What is the Chunky French Manicure? The latest manicure sported by Selena Gomez explored 

Selena Gomez's latest manicure is a throwback to the early 2000s with the iconic Chunky French Manicure. Selena Gomez is not only famous as a singer and founder of a thriving beauty brand but also as the ambassador of drop-dead gorgeous manicures.

The Calm Down singer flaunts amazing manicures incorporating the latest nail trends with a touch of her own, with the bubblegum disco manicure and fire chrome manicure spread all over TikTok.

On November 19, 2023, Selena Gomez virtually attended the 2023 Billboard Music Awards to accept the award for “Top Afrobeats Song” for her collaboration on the song “Calm Down” with Nigerian artist Rema.

To accept the award, Selena got all dolled up in a beautiful crocheted floral dress with slick back hair, and she paired the look with a Y2K Chunky French manicure. The singer went for a half-up-half-down hairstyle, completing her ensemble.

Selena Gomez turned to her go-to celebrity manicurist, Tom Bachik, to create the manicure of the moment. A chunky French manicure is a twist on the classic French manicure, with the main difference lying in the French tip and shape of the nails.

A chunky French manicure features square-shaped nails, with the French tip being extremely chunky and thick instead of the thin, tapered French tip usually seen on the classic French manicure.

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Products for creating Selena Gomez's Chunky French manicure at home explored

The muted, mini French manicure has reigned supreme since the 2020s, sported by Dua Lipa, Katy Perry, and Lori Harvey amongst many other celebrities. The Chunky French manicure dates back to the early 2000s with medium-length, squared-off nails featuring muted shades.

In this case, Selena Gomez went for a nude pink shade with high gloss, and instead of using a cream shade for the French tip, she went with a stark white shade and extended the same an inch or two off her finger prior to the sharp square edge.

Selena paired her chunky French mani with a minimalist beauty look to make sure the focal point was her colorful dress. As for her makeup, her base was dewy with a warm-toned nude lip and some eyeliner with light gold glitter eyeshadow.

To create a Chunky French manicure like Selena’s:

First, one needs to remove any lingering nail polish with a nail polish remover, and then cut and file the nails to a desired length. The ideal shape for this manicure is square edges instead of almond-shaped nails, which goes for press-on tips for extra length as well.

Next, buff the surface of the nails for an even bed and apply a layer of the base coat of preference. One can use the Sally Hansen Double Duty Base and Top Coat ($2 on Amazon), as the two-in-one formula doubles up as a top coat and base coat. It smoothens the nail beds, dries quickly, and delivers a hardening effect. This is the ideal multi-tasking nail product one must invest in.

After the base coat is applied, paint the entire nail with a light pink or nude color like OPI’s Baby Take a Vow ($11.49). It is a soft, blushing bridal pink shade that is very close to a toned-down baby pink color. The nail polish offers seven days of wear and features a fast-drying formula.

Once the base color is dry, outline the tip of the nails with a piece of tape and paint over it with a bright shade of white like OPI’s Funny Bunny ($11.49), a soft white nail polish is perfect for French manicures. Peel the tape and let the nail polish dry.

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To complete the manicure, add a layer of glossy top coat and a dollop of nail oil for enhanced nail health. Just like that, one can create a Y2K-inspired, Billboard Music Award appearance-ready manicure at home.