- Beauty
- Nails
ByJasmine Harding
Marina Migukova/Getty Images
When December rolls around (or November, if we're being honest with ourselves), Christmas lovers are more than ready to break out the holiday nails. While some people prefer a more minimalist holiday manicure, serious Christmas fans might desire a bolder look. Adorned with candy canes, Santa hats, reindeer, snowflakes, stockings, and more, our roundup of delightful Christmas manicure ideas doesn't just whisper "festive" — it screams it.
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Minimalist nail designs are always in style, but the holidays are an excuse to have more fun. Even if you're a simple manicure fan at other times of the year, kitschy Christmas nails are just too cheerful to pass up, and you don't have to go to the salon to achieve them, either. We've rounded up a range of nail art ideas, from subtler designs that build on a basic French tip to bright, sparkly, and colorful looks that offer something unique and new —all so you can usher in the holiday season with the most festive spirit.
Candy cane French tips
Simple but striking, this candy cane French tip manicure takes a classic nail look — the French mani — and puts a Christmas twist on it. There's a way to make this nail look subtle, with muted reds or pinks, but if you want to go bright, opt for a vivid red with a shiny chrome effect. A sparkly topcoat seals the deal: These are endlessly fun Christmas nails, not boring ones!
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Candy canes and gingerbread man
Another play on a French manicure, this nail look also includes a candy cane French tip but adds more to the design. A French manicure (candy cane-inspired or not) is a great base for adding Christmas characters and other decals. If you want to tone down the look a bit, alternate candy cane nails with other designs. You can even opt for a plainer French manicure on nails where you have a larger design, like a little gingerbread character.
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Winter gifts
Soft, falling snow, warm tea, cozy evenings, and Christmas: Winter brings us many gifts each year. Combine these themes in a nail look by incorporating snowflakes and bows. To do this, start by painting a white or icy blue base to capture the wintery feel. When it comes to the bow accents and other designs, cool-toned hues give this manicure an ice princess vibe, or you can choose warmer tones to make it feel cozier.
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Mini metallics
There are so many items associated with Christmas that it can be hard to narrow down your favorites to include in a festive manicure design, but if you or your nail tech are talented with a nail art brush, there's no need to choose! Pick your favorite holiday motifs and draw mini versions on your nails. It might be too much work to paint them on every nail, so just choose a nail or two, and then select a festive color for the rest. Painting the decals in metallic colors makes your nails feel all the more festive.
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Gingerbread house
Sweet and fragrant, iced gingerbread is a Christmas staple, whether it's for constructing a gingerbread house or making the gingerbread people that live inside. Take this inspiration to your nails by choosing a gingerbread-colored nail polish and then painting on drips of oozing frosting. When done well, these nails look good enough to eat.
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Deep green and holly wreaths
Deep emerald green is a stunning Christmas color that looks gorgeous on absolutely everyone. If you want an elegant but striking festive manicure, go for this eye-catching hue. A green mani might be enough for some people when it comes to a Christmas manicure, but if you want to dress it up even more, holly wreath designs work beautifully with this vivid shade. Make sure to adorn the wreath with a red bow to add a perfect pop of color.
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Wrapped in a bow
You can incorporate ribbons and bows into your nail looks year-round, but it makes the most sense around the gift-giving season. Little bows are the perfect adornment for minimalist but bold nails, so they're also perfectly trendy. Put them on a colorful background to make them even more vivid, or choose a French manicure to keep them classy. Of course, bright red bows are the shade to choose for a festive nail look.
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Mid-century ornaments
Vintage Christmas tree ornaments have an old-school charm to them that's hard for modern ornaments to capture. As such, if vintage ornaments have your heart, paint some on your nails. The color palette is very important here: For mid-century ornaments, a warm palette with sage greens, terracotta reds, and salmon pink is a good choice.
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Abstract Christmas tree
This Christmas tree nail look leans minimalist, but it's too good to pass up. We like that it's simple enough to recreate at home with a nail brush (which isn't the case for more detailed tree manicures). To make it clear it's a Christmas look, choose traditional colors like red or green for the base. Then, paint the swirly abstract Christmas tree in green. You can also dot some ornaments onto it to make it more festive.
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Peppermint swirls
Want to incorporate the red and white candy cane pattern, but in a different shape? Peppermint candy swirls are the answer. They're obviously festive, with the bright red color, but it strays from the usual candy canes. You can draw them on all your nails to create a hypnotic look — the swirls draw your eyes in. Or if that feels like too much, just paint them on your two middle nails on a plain base. A matte finish can make these nails look absolutely luxurious.
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Rudolph nails
Who hasn't heard of Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer? Such an iconic Christmas character deserves to have nail looks inspired by him. You can draw Rudolph as small or as large as you like on your nails; little reindeer feel more dainty, while a big Rudolph that takes up a whole nail is easier to see from afar. This simply comes down to personal preference. Then, a little Christmas hat can make everyone'sfavorite reindeer even more festive.
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Pink Christmas
We're Barbie babes in a post-"Barbie" world, so it's chicer than ever to have pink everything (not that pink is ever really out of style). So, have a Barbiecore Christmas with sparkly, rosy nails. To get a similar look, think of typical Christmas manicure decals, like bows, Santa hats, and candy cane swirls. Then, instead of a traditional red, use a sparkly pink polish for the designs. The glitter gives it an extra festive feel, but plain pink works, too.
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Elegant snowflakes
Well-painted, intricate snowflakes always look beautiful, especially on your nails. There are many ways to take a snowflake design, but for an extra elegant spin, draw small snowflakes in the middle of a French manicure. Bright red French tips make this nail look more Christmas-themed rather than just wintery. A little pearl at the base makes them scream "luxurious Christmas."
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Festive motifs
This is another manicure idea that incorporates Christmas motifs like gingerbread men, candies, and Christmas lights. With each nail a different color and the Christmas images painted big and bold, this is a more obvious festive look. Draw the little Christmas designs on the edges of your nails for a more casual, caught-in-the-moment feel, or you can position them front and center if you want them to steal the show.
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Candy cane lane
Red and white are both classic nail colors, and this combination just makes perfect sense for the festive season. Create a design that feels like wandering past a candy cane lane by incorporating candy canes and peppermint lollies on one nail. You can adorn all your nails with this imagery or just keep it to a nail or two. If you choose to go with the latter, finish the rest of your nails with a red French manicure topped with a glittery white top coat.
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Garland French tips
If you're looking for a subtler Christmas manicure that's still completely eye-catching, these garland French tips are a beautiful choice. They're very classy rather than cutesy or kitschy, but the bright pop of the red bow on a natural nail makes them attention-grabbing. Their placement — right where you expect a French tip to end — gives this nail look the appearance of a French manicure but in a much more creative way.
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A Santa hat
Another simple but eye-catching look, a Santa hat isan easy way to up your Christmas nail game. Red French tips are always gorgeous in our books; while they give a femme fatale vibe throughout the rest of the year, use white nail polish and a dotting tool to make a fluffy Santa hat to help them stand out around the holidays.
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Golden ornaments
If red and green aren't your favorite shades, that's totally fine — metallics also fit right in with the holiday season. Gold or silver nails feel celebratory, so they're great for both Christmas and New Year's Eve nails if you don't want to change your design between the two holidays. Draw Christmas images in metallic colors to make a festive manicure that also won't look out of place for New Year's celebrations. Of course, it doesn't hurt to add a glittery topcoat for the perfect short nail design.
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Deep red nails
Deep, rich red nails are stunning, and this is especially the case for scarlet manis. Dark red nails already feel festive in their own right, but there are ways to dress them up even more. Red reminds us of the bows on presents, so use that as inspiration for a nail or two, drawing on a big red bow. Add a pearl to the bow's knot to bring some elegance to an otherwise understated look.
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Festive mix-and-match manicures
Adorn long nails with a range of festive bits and bobs. This type of manicure looks great on fake nails because it gives you space to get creative with your drawings. There are so many decals to choose from, but we particularly love candy canes (of course), bows, gingerbread men, and snowflakes. Set aside one nail for a big highlight such as a Christmas tree.
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Jewel tones
Jewel tones are plain gorgeous, and if you choose the right mix of hues, they can really resemble Christmas. After all, shades like deep red, burgundy, and dark green are all associated with the holidays. To give your manicure a bit more of a holiday sparkle, choose a glittery nail polish.
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North Pole stripes
Heading to the North Pole? You might come across a sign held up with a red-and-white swirled post that looks a lot like a candy cane. To get a similar look, draw red and white strips with a bit of a curve so that they look like they're wrapping around a pole rather than looking like regular stripes. Add a snowflake or two to really set the scene.
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Holly details
If you love floral nails, you might be looking for a plant-inspired Christmas manicure. Little holly details are a cute choice if you want the floral look but in an unmistakably festive way. To visually anchor them on the nail, draw the three holly berries in a corner of your nail with their leaves pointing inwards. You can opt for this design on all nails, as it's simple and doesn't veer into overwhelming territory — especially on a natural base. Or, you can choose two accent holly nails and paint the rest in a red berry shade.
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Christmas plaid
Cozy plaid patterns are typically associated with winter, so why not add this festive pattern to your manicure for a preppy look? They may even match your favorite wintertime pajamas. When doing this manicure, the color scheme matters: Choose dark red or green to make it a Christmassy plaid pattern rather than a traditional schoolgirl one.
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Red and gold
This manicure is a more minimalist option, but it still deserves a worthy spot on our list. It takes festive colors (deep red and shimmery gold) to create a simple, swirled pattern that reminds us of the bow on top of a present. Paired with a neutral base, the red and gold really shine.
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Sparkles and snowflakes
Few sights are more mesmerizing than a fresh layer of snow sparkling and gleaming in the light. Capture this essence with sparkly white or silver nails, and throw some snowflake details in the mix as some cherries on top. Choose an opaque shimmer polish for the sparkly accent nail, and draw the snowflakes on a separate nail (they won't show up nicely on a sparkly base). You can stick to a couple of colors or add a third Christmas color in the mix, like dark green.
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Santa's sleigh
Slay your holiday nails with a little drawing of Santa's sleigh. This is an adorable accent nail design for your fourth nail, and you can even continue it to other nails by adding a few reindeer. Keep the rest of the nails plain so they don't overwhelm the manicure. This mani looks all the more cozy when paired with plaid French tips.
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Christmas doodles
If the other nail looks on this list feel a bit too colorful or eccentric, draw some simpler Christmas doodles on your nails using a neutral color. To do this, capture the season's festive atmosphere with festive colors like red, green, and icy blue as the base, and then draw holiday doodles with white, silver, or gold nail polish.
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Red and white Christmas
There are so many ways to use Santa's color palette in a Christmas manicure. Candy canes and peppermints are common, but there are other options if candy-themed nails aren't your style. Alternate white and red and white details for a subtler Christmas look, with designs like stripes, snowflakes, solid nails, and, of course, a red French tip.
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