From holographic and heart-embellished to chic, understated ombré, this year is already rife with inventive new nail-art trends... and we're only a week into February. But for all the Valentine's Day-ready designs and negative-space French tips out there, there's one other bold look in particular we've got our eyes on right now — and it's very 1969-meets-1999-meets-2019.
Tie-dye designs might conjure up images of Janis Joplin in a technicolor dress at Woodstock, or maybe the fluorescent tees we all wore to play mandatory sports in middle school. Translate that pattern to nails, however, and it stops feeling decade-specific and starts looking decidedly modern.
The actual process requires a little more finesse than vats of dye and rubber bands: Artists are recreating the effect by carefully painting nail polish onto the nail in individual swirls, then pulling a striping brush through the center before the polish dries to create the spiral effect. Tie-dye has always been about that imperfect homespun finish — but if you can't quite nail it, there's no shame in bringing along the inspiration photos ahead next time you head to the salon. It's all groovy, baby.