Keke Palmer’s Swirly Pink Manicure Takes Barbie Nails to the Next Level

Maximalism at its finest.

We’re constantly amazed at how Keke Palmer manages to stay on top of all the latest beauty trends. She has changed up her hair what feels like dozens of times this summer and is always showing off new manicures that are nothing short of glam. This week, she combined the two and debuted a cool new “bixie” cut and a swirly matte French manicure.

On August 15, Keke’s longtime nail artist Briaxmonae posted a photo of the star’s nails. The manicure has a long, square shape and a baby pink French tip with a nude base. Though it may look like a standard pink French from afar (it did to us when she posted her new ‘90s chop), a closer look shows that Briaxmonae created a swirled 3-D design on each tip and then mattified them while keeping the rest of the nail bed glossy.

With milk bath manicures dominating this spring and early summer, it was inevitable that trends would swing the other way, making bold designs come back in style. Slowly but surely, celebs experimented with colors (a la the Barbiecore craze, the blueberry milk mani, and even the cherry Jello nail), and that was just the beginning. Since then, we’ve seen mismatched manicures, serpent nails, and even duck nails. In short, colors, decals, and intricate designs are back. And if you’re not ready for color just yet, you can always do like Keke and play with textures, combining matte, glossy, or even velvet finishes.

To mimic this mani at home, first, create a pink French manicure and seal the mani in with a high-shine top coat. Then, use a matte top coat and a fine nail art brush to draw on matte swirls. Or, simply bring a photo of Keke’s nails to your favorite salon and ask them to riff on the look.

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