After dominating the 80s and 90s, the French manicure fell out of fashion sometime after the dawn of the new millennium. The classic design – nude nails with bright white tips – was too fussy for the noughties, and short nails in block colors became the norm. As with so many other 90s fashion and beauty trends, French tips are back – but not like before.
This time around, we’re seeing extra-long tips with different color and artistic variations. Celebrities have been especially keen to embrace the trend, with everyone from the Kim Kardashian to Beyoncé showing off their French tips on Instagram. Want to try them out? Whether you’re a dab hand with a nail art brush or looking for inspiration to show your manicurist, here are five (cool) celebrity takes on the French manicure.
Squilettos
Bella Hadid chose a French mani for a recent holiday to Mykonos, showing off her ‘squilletto’ (a.k.a. square-stiletto) shaped nails. The color combination is classic – nude and white – but the model’s tips are chevron-shaped, with an extra stroke of polish on one side, which helps soften the overall look.
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French Drip
Kylie Jenner called this look ‘French drip’. It combines a quartz-pink base color with super-long neon pink tips. Practical they are not, but these nails are ultra-glam – we think the design might have been inspired by the makeup mogul’s famous ‘Lip Kit’ logo.
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Dark Tips
Nail tech to the stars Tom Bachik has been experimenting with the French mani look on his A-list clientele, which includes Kim Kardashian, Jennifer Lopez, and Selena Gomez. He created this edgy design for Gomez, taking the usual nude base and adding fine black tips, proving you don’t need long nails to make a French mani work.
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Ombré Tips
Another example from Kylie Jenner, this multicolored look is half pink, half blue – and totally cool. Instead of block tips, the reality star opted for an ombré effect, but don’t try to replicate this at home. This look is best left to the nail pros.
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Extra-Long Tips
When Kim Kardashian chose a 90s-inspired dress and makeup for 2018’s Met Gala, Bachik was on hand to create a complementary nail look. He used Orly polish to paint the extra-long nails in a classic nude, with white tips, taking the French mani look to the extreme.
