TikTok’s latest hobby is roasting anything that screams peak-2016 Instagram. In nail land, the punching bag is the long, tapered almond tip, now dubbed “so millennial.” The charge sheet: those born before 1997 still book them, while Gen Z flocks to micro-squovals and soap-sheer shorties. Cute meme—but is almond actually over?
Why the “millennial” stamp stuck
Flash back to the rose-gold-flat-lay era (roughly 2014-2019). Every chrome drip, marble swirl, or hologram powder lived on a mid-length or long almond.
That visual timestamp shoved the shape into the same nostalgia drawer as side parts and “But first, coffee” captions. It feels millennial-coded because, honestly, it sort of is.
So, an outdated trend or a timeless classic?
Outside the snark, almond isn’t exactly withering in the corner. OPI’s annual “Ins & Outs” still lists almond as in for medium and long lengths; their pro artists say it flatters pretty much every hand and gives you more nail art real estate than a basic squoval.
And #almondnails is sitting at on million of TikTok views this year alone—so, clearly, the shape is doing just fine outside the comment section.
Trend cycles come and go, but almond has outlived everything: the 1950s moon-manicure, the 1980s press-on boom, and the 2010s gel takeover. It’s popular because it works—tapered enough to lengthen, rounded enough to let you type without puncturing your latte lid.
Tom Bachik summed it up for Vogue: the almond silhouette “creates an elegant, elongated feel to fingers.” Whatever finish you layer on top decides the decade.
Bottom line
Generational gatekeeping is great for clicks but terrible for creativity. Wear the shape that makes you stare at your own hands a second longer.
If that’s a short squoval, live your quiet-luxury truth; if it’s a long almond, you’re not automatically trapped in a BuzzFeed listicle about avocado toast.
Trends start conversations, not commandments. File, paint & tip your tech. The manicure police can keep scrolling.