Just like so many other trends from ~my youth~ (s/o to tie-dye, claw clips, and money piece highlights), the marble nails trend is back and stronger than ever. Need a reminder on what that even is? I gotchu: It’s the technique of creating marble-looking nail art by dipping your fingernail in nail polish-coated water to create a marble design. And unlike most nail trends I knew and loved when I was a teen (RIP crackle nail polish), this one still holds up today.
So if you’ve been holding off from this nail-art hack for years and are finally ready to give in and get your DIY on, stick with me, because I broke down exactly how to create marble nails at home (and found some really cute inspo to get you going), with help from celebrity nail artist Queenie Nguyen. Trust me: Your spring nails are about to become very Instagrammable.
Meet the expert
- Queenie Nguyen is a celebrity nail artist based in Los Angeles, CA, who has worked with celebrities like Kate Hudson, Kaley Cuoco, and Carey Mulligan.
How do you marble your nails?
We’ll get to the full breakdown below, but generally, marble nails are achieved by dribbling a few drops of nail polish in a cup of water, swirling it around with a toothpick, then dipping your nail into the pattern for a marble-like finish. Sounds easy—but it can be tricky at first. “It can be messy, and it takes a few tries to perfect the nail polish pattern,” says Nguyen. But if you don’t want to go to a salon to get marble nail art, it’s budget-friendly and very doable at home with a little patience (and some nail polish remover).
Can you do marble nails with gel polish?
“You can’t do water marble nails with gel polish—you have to do it with regular nail polish,” says Nguyen. The goal is to get the nail polish to spread out on the surface of the water so you can create a pattern with a toothpick, and because gel nail polish is thicker and heavier than traditional polish, it won’t react the same way in the water. So if you’ve been eyeing some new spring nail polish colors for this, make sure you get a regular formula, not gel.
What you’ll need:
- A cup or bowl
- One to three different nail polish colors of your choice
- A white nail polish for your base
- A toothpick or wooden cuticle stick
- Acetone (pour a small amount in a bowl or the cap of your nail polish bottle)
- Vaseline, coconut oil, or liquid latex
- Cotton rounds
- A nail art brush
The products you need to DIY marble nails
Step one: Prep your nails
“It’s really important to give yourself a manicure, first of all,” says Nguyen. So wipe away any oils or nail polish with an acetone-soaked cotton round, and gently push back your cuticles (and for the love of God, please don’t cut them) with a cuticle stick. Then, paint your nails with a white nail polish to create a clean and bright foundation for your marble art.
FYI: Because you’re dipping your fingertips in nail polish, they’re going to get coated—there’s no way around it. So to make the cleanup easier, cover the skin around and underneath your nail with Vaseline or coconut oil (making sure to avoid the nail itself) so that the nail polish can be wiped off afterward with a little more ease.
Or, you can try Nguyen’s preferred method of using liquid latex. “Apply the liquid latex around the nail and wait for it to dry,” she says. “After you dip your nail, the nail polish will just stick to the liquid latex, so you can just lift it off with a tweezer for a cleaner look.”
Step two: Add the nail polish to the water
When your nails are completely dry, fill a cup up with water. “It’s important to make sure the water is room temperature and not cold tap water,” says Nguyen. “The nail polish will harden too quickly in cold water.” Unscrew the caps of the nail polish colors you picked (I went with blue and a sparkly pink), then, one by one, hold the nail-polish brush over your cup until a few drops fall into the water.
Note: The polish will spread out fast, so quickly follow with the second and third colors (or as many as you want), so the nail polish doesn’t have a chance to dry in the water, says Nguyen. After you’ve dropped in all your colors, you should end up with a few lopsided circles of color in the water.
FYI: I <3 these nail polishes
Nailtopia Nailtopia Plant Based, Bio-Sourced, Chip Free Nail Lacquer
Step three: Swirl the nail polish
Before the polish dries (which, again, happens quickly, so don’t wait longer than a few seconds), dip your toothpick anywhere in the floating nail polish and swirl it around. This is your chance to get creative: for a vertical marble pattern, drag the toothpick straight across the water in parallel lines, and for a more abstract marble (as pictured) swirl it around haphazardly. There are no wrong swirls here.
Step four: Dip your nail in the water
Once you’re happy with your pattern, it’s time to dip—or, to get technical, it’s time to scoop your nail. “You want to scoop up the art with your nail more than actually dip into it,” says Nguyen. “So dip your finger in at a 45-degree angle, then scoop it up and out.” Basically, you’re trying to pick up the floating polish (so it lays flat across your nail). The whole movement should take less than a second.
Step five: Clean up your nail
Pro tip: It’s easiest to dip and clean each finger one and a time while the nail polish is still wet, instead of dipping all 10 nails and then cleaning them up after they dry. To clean off your skin, either pick off the liquid latex (if you went that route), or dip a nail brush into a capful of acetone and carefully trace the outer edge of your nail to clean up any messy edges. You should be left with just the marble nail print on your nail. Repeat steps four and five with all 10 nails.
Step six: Seal with a top coat
Once your nails are dry, seal the nail polish with a clear top coat (my fav options below) to prevent chipping or denting, and give your cuticles a generous coating of cuticle oil, since they’ll be pretty dried out from the acetone. And then go forth and post all of the selfies of your new marble mani to your Insta.
4 topcoats your marble nails need:
The easiest water marble nails ideas
If this step-by-step breakdown wasn't your speed, maybe a video tutorial will help it click even more. So if you want to make sure you really have the process down, check out this tutorial on water marble nails:
Maybe a little easier? Great. Now keep scrolling for some inspo images to screenshot and DIY at home.
This green and blue marble nail idea
These earthy-toned marble nails
Yellow and pink marble nails
Marble nails with a matte finish
Tie-dye marble nails
Pink and blue marble nails
This turquoise marble nail idea
Sami Roberts was the previous beauty assistant at Cosmopolitan. Keep up with her cat-filled life in New York on Instagram.
