Moschino: All Access with Essie

The highlights of my Milano Fashion Week involved the exclusive access with which I observed the art of the runways backstage. I enjoyed the opportunity to see the Essie artist experiment with nails behind the scenes, which had provided nail art for Moschino. If you guys know me, you know I love getting my nails done, so being able to go to the source for the latest nail trends was a dream come true.

I love going behind the scenes more than anything else because it allows me to understand the designer’s vision and inspiration to cultivate the collection, and it feeds my appreciation for detail – and you know how I love my details. I had the chance to see every look on the rack as tailors scrambled last minute to perform final stitches and alterations on Gigi Hadid’s dress, and I was able to watch the models’ rehearsal. Jeremy Scott’s runway was vibrant as it stylistically echoed many trends of the 60’s, yet incorporated these retro themes with elements of science fiction and outer space, and his show painted the story of a classic vintage woman meeting an alien on the Moschino runway. This interplay of retro and futuristic aspects of fashion represents what Scott does best; only he can create something completely new out of opposite ends of the fashion spectrum.

For any of my readers wondering, the four Essie colors Miss Pop used to create Moschino’s iconic nail look this season were “Cute As A Button” , “Madison Ave-hue”, “Geranium” and “Cascade Cool” the combination of these four colors easily coalesced with the new age yet half moon vintage theme that traversed the runway this season.

I had the chance to speak with one of the Essie nail artists, who had told me that for Moschino this year, they had selected bright and fun colors that translated well towards his designs. Each model is assigned a unique nail color and was a skinny lengthily almond shape, and this attention to detail sets Moschino apart from most other runways, where as most  simply assign each model the same manicure. The diversity even in the nail art reinforced the vibrancy of the show in total. I could only begin to imagine the amount of time it would take to make sure each model had perfectly shaped and painted nails, but Essie has another trick up its sleeve. Another fun fact for those of you interested: all the nails used on the models are press-on, a method that allows for much easier application and removal between shows.

Photos by Essie