Lifestyle

20 Glam St. Patrick's Day Nail Art Designs Anyone Can Do

LifestylePublished Mar 2, 2018
By April Daniels Hussar
featured-img-of-post-183099solo_nails/Instagram

St. Patrick's Day is the perfect time for fun nail art. With such bright greens and iconic shamrock motifs, St. Patrick's Day proves itself to be a colorful, festive holiday. Plus, for those who decide to rock a St. Patrick's Day–inspired manicure, they will manifest some serious luck into their life! Or so I hear. Whether that's true or not, a St. Patrick's Day–themed manicure is still a great way to help usher in some fun and gleeful energy when celebrating the mid-March holiday.

St. Patrick's Day is known by a few iconic symbols (not just the color green, folks!) -- we're talking horseshoes, shamrocks, rainbows, pots of gold, and leprechauns. Could there be a more fun bunch?! We can get creative by adorning all of these images on our nails, or we can choose a favorite and really hone in on it. With that being said, the design can then be as subtle as a gold shamrock or as bold as a bright rainbow. 

Not convinced to rock a St. Patrick's Day manicure? Well, how about if we propose this: If we do green on our nails, then we can't get pinched if we don't wear green! It works like that, right?

Anyway, we sought out some inspiration for St. Patrick's Day nails. We rounded up nail art ideas from the super festive to the low-key. All folks will be sure to find at least one style that speaks to them! Good luck! 

solo_nails/Instagram
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A Charmed Mani-placeholder
A Charmed Mani
cutepolish/YouTube

A Charmed Mani

This is a GREAT St. Patrick's Day nail art tutorial to start with because it shows people how to make all of the key items, like shamrocks, the Irish flag, and leprechaun hats.

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Cool Shamrock Tips
Square Polish

Cool Shamrock Tips

What a cool and clever design -- four-leaf clovers at our fingertips! Check out this tutorial by Square Polish.

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Chic Nude St. Pat's Manicure
so_nailicious/Instagram

Chic Nude St. Pat's Manicure

The colorful icons of St. Patrick's day look so great against the nude background, right? If painting those tiny creations is beyond some folks' skill (or patience!) level, they can try out St. Patrick's Day nail decals instead.

More from CafeMom: 20 Gorgeous Braid Styles We Can Easily Do Ourselves

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Dots & Stripes
kandanailart/Instagram

Dots & Stripes

This super cute St. Patrick's day manicure was created using a striper and a dotting tool. It doesn't get any easier than that!

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A French (Manicure) Twist St. Patrick's Day-placeholder
A French (Manicure) Twist St. Patrick's Day
Intraordinary

A French (Manicure) Twist St. Patrick's Day

Not a fan of bright greens? No problem. Create a thick French manicure with a dark green polish, then add a rainbow with a little pot of gold to one nail and a white shamrock to the other, et voil**à.

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French Mani With a Twist!
Eugene Partyzan/Shutterstock

French Mani With a Twist!

For a subtle, very cool green mani for St. Pat's, use a darker green nail polish shade for the base and either a light green or cream polish for the accent. Don't worry about this look being complicated, it's just a French manicure with a fun twist: the reversed ring fingers. Check out this tutorial by Jamie McCarthy on YouTube for extra visual help.

More from CafeMom: 50 Mother-Daughter Tattoos That Are Simply Breathtaking

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Swirled St. Patrick's Day
09emma03/Instagram

Swirled St. Patrick's Day

Those who love the colors of St. Patrick's Day but aren't into horseshoes and shamrocks can opt for this marbled manicure. Check out this tutorial by cutepolish to see just how easy the look is! It only requires some tape, some water, and some shades of green polish.

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Celtic Knots
biancapants/Instagram

Celtic Knots

The Celtic Knot is a popular Irish motif, and stands for the interconnectedness of everything in the universe. We can channel that symbolism on our nails with a nail stamp (and that makes it oh-so easy!).

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Lucky Manicure-placeholder
Lucky Manicure
boop711/Instagram

Lucky Manicure

The key to this manicure is writing LU and CK on the non-dominant hand. Use a very small dotting tool and thick glittery polish to write it out, and don't forget to add the sparkly detail at the cuticle of the white nails! 

More from CafeMom: 17 Sweet Shamrock Crafts for Kids to Celebrate St. Patrick's Day

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Black & Gold St. Patrick's Day
christins.nailart/Instagram

Black & Gold St. Patrick's Day

Love this black and gold design -- it's a cool and different take on St. Patrick's Day. Show me the pot-o'-gold! Just paint on shades of black and white, then use a gold glittery top coat. Use a nail art tool to create the pot-o'-gold!

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Graphic St. Patrick's Day-placeholder
Graphic St. Patrick's Day
The Polish Aholic

Graphic St. Patrick's Day

This adorable St. Patrick's Day design from The Polish Aholic was created using two glitter polishes with varying sizes of glitter, as well as white, gold, lime green, and dark green polish.

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Speckled Abstract Mani-placeholder
Speckled Abstract Mani
lovemaegan/Flickr

Speckled Abstract Mani

For the girl who wants to go the festive but not-too-obvious route, beauty blogger Maegan Tintari has a really easy-to-follow tutorial on her website.

More from CafeMom: 10 St. Patrick's Day Treats Perfect for Little Leprechauns

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Glowing Shamrocks
solo_nails/Instagram

Glowing Shamrocks

Start off with a dark glittery basecoat, then use a nail art tool to outline shamrocks in a lighter shade of green. Glow up!

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Pretty Shamrocks & Glitter
missjjan/Instagram

Pretty Shamrocks & Glitter

Such a pretty, fresh spring feeling to this look. And the tutorial by MissJJan is easy to follow along!

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Irish Tips-placeholder
Irish Tips
aliubsayswhoa/Instagram

Irish Tips

How festive are these French tips? Or shall we say, Irish tips! Use a nail art tool to draw on a leprechaun's belt on one or two fingers.

More from CafeMom: 8 Alternatives to Traditional Irish Soda Bread

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Ombré Nails
melissajdecamp/Instagram

Ombré Nails

This ombré manicure is so stylish, it works for days that aren't St. Patrick's Day too! Follow this tutorial by cutepolish to find out how to give nails a gradient effect.

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Gold-Lined
lnails01/Instagram

Gold-Lined

Want to add a fun but subtle twist to plain green nails? Just line the bottom with a glittery gold polish. Just one simple swoop!

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All in Plaid
polishedlooksbymelissa/Instagram

All in Plaid

How fun are these plaid nails? The design isn't too hard to do, thanks to a steady hand and a nail art tool! Check out this tutorial by cutepolish and learn how to execute the plaid pattern. It works for the whole nail or just the tips!

More from CafeMom: A Super-Simple St. Patrick’s Day Dinner Menu

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Glitter Fade
courtneysgelnails/Instagram

Glitter Fade

Grab some green glitter and clear polish and follow this tutorial by Allure to get this sophisticated-looking manicure! (It's actually deceptively easy to do!)

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Chevron St. Patrick's Day
whits_tipsandtoes/Instagram

Chevron St. Patrick's Day

This chevron manicure is subtle in festiveness but still bright and fun. Use a nail art tool or even just tape to help create the chevron pattern.

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