This spring, Instagram has been awash with the prettiest of nail trends - and we're totally in love. From lipgloss nails and glazed donut nails (both beloved by Hailey Bieber) to logo nails and tortoise shell nails - there's something for all. The latest look we're obsessing over? The oh-so sophisticated, soft pastel manicure currently taking social media by storm. We’ve seen a multitude of variations from candy tips on a bare base to gradient manis donning lilac, lemon and baby blue tones. The best part? They can be recreated with both BIAB nails and acrylic nails.
‘Pastels are the perfect pantone for the spring/summer season,’ says session manicurist, Michelle Humphrey, ‘as the sun starts to shine, we all want to brighten up a little.’ And what better way to brighten up your look than with an array of ice-cream coloured nails.
If you want to make things a little more interesting (and a little fiddlier) follow Michelle’s tips to create some beautiful pastel nail art suited to Easter and beyond…
1. Pastel gradient manicure
‘For an easy nail art option, try a pastel gradient mani,’ suggests Humphrey. ‘This is where each nail is a different pastel shade – choose between five and ten.’
2. Pastel ombre manicure
‘Pastel ombre can be created really easily using a make-up sponge. Apply a base coat, allow to dry thoroughly, then sponge on your chosen shade up to 1/3 of the nail. Clean up any polish from the skin using a Q-tip.’
Top trick? ‘Always layer colours with stronger pigments over the top - you can figure out whether a colour is well pigmented by testing it; if it goes on thin and streaky use it as a base colour instead.’
3. Patel French tip manicure
‘I love a pastel French or Reverse French manicure - It's so youthful and fresh. Begin with your basic nail prep and apply a base coat. Once that's dried pop on a base colour, try a nude or a sheer pink like Essie Mademoiselle, £7.99.’
‘Next, for a French tipyou want to use the edge of your brush to taper the polish into the centre of the nail, do this on the opposite side to meet in the middle.’
‘If you prefer a reverse French I would advise using a fine nail art brush. Although it looks simple, it's a bit more complex than a regular French and you're more likely to get product on the cuticle. Paint your outline following the cuticle and then fill in.’
Take inspiration from our gallery below of pastel nail art...
And don't forget to take your nail shape into consideration too - from round, to square to coffin and everything in between - there's so much creative more fun to be had!