“Aurora” nails are the latest manicure trend from South Korea, inspired by the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights. The hashtag #오로라네일 – “Aurora nails” written in Korea’s Hangul script – is attached to over 140,000 posts on Instagram, with the English version, #AuroraNails, on almost 70,000.
The iridescent look, which calls to mind seashells and mermaid tails from fairytales as much as the sky’s most spectacular light show, can be achieved with specially created Aurora gels, which are recommended for salon use only, but there are plenty of sheer, opalescent nail polish shades you can use to get the look at home.
The manicure is particularly mesmerising to look at thanks to its shimmery finish, which changes colours as fingers move and creates a futuristic effect on camera. It’s also an easy nail art trend to, well, nail, because all you need is a polish with light-reflecting properties.
This originally appeared on Vogue UK | Lauren Murdoch-Smith
