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I wasn’t born with elegant pianist fingers. They’re more like the Reese Witherspoons of digits—short and dressed in bold and bright shades when it comes my polish choices. But a recent summer nail trend—which goes under a few different monikers like the “transparent French” and the “no-mani mani”—has had me swapping my colorful polish for something much more subtle.
“It’s called the ‘barely-there manicure,’” says celebrity manicurist Zola Ganzorigt of her take on the trend. Just this week, she shared her work on actor Olivia Wilde’s nails. Jennifer Lopez has also been seen with a version of the natural-nail trend, too. “For this version, I used two coats of OPI’s Bubble Bath nail polish.”
Ganzorigt adds that Bubble Bath is a warm nude, so it “isn’t universal and won't work on everybody.” Alternatives for the same no-mani manicure look include cool-brown Bare My Soul and cool-pink Put It in Neutral. “Depending on the person’s skin tone, I use one of them or mix them. For example one coat of Bare My Soul and one coat of Put It in Neutral looks good on tanned skin.”
After trying out a few different shades at the nail salon, I settled on one thin coat of Put It in Neutral as my perfect barely-there nude. It creates a your-nails-but-better effect on the hands—just like the perfect tinted moisturizer does for skin. The transparent coat instantly lengthens my fingers, and when combined with an elongated oval nail shape, and I feel like a sophisticated version of myself. Summer manicure, secured.