Nails are a small and almost inconspicuous part of the body, but they hold a lot of potential when it comes to enhancing your beauty and expressing your personality.
Almost everyone will agree that time spent on manicure and care of the nails is time well spent, especially when it comes to women, as manicures are great for keeping your nails, cuticles, and skin healthy.
Even though the nails are a small part of the hand, people pay attention to other people’s hands, and you will likely be judged by how clean and presentable your hands and nails are. So it’s very important to pay close attention to your hands and nails as they are part of how you’re perceived in both professional and non-professional settings.
A standard manicure goes something like trimming, shaping, filing, and taking care of your cuticles. Nail manicure gives a lot of room to be creative and gives numerous outlets to let your personality shine. You can try different shapes, colors, and designs.
But with so many options to choose from, it can be hard to narrow things down and choose the best nail shape for you, because beyond aesthetics you have to consider what will work best for you based on the structure and build of your nails.
In this article we’ll be discussing a specific aspect of manicure, nail shapes.
What nail shapes are available that you can choose from?
We’ll consider 13 nail shapes you can choose from. When next you visit the nail salon or when next you decide to treat yourself to a DIY manicure session you’ll know exactly what you want and the type of look you’re aiming for.
Round Nails
This is great if you’re looking for something simple and easy to maintain. The natural shape of your nails are maintained as the nails only extend a little bit beyond the cuticles.
It is a great shape to adopt for people who can’t or don’t want to keep their nails too long. The tips of the nails are filed into a semi-circle shape.
The structure and shape gives the nail a strong structure that prevents tearing and breaking, making your nails stronger and healthier.
Square Nails
Square nails are achieved by filing straight across the top, creating 90-degree angles on both sides.
Like the round shape this shape is easy to create and maintain and easy to create with short nails.
Square nails can make your fingers look stubby, which makes it great for slim and long fingers but not very great for already short fingers.
An easy remedy if you have short or small fingers is to grow your nails a little longer.
Squoval Nails
The name says it all for this shape. It is a combination of square nails and oval nails, round the edges of a square nail and you end up with squoval nails.
Squoval nails are great for both long and short fingers. It is also considered to be soft and feminine.
Almond Nails
To take the oval shape to another level, you can try almond-shaped nails. What’s special about this shape is the fact that it makes your fingers look more slender and long, giving them a sexy and very appealing look.
This nail shape is great for medium length and long nails.
Related Article: 20 Almond Shape Nail Design Ideas That Will Make Your Hands Stand Out
Stiletto Nails
This nail shape is great if you want to make a statement. It is impossible to miss the long and sharp structure of stiletto-shaped nails.
Like the name implies, it looks like a stiletto heel with a long extended structure that leads to a round and sharp point.
The structure of stiletto-shaped nails make them prone to snapping, so this style works best with acrylics because they can be stronger than natural nails.
Oval Nails
This shape is very similar to the round shape, making it the closest to natural after round, but there is a subtle difference between the two. Oval nails have slightly tapered sides.
It works great on short and medium-length nails. An easy way to see if this will work for you is to flip your hand over, with your palm facing up, if you can see the tip of your nails then you can pull off this nail shape.
The feminine look of this look makes it very popular among girls and young women.
If you have short nails and still want this nail shape, you’ll have to add acrylics or gel overlays.
Square-Stiletto Nails
This is a slight iteration of standard stiletto-shaped nails in that instead of the long body tapering to a round sharp point, it features a sharp square edge.
It almost shares the same structure with coffin nails, but it’s slightly slimmer than coffin nails.
Arrowhead Nails
The arrowhead head nail shape is quite similar to the stiletto heels shape, but it’s a little less intense. It still features the pointed sharp tips, but the sides are more angled
You can pull this shape off with short strong nails, and you can also use acrylics. The arrowhead shape is great is you want the stiletto-like shape but want something a bit more practical.
Natural Nails
The natural shape makes it possible to have short nails and still shape it into something beautiful without using acrylics.
You can call it a minimalistic approach to shaping your nails. You can create a really delicate and pretty natural look with soft edges and subtle tips.
Coffin/Ballerina Nails
So far everything we’ve covered is great for short nails. If you have naturally long nails and you’ve been feeling left out, apologies, this one’s for you.
Coffin nails are great for people who have naturally long and sturdy nails and also have the drive or desire to try new and unconventional ideas.
It’s called coffin nails because it does look like a coffin, with a straight top and tapered edges. A solid color will go nicely with this nail shape.
If you have short nails, and still want this nail shape, you’ll have to use acrylic to extend the length of your nails before you can pull off this shape.
Flare Nails
A sharp flared edge is the characteristic feature of this nail shape. The flare nail shape gives you a lot of room for creativity as the remaining details are up to you.
What’s more interesting is you have a wide surface area to really express yourself and let your personality shine with interesting colors and expressive nail art.
Because of the structure of this nail shape, you’ll need acrylic to pull it off, unless you have really strong nails.
Lipstick Nails
If you want something that’ll get your hands noticed and earn you compliments, this nail shape is the one.
Lipstick nails feature slanted and sharp tips.
It’s the most unique nail shape on this list. You’ll know lipstick nails immediately you set your eyes on them, and if you don’t recognize them you’ll pay attention because their uniqueness will draw you in.
Pointed Nails
This nail shape is best done with acrylic as natural nails can break in the process of filing.
The sides are straight and lead to a triangular shape at the top.
CONCLUSION
There is nothing like the perfect nail shape for you, you should choose a nail shape based on the shape and size of your hands and fingers.
You should also consider your cuticles and the strength of your nails when deciding which nail shape will be ideal for you.
Most importantly, be creative and expressive with your choice. Let your personality shine through your choice of nail shape.
Source: https://www.wmagazine.com/beauty/how-to-pick-best-nail-shape-for-your-hands