New Nails For The Party Season

28th OF November 2011

By Kimberly Nissen, The Beauty Bandit

Nails are always a fun way to play with new trends, and this season will be no different. We have already seen some fantastic things come off the runway this year, and it looks like it isn’t going to stop anytime soon. Today we are showing you the hottest nail trends and how to get them!

Sparkles

Sequins and glitter made a big appearance on clothing and on nails during the last round of Fashion Weeks. The trend has well and truly taken nails hostage with nearly every nail lacquer brand releasing their own line, in a variety of colours, micas and multi-sized flecks.

RESCU Loves: The Muppets Collection by OPI, RRP $19.95 each from David Jones and selected salons.

Expert Advice: Finding the right coverage and intensity for you like can be difficult, so we asked Karon McKendrick-Taylor, OPI Educator and Stylist to give us some application tips.

“Apply one layer of a creamy nude or neutral shade (after you base coat), before applying your glitter sequin lacquer. This will assist in creating a more consistent coverage of the glitter sequin. And will also assist in removal.”

Quick-Drying

We are all in such a rush these days so it is not surprising that many of us don’t have time to sit down for an hour to do our nails. With a great range of new release quick-dry polishes on the market, we no longer have to. Some lacquers can now dry in as little as 60 seconds!

RESCU Loves: Top Speed Fast Dry Nail Enamel by Revlon, RRP $15.95 each from department stores and selected pharmacies.

Special Effects

Nail lacquers with a unique finish are a great way to add some ‘art’ to your nails, without much effort. We all saw how popular Crackle and Shatter polish was a couple of months ago, and while that is far from over, we are seeing some new finishes like Opalescent, Metallic and Holographic.

RESCU Loves: Kisses & Bises by Essie, RRP $18.95 each from Myer and selected salons.

Prints

Nail art is now accessible to everyone thanks the newest innovation of Nail Polish Strips. The pre-printed nail lacquer comes on shaped ‘stickers’ ready to apply straight to your nails. A variety of brands already offer dozens of designs, but what gets us really excited is limited-edition festive designs. We loved it for Halloween and with Christmas so close we are already picking out or designs for the weeks ahead.

RESCU Loves: Festive Designs by Sally Hansen Salon Effects, RRP $14.95 each from Priceline, David Jones and selected pharmacies.

Expert Advice

The most important thing when embracing these new stand-out trends is keeping it tasteful. We spoke to celebrity manicurist, Myrdith Leon-Mccormack, on how we should be shaping our nails.

“Make sure that the shape of the nails is well manicured, or else it can look trashy. For short and/or thick fingers I recommend a soft square nail, and for slender hands a soft oval appears more elegant. I believe in an active length nail (1/4 length of your nail bed) no matter what shape you opt for”