BEAUTY GOODIES: OPI’s Hong Kong Collection

Edited by Rebecca Alexander

OPI has released their latest collection of colors, featuring this really great shimmery gold called Bling Dynasty. Check out the rest of the collection here.

COLLAB HO: Essie Nailpolish and Judith Ripka

Edited by Rebecca Alexander

The above colors are part of the Essie and Judith Ripka limited edition collection.

Judith Ripka and Essie Team Up For Polish

Edited by Marissa Moshell, Student

If your he ultimate girly girl this may be one of your greatest dreams come true. Diamonds and nail polish team up as one? Just like a fantasy. News has it Judith Ripka has teamed up with Essie nail polish to create three new colors. Heart My JR Jewels, Put a Ripka Ring on It, and Queen of Hearts are three colors we can’t wait to get out hands on. So what’s the Ripka touch? The colors are supposedly infused with a diamond dust!

LINKAGE: NYMag

Get Yourself 800 New Shades From CND

Edited by Marissa Moshell, Student

When your given 50 new colors and 15 effects what exactly are you getting? If your referring to CND’s colour and effects line then your getting 800, yes I said 800, new shades! The nail polish company has produced a line capable of instant transformation of schemes so you’ll never have to wear the same color twice!

LINKAGE: All Lacquered Up

CND Launches More Colors

Edited by Rebecca Alexander

CND is  launching 50 colors and 15 effect hues (like pearls and shimmers) that can be layered to make 800 different shades.

STORY OF: Nail Polish

Edited by Monique Montagnese, Contributor

Painting ones nails might just be the oldest beauty trend. The Chinese have been making their nails beautiful since 3000 B.C. using a mix of arabic gum, eggs whites, gelatin and beeswax. Other ancient nail painting practices include stains from henna and massaging tinted powders into their nails. The painting of ones nails was so important to women that recipes for making your own nail varnish was included in 19th century cookbooks. Thankfully, nail polish technology and connivence has progressed.

Nail Solvent, or nail polish remover as it is now known as, was a big selling item in the first half of the 20th century. Something we now take for granted a good nail solvent was seen as a way to elevate the level of the nail polish you were selling.

The selling point of nail solvent can be seen in this ad for on the lower right side of this vintage advertisement which explains how Cutex remover is different then the others because it “contains a very special oil” that will not leave residue on the nails.

Moon manicures were popular with Hollywood starlets in the 20′s and 30′s, so it’s no surprise vintage glamour lover Dita Von Teese is bringing back this nail trend.

Mini-skirt inventor Mary Quant is less known for deciding that nail might not only match your lipstick, they could match your clothing too! Her mod aesthetic required red nails to be put on the back burner, allowing pastels nails to became all the rage.

Pastel nails lead to bright nails, and then darker nails which have been seen on the goth crowd for, well, ever. Male rock stars love this look to, seen above on Jared Leto. This love affair dates back to 60′s Lou Reed when he was fronting The Velvet Underground.

The 70′s saw the rise of the French Manicure, a term coined by Orly founder Jeff Pink and his manicure sets. This muted manicure is considered so timeless that it is often worn on important days such as ones wedding.

Minx nails are the newest big nail trend, as we wrote about last month. These metallic nail coverings have been seen on everyone from Lady Gaga to Blake Lively. Minx is basically nail stickers that are applied with heat and easy to remove.

With so many nail trends to choose from, and more popping up every day, decorating ones nails never ceases to be fun. No wonder it’s been such a long standing love affair.

BEAUTY SPARK: Permanent Manicures

Edited by Princess Glover

We all know the frustration of applying five coats of nailpolish WITH a topcoat only to have it peel away three days later, and paying upwards of $20 bucks for a salon job just to be met with the same deterioation. If you’re like me and you love to decorate your fingers with a fresh pop of color and not fret over the inevitable chipping, O.P.I has come up with Axxium Soak-Off Gels, permanent laquers that, really, last as long as you want them to. It’s basically a thinner version of the acrylic paste used for traditional artificial nails that, when set to ultraviolet light, forms a lasting bond with the nail that won’t chip. As your nails grow, you get “color fills” to shade in the new growth, and when your finish loses luster or you just get bored, a regular polish can be applied on top of the gel. A 15-20 minute soak in an acetone solution with dissolve the gels completely should you want a brand new set. For $40 I’m definetely down.

BEAUTY NEWSIES: Revlon To Release Scented Nail Polish

Edited by Rebecca Alexander

Revlon is releasing eight new nail-polish colors that will smell like tropical scents when dry. They’ll hit stores just before summer in fragrances and shades of coconut, mango, papaya, strawberry, raspberry, cherry, passion fruit, and blueberry. Call me a kid for being super excited!

LINKAGE: NY Mag via Spoiled Pretty

Rodarte Nail Polish. We Want It…

Edited by Saynt

The Mulleavy sisters are teaming up with Lippmann to bottle up some runway shades including a gunmetal silver with big, bold chunks of sequins. The color is called Marquee Moon and will be available for sale in June. You know you want it…

LINKAGE: The Pipeline: Rodarte’s Fall ’09 Nailpolish Color Jumps Off the Runway And Onto Your Fingers

Bernard Wilhelm and Uslu Airlines’ New Colors

Edited by Rebecca Alexander

Here’s a sneak peak at the new colors from the collaboration between Uslu Airlines and Bernard Wilhelm, based and named after the ski world cup theme of Willhelm’s last mens’ collection: Innsbruck (olive for INN), Grenoble (blue for GNB) and St. Moritz (orange for SMV).