I Hated the Way My Hands Look

I’ve got short, chubby fingers. Always have.

And no matter what set I got, nothing ever made them look... right.

Whenever I’d post my nails online I’d always hedge my embarrassment.

I’d write something like

“excuse my sausages”
or
“love my set even with my stubbys 😛”

The worst thing I ever told myself was

“I’m just not one of those girls with pretty hands.”

Whenever I asked for help, everyone just kept telling me to grow out my nails or get extensions.

But the thing is…

I don’t do long nails.

I cannot function with them.

I needed a different type of fix.

So I experimented. For months.

I tried different shapes, colours, line placements.

I made my techs so sick of me.

But eventually, we cracked it.

And while everyone was talking about how to shape your nails

Here’s the truth no one talks about:

Nail art isn’t just decoration—it’s design.

And design is powerful. 

Design can move mountains.

We’re not painting nails just to be cute

We’re shaping perception

We’re tricking the eye

We’re changing how our hands feel to us—without changing who we are.

And the gag is?

You don’t need long nails to do it

You just need the right art

Done the right way

What an Optical Illusion Taught Me About My Hands

Two lines. Same length. But one looks way longer.

Why? Because of the little arrows at the ends.

It’s not magic

It’s design

Your eyes are being tricked

Now think about your fingers

They don’t change in size

But the way you style them can totally change how they’re seen

That’s exactly what the right nail art does

Just like those arrows changed the illusion

The design changes the vibe

Your hands didn’t change

But suddenly they look longer

Slimmer

That’s the illusion

And that’s what I started doing

Every single time I sat down for a new set

Not just picking what’s cute but picking what works.

What Actually Makes Fingers Look Longer

1. Keep Designs Minimal & Centred and Emphasize Vertical Flows

The right design doesn’t just sit there

It moves

It pulls your eye up and down. Not side to side

Like a runway that makes your fingers look longer than they are

Not all line work elongates

But when it’s placed right

It’s magic

2. Negative Space

Don’t fill it all in

Leave space for the eye to fill in.

Negative space isn’t just aesthetic

It frames the nail

It tricks the eye into seeing more length than there is

A tiny blank space in the right place

Can do more than a full-glam set ever will


3. Colours That Work With Your Skin

Not every colour loves your hands back

And when we want to create the illusion of elongation

We want to avoid contrast

Too dark

Too loud

Too pale

And suddenly your fingers look wider than they really are

But when the colour fits

When it melts into your skin

Something clicks

Your hands look softer

Your fingers look longer

Your whole set just feels… effortless

It’s not about matching your skin exactly

It’s about letting the colour do the heavy lifting

So your hands don’t have to.


When you put it all together

Even with the shortest of nails

Your brain perceives a difference

If You Try Just One Design, Make It This One

This is the easiest win

If you want to start using nail art that actually does something

Start with an Angled Double French Tip

You don’t have to

But if you do, you might actually feel like your hands are perfect just the way they are. 

This Is Where It Gets Even Better

Double French Tips usually cost $25–$30 extra on top of your Gel Manicure

But at 6ixTips

You can grab a Nail Art Pass

With the Nail Art Pass you unlock 3 months of nail art with your manis or extensions—$0 at checkout, every time.

On all your manis—or extensions, if that’s your thing

All for $20

No guessing

No extra cost at checkout.

Just designs that actually do something for your hands

Tell me more about the pass