5 minimalist nail art designs you can do yourself in 15 seconds

Nothing makes me feel more effortlessly cool than minimalist nail art. I could be wearing a sweatshirt from college and jeans, but if my nails are on point, I have influencer-level confidence. Should I shoot a close-up of my hands wrapped around my coffee with my nails in plain view? I think yes.

You don’t have to shell out the big bucks for cute nails or settle for a one-note solid coat. Trust me: I’m not exactly skilled at creating works of art on dime-sized canvases, but the best part is that I don’t have to be with minimalist nail art. Bless the manicure-inept trendsetter who dreamed this up because the latest nail styles require almost no skill at all. All the minimalist nail art ideas rounded up here take less than 15 seconds to do (after your basic mani is set of course).

Minimalist nail art that gives you more time to do literally anything else

1. Bold lines

Bold, dark lines on a light-hued mani looks both trendy and timeless. As shown here, you can get a little whimsical too; the lines don’t have to be uniform.

2. Oversized dots

Going big with your dots transforms your minimalist nail art in seconds. Instead of using a toothpick—which works best for small dots—use a Q-Tip to get this oversized look.

3. The dark rainbow

Use a dark polish-dipped toothpick to highlight your mani’s negative space with a simple rainbow shape. Sure, the shape may look like a frown, but the end result is bound to make you smile.

4. Metallic studded mani

Turn your manicure into a 3D art piece by adding some metallic bling. Use tweezers to apply a tiny bead to each nail (you can pick up an endless supply on Amazon for $7), securing them in place using clear polish or nail glue to keep them in place. This look is on the ball—and right on trend for minimalist nail art.

5. Tiny dots mani

Similarly to adding punctuation to the end of a sentence, the inclusion of a little dot on each nail is the perfect ending to a pretty mani. As this Insta shows, the simple black dot—done by dabbing a toothpick in black nail polish—makes a small yet stylish statement.

This is the right way to apply red lipstick:

PSA: manicurists want everyone to stop doing these 12 things to their nails. And this is why pedicures last so much longer than manicures, in case you were wondering.