It’s been a year of quiet luxury. Unsurprisingly, our nails have taken a more muted turn, too.
Instead of dopamine-drenched manicures, the collective consciousness is craving understated and wearable nails that will still have strangers stopping you in the street to ask for a better look at your fingertips.
Don’t believe us? We checked in with the capital’s hottest nail experts to find out what their clients have been asking for day in, day out.
Butterscotch American manicure
Hailey Bieber is perhaps the ultimate nail influencer. First it was the inescapable glazed donut trend, then it was the lip gloss trend (more on the later). In fact, pretty much any nail look that she posts to social media is a headline-worthy affair.
As for her next talon-setting trend? Introducing the Butterscotch American manicure. “Butterscotch nails seem to have come off the back of the vanilla French tip trend and and of course, Hailey Bieber,” agrees Ella Vivii Nails, who has buffed Raye, Flo and Mia Khalifa’s nails. “It gives clients a softer alternative to a classic French without what now seems like a harsh white.”
Before you ask, no we’re not getting our countries mixed up – the American manicure differs in the tip, which softly bleeds into the base colour, as opposed to the defined line typical to a French mani. As for the butterscotch part, that all comes down to the utterly delectable glazed, brown-hued finish.
“For anyone wanting to try it at home, I would recommend Essie Ballet Slippers, £7.19, for a base with ‘keep branching out’ for the butterscotch toned tip,” she continues. Or,as always, take Bieber’s Instagram as a reference to your local salon.
Aura nails
For the uninitiated, aura nails are designed to reflect your, well, aura. Usually described through colours, for example, pink means your energy is gentle and loving, while yellows are optimistic and free spirited, this radiating energy field is now being translated into nail art via stunning multicolour gradients created with an airbrush or with blooming gel polish.
Dua Lipa is a fan, so is Emma Chamberlain, Megan Thee Stallion and Megan Fox. “Aura nails have been a very popular trend since last year, in fact, it’s what I get asked to do the most by my clients. It’s a design that works well on any nail shape and length,” says Michela Brandimarte, who is beloved by London’s fashion insiders. “It’s a very versatile style and people love the idea that an Aura nail set can depict exactly where your head and heart are by choosing the right colour combo. I personally like to airbrush the colours so that it is very smooth and blended.”
“They work just as well using an eyeshadow or pigment pressed into a nearly-dry polish and lightly blended around the edges,” if you’re feeling brave enough to DIY it.
Lip oil
Beauty trends aren’t just recycled, but reinterpreted in new and exciting ways. For example, lip oils have been dominating the make up scene for the last few years thanks to Dior Addict’s Lip Glow Oil going monstrously viral on TikTok – and now nail fanatics are stealing the texture for their nails.
“Since the Dior Addict Lip Glow Oil has broken the internet it only makes sense that this trend would eventually transform into the most timeless nail trend of all times,” agrees Brandimarte. “The look itself is a next level sheer tinted shine but with a touch of milk to give it that super jelly/ yoghurt look. To achieve that I personally use a clear base, two coats of ‘Gloss’ from TGB and the top coat (the most important part) that has to be extremely shining.”
First made popular by new TikTok It-girl Sofia Richie Grainge, it’s no surprise Ella is calling it the perfect clean girl nail. “Slightly elevated from the everyday neutral. The quickest and easiest way to achieve this look is by using Essie’s hard to resist nail strengthener in ‘pink tint, £9.99, which will help strengthen and protect your natural nail whilst still looking cute. But for all the gel manicure lovers, ask your nail artist for The Gel Bottle ‘Gloss’”.
Metallic mania
While some trends come and go at whiplash speed — fizzling out by the time you’ve even left your two-hour nail appointment — some become a mainstay. “Chrome nails will always be one of the most popular and wanted nail trends,” says Brandimarte. “And with metallics it’s just next level – especially the 3D nail trend.”
“People are in love with the idea of being able to wear jewellery on their nails because it can just give that touch of extravaganza to the whole outfit. It doesn’t necessarily have to be silver or gold – it can also be bronze, lavender, hot pink chromed,” she continues, referencing the multi-coloured chrome tips of Kourtney Kardashian, Lily Allen and Hailey Bieber.
“The way to achieve the look is to sculpt 3D clay gel in any spontaneous shape and then coat it with the chosen chrome powder, double top coat and done,” she says, which is probably left best to the professionals.
Blueberry milk
Taking inspiration from a traditional milky manicure (a creamy, white-meets-pink), the blueberry milk manicure version is as pretty as it sounds. “After blueberry milk nails were seen on Dua Lipa, the full cover crème colours have been seen everywhere. It keeps a manicure look soft and sophisticated whilst still playing with colour,” says Ella, who also adds that it is a colour flattering on most skin colours.
With Zendaya and Sofia Richie also seen sporting the colour, our bets are that it’s only going to get more popular. “To achieve the perfect blueberry milk colour look for Chanel’s Muse, £29, or Essie’s Saltwater happy, £8.99, recommends Ella, adding: “I think we will be seeing this trend in loads more colours especially to make brights have a more wearable everyday nail element. For example soft Barbie pinks, creamy neon green and muted cobalt blue.”
