So You Thought Finger Painting Was For Kids. Nail Art Is The Trendiest New Accessory
Once upon a time, in a land far, far away from the modern day, nail art was regarded as an evil in the world of beauty. Did Snow White have long, shiny talons that could be likened to those of a bird of prey? No. Acrylics would almost certainly have increased the Little Mermaid’s water resistance, and would be most impractical for Cinderella when busy doing the housework. No, such bodily protrusions definitely belong on the wicked stepmother, who can be imagined clacking them together with a sinister grin as she plans her revenge.
Fast forward to just a few years ago and acrylic nails were viewed as ‘tacky’; a pointless and highly unworkable addition to ones beauty regime. They were the thing of footballers’ wives and the proverbial ‘Essex girl’, with French manicures being the choice of a group of females who couldn’t (or wouldn’t) change a light bulb without complaining of a broken nail. In short, nail art has been an excuse to accuse women of vanity and air-headedness. At this point, I feel it is my duty to tell you of an example of ‘When Nail Art Goes Wrong’. A receptionist I once worked with couldn’t type on a keyboard, let alone text, being so encumbered by her unwieldy acrylics. The result of this was hideously misspelt emails, when she had a degree in English Literature. It doesn’t have to be like this!
Thank god practice and attitudes have changed, or we’d be missing out on a whole world of accessorising. We’ve been wearing necklaces, bracelets and earrings since we were 10. I don’t know about you, but Secret Salons is ready for something new and exciting. And thanks to some very clever and artistically-talented nail technicians, it is perfectly possible to get beautiful, patterned, short nails – which means hand movement isn’t hindered at all, eliminating the possibility of being mistaken for illiterate when typing.
If you think nail art goes as far as white plus nude equals French manicure, or a layer of classic red for a vampy look, then you’d be very, very wrong. Nail salons now offer polish in every shade of the spectrum and almost any pattern you desire, be it leopard print, Hello Kitty, floral, flags, letters (in various fonts), numbers, faces, African print, spots, stripes, rhinestones and everything in between. You can choose a pattern to match a favourite dress, or relate to a themed night you might be going to.
The best thing is that all this can fit on any length of nail – no scary talons required. Which got me to thinking: would Cinderella have had a tiny mouse on each nail? Snow White an apple pattern, and Ariel some bubbles? I suspect so. Even if their princes did think they looked silly.