Fall is the best time of year: warm days, cool nights, cozy food, Halloween, bright leaves, and fall nails. Neutrals and darker colors are always a safe bet for fall but for 2021, it’s been mauves, creamy nudes, oxblood, and shimmer tones that have caught designers’ eyes.
Match your nails to your festive clothes with these best Halloween dresses.
Lover’s Creep by Smith & Cult is a seductive, Bordeaux wine shade of red that can’t be mistaken for a black.
The burgundy tone elevates red to a more mature, sophisticated shade that looks great on all skin tones.
Smith & Cult polishes are long-lasting and eight free. In case you’ve never owned Smith & Cult before, the packaging is gorgeous but if you’re finding that chunky gold cap intimidating to polish with, it pops off leaving a smaller, easier to handle applicator cap, as you can see in this brand review by The Skincare Edit.
If you’re looking for something unique to stand out this fall season, check out Quantum Leaf by KBShimmer. It’s not a shade you expect to see and yet it’s so undeniably perfect for fall.
The warm goldenrod crelly polish is packed with autumn-toned glitter including gold micro glitter, small, medium, and large hex glitter in gold, copper, and bright red. It has an effect like looking at a pile of fallen leaves.
I got to test out this shade for myself and I got loads of compliments when I wore this.
VideoVideo related to donnie by zoya2018-10-10T14:46:22-04:00
Zoya recently released their Fall 2018 Elements Collection, a beautiful gradient of reds, purples, and blues. Donnie is described as a sangria cream. For me it has that rich brightness of a Thanksgiving Day blueberry pie.
Donnie is a unique take on purple that is dark for fall without relying on browns or black so it packs a visual punch like I haven’t seen in a while.
It’s opaque enough that it can be worn with only one coat, but two coats will bring out all that Donnie can be. Like all Zoya polishes, it has their perfect, buttery formula and is 10 free.
Soft woodland olive greens are trending for this fall and Star Moss by Londontown Lakur is spot on. It’s a gentle, feminine green that’s unmistakably autumn and would look great curled around a big coffee mug.
I’ve sampled other Londontown Lakur colors and while they tend to need two to three coats, they have nice staying power. Their Londontown Kur Protective Top Coat is my current top coat of choice.
Londontown polishes are nine-free, gluten-free, cruelty-free, and vegan. They also are packed with their “Florium Complex” which, according to their site, is a combination of nourishing botanicals like extracts of cucumber, garlic, and chamomile as well as primrose oil, rapeseed oil, and vitamin E.
If you’re looking for that perfect pumpkin-orange polish, go with KBShimmer’s Hey There Pumpkin. It’s a striking, bordering neon orange with reflective gold and green-gold flakies. The formula has a lot of white in it so it has intense coverage and eye-catching brightness.
I got to try a media sample of this shade, with no promise of a review, and I have to say it’s my favorite new shade of the season.
Part of OPI’s Fall 2019 Scotland collection, Nessie Plays Hide & Sea-K is a unique cobalt blue jelly packed with a marine green and gold shimmer for a peacock feather finish.
It makes me think of looking off the side of a boat into the deep, still waters of a lake just as evening is rolling in. I’m not doing this color justice. You have to see this one swatched because it’s nearly impossible to describe. You can see a live swatch of the color on this YouTube swatch video.
This color-shifting autumnal blue goes on sheer due to the jelly formula so you’re looking at three coats if you want to cover your nail line. The polish is packed with gold micro-flakies and a gold-green-teal shimmer that gives the effect of light on the surface of the water.
VideoVideo related to fall into me by orly2018-10-10T14:44:35-04:00
From Orly’s Fall 2018 The New Neutral Collection, Fall Into Me is a metallic mink color which fall somewhere between a gold and a silver. It’s a really lovely, unique bronze taupe that’s very late September and early October.
The metallic flash is enough to be eye-catching but not as bold as a polished chrome making it much more wearable.
I really wish it looked more interesting in the bottle, but this really does look like liquid autumn. Since it has a metallic finish, this one can show brush strokes so you just have to be aware of that when applying.
ILNP is one of my favorite nail polish brands. Riddle Me This is from their Fall Equinox 2018 Collection but fits so well with this season’s colors.
The vibrant green shifts to dark cobalt blue for a deep in the woods just after sunset effect. The scattered holographic micro-flakes give a purple and gold sparkle for a fun, brighter way to rock your fall nails.
This is a jelly base formula so you’ll need around three coats for the pigment to really shine. I have a lot of ILNP jellies and I’ve never minded the layering because their polishes dry really quickly, don’t feel thick, and have such a stunning payoff.
All their lacquers are vegan and cruelty-free and I’ve found they have great staying power.
VideoVideo related to wicked by essie2018-10-10T14:26:46-04:00
I bought this for myself and Wicked is one of my personal favorites for the fall and winter months. It’s a deep, deep oxblood red that’s perfect for this season’s colors.
Sometimes when reds get this dark they can end up looking brown, but Wicked won’t go muddy on you. It’s base of dark cranberry shines through with intense pigmentation.
Like all Essie polish, the high gloss finish on this outshines most other brands. For a lighter red you can get away with one coat, but that second coat gives so much depth to that almost-black crimson.
The color works for fall leaves, spooky Halloween looks, Thanksgiving harvest reds, and even into the holiday season.
All fall nail polish stashes need a good orange and for an upbeat terracotta, check out Buttercrisp Orchid by Priti NYC.
This is a gorgeous fall orange. It doesn’t go overboard with neon pumpkin orange and leans more toward peachy fall leaves, making it wearable all season long.
Like all Priti NYC polishes it’s cruelty-free, gluten-free, six free, vegan, and made in America.
This color from ILNP’s Fall Equinox 2018 Collection shows that just because it’s not summer anymore you don’t have to give up your love of holographic nail polish. Underground is a dark vampire red with a scattered holographic sparkle.
The formula is a black jelly base with an orange flash which translates into this shifting oxblood red. The spangle of the scattered holographic flakies against the dark base gives it a ruby feel. The deep color works with the overall fall trends but this one screams October in particular.
Underground is a jelly so you’ll need at least three coats for the full effect. Like all ILNP lacquers, it’s cruelty-free and long-lasting.
Part of Essie’s 2019 Fall collection that just came out, Hay There is a perfect autumn yellow.
It’s a beautiful slightly muted yellow that perfectly matches the bright color of some maple and birch trees as their leaves change in the fall. If typical fall nails are too drab for you, Hay There kicks it up a notch keeping fall bright and fun.
Being an Essie polish you know it has staying power but don’t be surprised if you need two or three coats on this one. Yellows are a difficult pigment to nail, so expect this to be streaky on the first and even second coat. At three coats it evens out perfectly for a creamy, buttered corn fall yellow.
The picture of this in the bottle really represent how this color-shifting, dark grey and purple holographic polish looks in real life.
This unique fall shade is a sheer dark grey base packed with holographic flakies and a dense gold shimmer with a ruby flash. It’s not quite a jelly because you can really get away with only two coats on this one as it has such a heavy shimmer. You do still get a little bit of the jelly layered look with the holographic flakies.
Cowboy, Bye has a bronze look under inside lighting and a deep grey with red and rainbow holographic sparkles in the sunlight.
This will sell out quickly so don’t wait. Check out this YouTube swatch video to see how the polish applies.
From Essie’s 2019 fall collection, Home Grown is a gorgeous neutral peach with a pearlescent bronze flash.
This warm harvest shade is packed with dense shimmer giving it a golden glow. The formula is perfection to apply and is fully opaque in only two coats.
Home Grown is a lovely neutral that works with all skin tones. It’s subtle but has a little kick from the metallic shimmer.
There are few polishes that represent fall foliage better than KBShimmer’s Take It or Leaf It topper.
This mult-chrome flakie topper has a green to gold to orange to red shift depending on the angle of the light. These are the same colors of the foliage change as green leaves take on their bright fall hues.
As a topper over any neutral shade these large flakies have the look of falling leaves. I scored a media sample of this polish and did a gradient manicure that was densest at the tips making it look like leaves falling into a leaf pile.
Take It or Leaf It can also be sponged on for full coverage and worn alone. The polish takes on a multi-chrome foil look with this method that is amazing on its own or as a base for fall nail stamping designs.
It’s a versatile topper with the perfect fall leaf colors. Plus, since they’re flakies and not glitter, they’re much easier to remove.
This deep slate grey is part of OPI’s 2019 Fall collection which is inspired by the colors of Scotland.
It’s almost coal black but with a core of dar blue slate. It’s a unique grey color you don’t see very often and is perfect for those October and November days.
This purple from China Glaze is rocking that amethyst glow with a flash of red when the light hits it. The color works well all through fall and winter so you can get a lot of use out of it.
It could be a little too flashy for the office, but I love things that are too flashy for the office. Go a little bold with royal purple.
From their 2019 Up and Autumn Collection, Having a Gourd Time is a perfect color for the late fall, Thanksgiving season.
The shade is highly color-shifting from a deep olive green to maple leaf red to pumpkin pie orange. There’s a gold shimmer throughout that adds an extra layer of fun. I got my hands on a media sample of this and while I’m normally a bright colors person, I really loved this shade.
The formula is easy to work with and is opaque in two coats. KBShimmer is a vegan, cruelty-free brand.
VideoVideo related to snuggle up by orly2018-10-10T14:52:41-04:00
From Orly’s The New Neutral Fall 2018 Collection, Snuggle Up is nude, pure and simple.
Snuggle Up captures that cafe au lait tinted nude which is popping up this season that can seamlessly travel from casual to business.
The cream formula is smooth to work with. Orly polishes are 12 free, vegan, and cruelty-free. Plus I love their caps because they are textured and rubberized so they’re super easy to open and close.
We’ll be seeing a lot of black nails this fall and Licorice by Essie is a trusted and true black.
The formula is easy to work with, it dries to a fantastic shine, and it only needs one to two coats. Plus, Essie polishes are three free.
If black is seeming a little too edgy or goth for you, try it with a matte top coat to soften the look. See my guide to the best Matte Top Coats to see which options are best for you.
VideoVideo related to no cell? oh well! by morgan taylor2018-10-10T14:42:57-04:00
I was able to get my hands on samples of Morgan Taylor’s Fall 2018 Collection and No Cell? Oh Well! is my favorite color of the set.
Vibrant cobalt blue was the color of summer and No Cell? Oh Well! is that same color but viewed at midnight. It’s a deep, stunning color that has that luminous night sky look to it.
No Cell? Oh Well! is opaque in one coat for a rich sapphire hue but two coats really deepens the tone to moonlit water. It’s not dark enough to be mistaken for black, but it’s close.
There’s a subtle shimmer and almost metallic finish that gives it that extra bit of dimension. The applicator brush is dreamy. Dense and perfectly rounded. I can apply this polish with one stroke.
This set comes with both the Morgan Taylor nail polish and the same color as a gel polish from Gelish (Morgan Taylor’s gel nail polish brand).
Just make sure you’re using a base coat with this because it could stain your nails otherwise.
Witch Way translates this summer’s jelly nails trend and this fall’s jewel-tone trends into the perfect October and November purple.
This polish is an amethyst purple jelly base with holographic hex and micro-glitter. (And may I just say that “hex” glitter was the ideal pick for a polish called Witch Way. Witches and hexes–get it?)
I have a media sample of this shade and it just screams crystals and candles and burning incense. As a practicing witch, I have plenty of crystals and candles and incense and this polish just suits that witchy October vibe.
Being a jelly you will need three coats on this one to get full opacity. Like all KBShimmer polishes, Witchy Way is cruelty-free and three free.
VideoVideo related to don’t toot my flute by opi2018-10-10T14:49:01-04:00
Don’t Toot My Flute from OPI’s Fall 2018 Peru Collection is showing us that we can go lighter and brighter and still have that fall vibe. This is a periwinkle-raisin shade that’s not a traditional fall color but when you see it swatched you can immediately see why it’s included in their fall collection. It just works.
There’s a lot of white in this formula so it’s bright and builds up well to be opaque in two coats.
This collection is going out of stock fast so grab it while you can.
Keeping the taupe train going, Glitterati is a creamy cocoa with a purple-pink tint which works well with this season’s coffee and mauve colors. It’s understated but with a high gloss.
The formula is fantastic to work with and rides the edge between a cream and a crelly so you’ll want between two to three coats depending on how thin you paint your layers.
VideoVideo related to take back ctrl by kbshimmer2018-10-10T14:40:13-04:00
Many of this season’s colors seem to be taking summer’s colors and dimming them down to create a more autumnal shade.
Bright mauves were pretty big this summer and now dustier, grey mauves are in like this one from KBShimmer. Take Back CTRL, from their Office Space Collection, is a purple-rose neutral cream that looks good on anyone. It can be super casual or dressed up.
The formula is a little sheer so you’ll want two to three coats for full opacity.
It's finally the best time of the year: fall. Find out which fall runway shades are trending for your fall nails in 2021 and grab the ones you love best.
