The holidays are always a fun time to dress up your nails. You can adorn your manicure with tiny ornaments for Christmas or go sparkle-crazy for New Year’s Eve. Thanksgiving nail designs, however, are a bit less obvious. The option is there to get literal with your designs (think: pumpkins and turkeys) or go for a less on-the-nose design that still captures the essence of the holiday.
“The best way to emulate Thanksgiving is to find inspiration from the season, the activities, or even the food you consume during this holiday,” says celebrity nail artist San Sung Kim. “You can simply use earthy and warm tones of the season and add some Thanksgiving magic with simple designs such as pumpkins or leaves.”
Meet the expert
- San Sung Kim is a celebrity nail artist who specializes in avant-garde, hand-painted designs.
- Amy Oung is a nail artist and educator for Orly.
If you don’t want something so literal, expert Amy Oung says you can stick to warm colors. “You can get into a festive mood by wearing rich neutral colors on the nails, says Oung. “Once you have the colors, you can matte, marbelize, add glitter, do abstract lines—the ideas are limitless.” See for yourself, below.
Fall Foliage
This stunning mix and match combines warm fall hues in a mix of French tips, croc, tortoiseshell, and floral prints atop a milky beige base.
Fallen Leaves
“The chocolate brown tips and leafy cuffs are a subtle way to celebrate the season of Thanksgiving,” says Kim.
Olive Swirls
Olive green mixes with warm shades of cream and tan to make this gorgeous yet simple abstract design on a completely sheer base. The design is reserved for just two nails per hand, allowing space for opaque olive green nails to lead the manicure.
Espresso Brown
Go dramatic with this dark, nearly black espresso brown. It’s incredibly chic and draws in the eye.
Neutral Aura
This low-contrast mani features a sheer beige base with a warm brown center topped with white stars, creating a soft and dreamy look.
Sweater Weather
This coffin-shapped nail design features a 3D cable knit effect. It’s painted in Skittle fashion—starting with a deep brown and ending in a warm greige.
Muted Cranberry
Consider this dusty hue cranberry lite. It’s got the depth of the traditional fall color without being super dark, yielding a soft look.
Glazed Chocolate
Brown chrome nails are trending—and it’s pretty obvious why. The combination of the warm polish with a shimmery metallic top is to-die for.
Gratitude
This sweet design features a stack of burgundy, tan, and orange hearts that screams Thanksgiving. To get the look, use a dotting tool to paint on the hearts, and while the polish is still wet, take a fine-line brush and drag it from the top heart through and beyond the middle of the lower hearts.
Cat Eye Orange
Mesmerizing and festive, this cat eye (aka velvet) nail look is incredibly stunning. The warm orange topped with gold metallic gel and gold stars will have everyone you see saying “Oooo lemme see your nails!”
Shimmer Set
This warm, brownish-red shade—Stiletto on the Run by Orly—is perfect for this time of year. And the touches of gold foil and glitter up the festive factor.
Autumn Swirls
“For this Thanksgiving look, I added in fun details such as autumn swirls and forest details to capture the playful and warm mood of the season,” says Kim.
Autumnal Nudes
Lights Lacquer polishes were used to create this neutral look that leaves the half-moon at the base of the nail visible. In addition to looking gorgeous, the negative space also allows the nail to grow out beautifully.
Warm Neutrals
Painted with a mix of fall hues from OPI, this manicure keeps it warm and simple.
Mauvey Browns
If you lean toward pink hues, this look is perfect for you. It features a blend of chocolate brown and mauve to create a sweet, yet moody look.
Bordeaux Red
It doesn’t get more quintessentially spooky season than a deep Bordeaux red. This shade, Luxio Vamp from Polished Pinkies, is worthy of heavy rotation.
Pumpkin Aura
These aura nails use orange at the center and fade out to yellow, creating a gorgeous pumpkin-y glow.
Pop Art French
Cozy autumnal hues were used to create these playful pop art-inspired French tips. They’re perfect if you want something that fits the season without being too Thanksgiving-y.
Cranberry Brie
These nails evoke the cranberry-baked brie that I can’t wait to eat this Thanksgiving.
‘70s Florals
Pumpkin pie is the perfect retro orange for fall. It’s paired with a warm brown shade and a floral design to create this groovy look.
Milk Chocolate
Carbon Coffee from Gel Baby LA is the perfect shade of brown to emulate milk chocolate. This look features a blank triangle at the base of the tip, which echoes the shape of the pointy almond tip.
Fall Tangerine
Simple lines in yellow, orange, red, and dark brown were used to create this striking graphic look.
Funky Fall
Go bold with this mix-and-match look, which uses tortoiseshell, flowers, and checker print to make a statement.
Fall Florals
A buttery yellow, cranberry red, and pumpkin orange come together to make this fall floral design. Having the flowers on just one nail keeps the look feeling delicate.
Autumn Skittles
Although teal isn’t usually viewed as a fall shade, it’s the perfect bright addition to this fall manicure.
Pumpkin Spice
If pumpkins are your jam, go literal with your Thanksgiving nail art. This look features pumpkin accent nails aside orange and beige solid nails.
Thanksgiving Gnome
Gnomes may be big for Christmas designs, but they’ve been slowly popping into other holidays, like Thanksgiving. This look features one gnome per hand, along with pumpkins and a solid green shade.
Bronze
The shade Lyra from Cirque Colors was used to create this stunning bronze look. It’s the perfect polish to grab when you want an interesting look that requires minimal effort.
Checkered for Autumn
This checkered pattern uses light shades of orange, mauve, and brown to create this super pretty geometric look. Each nail is also sprinkled with a little bit of gold leaf to add some oomph.
Shimmer Harvest
Shimmering shades of autumnal red, green, orange, purple, and brown were used to create this vibrant look.
Pumpkin Patch
Go pumpkin crazy with this look featuring kitschy fall etchings and glittery shades of orange, green, and gold.
Clean Lines
Clean lines are used to create this geometric look. While some nails feature a checkered pattern, others feature color in monochrome blocks.
Pumpkin French
Get the pumpkin vibes without going too literal. This design features a shimmery pumpkin orange micro tip and a simple dot at the base of each nail.
Matte Orange
An orange nail is a super simple way to approach your Thanksgiving manicure. The addition of the matte top coat adds an unexpected finish.
Fall Sunflower
Sunflowers scream autumn, so sporting a few on your nails is perfect for Thanksgiving. This look also features orange and gold glitter polishes.
Dark Chocolate
The polish Kafkaesque from Mooncat was used to create this deep dark brown nail. It’s simply gorgeous.
Simply Fall
Instagram / @jess_nails_it
Polka dots are a year-round favorite. Consider incorporating them into an autumnal manicure like this one featuring brown, orange, and cream hues.
Matte Pumpkin
Black isn’t just for Halloween — carry the moody vibes to Thanksgiving with this pumpkin design that was created using polishes from Magpie Beauty and Polished Pinkies Pro.
Pomegranate Plaid
Plaid is a fun way to enjoy design in a more minimalist spirit. This look is centered on a gorgeous pomegranate shade that’s perfect for Thanksgiving.
Brown Ombré Tips
Instead of going for a traditional French tip with a clean arch, this look features a gradient of brown to sheer.
Neutral Abstract Florals
Polishes from Magpie Beauty were used to create this abstract neutral look that features abstract splotches of brown polish and tiny white daisies.
Glitter Pumpkin
Jazz up a pumpkin-orange look by reaching for this glittery number from Mooncat.
Autumn Abstract
Tiny overlapping dots were used to create this abstract look. It uses a mix of red, green, yellow, black, and white polishes.
