The micro French manicure is a minimalist trend that’s having a major moment. It’s a universally flattering look that you can make your own, painting the tips in your favourite colour or adding nail art on top. If you love the look of a French mani, but want something a little more subdued, this design is perfect for you. It’s a wonderful way to add length to short nails, but also works for nails of any length or shape. Take a look at our favourite designs to elevate your look.
What is a Micro French Manicure?
You can think of the micro French manicure as a minimalist’s dream. It’s similar to the classic French manicure, but the tip is decorated with an elegant, ultra-thin line. You can opt for a timeless design with nude nails and white tips or choose to do this look with coloured tips. You can also use the micro French as a base and add nail art on top. The micro French manicure is a great way to add length to your nails, especially if your nails are on the shorter side.
6 Micro French Manicure Essentials to Invest In
1. Base coat and top coat
2. Mixing palette
3. Thin liner brush
4. Nail polish remover
5. Cuticle oil
6. White nail polish
5 Micro French Manicure Tips and Hacks
1. Prep Your Hands and Nails
Buffed, moisturized hands will create the perfect base for your micro French mani. Start with a hand scrub to get rid of any dry and dead skin. Use a nail file and buff to maintain the nail shape you want and apply a cuticle oil to hydrate the nail bed and cuticle.
2. Use the Base Coat for Neutral Colour
If you want to create a classic French mani with a natural base, use a base coat that has a sheer peach or pink tinge so it doubles as the base colour. If you only have a clear base coat, apply 2 coats of your base shade to create a smooth and even finish.
3. Use a Thin Liner Brush
Creating a micro French manicure is tricky using normal nail polish. To simplify the process, empty a small amount of nail polish onto a mixing palette. Dip a thin liner brush into the polish and paint an ultra-thin line across the very edge of the nail. Note that you may need to apply a few coats to make sure the colour stands out.
4. Keep It Clean
First of all, allow your base coats to fully dry before moving on to your French tip. If it’s your first time doing a micro French manicure, you may not get it perfect the first time, and that’s okay. If you make any mistakes, use a lip brush dipped in nail polish remover to to clean things up.
5. Get Creative
There are so many variations of the micro French mani you can do, so don’t be afraid to get creative. This could mean a sheer white base with a black tip, rainbow tips with alternating colours, glitter tips, or of course, the classic white tips. As we mentioned above, you can also use the micro French as a base and add nail art like flowers or hearts on top.
6 Micro French Manicure Tutorials & Designs
1. Glitter Micro Mani
A glitter micro mani is perfect for the holidays, but really works for any time of year. Choose a natural, pinky base boat and a glitter polish of your choice (we like this essie silver glitter). You’ll likely have to apply a few coats of the glitter polish to ensure it stands out!
2. Micro Mani with Flowers
Tiny flowers are such a cute addition to a micro French mani. If you’re new to flower nail art, check out this tutorial for a step-by-step guide on how to create easy daisy designs. As for tools, you’ll need a dotting pen to create the flowers.
3. Easy Fall Brown Micro French Manicure Tutorial | Simple Nail Designs
I love this brown monochromatic nail look. It’s a neutral design you can wear anytime of year- just follow her step-by-step tutorial to create it. She uses products like the essie polish in ‘Cliff Hanger’ and ‘Keep Branching Out’, as well as the Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat. She also uses the mixing palette and liner brush hack to master the thin French line.
4. Micro French Tips with Hearts
Adding tiny hearts to your micro French tips is a great way to add a touch of romance or self love to your nails. You can add a statement heart on one nail, add a heart to each of your nails or add multiple hearts to each nail. You can also choose to do the heart in the same colour as your French tip or switch it up. Pink hearts with a white tip would be oh, so sweet.
5. Black and White Mico French Mani
We love the look of these two-toned tips. This will take a skilled hand but it will be worth it! Our suggestion? Paint all along the tip with the white polish first and then paint half of it black over top, rather than trying to get 2 even halves.
6. Easy French Manicure with Pearls Tutorial | Short Nails | Simple Nail Designs
Just like the micro French mani, pearls are going to be big for 2023 and this design merges the two together. Along with a white nail polish of your choice and your top and base coats, you’ll also need a rhinestone dotting pen, nail glue and pearl beads with a flat backs. Watch how she perfectly applies the pearls and make them your own!
Ready to jump on the micro French mani trend? Follow our best tips and favourite designs to get the look!
This post contains affiliate links.
Did you enjoy this post on how to do the micro French manicure? We’d love it if you shared it on Pinterest!
Looking for more trending nail designs? Make sure to follow our Beauty Board on Pinterest!
