2019 nails trend watch, with Marian Newman

SS19 in nails will be defined by one colour – red, says session tech Marian Newman

Newman led the nail teams backstage at key shows for the season and reported seeing the red spectrum explored in depth across the fashion weeks. “I think we’ll see a lot of brands coming out with red colour collections for the season, but it’s about finding the right red and exploring all the different tones. It’s not good enough to have one red in a collection, it has to be 10 or 15,” she says. 

An everlasting favourite, Newman believes this red re-working is testament to what clients really want. “At Roland Mouret, models were asked to choose their own nail colour and it was really interesting that the vast majority chose either red or nude,” she says. “There were lots of different reds at Gareth Pugh too; one design was red topped with red Swarovski crystals, and at Mary Katrantzou it was the only colour in collection of clear, glass-like nails.” 

Client demand throughout 2019 looks set for simple but show-stopping manicures. While not exactly a new trend, Newman says she has recently seen stamping with chrome pigments really start to take off in salons as techs perfect their technique and realise how quick and cost-effective it is to do. 

“It’s so commercial and effective. Whenever you see a client’s face as you’re burnishing chrome pigment into gel polish, they can’t take their eyes away, and it’s done in seconds,” says Newman. It’s this demand for a little nail art flair rather than intricate, competition-worthy designs that she predicts will also spark a fresh focus on crystals. 

“I think we will see more embellishment with crystals for the same reasons as chrome; it’s quick to do, not too expensive for the technician and there are so many different, subtle ways to make a statement with crystals in a manicure.” It’s for these reasons that Newman will head up a certified Swarovski Crystal Beauty Education Programme of workshops across the country beginning in the spring. “We’ll be teaching proper technique so nail pros can be completely confident in offering crystals with staying power. I think people are going to go crazy for it,” she says. 

The final – but possibly most important – change Newman wants techs to take notice of in 2019 are the discussions taking place in the European Commission around the safety of ingredients commonly found in professional nail products. “I think we’ll get some sort of decision in 2019 in regards to some ingredients being banned, and that is going to have a huge impact,” says Newman.

“At the very least there might be extra regulations, which will affect a lot of products on the market in the UK.” She refers particularly to HEMA (hydroxyethyl methacrylate), which she says is “in 90% of all nail products and likely to be banned”, and MMA (methyl methacrylate monomers), “which are still used in many liquid and powder systems in the UK.”

To stay one step ahead of the nail trends for year, be sure to reserve your free ticket to the Professional Beauty show at ExCeL London on Fenruary 24–25, 2019, where you can get a first look at the latest launches from major nail brands including CND, Jessica, Gelish, OPI, Bio Sculpture, Artistic Nail Design, and many more.