Shake off winter and Spring into colour
When I was at school, I would paint each one of my fingernails a different colour so they looked like M&Ms. As soon as a teacher spotted my candy-coloured tips, they’d send me straight to the nurse to wipe it all off, but the next day I’d be sporting sunshine yellow, apple green, juicy orange and royal blue nails all over again. Nowadays I don’t have to beware of disapproving teachers and can indulge my love of colour to its full extent, but I tend to restrict myself to one shade at a time.
Last season was all about Chanel’s elegant Jade polish, and if you weren’t lucky enough to get your mitts on one of the limited edition bottles, the high street obliged with convincing tributes, Barry M and Essie’s Mint Candy Apple being 
the best. We played with pale grey (so chic for daytime) and a variety of noirish shades through the party season, but now Spring’s almost sprung, what will the best-dressed tips be sporting next?
Looking to Chanel for a forecast is probably a wise move and it seems that a soft purplish-beige is in the offing, called Particulière. I think Essie’s Mink Muffs is as near as dammit, so that’s the polish I’ll be rocking (it doesn’t chip as much either). The mood on the S/S 10 catwalks was light-hearted and romantic, with girlie ginghams, ruffles and flounces sweeping winter’s tough-edged, rock ‘n’ roll looks out the door. If you can’t bear to be parted from your Gothic threads, sporting a paler shade on your nails will lighten the mood just enough. If beige ain’t for you, we dare you to embrace pastels and prove pale can be interesting. Lilac, baby blue, pistachio, rose, lemon – it’s time to lighten up. My schooldays weren’t wasted after all…phoebe frangoul