty Nailz.” 

She combines techniques from Russia artists, known for their detailed cuticle work, and Kawaii (Japanese) and Gyaru (Korean) charm nail designs, inspired by cartoon characters and gaudy embellishments. 

Morishita is best known for specializing in the “encapsulation” method, a technique of painting nails that layers colors and holograms to create a “5D glassy crystal” look. Many of her designs are handcrafted in stiletto. 

She prides herself on creating durable acrylic nails that last up to two months, given the labor and hefty price tag starting at SR1,100 ($293). 

Morishita has created detailed dimensional designs inspired by popular Japanese anime including “Death Note” and “Demon Slayer,” as well as a bold nail set inspired by “Arcane,” a steampunk TV series.

Morishita has visited the Kingdom over 20 times and completed more than 115 tours to 13 countries. 

“This is why I keep traveling and keep going no matter what, because I feel like this energy is just so rare, and we just make everything happen just by doing their nails.”