My Name Is Olivia and I Had Chipped Nails

A little while ago I came across a piece in the New York Times entitled "I Love What You Didn't do to Your Chipped Nails" about a new trend in nail polish- the imperfect upkeep of it. Amazingly, I was onto this trend eons ago :) as I am just not one of those perfectly primped and primed ladies. But the point of the article wasn't just about the trend, it was about when and where this sort of casual attitude is acceptable. And according to the majority of celebrities that young girls are emulating, there was a certain "Anywhere you want" bottom line. Lindsay Lohan had no trouble sporting flakey "wicked" polish to a film premiere and the list went on and on of young starlets on the “yay” side of the debate.

But that's really the beginning. In the Times piece you got the sense that it was ok to sport grody manicures (pedicures were decidedly a WHOLE OTHER story) as long as you are sporting an "it" bag. You can't really look like a total schleppy slob with a Birkin on your arm, can you?

The more that high/low fashion gets all muddled together, the more we see an "anything goes" attitude in our grooming and beauty rituals. There is something kind of grunge/punk rock in chipped polish that certainly lends itself to the perfect Balenciaga S/S08 ensemble or an Alexander Wang F/W08 look. It compliments it, rather than detracts because the whole idea it seems is more "yes I know luxury, I can afford all these special things, but there is nothing precious about me."

I think it's a woman's way of taking something that is so powerful and statement making in itself and turning it into their own.

But can you do this with beauty?

Can we really apply the same rules?

Personally, I am a bit embarrassed when my nails go totally AWOL- but it is hard to keep up. I wish I could get a weekly mani/pedi, I have friends that do, but it just doesn't seem to happen. It feels like such a commitment. And although it's very relaxing and I quite enjoy it, most days I'd rather be relaxing with a book if I have the time than to be sitting inhaling fumes and worrying that each page I turn will undo all the hard work.

I've tried to apply the same philosophy to waxing, etc. The minute anything is out of place, I vow that I will head to salon (and every time I return I admit that it has been way too long). Subsequently, my nails are bare 85% of the time. And I quite like it that way.

Ultimately, I believe that yes there is a time and place where letting your grooming guard down is simply unacceptable. When my company was hiring interns, you can bet the girl with chipped polish did not get hired. I was actually uncomfortable for her, though she didn't seem affected one bit. She flashed her stop sign red nails, corroded and broken, gesticulating as she proceeded to answer my questions. I was amused afterwards, thinking how strange it must be to be so oblivious. Yes, me, wearer of chipped polish (on occasion). Because although, yes, it's happened to me, I would never enter an interview that way, would never really enter the office with anything more than "minorly cracked" and were I to find myself in the uncomfortable situation of being across the table from a potential employer in a condition less than satisfactory (god forbid) you can bet my hands won't be anywhere in sight- even if it's awkward and uncomfortable.

So I think my personal stance on this whole thing is- employing a devil may care attitude towards fashion is all well and good but just like there are still formalities that should be upheld, even in this "anti fashion" fashion era, there's a code that should be followed when it comes to beauty too. And I do think, professionally, there are some things that are a don't. Chipped nails, in my book, are one of them. I will remember this the next times things start going south…

I vow to.

~ Olivia Villanti