Halloween is one of those holidays where you just have to have cute nails. And the best designs come around this time of year. With candy corn, ghosts, and jack o’ lanterns around every corner, you just can’t help falling into the festive spirit.
Halloween nail art can be as simple or as elaborate as you choose to make it. Here is a list of 10 DIY fast and easy Halloween nail art ideas you’ll soon be dying to try. Each of these designs will work well with traditional nail lacquer, gel nails, or acrylic nails.
1. Black Glitter Nails
Black glitter nails are a staple in October. They are one of the easiest yet most glam types of Halloween nails you will rock this year. This gothic-chic nail style is easy to create with regular nail polish, gel polish, or acrylic nails. For a basic manicure, gather a base coat, topcoat, black nail polish, nail glitter of your choice or a glitter topcoat.
- Apply a top coat to each nail and allow it to dry thoroughly.
- Paint a deep black or black matte polish over the entire nail in one to two coats and allow it to dry.
- Use silver, red, or purple nail glitter to the top of the nail.
- Brush the glitter by feathering it toward the middle of the nail. You can also use a glitter topcoat for this step instead.
- Top the nails with a glossy top coat for a spine-tingling final touch.
2. White Dotted Nails
Full moon beware, there’s a new white orb in town! Create white dots on solid neon orange, purple, or another spooky color for a mellow vibe.
You’ll need a base coat, top coat, festive colored nail polish of your choice, white striping polish.
- Apply the top coat to each nail and allow it to dry thoroughly.
- Nails can be the same or different colors. Paint each nail in two coats of the solid color of your choice. Allow the nails to dry.
- Apply white dots all over each nail or place dots just the tips of the nails to create a faux French manicure. You can also strategically place just two white dots in the center of each nail to create “eyeballs.” Fill each white dot with a smaller black dot to complete the googly-eyed look.
- Top with a glossy top coat for the final touch.
- Optional: Add different Halloween colored dots instead of only white.
3. Green Slime Nails
Your friends will be green with envy for this sick design. Slime green is the color of Halloween monsters such as Frankenstein and glow-in-the-dark spider webs. Add this classic Halloween color for a splattered look. Gather a basecoat, topcoat, slime green nail polish, Halloween polish color of your choice, plastic straw, liquid nail tape, or latex nail polish barrier
- Apply the top coat to each nail and allow it to dry thoroughly.
- Paint the nails all over in the nail polish color of your choice. We like metallic purple, black, or orange. Save your green polish for later.
- While the paint is drying, apply a coat of latex barrier around each fingernail.
- When the paint is dry, dip a straw into the green slime nail polish and then blow it over each nail to create a green splatter drip design.
- Peel the latex barrier away from the nails.
- Apply a glossy top coat to complete your design.
4. White and Black Stripe Nails
There’s nothing more wicked than white and black Halloween striped Beetlejuice nails. These colors define the holiday, no doubt. Spiders, skulls, and coffins all bring to mind these basic shades. There are a few ways to do this. You’ll need a basecoat, topcoat, black striping polish, white striping polish.
- Apply the base coat to each nail and allow it to dry thoroughly.
- With white striping polish, draw lines with equal thickness and distance across each nail.
- Repeat this process, painting in between the white lines with the black striping polish.
- Allow the nails to dry.
- Follow with a glossy top coat.
Gel Polish Method
- Apply the gel base coat and cure under the UV or LED light until dry.
- Paint nails with white gel polish and cure until dry. A dryer inhibition layer is easier to work with when using multiple gel colors. Do not mix and match brands if possible. Stick with V Beauty Pure gel polish to avoid shade bleeding and inhibition layer incompatibility.
- Apply black gel to a striper and pull gel lines from the center to the tip of the nail, building as you go.
- Continue to paint black gel lines with the thin brush across each nail until you have created your pattern.
- Top with the clear gel top coat and cure until dry.
Striping Tape Method
Stripes can also be created using striping tape. This method will be more time-consuming, so be patient, but the lines will end up crisp and clean.
- Apply a base coat to each nail and allow it to dry thoroughly.
- Paint one or two coats of white polish to each nail, allowing each coat to dry.
- Apply a second layer of topcoat and allow it to dry completely over the white polish.
- Apply striping tape to the nails in vertical lines, making sure to smooth the tape down completely to avoid the colors from bleeding. Make sure there are no gaps between the striping tape and the nail. Do not apply tape to wet nails.
- After the tape is applied, paint each nail in black nail polish.
- Remove the striping tape carefully after you paint each nail. Work very quickly before the black polish has time to begin to dry.
- Finish with a glossy or matte top coat.
5. Bloody Scratch Nails
Nothing screams Halloween horror more than the sight of blood. This nightmare of a mani will leave you screaming! It is super easy, and you’ll need:
- Basecoat
- Topcoat
- White nail polish
- Red nail polish
- Paper towel
- Apply a base coat to each nail and allow it to dry thoroughly.
- Paint each nail in two coats of white nail polish.
- Grab a blood-red colored nail polish and wipe its brush onto a paper towel a few times to remove the excess polish.
- Lightly drag the brush over each nail for a “bloody scratched” look. You can also add tiny drips of the red paint to make “blood drips.”
- Finish with a glossy or matte topcoat.
6. Classic Pumpkin Orange Nails
Orange is the color of fall, so it’s only natural that you’d want an orange manicure. This style is versatile for the season and can be worn from October through November. It’s a Halloween classic. Gather a base coat, topcoat, orange nail polish, and a glitter topcoat.
- Apply a base coat to each nail and allow it to dry thoroughly.
- Paint two coats of your favorite orange hue over each nail and allow it to dry.
- Apply the topcoat in a glossy, matte, or glitter finish.
This mani also looks great in an orange ombre effect, perfect for an added little treat to this nail creation.
7. Black Bow Nails
Treat yourself to a sweet black bow nail set. This design is much more straightforward to create than it may seem. You can bling this design up with rhinestones, too!
You’ll need:
- Basecoat
- Topcoat
- White nail polish
- Black striping tape
- Optional alternate striping polish color and small rhinestones
- Apply a top coat to each nail and allow the nails to dry thoroughly.
- Paint each nail in the Halloween color of your choice (we chose white) and allow it to dry.
- Begin creating the bow by painting a small black square on top of the nail with a striping polish. Fill the square in with black paint. Then, carefully draw the bow out from the square, one line at a time.
- Fill the sides of the bow in with the black striping polish and allow it to dry completely.
- Complete with a top coat and allow it to dry.
8. French Manicure Stitches
Create black stitches on top of a classic French manicure. This set makes a simple statement without saying a word. Gather a basecoat, topcoat, white and green nail polish, black striping polish.
- Apply a base coat to each nail and allow it to dry thoroughly.
- Paint each nail in the base color of your choice (we chose white).
- Create your French manicure by painting the tips of the nails in purple, green, or orange polish.
- Using black striping paint, carefully draw a black line where the French tip color and the white polish meet. Then, with the same black color, paint lines straight up and down across the diving line you just drew.
- Finish with a glossy top coat.
9. Glittery Spider Nails
The cobwebs will dance, and the werewolves will sing when your digits are covered in glittery spider nail art. Place your nail stickers aside because this design is easy to do on your own.
You’ll need:
- Base Coat
- Topcoat
- Purple nail polish
- Black striping polish
- Glitter topcoat
- Apply the base coat to each nail and allow it to dry completely.
- Paint each nail in two coats of purple nail polish, allowing each coat to dry before applying the next.
- Paint tiny black spiders on each nail by drawing a solid circle with three lines on each side of the circle. The black striping polish will make it easy for you to draw precise lines.
- Allow the spiders to dry before applying the topcoat.
- Apply the glitter top coat and allow it to dry.
10. Black Cat Nail Art
You’ll be the hit of the Monster Mash with black cat nails. These are easy to do at home. These are the supplies you’ll need:
- Basecoat
- Topcoat
- Orange nail polish
- Black striping polish
- Neon green striping polish
- Apply a base coat to all of the nails and allow them to dry thoroughly.
- Paint each nail with two coats of orange polish. Allow it to dry.
- Draw black cats by using your black striping polish. Draw a half-moon at the end of the nail and fill it in with the black polish.
- Create little cat ears, one on each side of the half-moon. You can do this by painting mini triangles.
- Create the eyes by painting two solid circles with a green striping polish.
- Place a tiny dot of black polish inside each of the green circles to complete the eyes.
- Finish with a top coat.
To Sum It Up
Halloween is the scariest time of year, but your nails don’t have to be. You can create many fun and easy nail designs by yourself and have fun while doing it.
Check out the V Beauty Pure gel and acrylic collections that contain a rainbow of colors for your creations.
V Beauty Pure has all of the nail products and equipment you’ll need to create festive nail designs for every holiday.
Here’s to witching you a Happy Halloween!
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