.jpg)
We may earn a commission if you buy something from any affiliate links on our site.
The name Hermès has long been associated with the highest level of craftsmanship and quality you can buy—whether you’re in the market for a horse saddle or a handbag. So when the brand entered the beauty category two years ago for the first time in its 184-year history, debuting the chicest Pierre Hardy–designed lipstick bullets that ever were or will be (in Game of Thrones parlance), makeup lovers the world over collectively freaked out. There was a similar reaction when Rose Hermès, a collection of exceptional lip enhancers and blushes, debuted earlier this year. And when word got out a few months ago that the French luxury house was readying a nail collection, there was a collective anticipation unrivaled by any other launch in recent memory. Les Mains Hermès—a collection of lacquers, as well as care products and accessories—launches today, and here is the verdict you knew was coming: it’s even better than you imagined.
Nail polish is nail polish, you might be thinking. Not in this case: This nail polish—which the brand refers to as enamel in homage to the professional technique that requires years of training—is made from at least 71% ingredients of natural origin and features a surprisingly easy-to-wield brush for precise application. Available in 24 shades, a nod to the atelier’s Paris address on Faubourg Saint-Honoré, each color packs a high concentration of ultra-fine pigments designed to go on smooth—and stay on. (The two coats of Rouge Amazone—a warm-toned, near-perfect brick red—that I applied on Monday remain unaltered and chip-free five full days later.) Hermès classic orange, the bright and inimitable color of its signature boxes, has also been reimagined in polish form, and simply named Orange Bôite; an unlikely ochre (Jaune Impérial) and a rich chocolatey brown (Brun Bistre) are also instant classics.
- Celebrity StyleZendaya Serves Up A High-Fashion Twist On The Tennis Polo
But it just might be the accessories that pop off on TikTok, that latter-day metric of commercial success. In addition to an impossibly chic Nail Enamel Carousel—three stacked trays made of terre battue–colored Tadelakt calfskin, and held together with an adjustable harness (this is what I want for the holidays; literally, just this)—the launch also includes a set of twelve nail files made from poplar wood sourced from sustainably managed forests. One of the house’s smallest objets, the double-sided tools are packed in a perfectly dimensioned orange box, and their miniature size is ideal for on-the-go use, which means there will be plenty of opportunities to casually brandish them in public.
