R29’s Fall Lookbook: Brittney Boyce On The Coolest Nail Art Of The Season

If your Instagram Discover page is anything like mine, it’s peppered with Powerpuff Girls memes, viral beauty products, and lots of nail inspo, which I dutifully add to my dedicated saved folder. For me, there’s no limit when it comes to close-ups of dope nail art: I could scroll through a never-ending feed, and it would still not be enough to satisfy my appetite.

Many of my faves come from Brittney Boyce, aka Nails of LA. The celebrity nail artist is known for impeccable, teeny-tiny works of art spotted on Megan Fox, Machine Gun Kelly, Kim Kardashian, Kate Hudson, and other famous fingertips. But you won’t find any micro fruit or prim French tips here; Boyce’s edgy, intricately detailed designs (which you can try at home, thanks to her brand, Lost Angels), For R29's Lookbook, we tasked Boyce with dreaming up five designs that range from new ways to play with chrome (nope, it’s not going anywhere) to smoky eyes, but for your nails. Keep scrolling (and screenshotting) for five looks you’ll want to bring to your next nail appointment.

As Boyce puts it, “chrome is always such a vibe” – and she’s not wrong! To get this look, start with a sheer, neutral base and ask your nail tech for a raised, 3D gel effect French tip in your choice of metallic. “Look at chrome as a neutral that goes with everything,” says Boyce. “Even if you wear gold, a silver chrome is still so cool.” 

Prim and proper meet punk with this rhinestone-studded oval set that pairs perfectly with a cozy knit. Plus, this is easier to DIY than you might think: Start with a metallic pink base like OPI’s Nail Lacquer in Metallic Composition and carefully dot nail glue in the pattern you want your rhinestones. (Or, use stick-on nail gems for a shortcut.) Seal the deal with your favorite glossy top coat, and voilà.

“I can't stop doing aura — it's actually a problem,” shares Boyce. (Same, girl.) ”It works with any color combo, but I’m loving a burgundy, reddish pink combo for this fall.” The result? A modern take on fall jewel tones. Dial up the edge with metal studs on select nails, and there you have it: Jewelry on your fingertips. This style is admittedly tricky to do at home without an airbrush machine, but luckily, Boyce offers a similar press-on style from her brand, Lost Angels.

This vampy, burgundy-brown ombre is nothing short of decadent, but the devil’s in the details. Namely, strategically placed airbrush for a shadowy veil of cool factor. “I airbrushed the base of the nail with black, and the tips are airbrushed in a bluish gray,” explains Boyce of this look. “And there's just something about a square shape that makes you feel a little bit cooler.”

A little clashy, a little flashy — but it works. “These always give me anxiety when I do them, because the first four nails will kind of be perfect, and then I start thinking, ‘how do we match this?’” says Boyce. This frosty blue set combines several of Boyce’s signatures — chrome, studs, general badassery — but you can recreate the vibe at home with press-ons or nail stickers.