A brief history of manicure

Have you ever wondered where your manicure influences come from? For instance, I would like to have words with whoever came up with the idea of the “accent nail”.  That being the one nail that looks different from all the other nails. Traditionally, this has been the ring finger. It is either a different colour, a unique texture, has glitter, or has some kind of nail art superimposed on it.

The accent nail is not a huge trend when it comes to nails. It seems to be The Only trend. But where did it come from, and why does its popularity persist? I had to find out because it has gotten to the point of being annoying. That, and the fact that there are a lot of people itching to know why the ring finger is painted differently, made to stand out.

You might be stunned to discover that the accent nail is nothing new. It is not a trend that suddenly showed up in 2019. The earliest traces of an accent nail found its way to the internet in 2011. Initially, I thought it was because of the desire by women to showcase their engagement or wedding rings.

Nail salons

A glittery ring finger stands out after all in a sea of eight fingers that blend into each other. And it became even more noticeable with the rise of nail salons, or nail care departments in salons where more and more women would do colourful, adventurous, experimental and quirky manicures.

There was reverse French manicure with half-moons rising from the cuticles, nudes, shades of red and pink, lots of blues, and swirls of colour and all kinds of French tips. You only need to check into Instagram to discover a world where women were nailing it.

Before the accent nail, there was a trend with men where they grew one pinky finger. Ideally, this represented an addiction to, or dabbling with, cocaine. The pinky would dig through the small mountain of coke, and it would be directed to the nose and sniffed. I bet plenty of men who let that nail grow did not think that is what it was purposed for.

The year 2021 is a triumph of nail styles,  with the accent nail taking the lead in a bold colour or something metallic – there is the double French manicure, the colour block French manicure, gingham, geometric art, animal print, marble nails, nude with minimal detail, graphic detail, metallics, chrome, right down to the 1990s holographic inspired nail. And that’s just scratching the surface.

All these trends, save for the holographic-inspired nail, have found their way into Kenyan Instagram accounts. Medium lengths are preferred, but ultra-long are also having their time to shine. The most popular trends are the oval and coffin-shaped nails, the latter spotted on musician Rihanna, who, however, seems to prefer the pointy stiletto nail. Oval is a conservative shape for women who don’t exactly want to break the mold. Bringing up the rear is short and square. French tips are not as common a shape as it is a design.

Covid-19

Manicures have been influenced a great deal by Covid-19. Not only do we have to wash our hands more frequently and sanitise them, they are so prone to dryness, and for those with eczema, flare-ups. The pandemic has also introduced a lot of DIY manicures largely because for some time, salons were not open, and women still wanted their nails to be part of their expression of style. It brought in trends that are easier to do at home such as a different nail colour on every finger, the accent nail/s, and more importantly, press-on nails. They picked up in 2019 and flourished in 2020, and now they are an appreciated trend. They do tend to come in a single-colour pack so the accent nails have to be deliberate.

Press-ons are easy to apply – shaves hours off your salon time. They are also not as costly. Even better, you can play around with the designs.

But what about the accent nail? This month, if you follow these things, is Pride Month. And one of the ways that femmes identified themselves was through femme-flagging. That is, letting others know that you are playing for the same team and are open to a relationship. This later changed to identifying with a community to find friends.

Pride rainbow flag

Different colours have different meanings as well. Considering the known impact of the accent nail back in the 2010s, it is likely a lot of women wore the accent nail without understanding its history. It was a subtle way of expression, and beyond the 2010s, once this went mainstream, the community moved on to other identifiers.

We don’t think a lot about our nails. We paint them, they look pretty, we look polished and we earn compliments and a status as women who are good at self-care. Granted, the accent nail that was flagged in 2012 by a Tumblr account that no longer exists, no longer means what it set out to do.

Time has made people forget about femme-flagging once it blew up and became a universal nail trend. Being femme and seeking out a like-minded set of people is now identified with such big bold things as the Pride rainbow flag.

Now, our nails belong to us in a far more typically mainstream way. But should there be another trend replacing the accent nail, you can be sure that I will find it.

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