20+ Stunning Purple Nail Designs You Need to Try Right Now

This is my shade-by-shade guide to purple nail designs, from the palest lavender to plum, with a difficulty note on every set.

Quick picks

• Easiest DIY: glossy deep purple, one color and no drawing.
• Lightest: lavender French tips on a short square.
• Soft chrome: lilac chrome almonds.
• Darkest: plum stars on a nude fade.

Lavender, Lilac, Violet, Plum

Lavender is what I wear when I want purple and I also want it ignored. It is pale, a little gray, and it works on a short nail or a thin French tip. Lilac is the next step brighter, with more pink, and it is the one I pick for warm weather. Violet is the middle. If someone asks for purple and I am not sure which, this is the bottle. Plum is the winter end: darker, bluer, closer to burgundy than to lavender. I do not assign these to skin tones. I hold the bottle up in daylight and see whether it goes gray or pink on me.

Purple Nail Designs

Lilac Florals and Glitter

The flowers are the part I would not freehand on a weeknight. Long almonds: lilac on two nails with dark purple glitter blossoms, and solid purple glitter on the other three. Stickers or a stamp get you closer than a tiny brush. Put the flowers on two nails only. A full hand of them looks crowded. Difficulty: Hard if you paint the flowers, Medium with stickers.

Glossy Deep Purple

This is the purple I start with, because there is nothing to draw. Long square-coffin nails, one glossy deep violet, a clean highlight, no art. Two thin coats. A thick coat leaves a ridge at the cuticle and the color looks cheap. More of this shade is in my dark purple nails. Difficulty: Easy.

Lavender With White Swirls

Lavender is the quiet end of purple, and the white line is the only decoration. Long almonds, glossy pale lilac on most nails, two accent nails with a sheer center and a thin white swirl. One stroke with a striping brush. A second line usually looks nervous. Stop while the line is still thin. Difficulty: Medium.

Pink Flames on Black

This one is not purple, and I am not going to call it that. Long square nails, black at the cuticle, bright pink at the tip, with a pink flame outline. It is in a purple roundup because the pink is close, and that is a sloppy reason. Use a liner for the flame, or skip it and keep the pink tip. Difficulty: Hard.

Purple Wave French

The wave is a French tip that decided to move. Long stilettos, a nude base, and a purple-and-white curve at the free edge. The purple is a thin band, not a full color. Trace the wave once and fill. If you redraw it, the white gap disappears. Let the first line dry before you fill the color. Difficulty: Medium.

Lilac and Black Mix

Black keeps lilac from looking sweet. Almond nails, some glossy lilac, some glossy black, and one lilac nail with a tiny black heart. Paint the solids first. The heart is a dot and two curves, or a sticker if dots turn into blobs. I would keep the heart on one nail. Difficulty: Easy for the colors, Medium if you paint the heart.

Violet Stars on Nude

Violet is the purple that still looks purple in a photo, not gray and not pink. Almond nails in glossy violet, with two nude accent nails, purple stars, and tiny clear stones. I would buy the stars as decals. Painting a sharp star at this size is slower than it looks. Difficulty: Medium.

Lilac Flames on Coffin

Lilac flames are easier to see than black flames, and they are still line work. Long coffin nails in lilac, two of them white at the base, with a white flame outline. The coffin shape needs a flat tip before you paint. Do the flame on two nails, not ten. Difficulty: Hard.

Lavender French Tips

A lavender tip is the lightest way to wear purple without committing the whole nail. Short squares, a nude-pink base, and a thin lavender line that follows the free edge. Keep it thin. A wide tip stops looking like a French. This is the set I point to in light purple nails. Difficulty: Medium.

Plum Stars on Nude

Plum is the dark end, closer to wine than to lilac. Long stilettos fading from deep plum at the tip into a pale nude, with small black stars and a couple of silver star glints. The fade is a sponge job. The stars are decals if you want them even. I file this with colder weather in purple winter nails. Difficulty: Hard.

Lilac Chrome Almonds

Chrome lilac is a powder, not a pale polish with a good light. Long almonds, one lilac mirror, no art. You need a tacky top coat and a light hand with the powder. Pressing hard leaves a bald spot at the cuticle. Seal it or the mirror dulls by the next day. Difficulty: Medium.

Short Lilac Checker

Short and silly, on purpose. Short square nails in glossy lilac, two checkerboard nails in lilac and white, and two accent nails with smiley faces. The checkers are tape or a steady brush. I wear this kind of set when it is warm, which is why it sits with my purple summer nails. Difficulty: Medium.

Purple and White Marble

Marble is the look that fails if you overwork it. Long coffin nails, purple and white swirled together, one nail mostly white with purple veins, the others mostly purple. Drag a dotting tool through wet polish once and stop. A second pass turns it into mud. Work one nail at a time so the polish stays wet. Difficulty: Hard.

Blue Pink Purple Fade

The color here is blue and pink first, with purple only in the middle of the fade. Long coffin nails, glossy, no art. If you want purple, pick the violet coffin instead. Difficulty: Medium.

Lilac Sparkle Ombre

A soft lilac tip with glitter stars is prettier than a full coat of glitter. Long almonds, nude at the cuticle melting into lilac, purple glitter stars, and a few black dots. Decals for the stars. Dots with a dotting tool, not a brush. A brush dot goes oval and looks like a mistake. Difficulty: Medium.

Lilac and Black Almonds

Half the hand is black and half is lilac, which is a decision, not a mistake. Long almonds, glossy, a couple of nails with one small dot. No drawing beyond that. Paint black and lilac in separate sessions if the bottles are close on the table, or you contaminate both. Difficulty: Easy.

Clouds on Lilac Coffin

Clouds are the cute version, and they are also stickers waiting to happen. Long coffin nails, a nude base, blue and white waves, tiny white clouds, and a star. The waves are a liner. The clouds are easier as decals. I would not freehand a cloud the morning I need the set. Difficulty: Hard.

Purple With Gold Tips

Gold on the tip is what makes a plain purple look dressed. Almond nails, glossy deep purple, gold glitter only on the free edge. Pack the glitter onto a tacky tip and seal it, or it sheds. I wear this shade once the leaves turn, with the other sets in purple fall nails. Difficulty: Medium.

Glitter Purple Butterflies

These are butterflies, not leaves. Almond nails: purple glitter on three nails, and two nude nails with a purple glitter butterfly outlined in black. The old caption called them leaves. They are not. Use a stencil or a decal. A freehand wing at this size goes lopsided. I would rather skip the outline than draw a crooked one. Difficulty: Hard.

Matte Nude Purple Tips

The curved tip is a French manicure that does not smile in the usual way. Medium almonds, a matte nude base, and a periwinkle arc at the tip. Matte shows every bump, so the base has to be smooth before the color. One clean arc. Do not outline it twice. Difficulty: Medium.

Plum Swirls on Nude

The swirl is one line, and that is the whole design. Long square nails, a nude-pink base, glossy plum curves that loop down the nail. A striping brush, one pass, then leave it. Plum is the shade I use when lilac feels too pale and violet feels too bright. Difficulty: Medium.

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