Rita Remark’s tutorials educate professionals and inspire DIY-ers around the world.  As a celebrity manicurist who has built her success from the ground up, Essie’s global lead educator brings a unique set of skills to the nail sector. Plus, she’s an insider in the fashion crowd.
 
A role model within the beauty community, Remark teaches traditional manicures and gel enhancement techniques at the George Brown School of Makeup and Esthetics in Toronto, Canada. Working with Essie on a global scale, her repertoire and reach has expanded to include 30 how-to videos and step-by-step tutorials online devoted to nail art.
 
“The best things in life are shared, and connecting through education allows me to meet nail addicts around the world who love Essie as much as I do,” said Remark.
 
Since 2012, Remark had led the Essie teams backstage at Toronto Fashion Week in her role as Essie Canada’s lead nail artist, collaborating with designers like Pink Tartan, Express and Mackage, just to name a few. Impressed with her work up north, Essie brought her to New York Fashion Week (NYFW) as a first assistant under celebrity manicurist, Michelle Saunders, for her debut season. Within months, she was demonstrating her talent as a lead for some of the top US talent in the industry, working directly with designers Yigal Azrouël and Wes Gordon.
 
Season after season, Remark’s presence at NYFW grew and she developed one-of-a-kind looks for the runway and beyond. From working as a show lead to assisting behind the scenes at Alexander Wang and DKNY, Fashion Week continually sparks Remark’s creativity.forefront of new techniques and the hottest trends in nails.
 
According to Remark, new and fresh variations of the French manicure were seen on several runways for Summer 2018.
 
“Using bold colors or patterned tips even make the French manicure a great negative space treatment,” she told Happi. “Try a checkerboard tip as seen at Opening Ceremony using bold black and white shades like Blanc and Licorice. For a cheeky pop of color, polish a super thin line across the tip of each nail in a teal or aqua like ‘garden variety’ as seen at Alice + Olivia.”
 
Sparkles are also going to be huge for the season, she remarked.
 
“Glitter made a triumphant return from its absence from the Fashion Week runway last season,” she said. “This trend is a direct reflection of the bold glitters seen on dresses, shoes and even eyelids on the runway. It was worn on the cuticle (at Jeremy Scott), the tips at Sachin + Babi and speckled across the entire nail at Anna Sui.”
 
Signature nails will be back in action this summer too, she said.
 
“Polishing only one nail or adding nail art to only one nail draws focus and turns a manicure into a truly fashion forward statement,” noted Remark. “I love this trend for its ability to effortlessly draw focus. It's a prime example of ‘less is more’ as with only one nail painted or featuring nail art, suddenly the finished manicure has more interest and impact…and it's easier for any DIY polisher to achieve!”
 
For Fall 2018, Remark predicts dark jewel tones and metallic reds will stand out on nails.
 
 
“For Fall, red nails will look like rubies. Stock up on blackened emerald, navy and violet,” she told Happi. “These luxurious and moody shades are bold but surprisingly versatile. They look great shiny or matte, metallic or flat. Also, look out for bold jewel appliqués. What I love the most about my job is talking endlessly with the press about all things nails and knowing that readers and viewers will learn from my trade secrets.”