Halloween is supposed to be spooky and scary, but Halloween nail art is often just frankly awe-inspiring. When we were teenagers, all we knew about nail art was that one of our girlfriends had figured out how to use a White-Out pen on top of her manicure to create imitation French tips, and we were absolutely bowled over by it. These days, genuine artists are making absolutely incredible art on their nails, and we're totally amazed by their efforts and technique. Whenever it comes to art made in a really temporary way like this — beautifully artful decorations on a cake, incredible makeup, etc. — we get a little sad. After all, there's this beautiful thing that gets wiped away hours or days later, right? But at the same time, we think there's something even cooler to this, in its own way.
Nail art can still be held onto through the magic of photography, and just because it's temporary doesn't mean it's any less valuable. When it comes to enjoying the Halloween season this year, we're totally going to be rocking some Halloween-themed nails (although they're going to be way less cool than any of these, we're sure — especially if we're doing them ourselves). However, there are other ways to get into the Halloween groove. For anyone gearing up for making Halloween classroom party snacks (or even hosting their own Halloween party for kids and/or adults), we definitely recommend checking out these spooky Halloween snacks. We also recommend these no-sugar Halloween treats for kids. Some kids can't have sugar, and no kids should be having as much sugar as we throw at them this season!
These Nostalgic Goosebumps Nails
Who else read Goosebumps novels like they were eating popcorn when they were kids? These nails are an awesome throwback to our favorite spooky stories that we loved when we were younger — and the art on them is amazing.
These Relatively Subtle Skeleton Nails
These nails are totally delicate. We love that the thin black line separating the orange tip from the pale pink nail body is so incredible fine. And the painted skeleton middle finger looks really cool and almost abstract.
This Playful "Skeleton Crew"
We love that each of the 10 skeletons on this manicure set has its own playful personality — from the skeleton removing his own skull to the one waving a helium balloon. This is a Halloween-perfect combo of spooky and adorable.
These Scary Pennywise Nail Decals
Anyone a big fan of the movie It? This set of super scary, on-theme nails would be perfect with a Pennywise costume, or really, they could be their own costume unto themselves. Totally freaky!
This Spooky Violet Graveyard
How totally perfect is this spooky, foggy graveyard scene? We can't imagine having hands steady enough to paint this perfectly and this small, but we love that this artist does. As one commenter says, "You are goals!!!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ OBSESSED WITH YOUR NAILART"
These Amazing Freehand Art Pieces
Okay, some nail art is cool-looking, and then some of it is genuinely masterful. This falls into the latter category. The fact that someone could even freehand draw this is way too cool for us to understand — and we love the simplicity of the black-and-white palette.
These Stunning Gothic Claws
We've never before seen nails that are as perfect for a gorgeous Victorian vampire. We love that each one is unique, but they all tie together to create a real theme as a whole. We also love the embedded jewels and spikes!
These Bloody-Looking Talons
We're honestly not sure what kind of techniques the artist must have employed to capture this dissipating-blood vibe, but it reminds us a lot of the intro sequence to True Blood, and is therefore deeply excellent. Perfect for a vampire costume!
These Elegant Witch Nails
We love these elegant but slightly spooky witch nails. They are a lot more subtle than many of the other Halloween nail art designs we've seen — while still being total stand-outs. Also adore the delicate use of Swarovski crystals!
These Addams Family Nails
If there's one family on earth who loves Halloween the most, it has to be the Addams family, right? We love these cool, handpainted nails that pay homage to our favorite spooky family. (Although we'd be tempted to have that little poison bottle on all of our nails every day of the year).
These Blatantly Gruesome Nails
If there's one time of year where it's cool to get gross — whether that means making cookies shaped like severed fingers or painting nails to resemble brains and eyeballs — then it's Halloween. These are so well-done, they cross the line from "totally gross" into "icky yet artful."
These Blood-Red Glitter Nails
Okay, the rest of the nails on this list are pretty cool to look at, but we probably wouldn't actually wear any of them for more than just a Halloween party. These, however, are cool for the whole month of October! We love the subtle ombre style.
These Nightmare Before Christmas Tribute Nails
Anyone going as Sally from Nightmare Before Christmas? If so, it's totally worth getting inspired by this amazing nail art look for any costuming decisions! We love the romance of Jack and Sally, and that these nails remind us of how spooky-yet-sweet their love is.
This Army Green Graveyard Scene
Although we love the traditional color palette of Halloween — lots of black-and-orange, of course, but also plenty of black-and-purple and black-and-red — we also love it when someone totally switches that up. These khaki-green nails are awesomely executed and really unexpected.
These Spooky Spider Nails
We'll be the first to admit that we absolutely do not care for spiders. But 'tis the season for some arachnid designs, and we do really love the artistry behind this example. The spiders themselves are fairly cute, and the webs are really very pretty.
These Zombie Nails
We love that brains and zombies are being represented on these nails so artfully and in such fun, pop colors as hot pink and spring green. Never did we think that zombies would look so, well, adorable. But they do!
These Raven Nails
Although the artist describes these nails as being ravens and we believe her — she painted them, after all — we're also totally reminded of the amazing 80s movie The Crow, which everyone should probably rewatch this Halloween for nostalgia.
This Evil Apple Nail Set
"Malum Malus" means "Evil Apple," and we are feeling that from this melting, evil-looking skull-apple nail set. Apparently, the "malum malice" is used for prognostication on Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, which is the perfect show to snuggle up and watch this Halloween.
These Jade Green Nails
These nails are a totally perfect, poison-y jade green, and we can't believe that they're handpainted. How amazing is this art? We love that this is evocative of a whole graveyard scene … perfect for any zombie or witch costume.
These Super-Cute Candy Nails
When it comes to Halloween looks, this one is a timeless classic: black, orange, and filled with that classic Halloween trick-or-treat spirit. We love that the center nails are subtly candy-corn ombre colored — it's a great touch.
