I know. This is not a post about food. Some people know this about me, but most don’t. When I’m not eating, I’m probably polishing my nails. I don’t love wearing make-up, but I will NEVER walk out the door with sloppy nails. I’m not saying they have to be perfectly polished all the time (…but mine usually are). They just need to be clean.
Another issue I have with polishing nails is that there are SO many colors to choose for any given manicure, and there is still an alarmingly large population of people who go straight for Lincoln Park After Dark the second it’s Labor Day. This needs to stop right now! No shade against LPAD, but why are we passing up the amazing fall polish shades!?
I’m going to map out the year and when it is appropriate to wear certain polish colors.
*All photos are taken from the company website or Instagram pages.
Year-Round Shades
As spoiled in the header, these are colors that you can wear any time of the year! These are softer, more neutral tones with a few exceptions to that criteria sprinkled in the mix to keep this interesting. I have each shade linked below in text and in the images.
Winter (January Through March)
This is the only time of year when you can be wearing the super dark shades. I’m sorry. It’s not after Labor Day. It’s not after Starbucks starts serving PSLs for the season. It’s from January 1st through the end of March.
Spring (April through Labor Day)
This is where I’m going to probably be outnumbered. I’m not into pastels unless it’s a light pink. I don’t have any specific colors for this section. This is where you tap into the safe zone that is the year-round shades. You could also start carefully busting into the summer shades. Don’t go too bright just yet! Bikini So Teeny is the perfect Spring to Summer transition shade.
Summer (Memorial Day through labor Day)
These are my favorite shades. Bring on the bright corals! This lineup of colors is the most fun.
Early Fall (Labor Day thru Early October)
Again, this is another tricky time of year. It is comparable to Spring in a way. However, I use this time of year to bust into the darker nude tones. I have a few in rotation then add a new tone every year. I would also include Somewhere Over the Rainbow Mountains in this mix.
Late Fall (Mid-October Through Thanksgiving)
This is my favorite time of year for nail polish colors. Nothing pairs better with a PSL than a good ol’ burnt shade. I’m totally kidding about the PSL statement. I don’t really even like PSLs that much. However, please let it be known that there are some awesome dark shades out there, and even though it’s late in the year, YOU DO NOT NEED TO BE WEARING LPAD JUST YET.
Holiday Nails (Thanksgiving through New Year's Eve)
This is where we can push the envelope a bit. This is when I bust into the sparkly colors. I like the shimmer in my nails for the holidays, but proceed with caution because some of the shades with glitter are a pain in the butt to take off. Consider this your fairest warning!
Princess Nails
These could fall in the summer and even the year-round categories. The phrase “Princess Nails” was actually coined by my former co-worker, Tara. It’s all shades of pretty pinks and they’re all super fun!
My concluding thoughts...
- You do not need to have polish on your nails at all times. Just keep them looking clean!
- If you chip your nail polish, take off the damn polish ASAP! It looks so sloppy. There. I said it.
- Now is the time to be dabbling with this new skill. You get better at polishing your own nails the more you pracitce. However, this is a tricky time because we should all be washing our hands so much that manicures should be lasting about one second.
Thank you for listening to this very important rant.
