By Jennie Lewis Teal and Virginia Muzik
CND Co-founder and Style Director, Jan Arnold, flew in from the US to attend some RAFW shows and said it’s their biggest year yet.
CND’s nail styling team has been backstage at shows including: Jayson Brunsdon, Romance Was Born, Sara Phillips, Camilla, Seventh Wonderland, Friedrich Gray, Ellery, Gail Sorronda, Dhini, Therese Rawsthorne, and Manning Cartell.
CND for Camilla
Camilla’s standout show on Monday drew inspiration from the movie Avatar, with kaftans, capes, maxi dresses and playsuits in a Na’vi palette of animalesque prints. CND revelled in the nail style briefs – four different nail designs to complement the six themed categories, including vivid zebra print and gem-encrusted nails.
Camilla
Jan Arnold commented: “Each segment of the show was more enticing than the last, as the visual extravaganza unfolded. The audience felt as though we were fully transported to another world! But it was the creative styling that made this show high fashion. Feathered head dresses, sky-high printed platforms and dramatically painted eyes were only outdone by the colourfully beaded and decorated nails. Joanne Papoythis created the designs that served as the perfect fashion accessory to this colourful, textural and dramatic show.”
Taking in Sara Phillips prairie-style show on Tuesday morning, Jan said the looks were very pretty and Dolly Parton’s Jolene backing music added a great touch. Models donned the odd cowboy hat and sashayed down the catwalk in sky blues, city-skyline silk prints and suede in the softest shades of bone. CND kept the nails creamy and cute in shades of Putty and Cheeky. Jan said, “Many designers are opting for the putty-style shades that almost work like a concealer for the nails. They give the visual effect of elongating the arms, hands and nails, as does a cream or skin-coloured high heel.”
CND for Seventh Wonderland
The Seventh Wonderland show gave the CND team a change of pace – swimwear with ruched, zipped and lace-up details. Marble and floral prints interweaved shimmering tones of slate, mushroom, teal and taupe. CND were briefed to create a sophisticated and natural style– Almond Stiletto nails painted in CND’s Desert Suede, with Putty moons to create a classic, yet striking look a la Dita Von Teese.
Seventh Wonderland
Jan said that nails this season are sleek, elongated almond shapes that add a lean silhouette to the hands and arms. “Mannequin-perfect nudes with ivory moons exemplify the neutral story and then dark gem toned almonds embellished with stones, metallic beads and rivets give a tough edge to a modern look… and the perfect complement to sky high chunky rock- n-roll platforms. The universal, global trend is nails as fashion accessory! Nothing bare or French… this season is about statement nails!”
Jan had left before seeing the Romance Was Born’s Wednesday night show. The duo asked CND to design long, elaborate nail looks which they lined up, photographed and then commissioned a custom-made fabric inspired by the nail design, to work into their shows. “It really is inspirational to see their designs; they are brave and exciting every time. Last year we designed nine nails for their show and this year we are doing 15 individual designs; each a work of art,” Jan said.