Soft Girl Who? Embrace Your Emo Side With The Black French Manicure Trend

Now don't get us wrong: we love our soft girl nails. From the neutrals and the whites to the TikTok-famous pearlescent nails, we adore the overall vanilla/clean girl aesthetic of having simple swirls and pearls on our nails. But we can not deny our yearning for nail looks that are a bit edgier, yet still functional. So if you're like us and need a break from the more natural, Hailey Bieber-esque nail trends of 2022, you're welcome to try the black French manicure.

A French manicure is a manicure in which the base is in a sheer, nude, or skin-toned shade while the tips are painted in a different color. It is common to get a French manicure with white tips as they are subtly natural, complement every skin tone, and the colors do not clash with your outfits — basically, every soft girl's dream nail set. But while classic white tips have remained fashionable for years, they can, quite frankly, get boring. However, by swapping them for black tips, you get the wow factor and a statement nail look that goes well with all your outfits. From the stilettos to the squovals, here's some inspo for your fresh set of black tips.

Have you ever heard of a skinny French? Also known as the micro French or the baby French manicure, the skinny french is a much thinner alternative to your usual white tips. Unlike regular French tips, which are stenciled to be a bit thicker and cover a sizeable portion of the nail tip, the skinny French is a tinier colored tip designed to create that barely-there effect, and the look is always stunning.

Almond nails are one of our favorite nail styles, not just because they elongate the fingers by making them look slimmer. They also make an excellent combo with French tips — especially black ones. To elevate the look further, try Heluviee's minimalist version and apply a thin white line between your nude base and the black tips. This beautifully incorporates the classic white French manicure with your new favorite black tips.

Black and gold are a classic color pairing that looks even better on your nails. To incorporate the color, you can line your black tips with some gold polish, make gold half-moons on your lunula or nail bed, or even take a page from Janna's book and add some gold clover jewelry to your nails.

If you've been in the nail space for a while, you've most likely come across crocodile print nails or nails with reptile-skin designs. Sure, you can cover your nails with the croc-print pattern, but what better way to spice it up than with black and in the French style? So grab your nude or sheer base, nail art brushes, and some blooming gel for the croc prints, and you're ready to go.

Okay, your black French manicure doesn't have to be all black. If you don't want an entirely monochrome look, add some pink hearts or hearts in any other color you like. You can accessorize by adding heart-shaped stones or paint the hearts with gel polish.

If the phrase "as above, so below" was a nail style, it would be the half-moon. Half-moon manicures are French manicures but reversed to lie on your lunula instead of your nail tips. You can also outline your tips to create that effortlessly chic look. Outlined French tips also work well on round and almond-shaped nails, and you can even combine half-moons and outlines to take your black French manicure to the next level.

With a clientele including the Kardashians, Rihanna, and Lori Harvey, you can tell celebrity nail artist Chaun Legend knows what he's doing. So take it from him and try the black French manicure, but with a twist. Instead of doing the entire tip black, create fun swirls and curves with a stencil. If you want, you can take it even further by adding stones to the nude base. Our advice? Just get creative with it.