So, like a lot of people, my excitement for fall to come basically starts on August 1 every year. Clearly smack in the middle of the hottest summer months of the year it doesn't really make sense to start daydreaming about cozy socks and sweaters and all of the warm soups and hot spiced beverages and... I swear, I could go on forever. Anyway, I know I'm not alone in this, and one of my favorite things about fall when it comes to nail art is getting to bust out the fall colors. I absolutely love fall polishes, so of course there's gonna be a skittle or two on the roster as the weather starts to get cooler. 

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This mani actually sort of happened on a bit of a whim. I sat down at my nail desk without really any plan at all and it just sort of came together organically without any real direction. I started, of course, with the color story. I think that the idea of "fall colors" can actually mean a few different things, but for the sake of this mani I went for a sort of selection of ashy, desaturated versions of what I would generally think of as traditional rich fall colors.

For my pinkie, I chose a rich, ashy grape. For my ring ringer, a desaturated mustard sort of yellow - which actually ended up on my ring finger because I specifically wanted it next to the purple because I love how they look together. For my middle finger, what I would consider a soft sort of cashmere brown. For my first finger, a very ashy olive green. And finally, not pictured, a rusty orange for my thumb. I really feel like this hits all of the notes that I personally lean to for the fall and they work together sort of surprisingly well.

For this mani, I started by applying 2 coats of each of my base colors to my nails and letting them dry... in this case, while I decided what I was going to add to them nail art wise.

As the base polishes were drying, I decided I wanted a sort of grungey look to the overall design, so I first grabbed for the Cirque Colors Spotted top coat, which is just irregular black flakes in a clear base. I felt like this would really add a nice texture and cohesiveness to the overall look. Also, there's something about this topper that screams fall to me, so don't be surprised if it keeps popping up this season.

Next, for the stamping, I sort of randomly decided to grab the Nicole Diary 272 Stamping Plate, which I've only used once before and have been eager to use again. I liked the idea of this sort of.. random abstract graphic image for this mani as it felt like a good fit for the color story and I felt like I could easily create a lot of interest with it. I applied the full cover image to all of my nails, alternating the direction of my placement as I always do, and it just felt... a little sparse. It was at this point that I decided to give the sort of squiggly circle image a try. It felt like, applied in white stamping polish, it would add something that the design sorely needed... and it did. I just sort of applied the image 2-3 times per nail, trying to focus on balance and how it would work in the overall design.

Once I was finally happy with the design, I sealed it in with a nail art top coat and then finished with a generous layer of quick dry glossy top coat. And voila!

Honestly, I'm really thrilled with how this mani turned out and I'm so excited to delve more into the world of fall colors in coming weeks. As much as I love all of the bright and neon shades that I reach for in the summer, fall is my absolute favorite and I've been dying to start using these shades for weeks now. #basic? Anyway, I've got some fun nail art planned for this month so I hope you'll stick around to see it.

If you're not already following me over at @pblnails on Instagram, be sure to head over there and follow to keep up on all of my nail art designs as well as video tutorials for all of my work!

Thanks for reading!