This was quite a year for nails. Those lucky little finger toppers were dressed to the nines in trendy peekaboo retro styles and bold colours and accessories. Read on for our favourite tip trends of 2010 and gather inspiration for New Year’s Eve.
10. Glitter
Forget the skimpy sequined fifth grade-esque topcoats. This year, glitter was all about sumptuously ragged flakes and flecks as toppers in unexpected colours like emerald green.
9. Nude
It’s hard to pinpoint why this looks so elegant, but nude nails were seen on red carpets the world over this year. Pale pink was swapped out for skin-toned hues, and it has the same sex appeal as nude pumps.
8. Metallic
Liquid metal effect nails were all the rage in spring, but stayed off and on for the rest of the year. Bronze was a welcome change in trendy metallics, although classic silver and gold were seen as well.
7. Contrasting French manicures
Without doubt one of the most coveted nail polish releases this year were Yves Saint Laurent’s limited edition Manucure Couture nail polish duos. The deep violet and gold combination is irresistible, but there were lots of combinations to shake up traditional pink and white.
6. Purple
Purple started off with sweet lavender pastels in spring, then was in the limelight again as a bright purple-blue in summer (like O.P.I.’s Dating A Royal, below), and finally as a deep, rich violet for fall and winter.
5. Half moon manicure
This vintage nail art method came back for 2010 in all kinds of colours. Mod black and white were more commonly seen, but the bare half moon manicure was also popular, where the nail bed’s half moon is left bare.
4. Darks
To continue with the vampy gothic fascination that’s been in our fashion consciousness the past few years, dark shades ruled polishes this year. Deep purple was the most popular, shifting from last year’s black and navy.
3. Ombre
There were two ways to do ombre this year. Faded from one colour to another on each individual nail from top to bottom, or with full colour on your pinkie and gradually getting lighter on each nail to full light on your thumb.
2. Neutrals
Need I say more than greige? Rich browns were huge this year, but no polish hue was bigger than grey-toned neutrals. Greige is flattering on all skin tones, and is a refreshing change as a neutral.
1. Lace
Although greige was definitely the polish hit of 2010, lace manicures were the most gorgeous nail art trend of the year. It’s a little more complicated to achieve than your run-of-the-mill manicure, but so worth it. With lace still going strong in the fashion world, our lace fascination isn’t fading any time soon.
