Forget delicate lady fingers. This summer you’ve got to battle the recession blues with vibrant hues— and that means getting your hands flirty and dirty in regards to the color wheel. All those tan shades and blush pinks can wait ’til winter, girls! It’s time to razzle-dazzle ’em with those fingernails.
Here, a guide to the best enamel colors, artificial nail sets, nail design tools and more! And, for an extra treat, I added a couple of pics of my own creations (okay, I’m not exactly a celebrity manicurist, but I think some are kinda swaggalicious). Enjoy!
RAINBOW BRIGHTS
Follow the Skittles mantra and “taste the rainbow” with neon bright, candy-colored hues like Zoya’s “Pippa,” a delicious yellow shade that will have everyone around you yielding like crazy, Jessica’s “My Cabana Boy,” a neon pink worthy of an M.I.A. music video, and Sally Hansen’s Insta-Dri “Orange You Fast!,” a quick-drying orange color reminiscent of those Mike & Ike candies, or Orly’s Sol Cabana, an orange creamsicle shade that always makes me hunger for a frozen treat.
Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Fast Dry Nail Color (pictured above): Rapidly Rosy, Lemon Dash, Pronto Purple, Orange You Fast!, Flyin’ Fuchsia, Brisk Blue, Lickety-Split Lime and Coral Rush. Available at drugstores nationwide.Visit SallyHansen.com for info. 
Zoya Nail Polish La-Di-Da Collection (Ali; Paz; Pippa; America; Dita; and Renee shades); $36 for Sampler Pack. Visit ArtofBeauty.com
TICKLED PINK
Lately, beauty companies have been churning out quite a few collections (from M.A.C’s A Rose Romance to Clinique’s Bamboo Pink) that really focus in on pink and the nuanced shades within that color family. This summer, Essie brought that concept to our fingertips with an array of shades ranging from blushing bride (the “Luscious Lips” shade) to bright salmon pink (“Cute As A Button”) to ’80s video-ready shocking pink (“Funny Face”). Celebrity manicurist Deborah Lippman, meanwhile, offered her own floral-inspired, sheer shade, P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing), a perfect hue for garden parties and tea socials.
Essie Summer 2009 shades: Lovie Dovie; Chubby Cheeks; Luscious Lips; Not Just A Pretty Face; Cute As A Button; and Funny Face; $8 each. Visit Essie.com
For more fun colors, including metalics, check out our girl Celia’s SickaThanAverage.com!
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