If You Try This "Dated" Nail Trend Now, You'll Be Way Ahead of Everyone Else

My best friend consistently has the coolest nails. Every time she goes home to Toronto, she has a new set put on, and when she returns to New York, I spend 10 minutes ogling her nails. When she came back from her most recent trip, she was sporting a set of long, translucent tips that were see-through in the light and made her fingers look a mile long. 

I’ve always been a bit of a manicure traditionalist (I stick to classic red nearly every time I do my nails), but once I saw my friend’s jelly manicure, I fell in love. I had to try this nail trend for myself. I had a bottle of Butter London’s Jelly Preserve Strengthening Treatment ($18) on hand, so I painted on a few coats. After I saw the results, I immediately beelined to Amazon to buy every shade because this trend will be on heavy rotation for a while.

Jelly nails aren’t a new idea—they’ve been popping up for years. Jelly polish looks like stained glass on your fingertips. It is slightly see-through and can come in any color. Since they’re glass-like, they make a great base for any and all nail designs, including jewels. You can have a set put on at the salon as my friend did, but they’re also incredibly easy to achieve at home. Below, I’ve rounded up some of my favorite jelly looks that I will be re-creating myself and the polishes to match—happy glazing!

True-red jelly polishes are few and far between. (Trust me—I just spent two hours scouring the internet to find one for you.) Hear me out—I found a hack to create the dreamiest crystalline cherry red. Mix together two parts clear with one part red (see the mixing bowl below) and use a nail brush to paint it onto nails. It's best to choose nail polishes from the same brand here since their formulas will be more compatible by design.

This article was published at an earlier date and has been updated.

Next, The 10 Nail Polish Brands We Could Use Until the End of Time, No Complaints