Fun Fingers
By AMANDA MARRAZZO
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| (Photos by JEFF KRAGE) |
With the holiday season comes amped-up color and sparkle — especially on your fingers and toes, experienced nail technicians say.
Shelly Hyland, owner of Paul Hyland Salon and Day Spa in Crystal Lake, says this holiday season, women will be asking for shellacs and shatter coats.
Shellacs are used instead of regular polishes to create vibrant, longer-lasting, chip-free manicures and come in a variety of colors. Some have glitter mixed in.
Experts say shellacs are very popular, especially for the holidays, because women can prepare their holiday dinners and still go to a New Year’s Eve party with the same manicure.
Shatter coats are a type of high-gloss topcoat that “shatters” to reveal a second color underneath. Hyland says you will see lots of Christmas reds, silvers and golds in this type of polish.
Minx is the brand name of a ribbon-type nail design, also expected to be popular this season. It comes in an array of leopard prints, plaids and holiday designs to match most any holiday party outfit.
Hyland says shimmery metallic polishes in gray, buttery gold and copper tones will be trending this season.
Wearing jewel-toned polishes during special occasions is like wearing your favorite gold or silver jewelry pieces, Hyland says.
Classic grays and beiges also are expected to take their understated place this season, as well as the traditional Christmas reds.
The more outgoing gal would likely opt for a bright red polish and add a sparkly glitter topcoat, jewels and nail art.
Tammie Kohl, a licensed nail technician for 20-plus years, who works at Paul Hyland Salon and Day Spa, says what most customers will ask for this holiday season is polish with “big, chunky pieces of glitter.”
“The bigger the chunks, the better,” Kohl says.
“In the past, it has been a little bit of nice shimmer … we still do a lot of that, but this year, a lot of the sparkles coming out are just big and chunky.”
One nail design that’s expected to be popular is a long red nail adorned with a gold or silver star, created with a rhinestone or glitter, she says.
Another trendy holiday style is a long acrylic nail with a red French tip and a thin silver accent line, referred to as a “smile line,” between the red and the soft pink sections of the nail.
OPI released the new Muppets collection, 12 bright and sparkly shades (such as the iridescent blue
“Gone Gonzo” and the sparkly red “Gettin’ Miss Piggy With it!”), which are expected to be popular this holiday season. Kohl says she will use that collection to create the “rainbow connection” design, where she will use each color across every finger to create a rainbow.
Manicurists also recommend women pamper themselves this season with a $10 paraffin wax as part of a manicure.
Nail art sporting rhinestones and glitter also will be in style this year. Popular designs include:
• Snowmen
• Reindeer
• Christmas lights
• Hollies
• Candy canes
• Wreaths
• Poinsettias
• Snowflakes
• Christmas packages
Hanukkah nails also mark the season. For that style, nail technicians use blue and white polishes and silver sparkles.
New Year’s Eve nails will showcase a lot of bold sparkle. Many will try to match their sparkly dresses with gold and silver glitter nails.
Traci Meyers, a nail technician at Salon Té Elle Cé in McHenry, says she anticipates creating many French tips with red, green, blue, pink, silver and gold sparkles in place of a traditional white tip.
She also suspects she will design many classic French tips with tiny “necklaces” made with colored rhinestones either on the tip or between the pink and the white.
But Meyers is especially excited to create the ever-popular Santa Claus nail. For that festive look, Meyers uses glitter and rhinestones to create the face of Santa — complete with eyes, nose and hat. A classic white French tip forms his beard.
And don’t forget those toes! Nail experts say sparkles are the most popular choice for toes, especially during the holidays when wearing strappy sandals. Decorating toes is a way for women who tend to be a bit more conservative on their hands to be more fun and flashy!
