Fueled by professionals and enthusiastic amateurs sharing their latest designs on social media, nail trends evolve at lightning speed these days, with new colours, shapes and creative ideas popping up all the time.
But that’s the beauty of nail art – it’s so easy to chop and change your look, whether you’re devoted to one favourite beauty salon, or prefer to play with polish at home.
This season, it’s all about colour – with pastels, jewel tones and other beautiful brights reflecting the looks seen on the spring/summer 2022 catwalks.
Bring fashion to your fingertips with these six stylish nail trends…
Emerald and chartreuse were big on the spring/summer runways, and bright green is trending in the nail world, too.
Treatwell (treatwell.co.uk) nail expert Laurie Nicoll, salon manager at Lacquered and Stripped (lacqueredandstripped.com), says dark green was the “colour of choice” for her clients over winter.
OPI Infinite Shine To The Finish Lime!, £9.95 (was £15.50), Nail Polish Direct
As seen on the impossibly cool cast of hit HBO series Euphoria, jewel tones with a shimmering chrome finish – think ruby red, rose gold and Quality Street purple – are all the rage right now.
Cienna Rose Big Spender, £9
Nail artist extraordinaire Harriet Westmoreland proved blue is the coolest colour when she posted pictures on Instagram of a shade she named ‘Bader blue’, inspired by the packaging of Augustinus Bader skincare (a brand Victoria Beckham swears by, FYI).
Peacci Prussian Blue, £10
“Another trend we expect to see much more of through spring is all things sparkly,” says Nicoll. “With Christmas long gone, we’ve found our clients are still opting for glitters.”
Mavala Nail Colour Gold Cosmic, £5.50, LookFantastic
While square-tipped French manis are still going strong, Nicoll predicts almond-shaped nails will soon be taking over our Instagram feeds. “It’s an elegant and timeless shape that can be a great canvas for soft and delicate, or bold and bright designs,” she says, adding it “suits most hands”.
Leighton Denny Large Crystal Nail File, £15.50, Boots
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From lavender and mauve to duck egg and baby blue, these soft shades are ideal for teaming with Noughties-inspired outfits.
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Elegant Touch Lush Lavender Nails, £6.49, Amazon