FASHION Magazine

See more photos of Prabal Gurung for Sally Hansen Fall 2013 »

On the heels of his recent capsule collection with Target, Prabal Gurung is quickly becoming known as a designer who embraces collaborations. His latest –and most prolific—venture comes in the form of nail polish, specifically with Sally Hansen. For a sixth consecutive season, Gurung has worked with Sally Hansen to create new nail polish shades to be used on the runway—and then later sold at retail.

Three new shades were used this week for the Prabal Gurung Fall 2013 presentation. The runway show, which had a strong military feel, was complemented with nail art that reflected the dark colour palette of the collection. The new Sally Hansen colours include “Loden Green” (olive), “Night Watch” (navy), and “Coat of Arms” (gold). For the runway show, manicurist Jin Soon Choi used the three new shades together by layering them and creating a sharp triangle shape that extended from the moon, meant to reflect the unique style of Prabal Gurung.

See all the nail art from day one of New York Fashion Week Fall 2013 »

With designers opting for pale, neutral polishes, simple manicures and (possibly, worst of all) French tips on the Spring 2013 runways, nail art fanatics had to look elsewhere for inspiration. However, we’re just a few shows into the Fall 2013 collections and things are looking up: there are already some great nail art designs coming out of New York Fashion Week.

While the odds of getting a handmade python and iguana bodysuit are about the same as playing in the Superbowl, Beyoncé’s halftime manicure is much more accessible. In fact, you could even do it yourself: Beyoncé’s nails came courtesy of a set of printed gold Minx.

Nail artist Lisa Logan—who’s done many manicures for Queen Bey—flew down to New Orleans the week before the big game to set up nail shop for Beyoncé’s entire team. The backup dancers were given long extensions, covered in almost-reflective gold Minx while Beyoncé opted for a matte gold chevron print. (Due to the amazing video choreography sequences throughout the performance, all nails had to be finalized in advance so they could be filmed.)

See all 7 shades of OPI Oz The Great and Powerful nail polishes »

Yesterday OPI gave nail polish lovers a new reason to be excited for 2013 by announcing the launch of a new collection on their Facebook page. Set to hit counters in March, the OPI Oz The Great and Powerful collection features seven nail polishes inspired by the forthcoming Disney movie.

There are no ruby-red slippers to be found here: Oz The Great and Powerful is a prelude to Dorothy’s adventures, focusing on Glinda (the good witch, played by Michelle Williams) and her sisters—as well as how Oz himself came to be. Meaning: OPI has created a collection that’s a mix of soft shades and shimmering, stand-out glitters. It also includes a new shade of Liquid Sand polish named “What Wizardry Is This?” which seems to be a little more masculine than your typical glitter. Said OPI Executive VP & Artistic Director Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, via press release: “This rich taupe hue was designed for James Franco’s character, the great Wizard of Oz, and is sure to make a bold statement this spring.”

See the entire Mariah Carey by OPI nail polish collection»

Mariah Carey was the star of a movie titled Glitter for a reason. So when it was announced that she would be partnering with OPI and releasing a collection of nail polishes in January 2013, we expected a whole lot of glitz with a dash of glamour. And guess what, we were right.

The collection’s eight colours range from pale-pink to an almost-black with red flecks of sparkle—perhaps each an ode to the diva’s singing range? There are four shades that use OPI’s newest nail polish innovation, Liquid Sand. The new nail polish technology provides a textured matte finish that is infused with reflective sparkles. This is the first time OPI has debuted its Liquid Sand nail polish and Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, OPI executive VP and artistic director, said the polish is “worthy of a superstar” in a press release.

See all 12 nail polishes from the Euro Centrale by OPI collection »

Even though the holiday season has just begun and we’re in the middle of obsessing over festive winter shades of nail polish, OPI has just announced the launch of its Spring/Summer 2013 collection.

Euro Centrale by OPI features twelve new nail polish colours that are classic, yet contemporary and are inspired by four major European countries. And despite being the OPI Spring 2013 collection, Euro Centrale will hit counters before the snow thaws, in February 2013.

Romania, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic influenced the newest collection, and were chosen because they each have an aesthetically pleasing way of mixing old with new.

We’ve been preparing ourselves for the return of the French manicure ever since Alexander McQueen and Chanel painted the look on nails for Fall 2012 and Spring 2013, respectively. Both brands did the French manicures on clean, short nails with just a sliver of white on the tips. The message was clear: If you want your French manicure to be on trend, leave the acrylic tips at home. (Think “Kate Middleton at a royal brunch” more than “Snooki at a baby shower.”)

Unfortunately, Rihanna—always one to experiment with nail art—took the new French manicure trend one literal step too far.

The clock is ticking, and if you’re still scrambling to create a Halloween costume it may be time to switch efforts over to your nails. Halloween nail art is an ideal, last-minute way to dress up for this candy-filled holiday and there are plenty of options that take almost no time or effort to do. (Seriously!) First option: do-it-yourself decals. Sally Hansen has a complete series of Halloween-themed Salon Effects nail polish strips, meaning in less than ten minutes your fingers can go from plain to patterned. For those who are more comfortable with nail art, dress up each nail with a Day of the Dead skull, Jack-O-Lantern face or black cat. This week Nail Corner combined Halloween decals with nail art for a somewhat spooky and definitely festive manicure.

See how this Halloween nail art is done! »

See more of the nail art from Ashtiani Spring 2013 »

Last season I had the chance to work backstage during Toronto Fashion Week with the team from Tips Nail Bar. This season, the tables were turned: Essie invited me to experience what it’s like to be a model (er, nail-wise, that is) by getting the look for Ashtiani Spring 2013 applied on my own nails. Rita Remark, the lead Essie nail artist for World MasterCard Fashion Week, was leading the charge backstage, working with the team from Pinky’s Nails to design and apply creative manicures for seven shows throughout the week. (That’s more than 850 nails that need to be prepped and painted beforehand!)

From the Luoboutin heels that Carly Rae Jepsen is wearing on the cover of our October issue to all the animal print accessories that got a spot in our Fall/Winter 2012 trends guide, there’s never been a better time to paint leopard-print spots on your nails. It’s a fan favourite for nail art that can done in endless colour combinations—but we think it looks best in the classic shades of tawny-brown, copper and black. The muted colours of a leopard-print manicure is also a clever way to sneak some nail art into otherwise formal occasions. (Say, for instance, a family-filled Thanksgiving dinner?) Above all else, leopard-print spots are easy to master: all you need is a dotting tool!

See how easy leopard-print nail art is! »

Outer space has inspired many a manicure, from the classic moon manicure (okay, it may be named for the moon of your nails and not the moon in the sky, but still!) to glittering galaxy-style nail art. Last fall Jeremy Laing had many a moon print in his collection and this season it seems Carolina Herrera is taking inspiration from astronomy. Two pieces in particular seemed to capture the crater-filled, swirling surface of the moon and it’s this print that served as the basis for today’s nail art. (Also, I’m not the only one completely enamoured with the images of Mars that the Curiosity Rover has been sending back to Earth, right? Outer space is on-trend!) To get the surface of the moon on your nails, you’ll need two shades of mushroom-purple nail polish, a silver-purple glitter and a few dotting tools. Don’t worry, this manicure is easier than rocket science.

See how the surface of the moon manicure is done! »

Despite Lena Dunham and Zooey Deschanel talking and tweeting about coordinating their nail art for the 2012 Emmys, it seems the two didn’t actually follow through with their matching manicure plans. Even though Lena Dunham kept her Emmy awards nails simple, she did stay on trend with her colour choice, opting for Deborah Lippmann’s natual-looking “Fashion” nail polish. The taupe shade complemented her Prada gown and kept the focus on her makeup. And we have to say: Lena Dunham does a dramatic blue smoky eye well. (It’s very Chanel Couture Spring 2012, no?)

Zooey Deschanel did, however, show up on the red carpet with an impressive sparkly nail art design, complete with glittering mini TVs on her thumbs and Swarovski crystals overtop a pale orange polish across all other fingers.