Basildon artist creates nails for Cynthia Erivo in Wicked


The talented nail artist Shea Osei recently expressed her emotions after watching the Wicked movie. The 33-year-old Basildon resident who has built a reputation for herself as a celebrity nail technician, cried after viewing her work on screen. Osei was contacted by Cynthia Erivo, who plays Elphaba in the 2021 movie, to create nail designs for her character. Osei also made sure that Erivo’s nails were perfect on the green carpet when London’s Southbank turned into the Emerald City for the premiere.

Osei, who worked closely with Erivo, has known the actress for over a decade. She began learning how to do nails when she was only 14, before pursuing it as a career at the age of 18. With her talents, Osei has acquired a celebrity client base, including Candice Brathwaite and Maya Jama. She had previously worked on Cynthia Erivo’s nails for Netflix’s Luther: The Fallen Sun.

Osei created more than 35 sets of press-on nails, ensuring that they were all similar in style, color, shape, and design. Each set of nails took around 90 minutes to make. The movie’s nail designs underwent several transformation stages. When Elphaba was shy and timid, she had subtle green ombre nails, while when she becomes more confident in who she is, and more daring, the nail designs are also daring.

More than just decoration, Osei reveals that they wanted the nails to be part of the movie, incorporated into the storytelling. As the actress interacted with the broom and put on her hat, her nails had to match and sparkle on camera. Unquestionably, Osei’s talents shone on the bright screen. She has received an outpouring of love and recognition globally, revealing that a lot more attention had been given to the nails than expected. Osei hopes her success will give hope to other beauticians and nail technicians, and she encourages them to keep pushing towards their goals.

Without a doubt, Osei’s immense talents and hard work contributed to the success of Wicked, and she should be immensely proud of her contribution

Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More