This summer’s primary style theme seems to center on exploiting new creative forms and processes to near shocking effect. Given fashion trends such as feather hair extensions, it was only a matter of time before nails went from being a spot for color coordination to one for complex designs and 3-D art. New manicure styles, and nail accessories, are appearing even on formerly conservative hands.
Nail Patterns: Some nail painters are finding that a solid polish no longer offers their clients the distinctive aesthetic they seek. In response, an emerging trend in nail art involves using a top coat that shrinks when it dries to create a “broken” effect. Brands such as OPI and Sally Hansen are marketing polishes that offer this “crackle” or “shattered” look. A more personalized look can be achieved with specialized nail pens used to draw intricate designs, including Aztec patterns, flowers, and leopard spots. Nail artists who lack the dexterity required for such details can fulfill their creative impulses with a more forgiving technique: tie-dye.
Cooking isn’t the only arena in which specialty oils have insiders sharing tricks of the trade. A category that’s constantly being reinvented through the advent of so-called “miracle” products, beauty has a propensity towards experimentation, and its latest obsession has people greasing up with cosmetic oils. From drugstore bargains to department store luxuries, beauty oils are it right now.
Hair Oils: In the ’80s, it was mousse; in the ’90s, styling lotion; in the early ’00s, surf spray. Now, it seems that oil is emerging as the defining hair product of the decade. While olive oil conditioning treatments have long been touted among those who frequent co-ops more than salons, the practice has been reincarnated in the form of glamorous products that contain argan oil. One brand that’s somewhat synonymous with the category, Moroccanoil, serves as a gateway drug of sorts for converts. However, a number of follicle potions are flaunting argan oil. An unsubstantiated rumor that hair oil can quickly counteract a bad haircut may have something to do with its surge in popularity.
When it comes to cosmetic trends, traditional looks such as bobs, red lips and ’60s-style winged eyeliner are taking a backseat to hair, nails and eyes that are decidedly far out. Apparently, with all the time young people are not spending shopping, they’re getting creative in front of the mirror, and their eyes may be just the start of it.
Feather Hair Extensions: While clipping synthetic hair to one’s mane may seem foul to some, the latest hair phenomenon is all about the fowl. Feather hair extensions, made from elegant rooster plumes and dyed a myriad of colors, are gaining buzz as quirky hair accessories that are both subtle and salient. Surprisingly, they don’t require too much upkeep. Feather hair extensions can be washed, blow dried and curled, and can remain in place for up to six weeks. Feather extensions from LoveChild, Makeup&GO, and handbag and jewelry designer Wendy Nichol—who sources her feathers from free-range birds—cost between $10 and $50 and take only 10 minutes to secure to one’s tresses. That said, this is one trend that’s not for the birds.
Now that the streets are littered with discarded Christmas trees and “Santa Baby” is no longer played on endless repeat in supermarkets, it’s time to focus on the leading post-holiday obsession: reinvention. Along with resolutions to minimize Facebook spying time, January brings with it an urgency to wipe the slate clean with a new look, which could explain why the three newest hair trends all center on making profound changes.
Ice Ice Baby: Going blonde is nothing new, but going platinum, or white blonde, has resurfaced for the first time in decades. First, model Abbey Lee Kershaw shocked the fashion world with the debut of a blindingly towheaded mop during NY Fashion Week in September. By the end of the month, Kasia Struss walked the Balmain runway in cornsilk blonde, Iris Strubegger hit the bleach for Dries Van Noten, and Balenciaga dyed its models’ manes whiter than white. It’s not just runway gazelles who are getting in on the act—this winter, Emma Stone traded in her signature red and Carey Mulligan went for ’50s blonde. At least obtaining a bottle of peroxide bottle is easier, not to mention cheaper, than snagging a Balenciaga Spring ’11 dress.
