The 5 Nail Trends From NYFW Fall/Winter 2026

1. Bare Minimum

We'll go on and on and about how much we love and appreciate natural beauty being encouraged—and now, nail trends are reflective of that. This season, a few New York Fashion Week runways prioritized natural nail health over all else. For the Marc Jacobs show, the JINsoon team for polish and prepped models with cuticle oil, a peeling balm, and hand cream for the sake of achieving well groomed and healthy hands and nails.

Over at Altuzarra, the bare look was achieved with the help of polish with skin undertones, as designer Joseph Altuzarra requested a clean look with no visible color. “I chose to use Lights Lacquer’s sheer range, because their sheer formulas deliver that perfected ‘your nails but better’ finish every time," nail artist Erica De Los Santos says.

2. French Flair

For the LaQuan Smith shoe, lead manicurist Gina Edwards drew inspiration from the collection and consistencies throughout the brand: sharp, structured, precise, and sensual. "You can't go wrong with a classic French elevated with a high-shine, chrome finish that's continuing to trend," she said. Over at Ashlyn, celebrity manicurist Jin Soon Choi opted for a French tip with a bit of twist: a very slim, skinny black tip that perfectly coordinated with the collection.

3. Ruby Red

Deep reds might forever be a trending fall nail color, and this NYFW season is a reflection of that. For the Cinq á Sept show, a subtle, sophisticated look suitable for both day and night was the goal. "The FW26 nail look is designed to support individuality, never uniformity," Amy Ling Lin, founder and CEO of Sundays Studios says. "The look pairs matte and glossy finishes in a deep, understated red. Red is a color of confidence and strength, chosen to empower women to claim their space unapologetically and step into their power."

For Pamella Roland's Fall/Winter 2026 show, nail artist Pattie Yankee opted for a ruby nail with a bit of a twist. Yankee chose to also make it a cat-eye nail, which allowed it to shimmer, shine, and defy depth depending on the angle and just where the light hit.

4. Piercing Through

This season at NYFW, nails were pierced—or at least alluded to being so. For Bronx and Banco, nail artist Yukie Natori dressed up porcelain based nails by playing with piercings and metalwork, all in an industrial silver. Over at Private Policy, chrome—including what alluded to the entire nail being pierced through—contrasted with baby blues and other candy-colored hues

5. Golden Child

From impractically-long claws by Sojin Oh at Kim Shui's Fall/Winter 2026 show on a boat, to curved nails by Christina Duong at Sergio Hudson's 10th Anniversary show at the New York Public Library, everything was golden this New York Fashion Week–especially the nails.