Fresh Claws
Stuck in a nail polish rut? Katie Wright has all the backstage beauty inspiration you need for spring
WHETHER it’s a subtle soft pink, classic red or jet black, we’ve all got our favourite nail varnishes, the ones we return to time after time. These go-with-everything shades are great for grabbing when you’re in a rush, but every so often it’s fun to mix it up and try something new. If you’re craving a mani makeover, look no further than the spring/summer catwalk shows, which gave us tons of nail-spiration, from uber brights and metallic finishes to a new take on nudes - all looks which you can easily recreate yourself. Here, we run down four major trends and the polishes you need to get the look at home...
1. Japanese flavours
At New York Fashion Week the nail technicians were having a ball, creating the kind of colourful nail art seen on the streets of Tokyo’s trendy Harajuku district, like neon green talons at The Blonds and sparkly blue tips at Tadashi Shoji. The Japanese capital was also the starting point for OPI’S Tokyo collection, which offers a dozen dazzling hues from lime green and shocking pink to indigo blue. Even more authentic, cult nail brand Gofun has recently landed in the UK all the way from Kyoto. The water-based, acetone-free polishes are based on a traditional Japanese paint and come in a variety of vivid shades.
» OPI nail lacquer How Does Your Zen Garden Grow and All Your Dreams In Vending Machines, £10.80 each (was £13.50)
» Gofun Nail transparent pink, £13.50, & special guests
2. Coffee nudes
The Nineties make-up trend has seen brown lipstick taking over from pink as the most on-trend nude and the same thing is happening with nails, if the cafe au lait shades see at the Palmer/harding and Prabal Gurung shows are anything to go by. Give your nails a caffeine injection by swapping your usual pale pink for a warm latte or mocha shade. » Artistic Colour Revolution reactive nail lacquer running in the buffalo, £4.95, nailpolishdirect » mavala nail colour cream Venezia, £5.20, feelunique (available March 1) » Sally Hansen Colour Therapy nail polish cashmere calm, £8.99, Superdrug
3. Modern Metallics
Think gold and silver nail polishes shouldn’t be worn once the festive season is over? Think again - Julien Macdonald and Sadie Williams made a strong case for spring metallics on their SS19 runways. The key to keeping it modern is to look for cool metallic tones - think rose rather than yellow gold and gunmetal sheen rather than glitter. » Orly Rage rose gold and Orly Luxe, £11.99 each, Superdrug
4. Perfectly Pale
Bright white nails can be a challenge (sometimes it looks like you got bored at work and applied two coats of Tipp-ex not a good look), but pale can be interesting when it’s done right. The matte pearl nails at Fyodor Golan were created by starting with a base of beige, then finish with a blue-toned frost topcoat for the perfect off-white blend.
» Artistic Colour Revolution reactive nail lacquer Skindalous, £4.95; Satin Frost topcoat, £7.95, Nailpolishdirect