The latest trend to get both a TikTok and a celeb seal of approval is something called milk bath nails. Not only does the hashtag have millions of views on social media, but celebrities like Blake Lively, Jennifer Lopez, and Sydney Sweeney have been spotted with the look. So while they’re certainly trending right now, Celebrity Nail Artist Elle Gerstein is quick to remind us that they’ve been around for a long time. “Instead of a trend, for a manicurist or a nail tech, milk bath is a technique,” she says. “It’s like chroming. Everyone called it the glazed donut nail because Hailey Bieber wore it, but we’ve been doing it forever.” Keep scrolling to see what milk bath nails look like and learn how to re-create them at home with some help from experts. (Hint: it’s way easier than you might think.)
So what is this technique? According to San Sung Kim, a Nailing Hollywood Artist, “Milk bath nails are designs that have a sheer white or creamy layer underneath or over a specific design element. They are often paired with a floral element resembling a tub full of vibrant flowers in a milky bath. Milk bath nails are trendy right now because they lean into the ‘clean girl’ aesthetics due to their subtle yet effortless and feminine vibe.” Anastasia Totty, Nail Artist, and LeChat Nails educator, agrees, saying, “It’s very popular because it’s a fun twist on a classic off-white manicure.” Here’s the thing though. Milk bath nails don’t have to be white or off-white. Modern milk bath manicures can be any color you like. As Gerstein puts it, “All milk bath means is that it’s showing through but it’s making it milky looking. Some of the new ones are these marble designs. I’d consider those to be milk bath nails too but they look more like stone.”
Gerstein says the milk bath technique is flexible, meaning there are multiple ways you can use it to get the same result. “It’s just layering and using the same color to sheer and blur out a design,” she says. “You can do it with gel, with nail polish, with acrylic. You can actually encase flowers in the acrylic, which is the original milk bath nail, but there are 100 ways to do it.” Each nail artist might have a slightly different take on the technique. For Totty, it’s all about using acrylic powder. “In the salon when I do it it’s usually encapsulated multicolor dry flowers and leaves with a mix of white and clear acrylic powder,” she says. “Once you file and shape the nails you can see some parts of the flowers show on the surface, when you apply topcoat it almost looks like the flowers are sinking in the ‘milk bath.'”
The short answer is yes, yes they can. Morgan Dixon, Nailing Hollywood Artist and owner of Lab & Lounge: A Concept Salon in New Orleans, explains how she would recommend doing it. “You just need an off-white polish, a topcoat (to mix into the off-white polish so that it’s slightly transparent), and dried floral petals,” she says. “You start by prepping and manicuring your nail. From there, I like to break up my floral petals because it’s best to work with small pieces. From there, apply your base coat and let it dry. After that, you create a marbled effect by applying the diluted topcoat and off-white polish mixture around the nail.” The trick here is to not fully cover the nail, but apply just enough to give it a marbled look. From there, let it dry, then apply a few pieces of floral around the nails. “Don’t overthink it—just randomly place them. Go back over with another layer of the marbled off-white mixture to give it dimension. Look over them and see if they could use any other layering. If not, topcoat and that’s it!” Gerstein, on the other hand, recommends a slightly different technique. Start with applying one or two coats of sheer nail color. Then, create a design—whether that’s a floral design using real petals, a stamp applicator, or peel-and-stick nail stickers—and apply another layer of the same sheer nail color over top to blur it out. “That’s the do-it-yourself version,” she says. “It’s basically a technique of layering where you sandwich a design in a color.” If you do decide to use real flower petals, Kim has a tip to make things easier for first-timers. “When using dried flowers at home, a good tip is to pre-soak them in either water or a clear polish so that they are malleable enough to sit flat on the nails,” she says.
Both Dixon and Kim recommend this milky white nail polish.
We love this budget-friendly polish from Essie.
Remember, milk bath nails don’t have to be white. Consider a fresh pink color instead.
Or, how about a soft, buttery yellow?
This is one of Totty’s favorite gel polishes to use for a milk bath manicure.
This is one of Totty’s favorite traditional polishes to use for a milk bath manicure.
Dried flowers are easy to find on Amazon.
These flowers are perfect for a springtime milk bath manicure.
If you don’t want to use real dried flowers, opt for these easy-to-use nail art stickers instead.
Or, if you’re feeling artsy, paint a design on yourself.
Dixon also recommends a “a good thick topcoat,” like this one.
