15 Short Red Nail Art Designs to Steal Your Summer Nail Game

Like sun and sand, red nails are the perfect pairing for summer. Short red nails are perfectly balanced between class and ease, regardless of whether you’re heading out to a pool party or a weekend brunch. Short nails are simple to take care of during summer, especially if you’re on the go, yet they can still make an effect. Here are 15 beautiful red nail designs to take your summer look to the next level.

1. Classic Glossy Red

However, let’s face it: there’s just no way to compete with the timeless look of the red nail manicure. This works well for any occasion that you are planning to go to and doesn’t even require any work: you can apply a base coat to protect your nail, apply two thin layers of red nail polish, and finish it off with a high-shine top coat. The trick is to find a red that matches well with your skin tone – blue-red works well with cooler skin tones, while orange-red makes you glow if you have warm skin tones. The nail polish in this timeless look won’t chip because you’re literally painting it around the tip of the nail.

2. Elegance in Matte Red

Shake things up with your red nail polish by adding an unexpectedly chic finish: matte topcoat. You can still go ahead and apply your nail polish in red in the normal way, but after it is completely dry, you apply a matte nail topcoat finish to it. This is fashionable and sophisticated enough to take great pictures with it on. Another interesting aspect of matte nail polish is that it conceals any flaws on the nail polish and can even work to extend the wear factor if you’re planning on enjoying summer activities.

3. Red French Tips

Give the traditional French manicure a dramatic summer twist by turning the color scheme upside down – paint the entire nail with a nude or light pink color and finish it off with clean red tips achieved by painting inside a tape mark to create defined borders. Simply place tape where you want the color to end, paint inside the tape with red nail polish, and remove the tape slowly while it is still somewhat wet to keep short nails summer-ready yet extended.

4. Glitter Accent Nail

Add a bit of sparkle to that red nail polish manicure by picking one nail on each hand to be an accent nail. Paint red nail polish on all of your nails, and follow it up with a coat of gold or silver glitter nail polish on each of your ring fingers. Add depth to that look by using chunky glitter on one nail before finishing it with a glossy finish on the rest of the nails to avoid overdoing it while attending day and night events in the summer season.

5. Cherry Red with White Dots

Go retro with this fun polka dot nail art design. Start with painting two layers of cherry red nail polish on each nail to serve as the base color, and allow it to dry completely. Then, with the help of a dotting tool or the rounded tip of a bobby pin, apply dots of white nail polish evenly on each nail in desired patterns to complete the look. If you’re new to nail art tutorials, you can start with doing the nail art on one or two accent nails.

6. Ombré Red Fade

Start with an ombre effect in burgundy at the cuticles, transitioning to coral-red at the tip of the nail. You can start with a base coat of a lighter nail polish color. Allow it to dry completely before pattering different nail polish shades in gradations of intensity on the nail using a makeup sponge, with feathered edges where different shades meet. Finish with a glossy topcoat and clean the nail edges with nail polish remover on a small makeup brush to complete the artistic nail look for the summer season.

7. Red and Gold Foil

Include foil with metal to give it a lush texture that sparkles in the sun during the summer months. Paint your nails red and allow them to dry completely. Paint nail glue or special nail foil adhesives on random areas on each nail and place gold sheets on the areas where the adhesives are clear and sticky, and promptly peel them off after application to create the unique effect desired in high fashion that is not difficult to replicate at home.

8. Red Stripes Minimalist

Make use of negative space with red stripes that are thin on a nude or clear background. Paint any nail with very thin nude polish or even only base coat for a super natural finish. When it is totally dry, hold a thin line striper brush to paint thin vertical or even diagonal red stripes on each nail. The less-is-more effect is super fresh and modern, with nothing but natural nail peaking out – great for everyday summer wear.

9. Nail Art Designs Inspired by

Recreate the most popular summer fruit on your short nails with the Watermelon nail art. Paint the nails just as you see the inside of the watermelon – with a gradient of red to light pink, topped with white. When it dries, you can paint black seeds scattered on the nails with a small brush and even a green line on the tip, where it symbolically shows the green skin of the fruit. Trust us, it’s sure to make smiles wherever you go, especially at pool parties and summer functions.

10. Red with Rhinestone Details

Add glamour with strategically placed rhinestones on your red base. After applying and drying your red polish, use a dotting tool with a tiny amount of clear top coat to pick up small rhinestones and position them near your cuticle or in a curved line. Press gently to secure, then seal everything with the top coat. This embellishment catches light beautifully and transitions seamlessly from beach to dinner.

11. Two-Tone Red Blocking

Use two different shades of red to create a color-blocking effect. Select a bright coral red and a deeper cherry red. Use striping tape to create a division horizontally or diagonally across each of the nails. This creates a geometric pattern and maintains the monochromatic theme despite the variety.

12. Glossy and Matte Combo

Mix textures in the same mani. Use the same red paint for all nails and add a matte finish to some fingers and a gloss finish to the others. This effect creates the illusion of dimension and shows attention to detail without needing more than one paint color.

13. Red with Tiny Hearts

With miniature hearts in white or pink shades adding the perfect finishing touch for a romantic summer look, create the hearts by positioning two dots together using the dotting tool. Slide the dots downward to create the heart pattern. This should be practiced on a sheet of paper until the technique has been mastered. A heart per nail can add the perfect finishing touch.

14. Coral-Red

Mix traditional red with coral shades to create a sunset effect. After applying the coral-colored nail polish to the tip of the nails and red to the area close to the cuticle, blend the two shades at the corner where the two meet using a clean sponge.

15. Red with Negative Space Cutouts

Add innovative geometric patterns to the design by incorporating the use of negative space. The process involves applying red polish to the nails and utilizing a thin brush coated with acetone to ‘chisel away’ the polish in geometric patterns such as the triangle and half-moon designs.

“Short red nails demonstrate that sometimes less really is more when it comes to getting noticed. The following 15 designs are great solutions for any occasion during the warm-weather season and can be worn in a variety of ways,” asserts Nadilo. Experiment with some techniques in order to develop your unique look for the red nails of the season.