When Hailey Bieber debuts a new manicure, it doesn’t just trend—it defines the season. At the 2025 Academy Museum Gala in Los Angeles, the model and Rhode founder arrived in a sculptural Schiaparelli gown, her nails glimmering in a molten chocolate hue that caught every flash of light. Sleek, sophisticated, and slightly hypnotic, her manicure sealed the cat-eye nail trend as fall’s most captivating beauty moment.
How are cat eye nails created?
The look is more than a simple polish job—it’s a play of light and texture. The “cat-eye” effect is created with magnetic gel polish infused with tiny metallic particles. When a magnet is swept across the surface, the particles shift to form a slender, reflective streak that mimics the gleam of a cat’s eye. The result is dynamic, dimensional, and ever-changing—a flicker of light that moves with your hand.
Hailey’s version keeps things understated yet impossibly chic. The deep espresso tone mirrors her minimal-glam aesthetic while offering just enough shimmer to feel festive as party season approaches. It’s an evolution of her signature “glazed donut” nails—more mysterious, less sweet, and entirely autumn-coded.
The cat-eye manicure’s appeal lies in its versatility. It can be soft and subtle, like Hailey’s, or bold and high-impact in shades of emerald, amethyst, or metallic silver. By layering gels or mixing tones, nail artists can create multidimensional effects that shift in color and depth. Each nail becomes a small work of kinetic art—luxurious, moody, and a little bit magical.
Already seen on stars like Anya Taylor-Joy, Vanessa Hudgens, and Lindsay Lohan, the trend has taken over both red carpets and social media feeds, with millions of TikTok views cementing its place as this season’s must-try manicure.
This fall, less is more—but shimmer is essential. Hailey Bieber’s chocolate cat-eye nails prove that elegance doesn’t need to shout; it just needs to catch the light.
