Almond nails may sound delicious, but they aren’t anywhere near as tasty as the nut they’re named after. Sorry, nail biters! But we’re still excited to rock these badass nail designs, even if they taste terrible in a parfait.
Almond shaped nails are slightly rounded on the sides and pointed at the tip — similar to stiletto nails, but less extra and definitely less lethal. You’ll need long nails to pull this claw shape off, but at least you’ll still be able to type and text and rub your eyes without accidentally blinding yourself.
How to Shape Almond Nails at Home
This is one of the easiest nail shapes to try at home, since all you need are nail files and patience. At least we’ve got one of those things!
Tools you’ll need:
- A coarse grit nail file
- A fine grit nail file
We like this pack because it has both! While you’re at it, maybe order some press-on nails just in case you don’t nail it on your first pass. See what we did there?
What to do:
1. Paint a dot with nail polish at the middle of the top of your nail.
2. Use a coarse grit nail file and file towards that dot at an angle, leaving a flat tip at the top. To make sure the sides are even, go slowly, filing from side to side, and remove a little at a time.
3. Use a finer grit file to smooth any rough edges on the sides and round out the top to create the almond shape.
Another option is to paint a thin line down the middle of your nail, then draw two angled lines out from that on either side. When filing, use the arrow shape as a guide, as Ariane demonstrates in the video below.
21 Almond Nail Design Ideas
1. Almond-Shaped Desert Accents
We can’t decide if this nail art is more Palm Springs or Golden Girls. Either way, no time to talk. Betty White, get on the llama! We’re going to the desert!
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2. French Manicure Almonds
This almond-shaped take on the classic French mani makes us wonder what other classics we could jazz up with almonds. What about almond butter and jelly? Just kidding, we’re not monsters.
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3. Almonds with Gold Accents
A touch of gold goes a long way when it comes to manicures. Unless you’re Midas — that guy really knows how to run a trend into the ground.
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4. Geometric Almonds
These geometric black and white designs scream “Old Hollywood” — but they also whisper “you can DIY this in about three minutes with some painter’s tape.”
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5. 80s Nails
This bright, geometric design takes us back to the 80s, when we thought things like fanny packs and giant glasses were a good idea. (We were right!)
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6. Rainbow Thorns
Rainbow flames are so over. We’re all about thorns now, bb. We’re not sure if we’re more impressed by the design or the fact that she did it to her own nails. Let’s see that other hand!
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7. 90s Style Almonds
If you need a little bit of balance, maybe painting this lime green yin yang design on your nails will help. Or try drinking some water instead of iced coffee sometime.
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8. Holographic Almond Nails
The Roaring Twenties sounded like a good idea, but maybe we stick to reliving the ’90s, starting with this easy almond nail art that won’t cost you a fortune.
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9. Big Cat Almond Nails
Embrace your inner Carole Baskin with these Lion King nails that border on stiletto. Lions and tigers are basically the same, right? We weren’t paying attention in biology class that day… or any of the other days.
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10. Spongebob Almond Shaped Nails
Spongebob Almondnails doesn’t quite have the same ring to it, but we still love this fun, Squarepants-inspired design for summer.
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11. Candied Almonds
These bright blue chrome nails have us feeling all sorts of things. Like what is our third grade teacher up to these days?
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12. Rose Quartz Almonds
Rose quartz is said to help invite love into your life. We love these nails. It works!
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13. Almond Shaped Flower Power
The floral design on these almond shaped beauties by Nailed It Portland are pretty, elegant, and don’t aggravate our allergies!
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14. Almonds with a Cherry on Top
These sweet almond-shaped nails topped with juicy cherries have us thinking about one thing: hooking up. What, you thought we were gonna say ice cream?
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15. Sailor Moon Almond Nails
These Sailor Moon nails make us want to go on an adventure. Our constant motion sickness and fear of heights make us want to stay home and paint our nails.
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16. Marbled Almonds
Watch how Allure’s Editor-in-Chief Michelle Lee creates this colorful marble nail design. She makes it look so easy, which means there’s a 100 percent chance we’re going to mess it up.
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17. Rainbow Glitter
These candy colored nails remind us of She-Ra. Swift Wind, stop eating grass! You know it upsets your digestion.
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18. Neon Dreams
These hot pink and yellow almond nails are so ready to be by the pool. Preferably with a pina colada in hand.
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19. Almond Milk
What list of almond-shaped nail designs would be complete without a nod to everyone’s favorite alternative milk? Well, next to oat milk of course.
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20. Psychedelic
These groovy nails have purple glitter, tie-dye, more glitter, and pot leaves. Take these nails to the festival they deserve! When, you know, it’s safe to do so.
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21. Almond Shaped French Tips
This pastel manicure is so sweet, we might even be inspired to learn a few more French phrases besides oui, non, and can I get a dozen croissants.
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And, here’s a quick visual guide to the different nail shapes.
I've written or worked for a wide range of lifestyle sites and magazines, including Billboard, Nylon, Parade, Men's Journal, Us Weekly, Stuff, Blender, Beachbody, Alternative Press, Electronic Gaming Monthly, and more. See more on my LinkedIn.
On the baking side of things, I've run my own baking company and competed on Cupcake Wars, so hit me up with your baking questions! I respond fastest on Instagram where you can find me @letseatcakeblog
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