11 Butter Yellow Nail Ideas — & How To DIY Them At Home

From millennial pink to mocha mousse, countless colour trends have captivated fashion and beauty. This year, there’s no question that butter yellow is having its moment in the sun; the understated hue first caught our attention during last year’s spring runway collections (which are now hitting boutiques) and has been virtually inescapable now. As much as we have a colour crush on butter yellow dresses and accessories, we would argue that the pastel shade is prettiest when worn on your fingertips.

“Butter yellow is the perfect neutral,” New York City-based nail artist Miss Pop tells Refinery29. “It’s light and feels especially fresh and sunny.” Ahead, we scoured our Explore pages and beyond to find the freshest takes on butter yellow nail art — and they’re easier to DIY than you think. Below, find 11 designs that we’ll be wearing all year long.

Daisies are a perfect match for butter yellow nail art, like this look crafted by Amy Rickaby. Use a dotting tool to carefully make five small dots in the colour of your choice (white being the go-to), leaving room for a middle dot.

Another clever use of butter yellow? Paint a constellation on your nails (like this look courtesy of Miss Pop) with a long, thin detail brush like Manicurist's Nail Art Brush, $27, to meticulously craft stars, mixing and matching colours for extra fun factor.

Skip the nail art altogether and take your butter yellow mani to the next level with a chrome finish, inspired by this look by Anahi Victoria. Start with a pale yellow base with peachy undertones (like Nailberry Folie Douce, $28), and add chrome powder on top for a luminous finish. 

The aura nail trend is still alive and well, and it works perfectly with the butter yellow colour trend. Get this look created by Jasmine Allen at home by applying a milky white base to nails, and carefully dab on a hazy aura motif in your gradient choice of sunny yellows using a disposable sponge. (Miss Pop loves OPI Infinite Shine in Slay Hello to Yellow, currently on sale at Sephora, $12.50, a sheer bright yellow with a hint of sparkle.)

A French tip will never go out of style. You can use a brush, nail stamp tool, or sticker guides to create the classic shape (created here by manicurist Mina on Instagram) in a warm buttery hue like Essie’s Gel Couture in Atelier By The Bay, on sale at Priceline for $13.29. For extra lustre, add a dusting of chrome powder.

Feeling groovy? Butter yellow swirls (like this set by Charlotte Cliff) are a fun motif for DIY nail art because they don’t need to be perfectly even. Just grab a striping brush and an opaque, gel-like nail polish (anything too sheer will require multiple strokes) like OPI’s Infinite Shine in This Chic Is Bananas, $24.95.

At the risk of sounding like the ingredients for a tasty marinade, lemon and butter appear to be a match made in heaven. Alley Cats Salon’s cheeky take on a classic French tip features meticulously painted lemon wedges adorning nail tips. 

Polka dots are a classic print, making them a natural choice for nail art — manicurist Cassie Morse’s look here is a prime example. Since butter yellow is neutral, it’ll look great with any colour dots you choose (or several, if you desire). Simply grab your dotting tool and palette, and let your creativity do the rest.

This liquid metal manicure by manicurist Shannon Grey is a work of art. Get a similar effect at home with some 3D nail stickers from Etsy and Amazon. For the base, we love Chanel’s Le Vernis in Ovni, $49, for an added touch of luxe.

Combine several sweet motifs — dainty bows, tulip bouquets and pearls — for this utterly charming mani moment by nail artist Stacey Machin. Here, decals will be the easiest way to DIY at home. For a similar look, we love these wildflower nail art stickers, which can be applied with tweezers and set with top coat for a salon-quality effect.

This dazzling manicure by manicurist Holdyn Kim lends major wow factor thanks to crystal studs and chic French tips. Once you’ve settled on your base colour (and any nail art, like the French tips here), apply stick-on nail gems like these ones from Amazon — no glue required.