What are the commonalities between nails and cars?
The finishing color.
Right now it's all about contrasting finishes. Recently I was walking down Amsterdam's P.C. Hoofdstraat and this matte black Mercades Brabusbul caught my eye. I've never seen a high end car with a matte black finish. Motorcycles--(Ducati, Buel, etc..)YES, but now Mercedes? Ze Germans are definately leading the way with this finish in this market. Mercedes, Audi and Porsche now have models available in matte black. Of course the matte black paint isn't a new phenomena (it's dates back to WW1--look to all the military vehicles or even just last year at the Detroit Auto Show). I just find it a very contradicting and a bold statement from these high end auto makers, who usually choose shinny finishes to show of the sexy new lines of these luxury machines. In my eyes, it's all about showing off design purity and raw machinery. Your luxury car is the new jet stealth fighter plane.
....and so are your nails.
Recently I found matte finish in NAIL POLISH! And it looks strikingly good on! OPI is leading the way with it's collection of five colors, ranging from pink to dark blue. I'm currently rockin' the Russian Navy--the color--right now (hey, it's autumn). This polish is sold with a cute mini booklet suggesting how to best apply this polish. No top or finishing coat needed. No moisturizer either. This lacquer dries fast and it's funny to really see that your nails actually dry. No more "quilted bed nails."
Comparing two things I like: nail polish and cars, has made me think about why this matte trend has re-emerged. It most defiantly steams from the recession, in my eyes. Society is facing hard times again. We're in a deep, dark hole. One like this world has never seen before. The glitz, glam, bling-bling culture has lost it's luster for the mature generations. We are sick of posers flashing there bling. It's so fake. We're looking for ways to express ourselves in a more honest and simple way without calling to much attention. This is why matte is leading the way in finishing from cars, to fashion, to nail polish.
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