12 Trendy Fall Nail Designs to Make You Stand Out

Summer’s over, and while it’s sad to say goodbye to beach days, barbecues, and bikinis, there’s so much to love about fall. Show your love for this season with gorgeous autumn colors and seasonal designs. Now is the time to break out these blues, golds, oranges, and browns. Whether you’re a beginner or a nail art pro, we’ve got some cute fall nail designs for everyone.

Alright, here’s what we’ve picked up for you for this beautiful autumn.

Inspiring Fall Nail Designs

#1: Matte Navy Blue nails

Dark matte colors complement and contrast the bright reds, yellows, and oranges of fall.

We love this dark matte navy blue. You can recreate this look by using a special mattifying top coat.

#2: Pumpkin Nails

For the short nails

Proclaim your love for everything pumpkin with these adorable pumpkin nails. It goes without saying that such a design goes well for short nails. You’ll need beige and dark brown nail polishes as well as two different orange ones – a darker orange and a lighter orange.

#3: Brown & Gold Geometric Nails

Test your nail art skills with a geometric glitter design.

There’s no need to dismiss brown as a nail color; combine it with gold glitter and you’ve got a winning fall nail combination. Throw in a cool geometric design and you’ve got some winning nails on your hands.

#4: Gold & Blue-Gray nail design

These gorgeous designs feature both gold and glitter polishes as well as a gel blue-gray.

These have a different design on each nail yet flow together seamlessly. You’ll need three different polishes: a blue-gray gel or gel-finish polish, a gold glitter polish, and regular gold polish. Use a toothpick or a very small brush to create the arrow and dot design on the index finger. For the middle finger, apply several layers of gold glitter polish until relatively opaque, and for the pinky finger apply a few coats of the blue-grey polish and finish off with a swipe of gold glitter.

#5: Green nails with gold accents

The combination of green and gold just screams fall.

It wouldn’t be a fall nail list without a deep forest green. After applying several coats of green, take your nails to the next level with a few small arrow accents on the ring finger using a small nail art brush. Finish it off with a shiny top coat.

6) Nail design with Wine & Leaves

Wine is always a good idea -- especially on your nails.

You’ll love this deep burgundy wine nail look, complete with a gel finish and chunky gold glitter. You only have to do this leaf design on your thumbnail, so why not go for it? Use a gold nail polish for the leaf and a gold glitter polish for the ring finger accent.

7) Turkey Day Nails

This is one turkey you're not going to eat.

Be the envy of all of your family members on Thanksgiving with this beginner-friendly turkey nail art. You can use any red, beige, orange, or yellow you have for the leaves and turkey feathers. Pro tip: dip the end of a paintbrush in black nail polish to get two perfectly circular black dots for the turkey’s eyes!

8) Nails with Horizontal Pink Stripes

Another way to create interesting nail designs is to use stripes.

While you may have put away your bright pink summer polishes, there’s no need to shun the color entirely. This muted, pinky-purple and pinky beige is just the right color for fall. To get the stripes, you can use tape and a small brush or a stencil.

9) Colorful Leaf Decal Nails

Up your nail game with some sweet decals.

Sometimes you just need to let someone else do it for you. In this case, we mean nail art. Decals are cheap and can create stunning detail otherwise impossible with a paintbrush and polish. Leaf decals are perfect for fall and easy to apply.

10) Nails with Navy and Gold Chunky Glitter

This nail design is easy and only requires two polishes, but still looks amazing.

Go for maximum impact with contrasting gold and navy. All you need are a couple of coats of navy polish and just one swipe of gold chunky glitter polish.

11) Nail art with Black and White Spider Webs

Spooky spider webs to complete any Halloween costume or outfit.

This black and white design is spooky and simple. Create a smooth black base and take a fine paintbrush to carefully create three vertical lines. Then, make a “U” shaped line in between your three lines. Let completely dry and finish with a top coat.

12) Nails with Autumnal Stripes

This fall ombre nail look is interesting and on-trend.

Combine trendy stripes with a seasonal ombre and you’ve got this sparkly fall nail design. To achieve this look, you will need beige for the base and brown, shimmery dark pink or red, and shimmery orange or gold for the stripes. Don’t forget to use tape for precision.

Janice Wasem

Janice developed her interest in makeup during her career as a makeup artist in Edinburg and London. Currently, she lives in Boston and frequently writes on skincare and makeup topics.

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