Nail Lacquer Designed For Men

The Rise of Male Polish: Nail Lacquer Designed For Men

September 10, 2009

It seems like guys are getting an awful lot of their "own" versions of traditional beauty products lately, but unlike the "guyliner" trend, male polish just keeps getting bigger. And it's also not just niche brands like macho rocker Man Glaze polish ($6.66), spa fixture Cuccio Men ($7), or the Euro pop Uslu Airlines ($30) polishes, designed by male DJs. Essie's got Man-e-cure ($15), and even Orly is getting into the act with its Nails For Males ($4). I have to ask: How is any of this at all necessary? There's a whole wold of nail polish out there in every shade imaginable. Do we really need to give it a gender? And do you think your Mr. or guy friends would be more likely to use these just because they have the word "man" on them?

Nail Polish Oh Man

30 Comments

Steve wears polish 1 year 20 weeks

Steve wears polish 1 year 20 weeks

Thanks, Jaime! I have photos on my Facebook (look for my add request there..) and a Flickr account... but they're only OK photos of OK nails... the next time I have them done by a professional, I'll definitely have a good photo taken to share!

Jaime Richards 1 year 33 weeks

Thanks for sharing, Steve! You ever post any pics of your nails?

Steve wears polish 1 year 33 weeks

I've been wearing polish since July. For me, the girly names on the colors are just funny - I've worn pink to support breast cancer research, but the color I wore was named "Party Girl Creme". Next time a Komen event is in town, I'll wear almost the same shade, but it'll be from Manglaze - either their "F*ck Off And Dye", or their "Blue". I like that the companies are starting to acknowledge men's use of color, and having collections "for men" helps legitimize it in the eyes of our skeptics - I know the companies are really just interested in expanding their market and selling product, but I still feel like I have their support and encouragement, that I'm not alone in saying "There's nothing wrong with this!"

2 years 7 weeks

I am a straight married guy and have been getting pedicures and wearing polish on my toes for the last 2 years. I do it because I love the way that it feels and looks. I get great comments from women, with only one negative comment during that entire time. Other guys either don't notice, or just don't comment. It's really no big deal, just something I do and love, and if I get a little positive reinforcement from the ladies, so much the better. Wearing OPI "Suzi Loves Sydney" this week.

2 years 14 weeks

This thread started out with many of the women commenting that they thought 'no man' would ever consider wearing nail polish. Well, that may be true of some men, but I wear it and I know of quite a few other guys who do as well. Some wear just clear but others have gotten into colors, and now that some manufacturers are marketing their nail polish to men, it seems that we've turned a corner with this emerging style. When you remember how the earring trend for men began as being considered for gays only, then took off for a large number of guys, it looks a lot like men wearing nail polish may follow a similar path. If me or my wife have anything to say about it, it will be sooner rather than later because we really like the way my feet look polished!

2 years 25 weeks

You miss the point completely. I'm starring in a play that requires long fingernails, not shiny ones. And my nails keep breaking. There's a market for matte clear polish for strengthening, and these are the closest I can find. I don't care that they're for men, I care that they're less shiny... gloss being the whole point of most women's nail polish.

3 years 1 week

Come on girls. As a man now i enjoy not only nail polish but I also wear make up and panties. And guess what? my wife love it

3 years 2 weeks

i did polish my toes once. they looked great and i wanted to continue this practice. i went out to the local shopping mall and ran into my sister in law. i felt my face turning red as she was looking down at my gorgeous toes but society just isnt into this yet and men are looked at as frieks. how many men go out in public if they do i give them a lot of respect.

3 years 15 weeks

I too have been wearing nail polish for years, I paint my toes a dark color and my finger nails a very light red or clear with flicks.I am 65 year young. I think I have about 14 bottles of polish.

Overallbeauty 3 years 23 weeks

I really think it depends on the guy and how it makes him feel. Its not for everyone sure but neither was wearing earrings years ago and look how that took off! If the guy is taking care of his feet, and having pedicures done on a regularly, then why not? Do you go around looking at guys feet? No neither do I. I don't think there is any harm in it. I don't think its a fad either. I rather see a guy with nail polish on his toes than his fingernails.

3 years 23 weeks

You are probably right about not needing special nail polish for guys. But, I think one thing that has resulted from it is more earthy colors have been introduced, and these are not colors that most women would go crazy over, but that work well for men. I guess my opinion on this is that anyone can wear any color they want to. But, I think a larger number of people would agree that bright colors are more typically seen on women and darker and more earthy colors are worn by men. Of course, 'trends' do not rule the world, I'm just stating what I see... Oh, and yes, I also wear colored nail polish - on my toes only. I find that it is quite satisfying and enjoyable.

3 years 23 weeks

I've been wearing nail polish on my toes for about six months now and love it and use I nicloe by opi I use dark colors but I also use some brighter colors, I don't think men should have there own line of nail polish I feel us guys that use nail polish should just use what's out there why make it a gender thing.

3 years 23 weeks

I have been wearing nail polish on my toes for many years. I get professional pedicures every two weeks and usually wear bright red colors from OPI like Big Apple Red. I get a lot of compliments from women on the color and they tell me that I have "toes like a girl". I consider that to be a compliment because most guys have crusty and unkempt ugly feet. I would much rather have toes like a girl. After all, women have been wearing men's clothing and actually wear all items of men's clothing except maybe with the exception of the jock strap. What's fair is fair. I cannot believe all of the negative response from women when I am sure that they read many articles in women's magazines like Cosmo that describe how to incorporate masculine items from your husband's closet into your overall look. Again, what's fair is fair. Nail polish is simply body adornment just like a colorful tattoo, earrings, piercings, etc. Women were not supposed to wear tattoos, but they have also adopted the tattoo trend. Remember the conversation 20 years ago about men wearing earrings??? This conversation is no different and it seems that folks haven't learned from the earring conversation. It's simply body adornment and color folks, nothing more!! Get over it because it is not 1950 anymore. It is also fun to wear nail designs and sometimes in the summer I get my toes polished in bright red and then the nail tech does a white flower on each of the big toes. It is really cute and fun. I also get Halloween and Christmas decorations on my toes. This year I will get a white snowflake and a snowman on red toes. It is really very festive and looks really pretty on my toes. I am lucky that I live in a climate where I can wear sandals all year round to show off my pretty toes. I have been married for 14 years and my wife and I go to the same nail salon and usually get matching polish. It is really fun and much better than a tattoo because you can remove it or change the color. Jamie Wearing OPI Big Apple Red on my Toes

MichelleLov 3 years 27 weeks

My husband and I share this interest together. We are both into running marathons and our feet take quite the beating as a result! We will typically have more than one nail turned various shades of blue or gray due to the constant trauma, so rather than wait for it to grow out (which it really never does), we just polish over it. I bought him some "guy" colors of nail polish (yes, there are a number of companies that sell it just for men) and he likes deep gray and deep blue the best. It actually does look pretty good on his toes!

JakeK 3 years 27 weeks

Well, my wife thinks it's great! She was in a goofy mood about four years ago and she painted my toes dark blue after I complimented hers. I just went along with it, but the funny thing is, after a few days I actually began to like it. I asked her what she thought and she said it looked 'sexy', so I kept wearing it. I said that happened four years ago, and I am still wearing my toenails polished because I just happen to like how it looks and feels to have "better than average looking" feet for a guy. Besides, she thinks it is attractive on me, so who's going to argue with that?

3 years 34 weeks

I agree wholeheartedly! There are plenty of women who will complain how unkempt guys are and that they don't pay enough attention to their "uokeep", but if a guy should try anything 'out of the ordinary', he gets slammed. Why shouldn't we just be happy that we're all unique and can be ourselves. Nail polish is fun - let's all enjoy t! And yeah, I've been wearing on my feet for close to five years, and my wife got me started!

3 years 34 weeks

How sad you all are. I am a hetero male, 61 years old, with a couple of kids, married to the same wonderful lady for 39 years. I've been wearing toenail polish (all colors) for years and clear, light french, nail polish on my hands for years. It is rare that I get a nasty comment and in fact many women have complimented me on how great my feet look. We are so uptight in this society. Women wear pants (which were men only until the 1940s) and steal who knows what from menswear with no one to complain about it. High heels were not invented to make women's legs look great - they were invented by men for men. Women stole the idea. Women have tons of fashion items and guys such a few. If you don't believe me just look at the Men's Shoe area of any dept. store and compare it to the womens' dept. Life is too short - we all should enjoy it. Stop letting society dictate what you should enjoy.

beckkii 3 years 36 weeks

No way. I don't think that it's so far fetched that some men would do but I don't think that a lot of men would go for it. Probably only if it's a matt finish and depends on the colour.

gardeniagirl07 3 years 36 weeks

I'm with yogaforlife. None of the males in my family would ever use any kind of nail polish. Never. They'd tell ya' that is "girl's stuff" regardless of how it's marketed.

ckeller825 3 years 36 weeks

yogaforlife...I feel your pain!!!!!

Gdeeaz 3 years 36 weeks

most nail polishes have a shiny finish and the men i know will never touch it. I do think that some men will wear these instead not because of the name but because they are a matte finish. One of my male friends has nails that are always breaking and won't use any treatments because they all have a shiny finish, if he could find a good matte nail treatment i am sure he would use it.

TammyO 3 years 36 weeks

Ugh! Not for my husband, but I bet that this man polish would be less likely to chip! Maybe I'll use it.

Yogaforlife 3 years 36 weeks

My husband won't touch anything associated as a woman's product: lotion, facial moisturizer, makeup, nail polish, or hair products other than regular shampoo. It took me forever to get him to use a pouf and shower gel because I was sick of scrubbing soap bar residue off of the tub. He has a rare talent for getting it everywhere: the tub, walls, faucet, even the shower head. Now if only I could get him to make a sandwich without bread crumbs being on four separate counters.

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