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Nail trends can be hard to keep atop of and, as the seasons shift, today’s must-have style can quickly become yesterday’s news. Take Valentine’s Day nails, for instance; they’re fun and cutesy for the first two weeks of February, but once the big day comes and goes those red French tips and heart-stamped manis get old pretty fast.
Now, with spring on the horizon, we’re waving goodbye to our icy blue or red shades and welcoming in a new host of hues, from floral-inspired pinks to pastel greens and butter yellows. For Michelle Humphrey, nail artist to Dua Lipa, Katy Perry and Kylie Minogue (to name but a few), spring 2025 is set to be the season for oat milk nails.
The style, Humphrey told The Independent, that that milky tones is a shift “from the usual soap nails, lip gloss nude or pink shade” we’ve been asking for and, rather, “adds a lovely soft brightness to the nail”. The question is, what exactly are oat milk nails?
The key to oat milk nails, explains Humphrey, is choosing a polish within a shade that’s (you guessed it) “milky white – think sheer oat milk. Sheer white has been super popular of late.”
And, for those of you wondering what to ask your nail techs, Humphrey got granular with us, revealing that she recommends two particular varnishes to achieve her desired milky translucency: Essie allure (£8.95, Amazon.co.uk) for regular nail polish users or, for gel getters, Bio Sculpture’s Donna as shown in nail tech Mateja Novokić’s (Instagram’s @matejanova) below.
When it comes to nail length and shape, Humphrey disclosed that this too is something that’s set to change as temperatures begin to climb. Noting that many of her “A-list clients have ditched the extensions for shorter, more natural lengths”, advising that we should opt for squoval style, “straight sidewalls with a rounded tip”.
If you’re looking for a long-lasting finish, gel manicures are the way forward, says Humphrey. But should you not want to invest in an at-home gel kit, brands such as Essie are making salon styles “super easy to achieve at home”, she says. Case in point, nail tech Iram Shelton beautifully demonstrates below how Essie’s allure shade can be used to achieve a salon-quality finish.
The oat milk latte can move over because we’ll be spending all our pennies on oat milk nails. Yes, please.
Read more: Best gel nail kits for salon-quality manicures at home