The 4 Nail Trends That Will Dominate 2025, According to the Fall 2025 Runways
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I know fall feels like a lifetime away, but before you realize it, we’ll be back in our trench coats and getting ready for Thanksgiving dinner. That means there’s no better time than now to start brainstorming all the makeup looks, hairstyles, and manicures for our future selves to wear in advance. We’re firm believers in paying attention to runways, and if the fall/winter 2025 runway circuit was a preview of what’s to come—boring nails are cool again?
Our eyes were glued on the New York runways, where we saw a few nail trends emerge; trends ranged from eschewing polish altogether to maximalist manis that take the Rihanna lyrics “Shine bright like a diamond” very seriously. In other words, there’ll be something to inspire everyone this autumn, whether you’re still a quiet luxury aesthetic devotee or dying to make a statement with a whimsical design.
Ready to start planning your 2025 nail calendar—a meticulously crafted vision board mapped out for the entire year—the ELLE beauty team went backstage and sifted through runway photos to bring you the best nail trends poised to dominate later this year. Check out a few examples below and screenshot away!
A Touch of Whimsy - Meruert Tolegen
With nails, there’s always room to have some fun. At Meruert Tolegen, Naomi Yasuda started with a few layers of Addiction Tokyo’s Nail Polish in Bloody Merlot “because it’s that perfect dark red shade; it can be both sweet yet spicy,” she shared in a press release. But if you looked closely, you would see that some of the models’s fingernails were also accented with tiny pearls that added a playful touch.
The Nail Polish in Bloody Merlot
$19.00 at addictiontokyobeauty.com
Christian Cowan
Meanwhile, at Christian Cowan, nail artist Julie Kandalec attached feathers to the bottoms of models’s nails, which had been painted with the CND Shellac in Powder My Nose. “I attached the feather in reverse, almost as if the models were writing with a quill pen,” she said via a press release.
Shellac Power Polish Color Coat
Diotima
Yasuda also worked on the looks for Diotima; one of two designs for the show involved a graphic red line hand-drawn straight down the middle of the nail with the Addiction Tokyo The Nail Polish in Shanghai Romance.
The Nail Polish in Shanghai Romance
$19.00 at addictiontokyobeauty.com
Going Dark - Anna Sui
It’s still winter, and many of us might already be fatigued by deeper nail colors. However, don’t forget how fresh and new these intense shades—including this dark brown seen at Anna Sui—always feel after a summer of white and nude mani-pedis.
Christopher John Rogers
Near-black black polish, just like nude or red, will never go out of style, especially when paired with this timeless short squoval nail shape.
“Known for his vibrant use of color, Christopher John Rogers returned to the runway after a two-year hiatus,” shared nail artist Jin Soon Choi in a press release. “While he typically embraces bold hues, this season, he explored the brown family for nails.” One of the colors he selected for his show was JINsoon’s Risqué, a deep blackberry red.
Risqué
Monse
The models at Monse strutted down the runway wearing this deep terracotta on their nails. I don’t know if I’ll be able to wait until fall to replicate the look, which Choi accomplished by applying her nail polish in Fire Clay.
Fire Clay
Bare Necessities - Christian Cowan
Many women seem to be returning to their natural hair colors, and perhaps our nails will follow suit. As always, there was plenty of nude polish on the runways, but many models also seemed to have nothing on their nails.
Kandalec also created this polka-dotted design for Christian Cowan, which involved painting one to two layers of a neutral CND Shellac onto the nails. Depending on the model’s skin tone, she used Bouquet, Powder My Nose, Bare Chemise, Wrapped In Linen, Field Fox, or Willow Talk.
Shellac in Willow Talk
Lingua Franca
At Lingua Franca, there didn’t seem to be a stitch of polish on some of the models’s nails, no matter how hard we looked. We forecast healthy bare nails to be at the forefront in autumn.
Altuzarra
Nothing more than perhaps a slick of clear or transparent nude polish graced the fingertips at Altuzarra.
Jonathan Simkhai
Jonathan Simkhai also kept things simple with short, natural nails and perfect cuticles.
Bling Bling - Alice + Olivia
But if you thought that was a little dull, don’t worry—all hope is not lost. Several nail artists decorated the manicures to the max with gemstones that shone like stars. The Alice + Olivia presentation featured stiletto nails encrusted with rhinestones. If you’re already accessorizing the rest of your body, why not give your nails the same treatment?
The Blonds
The Blonds models took it a step further with lengthy, head-turning nails studded with white rhinestones in various cuts and sizes.
White Nail Rhinestones
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