Marissa Webb is stepping out after stepping down as creative director for Banana Republic. This week she debuted her first collection at New York Fashion Week fall 2016. The collection, which was bold and modern, incorporated a lot of looks that were ready-to-wear. Chunky sweaters, classic jackets, flowing dresses and perfectly tailored trousers dominated her runway, but amongst the classic mix-and-match pieces Marisa is pushing boundaries, especially when it comes to nail art.
The look is called,Β βoutside of the box,β Zoya Nail Polish lead Miss Pop said. Miss Pop is Marissa Webb’s go-to nail artist for her fall 2016 collection. Miss PopΒ explainedΒ the look by saying it is “a nail framed in black [polished]”Β with the center left bare. To get the look she clarified, “I am using aΒ vinylΒ sticker stencil and IΒ am just putting it up the center of the nail doing two coats of black letting it dry for a minute, lifting up the tape and then sealing the tip so it creates a perfect box in the middle of the nail.” Miss PopΒ cautioned “you have to make sure that your nail polish is fresh for sure…[and]Β thin coatsΒ Β …. and youβre not completely covering the stickerΒ becauseΒ if you do it will cause [a] ridge.
As to the development of the nail design, Miss Pop confesses Marissa and her typically areΒ on the same wavelength. She says, “I like very bold kind of shapes and so does she [Marissa]…[I like] very strong looks and so does she [Marissa]. She adds, “I am sort of a minimalist when it comes to nails…so I will paint my samples based on what I think sheβll like and then we willΒ whittle it down…until we getΒ the final look.” Miss Pop admits Marissa makes it easy saying, “she [Marissa] knows [nail design and art] finishes her girl. Her girl isΒ edgyΒ and exciting and isnβt the kind of girl who willΒ leave her nails undone, so Marissa wants to make sure that is the finishing touch.”
Miss PopΒ acknowledge the novelty of the look. She said, “it’sΒ a new kind of idea, butΒ it’sΒ happeningβ¦I feel likeΒ it’sΒ almost counter intuitive that a square or a rectangle would be beautifulΒ on a nail.” She Β goes on to say, “it feels so opposite of the shape that we [typically] do on our nails…but there is something that is really elongating, beautiful, simplisticΒ and almost sexy to have the negative space inΒ the middle cut out.”
-Melissa Unger