Whether you have a standing appointment at your nail salon or at the top of your home manicure game, doing your nails has become synonymous with self-care and self-expression. There’s something about having a fresh manicure that can make you feel put-together and ready for anything—especially when a major holiday is on the horizon. By drawing inspiration from our favorite celebrity manicurists and nail artists, we’re getting ahead of the curve, and starting to plan our Christmas-inspired manicures long before we’ll be dashing off to winter festivities. But, when faced with a slew of Instagram-ready manis to choose from, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed.
Below, we’re sharing 20 elegant and timeless nail designs that us nail-obsessed beauty editors have been saving ever since the temperature began to take a dip in hopes of recreating them ASAP. We’ve found a number of copy-worthy looks: from frosted snowflake designs to on-trend chrome manicures that are versatile enough to wear long after party season has passed.
The Best Christmas-Inspired Nail Designs
1. The Holy and the Ivy
How charming are these wintery wreath nails created by nail artist Iram Shelton? She started with Essie’s Fairy Tailor for the perfect sheer, nude pink and created the holy and ivy design using the shades Invest in Style, First Fitting, and Paint the Gown Red.
2. Diamond Nail Crowns
If you’re ready to try elevating your “basic” french manicure for all your chicest holiday festivities, take notes from celebrity manicurist Betina Goldstein and opt for placing a thing line of silver gems on the tip of the nails rather than a white tip.
3. Shattered Metal and Emeralds
Emerald green will always be in for the holidays, so we love finding new and creative ways to incorporate it into our nail looks. Here, Goldstein models a manicure featuring a shattered design with differently sized emerald-colored nail stickers placed in the empty space.
4. A Big Bow
One of the things we love the most about minimalistic coquette nail designs is how easily they can transition from one season to the next. Celebrity nail artist Holly Falcone’s take on the trend comes in the form of a sweeping black ribbon that stretches across the nails.
5. Christmas Lights
Colorful, swooping nail designs like this Christmas light manicure are at the top of our list for looks we’re itching to try. To recreate, start with a milky white base shade, use an ultra-thin nail brush to create the pattern of the string lights, then finish with your nail gems.
6. Mixed Metals
If you can’t decide on if you should go silver or gold for your next metal-toned manicure, why not try both by wearing this fun twist on a classic french manicure? Start by using a gold chrome shade as the base color and carefully draw a thin line with gold polish for your french tip.
7. Crimson Ombre
Here’s proof how much more festive ombre nails can be with a touch of sparkle. Imarni Nails created this elegant manicure using Bio Sculpture Gel’s Sweet Candy Breath with soft gel base and red glitter encapsulated with contour to get the gorgeous light-catching effect.
8. The Brushstroke
Celebrity manicurist and founder of Nails of L.A. Brittney Boyce used three CND Shellac shades to create this elegant brushstroke manicure with flecks of gold foil. It’s the ideal nail look for Christmas, but would also be perfect for a New Years celebration.
9. Bejeweled Baubles
You can trim the tree with your favorite baubles, so it should be no surprise that baubles look just as good on your nails. The stylish nail design above features a milky pink base, three small gem nail stickers for the baubles, and a thin line of chrome silver nail polish at the tops of them.
10. Midas French
Another updated french nail design we’re loving for Christmas is this nail design featuring gold tips using CND gel polish by Goldstein. The barely-there base lets the gold tips shine; drawing eyes directly to the delicate detail and earning you nonstop compliments all season long.
11. O Christmas Tree
Here’s a sophisticated way to wear a Christmas tree-inspired nail design without having to commit to shades of green. The classic nail design uses gold and black to form the tree and features white ornaments (that can be created with the small tip of a dotting tool), against a nude background.
12. Red Velvet
Take this as your sign not to put away your velvet nail polish shades once fall ends. Celebrity nail artist Queenie Nguyen created this manicure with berry-red crimson and gold reverse french nails and a stunning burnt orange marbled nail design.
13. Sparkling Starburst
Short, square nails are the secret to making any manicure look expensive. Consider adding a pretty holiday-inspired starburst design to take your winter manicure to the next level. Nail artist Hang Nguyen shows us how it’s done using polish from the vegan and cruelty-free brand Moon Cat.
14. Shimmering Gold
These shimmering gold nails created and modeled by Goldstein are reminiscent of the tinsel so many of us place on our trees. All holiday coded manicures looks more glamorous when the nails are decorated with some tasteful sparkle and shine to catch the light.
15. Chrome Tips
Chrome has been trending for the past couple of years, and we fully expect it to stick around through the new year. We love how clean and on-trend this french manicure with chrome tips looks year-round, but will be wearing it non-stop throughout the holidays.
16. Simple Snowflakes
We’ll never get tired of seeing this classic nail design in all its forms, but are especially fond of how effortlessly elegant this minimalistic manicure by Shelton looks. To get a similar look, use a soft pink shade for the base and create unique snowflake designs with white polish and a brush.
17. Green Love Heart Tips
The next time you take a trip to the nail salon, consider adding a winter green shade to a classic french manicure in eye-catching designs like these forest green heart-shaped tips Imarni Nails created for singer Paloma Faith. The vibrant color used here is The Gel Bottle Inc’s’ Ivy.
18. Frosted Details
If you’ve been loving the frosty makeup trend that’s been dominating TikTok over the past few months, it’s time to give this delicate, frosty manicure a try. Select the right shade of silver, and you’ll be all set! Clearly, Frosty the Snowman had the right idea.
19. Minimalistic Ornaments
Breaking out the ornaments from your seasonal bins comes with the promise of glitz and glamor for the tree, but what about your manicure? Nguyen shows how adding a sparkly circle to the nail can bring on the holiday cheer by resembling your tree’s most precious accessories.
20. Gold Foiled Art
While this doesn’t lean into more traditional Christmas imagery and themes, this manicure stands out because of how chic its gold foiled design will look during the most magical time of the year. If you’re not handy with gold foil, there’s many nail stickers that create the same finish.
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Source: WhoWhatWear
