nails

From the often velvet-covered chairs to the glass bottles of beautiful colour lined neatly on marble-effect shelves, there’s many things that make a visit to the salon a magical experience—and one we’ve sorely missed. However, once salons are allowed to open their doors once again, we intend on taking full advantage of our appointment with our nail technicians. How, you ask? By opting for some stunning nail art that we could never create ourselves at home.  Remember when nail art consisted of water-painted flowers and glittery dragons? Those were the days. However, after its short-lived moment in the early noughties, nail art really dropped off the grid for a little while. In stark contrast to the grandeur and excess of embellished talons and intricate patterns, for t...

If you haven’t tried one for yourself, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the appeal of Chanel nail polishes is their designer name, but that’s not the case. The preferred lacquer of countless session and celebrity nail artists, Chanel nail polishes are known for their ultra-glossy finish, quick setting times, and hardwearing durability. But which are the best Chanel nail polishes to invest in, and which are the most popular? To find out, we reached out to Chanel and big names in the manicure world who use them daily to find out.  Direct from Chanel HQ, we quickly learned that Rouge Noir is indisputably its most popular and iconic nail shade. Chanel launched Rouge Noir, a very dark reddish black, at its autumn/winter 1994 show in Paris. The colour was virt...

I’ve got to admit that I’m sold. Trying to find the perfect sheer polish that doesn’t deliver too much pigment and leaves nails looking naturally healthy and preened is no mean feat (trust me—I’ve spent years trying to find it), and it seems Dior unintentionally hit the nail on the head. Though it is technically a base coat to be used under your polish of choice, Westmoreland simply applies three coats of the base on its own and finishes up with a gel-finish topcoat to achieve the ultimate super-shiny, natural-looking mani. So if you’re anything like me and are desperate to embrace the new low-key, minimal nail aesthetic, look no further. After years of testing and trialling every blush-coloured polish around, I can officially say my search is over. Not too sheer (but by no means opaque), ...

Low-maintenance, sleek and effortless are the words that come to mind when you see someone with impeccable shiny nails and barely there colour. Luckily, we can all get in on this regardless of nail length. This is what Lebrat-Personnaz recommends for getting the look:  “We have seen nail care growing in popularity during lockdown, as consumers have more time to take care of the condition of their nails. The Japanese Manicure, which we offer in our salons in France, consists of multiple steps for a full nail detox. Starting by buffing the nails to increase circulation (nails should develop a beautiful pink hue, almost like a blush) and finishing by applying a treatment to enhance the condition of nails and nail beds – plus enhancing the nails’ natural shine. The end result i...

And the best bit is, the style is totally universal. “It’s become such a popular choice because it’s the most flattering style of manicure, no matter what shape or size your nail bed. When it’s done correctly, it elongates and compliments all nails,” Westmoreland says. And while it is best executed by a professional in a salon, with a bit of patience and practise, you can do it yourself at home, too. “Make sure you set enough time aside because it can be a bit fiddly. Be prepared to practice and spend time prepping the nail. If the prep isn’t right, your polish won’t be either,” she adds.  Keen to give the micro mani a go for yourself? Keep scrolling for Westmoreland’s top tips. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should...

There are two things that I have zero time or energy for: packing my own suitcases (I find that someone will always help me) and doing my nails. I don’t know if I just lack coordination, but it always ends up looking a mess.  So when I do sit down to do my nails myself, I need my manicure to last beyond two business days. A reward is necessary for all the time and labour I put in, and thanks to Parisian nail brand Manucurist, there’s finally a reward. The brand has just launched in the UK, and its Green Flash Kit (£69), which is the first and only plant-based alternative to gel nails, has me seriously impressed. I was skeptical, of course, as I really don’t like the faff of gel nails and having to go back to the salon to remove them. Plus, I was curious to see how their g...

While there’s plenty of delight to be found in the now (looking at you cosy jumpers, gorgeous coats, and latest crop of It boots), we still can’t stop our minds from wandering to 2021. Of course, we can’t tell you what next year will look like—no crystal ball is powerful enough to do that level of foretelling—but with so much promise pinned on it, we’re already getting excited about what 2021 may have in store. The hope is that we’ll get to wear the fancy dresses and high heels that were made redundant in the wake of lockdown. Until such an opportunity presents itself, there is another, incredibly easy way to switch up, nay, reignite your style for the year ahead: a new wardrobe of nail colours.  A new slick of nail colour is one of the fastest ways to freshen...

I’m going to let you in on a little secret: Every beauty editor feels like a bit of a phony sometimes. You see, the truth is beauty is just far too broad of a subject for any one editor to know every detail of every facet. Take, for example, the subject of skin. We know that we have to advise and inform others on products for all skin types, even when we can’t relate. Just because my skin is naturally oily and sensitive, it doesn’t mean I don’t have to ever research and write about dryness and acne. Although us beauty eds are extremely well versed in such topics, it’s easy to feel like a bit of a fraud when we haven’t experienced something first-hand. For me, it has always been especially difficult to write about nails. Why, you ask? Well because for the majority of my career, I have...

Luckily, we derive an insane amount of satisfaction from curating a fresh, new, compliment-inducing polish aesthetic each season, so the emotional blow of cooler temperatures and fewer hours of daylight is ever-so-slightly softened by the idea of having more time for our self-care and at-home mani rituals. November is smack-dab in the middle of fall fever, so even though we’re not quite ready to go full-on holiday with our nail aesthetic, we’re ready to lean into the rich festiveness of the season. That said, we never want to be overly predictable with what we’re wearing on our tips, so we’ve scouted all the best nail polish brands and all of their sparkling, just-launched collections for crème de la crème November nail color options. Here, we’ve fou...

When the weather begins to cool, there are certain switches we start to make. We find ourselves drawn to knitwear, pulling on opaque tights, and generally donning a darker colour palette. This transition, however, isn’t solely reserved for our wardrobes; in fact, one of the first things we change up in a new season is our nail colours.  That’s not to say you can’t wear bright nail colours in chilly months, but there’s something that just screams winter when you’ve got a moody or rich manicure. Not only do they look the part, but they feel incredibly luxurious, too.  For inspiration, I asked some of the country’s top salons to tell us which autumn/winter nail polish colours their clients are asking for most right now. Se...

I never thought I’d see the day that the colour brown would make the ultimate comeback. You see, I fall about midway on the millennial age spectrum, meaning I grew up in the heyday of teen sensations Hilary Duff, Lindsay Lohan, and Destiny’s Child, who all regularly sported brown everything—from then-fashionable culottes and page boy caps to beauty staples like nail polish and lipstick. But once the 2010s hit, it’s like brown got publicly shunned and relegated as the ugly stepsister to all the other colours. (Even pea-soup green has been prioritised above it.) But as the years have passed and trends have shifted, brown seems to be making a resurgence. On the fashion side, the once “ugly” colour has taken over the runways, and now,...