Meet Rachel Sun, the nail artist responsible for Doechii’s cat claws

Read our Spring 2025 cover story with Doechii here

Rachel Sun grew up with plans for a career in law. That was until one day, in the months before graduating from UCLA, she decided she wanted intricate, over-the-top nails to commemorate the occasion. When she couldn’t find anyone in Los Angeles who matched her vision, she decided to figure out how to do them herself. Her vision? Sharp, exaggerated, fang-like nails. Nails that, essentially, looked like they could be used as a weapon.

After teaching herself via watching videos and practising with friends, it didn’t take Sun long to realise she had a knack for 3D nail sculpting, despite having little art experience. Soon her peers were lining up at her door to get their nails done. (“Maybe it was because I was doing them for really cheap,” she jokes, looking back.) After graduating, her client pool continued to grow, until she was so booked she had to move to a studio in downtown LA instead of taking clients out of her Sawtelle bedroom. 

It’s only been two years since Sun started doing nails but she’s already seen her work up on the Grammys stage during Doechii’s show-stopping performance earlier this month. She first started working with the rapper last year, and since then her schedule has been filled with high-profile projects, including the cover of Dazed’s Spring 2025 issue. We spoke with Sun about everything from her work with Doechii, to what trends she sees for nails this year.

You recently created looks for the Grammys, where you did Doechii’s nails and 16 of her dancers. How was that experience for you?

Rachel Sun: They had told me about the Grammys at the beginning of this year. At first I thought, ‘OK, I’m doing Doechii’s nails and Doechii’s DJ, Miss Milan’s nails – two sets. I can totally handle that.’ And then they asked if I could do some performer nails. I didn’t know it was going to be 16 performers, a set for her DJ and a set for Doechii. I probably should have hired a couple of assistants, but I did all of them by myself, and it took around three days. I slept in my studio.

How did you land on the final design?

Rachel Sun: We wanted to go with something that’s simple, but Doechii is not simple. There are a million details in her office siren looks. The colour scheme is gray, and the design looks simple: a French tip with Thom Browne stripes on it. I needed to add something that complimented her multiple outfits. Her first was this long pinstripe dress that had a very interesting silhouette. I decided on flocking powder on the cuticle area in a half moon. It’s this tiny microfiber plastic material, and it’s very loose. Doing that 19 times over was definitely a task. 

Is that how your creative process usually works with her?

Rachel Sun: I was really surprised that Doechii cares so much about nails because I feel like they are sometimes more of an afterthought. But she wants an intricate, different nail set for each outfit she wears. She’s really trusted my creative vision as well, which I’m so grateful for. Her assistant would send me the outfit she was going to wear, and I would try to create a nail set based on it. So we did the same thing with the Grammys. I’m really happy people liked it and noticed it as well.

How did you first connect with Doechii? Who reached out?

Rachel Sun: She did. I have no idea how she found me, to be honest. I guess the Instagram algorithm worked and she saw my work. The first time she reached out to me, her assistant texted me that she really wanted the cat claw nails. It was surprising to me that somebody who is really big wanted something so, almost alien and weird. I’d done them for Noah Cyrus in the past, and I think that could be how she found them.

Do you have a favourite set you’ve made her?

Rachel Sun: I made her these claws for Camp Flog Gnaw, and at the base there was this 3D alligator cuticle design. That one was really cool because we went with a sleek claw that kind of matches her aesthetic of being very office siren, very proper. But then at the base of it, you have this almost ugly 3D crocodile cuticle situation. I thought that was a nice contract because she’s always doing something a little bit weird, but also making it look very put together. 

You have such an intricate approach to nail design. What would you say is your speciality or signature?

Rachel Sun: When I first started, I stumbled on a page by Margie Nails, a Russian nail artist. She adds so many elements to a nail I didn't know you could. She’d encapsulate objects. She’d make them look like there’s dirt in them, animal shed, insects. That changed how I viewed nail art: it doesn’t have to be conventionally pretty at all. You can make them ugly, misshapen. My style is just ugly, honestly. Ugly and weird. And I really like doing the cat claw shape. 

What trends are you seeing a lot of recently?

Rachel Sun: People are bored of the traditional nail shapes. There’s this nail shape called edge, and I’ve been seeing it a lot more. I think Cardi B’s nail tech actually did the edge shape on her. I think in 2025, it’s going to be less what is on the nails and more what the shape of the nails are. 

What trends do you think are on their way out?

Rachel Sun: If you’d asked me a few months ago, I would have said French tips, but now I’m finding so many different ways to elevate them. I’d done these claw nails with a French tip on it because I thought it was kind of ironic. You have this almost grotesque shape, and then you can put a French tip on it, and it’s like a classic manicure. But I do think I’m tired of seeing 3D flowers. I’ve done so many. We can maybe leave that in 2024.

More and more celebrities are flaunting dramatically long nails. Why do you think they’re so popular right now?

Rachel Sun: I feel like we are just now starting to accept that long nails can be classy. I think there have been such stereotypes against long nails. And now, I mean, look at Cynthia Erivo. Her nails are beautiful and people are talking about it. And Cardi B, her nails are beautiful. So I think, although maybe it’s not possible for everyone to get these long nails, it’s going to be more widely accepted now that we see these major celebrities rocking them as well. 

What is the craziest request you’ve gotten that you wouldn’t do?

Rachel Sun: There was this trend with cat eye gel. It’s a magnetic gel. You would get a paperclip and bend it into shapes.

Oh yes! I’ve seen people doing hearts with it.

Rachel Sun: The heart one killed me. I’ve never successfully done a heart one, and I will never try it again. And if somebody asks me to do one of those, I will absolutely say no. I don’t know if it’s even real. I don’t know if anyone has ever mastered that besides in the videos that were going around. Me and all the nail people that I know, we hate that trend. We cannot do it. It’s impossible. Evil nail trend.

Read our Spring 2025 cover story with Doechii here