The Best Manicures and Nail Art from NYFW's Fall 2020 Runways
First and foremost, New York Fashion Week is all about the clothes. But the runways are also a place where beauty trends are born, too.
On top of the forecasting which hair and makeup looks are going to be in next season, the designers' collections always deliver some serious manicures, from subtle your-nails-but-better nail polish, to over-the-top 3D nail art. And in our humble opinion, you can never have too much manicure inspiration.
Whether you're looking for a new favorite nail polish color or nail art ideas, the manicures from the NYFW runways are the fall 2020 beauty trends you can try now.
VIDEO: How Much Do I Need to Tip at a Nail Salon?
Tadashi Shoji: Matte Green Nails
Green nail polish is currently trending, and it looks like the color will still be going strong come fall 2020. At the Tadashi Shoji show, models wore matte lime green nails filed into an almond shape.
Christian Siriano: Glitter Crescents
For Christian Siriano's fall 2020 Harley Quinn-inspired collection, nail artist Julie Kandalec used essie polish to create a manicure that made the nails look like jewelry. For the base, Kandalec used essie's Black Licorice, a black shade that's as shiny as patent leather. She drew the silver glitter crescent shape halfway down the nail with essie's Set in Stones, using the brush from the bottle. The best part? This is one fashion week beauty look that you can actually do on your own. "This manicure is totally DIY and you don’t need any special brushes to do it," she tells InStyle.
Rag & Bone: Snake Nails
Celebrity nail artist Mei Kawajiri created six different manicures for Rag & Bone's show including this cool snake nail art. She used OPI GelColor in Mi Casa Es Blue Casa for the royal blue base and OPI GelColor in Coral-ing Your Spirit Animal and Big Apple red to draw on the slithery snake shapes.
Rag & Bone: Mushroom Nails
These mushrooms are another quirky manicure Kawajiri designed for Rag & Bone using OPI GelColor nail polishes. On one hand she drew red and white mushroom caps, while the other hand had green leafs.
Ulla Johnson: Tangerine Squares
At Ulla Johnson, tangerine squares were added as accents to bare nails.
Rebecca Minkoff: Mismatched Nails
The mismatched nail trend is alive and well in 2020, thanks to manicures like this one from Rebecca Minkoff. Manicurist Gina Edwards used press-on nails in various orange tones, including ones from Rebecca Minkoff's upcoming KISS Nails collection.
Susan Alexandra: Confetti Nails
Along with these whimsy confetti sprinkle nails, manicurist Holly Falcone created a handful of nail designs inspired by the designer's colorful bags. She used ORLY nail products to do the matching nail art, which also included clouds, martinis, cherries, and daisies.
Chromat: Airbrushed Nails
Chromat's nail art takes us back to the '80s. Models wore neon rainbow nails and airbrushed stripes.
Laquan Smith: All-White Nails
The matte white coffin-shaped nails popped against the dark color palette of Laquan Smith's fall collection.
Alice + Olivia: Glam Rock Nails
Manicurist Gina Edwards channeled the '70s glam rock gods with these studded black nails. She created the bejeweled nail art with KISS imPRESS Press-on Manicure Couture Collection Nails in Lavish and KISS Salon Color Acrylic Nails. The accents came from KISS Luxe Accents Sticker in Charm Bracelet.
Oscar de la Renta: Bordeaux Nails
"As the collection evokes a feeling of enchantment, the nail color rounded out the look by offering a timeless elegance that will never go out of season," Miss Pop, lead manicurist for ZOYA says of the wine red nails she created for Oscar de la Renta. The exact shade from the runway? ZOYA Nail Lacquer in Alyssa.
Proenza Schouler: Classic French Manicure
The classic French manicure showed up at fashion week on the Proenza Schouler runway.
The Blonds: Light & Dark
It took weeks for CND brand ambassador Winnie Huang to conceptualize and create the manicures for The Blonds, including this swirly abstract design named "Eternal Solitude." This nail art consisted of a "stunning array of depths, mixing moody hand-painted divine depictions, topped with delicate gold foil." Huang used CND VINYLUX Long Wear Polish in Black Pool as the base color.
Christian Cowan: Matte Black Jewels
Black on black the color scheme of Christian Cowan's manicure. Matte black jewels were added to long stiletto-shaped nails.
Rodarte: Vampire's Wife
To compliment the gothic vampire-inspired clothes, Morgan Taylor lead artist Danielle Candido created a flaming hot manicure. In The Nude was used as a neutral base with various shades of red made up the smoky flames. Rare As Rubies was placed into the flames for bit of sparkle.
Khaite: Chipped Nails
Yes, your chipped nails are now fashion week approved. Manicurist Jin Soon Choi made your old manicure look chic at Khaite.
Parabal Gurung: Red Curves
"Paying homage to Prabal Gurung’s love for the city, we wanted to spark that sense of nostalgia," said Miss Pop, lead manicurist for ZOYA. "New York City isn’t just a place; it’s a feeling of belonging and purpose for the visionaries and dreamers." The nostalgia took the form of a French manicure with oxblood curved tips. Miss Pop used ZOYA's Nail Lacquer in Alyssa for the accents and Naked Manicure Glossy Seal top coat for a shiny finish.