From tortoiseshell and ombré nails to powder dip manicures and jelly acrylics, we're spoilt for choice when it comes to nail trends. But one look in particular is flooding our Instagram feed more than any other right now: tie-dye nails.
The bold trend probably conjures up images of fluorescent '90s tees and lurid gym leggings, which you either threw out or banished to the back of your wardrobe years ago. But translate the pattern onto nails and you've got yourself a salon craze that is inspiring professional manicurists and DIY-ers alike.
The process is pretty clever: carefully painting nail polish onto the nail in individual swirls then pulling a striping brush through the centre before the polish dries to create the spiral effect. South Korean nail artist Park Eunkyung, aka @nail_unistella, is one Instagram manicurist spearheading the trend, which currently serves up over 8k hashtags and counting. She ditched pastels and metallics for neon shades in pink, yellow, green and blue, fashioned into a psychedelic swirl and printed onto classic almond-shaped nails.
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Coffin nails aren't going anywhere fast, according to Instagram nail artist Hannah Schewel, who combined tie-dye with a calligraphy font, a trend UK-based session manicurist Ami Streets predicted will be huge this year. But if you aren't feeling a whole nail, Californian-based nail artist Julie Ventura makes a case for the negative space vibe, with a single tie-dye strip down the centre. And if Instagram is anything to go by, the tie-dye effect looks just as good on short, natural nails as it does on longer acrylics.
Tie-dyeing is all about that homespun finish, but if you're a nail art novice, it might be a little fiddly to try and master on your own. If you're in London, pay a visit to WAH London or Townhouse for a bespoke nail consultation. Otherwise, practice makes perfect, and we're pretty sure the bold new trend will stick around for summer.