15 Ways to Rock the Chrome Nail Trend

By Omenaa Boakye on July 12, 2024

Hailey Bieber is no stranger to setting beauty trends, and her obsession with chrome manicures has taken the nail world by storm. If you’re just catching on to the trend, chrome nails feature a highly reflective, mirror-like finish, giving the nails a metallic and futuristic appearance. “You could be living under a rock and still find it extremely difficult not to notice the shiny and reflective magnificence that is the chrome manicure,” says Sashanie Gray, Nail Professional and Chief Ideator of Sash Pro. “Achieving this magical look requires special powders or gel nail polishes that create a smooth, shiny, and reflective surface on the nails.”

Once a niche trend, chrome nails have now become a staple in the world of nail art. “What started with a simple silver powder over black has blossomed into a wide variety of textures and finishes, ranging from shade-shifting mermaid colors to bold high-shine metal looks,” says Rachel Messick, celebrity nail artist and owner of Vacation Nail Shop. Today, chrome manicures encompass a spectrum of effects, including holographic sheens, iridescent glows, and even matte metallics. Whether you prefer subtle elegance or striking drama, there’s a chrome finish to suit every mood and occasion. Below, we asked our nail experts to share a few of their favorite chrome nails.

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Vintage Gold

This gorgeous mustard gel polish has been kicked up a notch by adding a vintage gold french tip! “The chrome french look was achieved by using a technique called isolated chrome,” says Gray. “To create the tip, rub your choice of chrome pigment at the free-edge of the nail, then hand paint your french smile line with a medium viscosity top coat, and cure it for 60 seconds with a LED lamp. After curing, use an isopropyl soaked lint-free wipe to remove the excess chrome powder from the nail.”

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Gold Luxe

Nothing says luxury more than the color gold. This look was created by applying vintage gold pigment on top of a nude base.

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Neon Metalic

What else can you do to add more pop on top of your already popping neon manicure? Add a chrome metallic accent! “First start with your base gel polish color, in this case neon orange. Next, create the gold cuff by concentrating your gold pigment application at the base of the nail plate and creating  a cuff outline using the isolated chrome technique,” says Gray.“ Next, seal the entire nail with a medium viscosity high-shine soak-off top coat. Stay away from the no-wipe stuff for this step as no-wipe top coats and matte top coats don’t really like each other.

To create the matte finish over the neon orange, apply your matte top coat concentrating your product placement to only the areas where you can see neon orange, try to avoid getting the matte top coat on your shiny gold cuff.”

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Butter Chrome

Pale yellow nails are having an absolute moment. To take them to the next level, Messick recommends using a transparent glassy white chrome like Vacation Nail Shop’s Gloss Chrome.

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Delicate Pink

If you’re a soft life babe or channeling your inner softy, this delicate pink and green semi-translucent duo chrome over nude is the look for you.

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Ombré Tips

This look shows off soft white ombré tips with a nude base, topped off with a white semi-translucent chrome pigment.

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Black French

“On this day, my client said she wanted to feel like a “bad gyal” so we opted for a black french tip with a nude base, topped off with a semi-translucent chrome powder,” says Gray. “It was just the right amount of edginess for her.”

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Fun French

Not feeling a full chrome nail?  No worries, you can ease your way into the trend by starting off with a chrome French manicure. “Use a metallic chrome like Vacation Nail Shop’s Pressed Chrome in Cyber Pink and Cyber Lime and some French line stencil stickers like Orly’s Tip Guide stickers to create this look,” says Messick.

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Black Snakeskin

If you want to add some visual depth to a vintage gold chrome manicure, opt for a black snakeskin print. “Animal prints are back. Really for me, they never left, so, why not marry two trends of chrome and animal print,” says Gray. “To create this look, I used a snakeskin nail art stamping plate, and stamped the design directly on top of the rubbed in gold pigment.”

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Duo Chrome

“Allow me to introduce you to the duo-chrome pigment powder. In this case, you get to enjoy two chrome colors for the application of one,” says Gray. “Duo chrome powder reflects multiple tones at the same time and is worn best over a black background, due to the darker pigment. To elevate a black gel polish manicure, add a duo chrome french tip.”

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Water Drop Ombré

“This look was inspired by summer and the ocean,” says Messick. After applying a blue ombré on top of a nude manicure and a layer of non-wipe top gel, I gently layered on OPI Professionals Blue Plate Special, then sealed everything in with a top gel and used Jin B Crazy Top Thick to create the water drop effect.”

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Mirror Chrome

To create this soft mirrored chrome manicure, rub silver chrome powder over a warm nude base color.

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Jewel Tones

“I created this chrome x ombré frenchie look by applying semi-translucent chrome over a black into nude ombré,” says Gray. “If you notice, each nail gives off a different hue – to add this depth, I used a different color semi-translucent chrome powder on each nail.”

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Shiny Sunflowers

“I love the look of artsy, painterly, not so perfect floral designs,” says Messick. I created this look using Presto’s No-Wipe Art Liner Clear and Vacation Nail Shop’s Mango and Cacao Chrome.”

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Pink Aurora