TEN BEAUTY: NAILED IT

Treat your talons like you do your face.

Many of our at-home skincare routines now boast the same professional-grade products and devices that you’d find at your aesthetician or dermatologist. DIY manicures? Not so much.“I was surprised there wasn’t a digitally native, creatively- led, social nail care brand that was more curated and more premium, so I created one,” says Jessica Blumenthal, formerly an exec of viral darling makeup and skincare companies Merit and Versed. She now runs Celisse, a new direct-to- consumer venture dedicated to at-home nail care. Its offerings include a tightly edited collection of subtly hued polishes, plus buffers, files, and nourishing nail and cuticle serums, and it has the same elevated basics appeal as Merit. “It’s the ‘your skin, but better’ approach, for nails,” adds co- founder Holly Falcone. You could call it the skinification of nails. “There’s a desire to go back to basics,” says Gaëlle Lebrat- Personnaz, the founder of Manucurist, a nail brand known for skincare-esque products such as its bestselling AHA- based Active Glow Raspberry exfoliator. “In fashion, it’s the return of the capsule wardrobes, and in beauty it’s healthy, natural-looking nails with a glossy glow like you’d get from a facial.”

According to celebrity nail artist Sonya Meesh, it’s a look that feels very current: “It’s the continuation of the ‘clean girl’ aesthetic,” she says. But while this may all seem like a market grab by companies eager to capitalize on beautifying another part of our bodies, our nails and hands may, in fact, need this attention. Nail art and gel are still booming and their popularity has, says Amy Welsman, founder of luxury hand-care line Paume, ushered in a wave of more dehydrated and damaged nails—and, in turn, a parallel interest in treatments that will fix them. “Simply hydrating your nails with emollients like those found in our face skincare, like hyaluronic acid, and

74 strengthening ingredients like biotin and keratin, can have benefits and counteract this damage,” says Welsman.

The same goes for hands. Habelo Beauty launched its signature Power Pair (a peptide-packed serum and occlusive gloves to lock in its effects) in 2025; it has since sold out multiple times at beauty retailer Violet Grey.

The increasing focus on at-home hand and nail products couldn’t come at a better time since the cost of living is still on the rise and general instability abounds (read: trips to the salon have become less of a priority). Says Lebrat-Personnaz: “Let’s be honest, it saves time and money.”