back in black.
The First Lady of fashion has shown her true colors and nail art is officially out for fall 2013. Many fashionistas have long been pointing at nail art as a sophmoric, tacky trend hanging on too long, but once Anna Wintour posted an Instagram of her enchantingly chaste manicure, it became clear that clean and simple will be seeing a soaring renaissance. But while there is elegance in simplicity, daring too is always on trend and can you can toe the line between chintzy and charismatic with this fall 2013’s more understated accents and straightforward bold colors. Harper’s Bazaar offered these suggestions straight from the runways:
3D Accents: “For manicurists, the question wasn’t what could we glue onto nails, but rather what couldn’t we? At Libertine, Katie Hughes, working with butter LONDON, created a bespoke golden lacquer (Marbs, available in summer 2013), then affixed crystals echoing designs from the collection. At Jenny Packham and Nicholas K, manicurists started simple, opting for silver, gray, and black glitter tips. Then things got more interesting: lace appliqué at Houghton and gold studs at Kate Spade.”
Twists on Black: “Some days, an LBD is perfect as-is. Other times it needs a delicate accent (bracelet, belt, shoe) to make it work. Manicurists were inspired by the latter. At La Perla, Hughes created a half moon mani with butter LONDON Yummy Mummy and Union Jack Black ($15 each, butterlondon.com), while at Oscar de la Renta, moons stayed bare and shiny black lacquer filled the rest of the nail bed. Barely-noticeable silvery accents reigned at Mara Hoffman; at Betsy Johnson and Emerson things got black and white and interesting with lettering and checkerboards, respectively.”
Metallic: “The challenge at Costello Tagliapietra was finding a silver polish with a purple undertone to complement and contrast with the collection,” says Essie manicurist Michelle Saunders. Nothing Else Metals ($8, essie.com) fit the bill.”
Oxblood: “Goodbye, cheery, cherry red. This season’s crimson is far more sinister. The deep sanguine hue (part brown, part purple) was layered in thick sheets at Dannijo, Cynthia Rowley, Richard Chai Love, Honor, Naeem Khan, and Reem Acra.”
Black is Back: “At Kaelen, Hugues created a texture clash nail: Two coats of butter LONDON Union Jack Black ($8, butterlondon.com) were covered with a matte top coat. For a shiny French finish, a glossy clear top coat was swiped along the tips.”
Are you leaving nail art behind? Which new nail trends will you be trying out this fall? — Casandra Armour
