If you’re anything like me, a new nail polish colour/style/trend can pretty much make your week. In previous fall seasons, we’ve kept up with latest colour trends—dark blues, greens and browns have frequented our autumn nails and, true to their mantra, they’ve gone well with the murky colours we usually wear during this cold season. In the upcoming months, however, we’re going to see a burgeoning trend in the nail market—nail polishes that play with texture. Take a look below for the lowdown on this new style and scout out some polish purchases you can make to keep up with the trend!
1. Ciaté Caviar Manicure
Despite the controversy of the originator of this trend (yes, I do read up on nail polish news, don’t you?), Ciaté has definitely emerged as the front-runner. Available in three different colours, this nail polish features tiny little coloured balls that stick to the base coat of your nail polish. They’re notorious for lasting no longer than two days, but these caviar balls may just be exactly what you need to spice up a formal date look or make your nails a little bit more interesting.
My Recommendation: I just bought myself the pink version, and it’s literally like a sprinkled cupcake on my nails. They’re definitely cute, but impractical for anything more than a special occasion. Note: despite the picture, they are not meant for your lips (I once overheard someone asking a shop assistant in Sephora, so I thought I’d clarify).
Ciaté Caviar Manicure, Sephora $25.00
2. Gold Leaf
Feeling extravagant? Treat yourself to a little gold leaf… for your nails. Yes, one of the latest nail trends coming this fall is OPI’s 18 karat gold leaf top coat, entitled “The Man with the Golden Gun.” Inspired by the new 007 movie coming out, OPI promises to sell this limited edition nail polish just in time for the premiere in October. While not necessarily dealing with texture, this trend will give your nails the effect of broken gold nail polish—just enough to show the colour beneath it.
My Recommendation: While I was initially open-minded to this trend, I have a feeling it’s going to end up looking a lot like the overdone shatter nail polish and at the hefty price of $38, I don’t think this trend is worth it’s weight in gold.
3. Ciaté Velvet Manicure
Clearly, the British brand Ciaté is dominating the new nail polish trends—with this one being the latest. This trend will make your nails feel like velvet… literally. The nail polish pack comes with a bottle of crushed velvet which you shake onto your wet base coat. They give you a little brush to wipe away the excess velvet and leave your nail looking perfectly blushed. While this trend has not had the same fame as its caviar predecessor, it’s still a budding trend that should be noted for its innovativeness.
My Recommendation: I’ve been told my friends and family that this trend looks rather like moss growing on your nails. However, I still think that in the right colour (my guess, the stone grey), velvet polish could look pretty different. Undoubtedly, it’s sure to be a great topic for conversation when faced with awkward silences (a reality often faced in my world).
Ciaté Velvet Manicure, Sephora $19.00
4. Matte
This nail technique is simply a top-coat that takes away the shine of your usual nail polish—giving it a rough, matte look. Essie has actually come out with nail polishes with this effect a couple of years ago (needless to say I thought it was a gimmick in order to get us to buy their shiny top coat), but it turned out to be such a hit that they decided to bottle it and sell it separately. Now, you have the opportunity to matte all your nail polishes. This trend is perfect for fall because it works especially well with the dark hues usually worn during this season. According to the blogs I’ve been reading, it also looks especially good over glitter nail polishes.
My Recommendation: I usually think this looks like an unfinished polish when I see it, so my recommendation is far from complimentary. I also used to own the coloured matte nail polishes that Essie sold—and they were a great disappointment in terms of longevity. Without a topcoat, they would last only a couple of days before they began to chip—and in the busy world we live in here at Duke, this is far from ideal. However, I haven’t tried the topcoat version, so I can’t exactly speak out of experience. It may be worth a try!
Essie Matte About You, Amazon $6.50
So there we go, collegiettes™, HC Duke’s guide to the latest fall nail polish trend—texture. Let us know whether you’ve tried these options out—I’d love to hear a couple of first hand experiences.