Welcome to the enchanting world of nail art and the latest trend sweeping across social media – the viral cloud nail.
Capturing the essence of ethereal beauty, these cloud-inspired designs have taken the manicure scene by storm.
From soft, billowy cumulus clouds to bold and bright night sky scapes, this trend offers the dreamiest nail designs to wear on your fingertips.
Get ready for your nail game to soar to new heights and find the mani of your dreams with this trend.
1. Sky blue and white cloud nail designs
High in the clouds! We are obsessed with these cloud nails – absolutely stunning and cool as hell!
This mani was created by nail artist Gaby Baluja using Daisy Nail Design Inc Aprez Gel X in the shade Milky Blue (£9.00 on the Hollywood Nails Supply website/$9.00 on the Daisy Nail Design website).
Image – @balujanails/instagram
2. White marble cotton candy cloud nail design
Cotton candy, anyone? If clouds are a bit too literal for you, this dreamy mani is a great way to still be on trend.
To recreate these nails, use OPI Nail Lacquer in shades I Am What I Amethyst, Mimosas For Mr And Mrs, and Gelato On My Mind (£14.90 per polish from OPI UK /$11.99 per polish from OPI US)
Once you have your shades together, use a sponge to dab on the polish before securing with a top coat.
Image – @opi/@syznails/instagram
3. Sparkly nude short cloud nail design
This structured gel mani is a perfectly understated take on the trend if you prefer your nails short and neat.
Created using Magpie’s gel polishes in shades Get A Grip & Give Me Strength Peach, Pigment Fiji, Gel Colour Fairy Dust, and Gel Paint White (£10.95 per polish from Magpie Beauty UK /$19.99 per polish from Magpie Beauty US), this set has a slight ombre purple tinge on the tips. So dreamy.
Image – @nonaphilippa/instagram
4. Pink cloud nails with lightning strike features
We’ve been seeing loads of lightning nails on social media, so this mani incorporates a few trending designs!
The silver lightning art on this set looks amazing filled in with shades of pink, looking mosaic-like and really chic. Paired with some clear pink nails, stars and clouds, it’s a manicure made in heaven.
Image – @kold_nails/instagram
5. Shades of baby pink ombre cloud nails
Using Bio Seaweed Gel in the shades Milkshake, White, and Think Pink Thoughts ($18 each from Bio Seaweed Gel US), this stunning mani was born.
Ask your nail tech for a nude pink ombre nail that transitions into baby pink, with delicate white clouds and some tiny twinkle stars.
Image – @ricekittynails/instagram
6. Light pink and peach painterly cloud nail design
These barely-there pink and peach cloud nails literally look like an ethereal painting.
If you fancy giving this a go yourself, nail artist @paiwaloves has created a video tutorial here on her Instagram page. You can do it!
Image – @paiwaloves/instagram
7. Lavender and shades of pastels cloud nail design
This set is slightly different to the others I’ve seen while I’ve been scrolling social media – and I’m here for it.
I love the way the clouds are stacked up on each other rather than standalone, especially with the shades and hues used.
Image – @hallowedbethynails/instagram
8. Pastel ombre French tip nails with clouds and constellations
What’s your star sign? I am actually obsessed with this gorgeous constellation sky scene, the *perfect* opportunity to wear your sign on your fingertips!
If you look up your constellation (and it isn’t too intricate) you can create this design using a dotting tool and some white polish.
Add some French tips (we’ve got you covered on how to DIY at home with our tutorial at the bottom of this article) and dreamy clouds and you’ve got a mani that is out. of. this. world.
Image – @hallowedbethynails/instagram
9. Purple and nude swirly cloud nail design
These gorgeous almond swirly purple cloud nails combine a few of 2024’s trending designs – swirls, clouds, stars and milky nude.
With so many elements, this is one to screenshot for your manicurist!
Image – @nail.brat/instagram
10. Magical holographic sparkle cloud nails
These purple cloud nails with a holographic shimmer finish look seriously magical when shining under the light.
With blue, silver, and turquoise pigments, these have a real ethereal feel.
If you want to know how to create a holographic mani without leaving your home, take a look at our tutorial here. PS It’s easier than it looks!
Image – @frecklepusnails/instagram
11. Clear nails with dreamy blue clouds and gold moon and stars
The base of this mani is a nude nail with some really easy cloud designs.
These can be created using 2 shades of blue, applied to the wet base to create a ‘bloom’ effect. If you’ve got a steady hand (or a gold nail pen), you can paint some pretty moons and stars!
Image – @megtannahil/instagram
12. Blue and purple chrome cloud nails
“Pink sky at night, sailors delight!”
These are soft gel extensions with purple pearl pigment and hand-painted cloud designs.
Chrome nails are still huge this year, and we’ve got 45 of the best in this article, as well as a step-by-step tutorial for doing your own chrome nails at home.
Image – @indice_corazon/instagram
13. Skittles ombre cloud nails
Ombre nails are a really popular finish for cloud designs since it mimics the changing colours of the sky perfectly.
It also blends the Skittles nails and cloud nails trends seamlessly into one perfect manicure.
If you want your nail tech to recreate this mani, ask for a ombre with a different colour and faded clouds on each tip.
Image – @tipsandtoesoc/instagram
14. Colourful rainbow square cloud nails with black art
This manicure goes through all the shades of sunset – absolutely stunning IMO. With a barely-there base, the colours on the tips really pop.
To create this set, you’ll need half-ombre nails in various colours of your choice, a cloud French tip design, and black moons, stars, and dots.
This one is probably best to save for your nail tech – unless you’re feeling adventurous!
Image – @cdanails/instagram
15. Milky nails with blue clouds and large star nail art
Milky white nails are still floating around social media, having been everywhere last year after Hailey Beier brought them to influencers’ attention.
These were created using The Gel Bottle, but if you want your manicurist to do these for you, ask for a milky white base with baby blue ombre tips, and large 4-point stars.
Image – @aliciatnails/instagram
16. Clear and natural press-on cloud nails
If you want a cloud mani without going to the salon or trying to paint them yourself, these press-ons from Signet Beauty ($16.00 on the Signet Beauty website) are for you!
Clear and natural, they’re the perfect understated take on the trend.
Image – @frecklepusnails/instagram
17. Silver cloud nails with 3D water drops
3D nails are everywhere at the moment, combined with clouds you’re bang on trend.
If you want to know how to create 3D water splash droplets on your nails (these can be applied to any type of mani, BTW), Beauty YouTuber Spankie Valentine TV has a really great tutorial here.
Let us know if you give it a go!
Image – @irisnailsnyc/instagram
18. Jelly blue gel nails with realistic cloud design
Serious Peter Pan vibes with this soothing set of blue gel nails, with tiny glitter that catches the light, painted stars, and watercolour-like clouds.
The talent needed to recreate these nails means you’ll most likely need to screenshot this and take it to your mani appointment!
Image – @irisnailsnyc/instagram
19. Angelic acrylic rose gold cloud nails with art
Nothing says up in the clouds like angels and cherubs! How cool are these rose gold acrylic talons with shimmer and art?
If you want to add some angelic art to your nails, these stickers from Glitter Planet are *literally* perfect (£1.50 and $1.62 on the Glitter Planet website).
They include over 60 self-adhesive stickers that are really easy to apply.
Image – @irisnailsnyc/instagram
20. ‘Cloudy French tip’ realistic nail design
The queen of cute and simple nail designs, celeb manicurist Betina Goldstein handpainted these nails using what looks like a stippling method with thin nail brushes.
Give this one a go by using a thin brush for the white polish and another one for the blue polish, making sure not to have too much product on the brush.
Stipple some white cloudy shapes on the tip of each nail and, once dry, fill the middle in by stippling some blue. Simple but effective.
Image – @betina_goldstein/instagram
21. Short almond deep blue sky at night cloud nails
Most of the cloud nails I’ve seen while scrolling are in light tones like pink, turquoise, nude, and white – but how dramatic does this deep blue cloud mani look on an almond nail?!
This set is truly stunning, using shades of blue and including dot work, white stars, and moons with a high gloss finish.
Image – @chaos.nails/instagram
22. Super-long jelly coffin pink cloud nails
This mani was created using Apres XL Sculpted Coffin Gel-X Nail Extensions (£33.58 from TNBL UK /$27.99 from Apres Nail US), and YouTuber GlammedBeauty has a seriously *amazing* tutorial for them here.
This tutorial is a really good way to learn how to paint clouds on your nails like a pro, too, so that you can recreate them on any base that takes your fancy!
Image – GlammedBeauty/YouTube
23. Light grey matte cloud nails with glitter
If you prefer a matte manicure, this one is perfect.
Start with a grey base (ombre is optional), and add some clouds using a thin nail brush and white polish.
This set also has tiny glitter, which you can add in between the clouds for a really pretty look.
Image – @frecklepusnails/instagram
24. Dark side black cloud nails
Embrace the dark side with these nails (yep, cloud nails don’t have to be all light and girly!)
To get the look, start with a navy blue base – a dark purple or even black work will also work really well – and top them off with white and grey clouds and silver stars.
Add any glitters or shimmers that take your fancy!
Image – @honeybee_beautybar/instagram
25. Whispy cirrus clouds on brown nails
Another understated cloud look, this set looks just like some whispy cirrus clouds.
Although more popular in fall and winter, brown nails are always a vibe – particularly because of the latest latte trend.
Embrace the warmth no matter what the weather is with this set, using a latte base like CND’s Vinylux Running Latte nail polish (£13.95 from CND UK /$15.30 from Beyond Polish US) and a white to create the clouds.
Image – @ego_alinkha/instagram
The takeaway
For those of us with our heads in the clouds, these nails are the perfect expression of personality. For the rest of us, we can dream a little dream.
Whether you like dark and glossy polishes, ombre, extravagant nail art or simple short manicures, the cloud trend is gaining more fans by the day – so make sure you nail it with one of these ideas!
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