Up Your DIY Mani Game With These Easy Nail Art Ideas

May 12, 2022

By: Samantha Holender | Makeup.com by L'Oréal

There are a ton of cute and simple nail art ideas that can up your DIY manicure game. From dotted flowers to animal prints, here are our favorite easy nail designs to try.

Sweet Tooth

Cotton candy? Yes, please. This watercolor-esque trend is not only aesthetically pleasing, it’s also super easy to execute. Just pick a handful of pastel shades, grab a sponge and gently dab the polish onto your nail. Add a topcoat, clean up the edges and voilá — you’ve upgraded your manicure.

Half Moons

Achieving a perfectly shaped semi-circle may seem intimidating at first glance, but there’s a super easy trick. Buy some paper reinforcers, like these from Amazon, and use them as your guide for both the French tip and half-moon on the bottom.

A Floral Edit

For a cute and girly nail art idea, take inspiration from this floral design. Pick a base shade of your choice and then grab a dotting tool. Dab one dot of black polish to represent the center of the flower and then dot five small white circles around it to look like the petals.

Just Stick It

If nail art just really isn’t in your wheelhouse, fear not. Nail stickers are the solution. From butterflies and flowers to smiley faces and stars, you can customize your at-home mani by just sticking on designs. We recommend the stickers from Orosa Beauty.

Jungle Time

Want a fun mix and match look? Pick a few different shades, add a matte topcoat like Essie Matte About You Matte Finisher and focus your artistic attention on recreating a cheetah print accent nail. To get the look, grab your dotting tool or detail brush, black and nude polishes and start drawing your spots.

Color Blocked

If you have a steady hand, we challenge you to try this minimalist, color-blocked design. While we love the red, orange and pink color combo, you can tailor this to your unique style using whatever shades you want.

Photo: Donna Cao of @donna_cao, Design: Hannah Packer