This Is the Exact Red Nail Polish Selena Gomez Is Wearing Right This Second
Red nail polish is truly timeless. Any year, any time of year, it works and wows. And yet, after literal years of all-but-naked nails, seeing it on a celebrity does just read as classic—it reads as downright daring. With the number of times we've seen it starting to crop up on red carpets after such a noticeable absence, we're starting to think red nails can be both classic and trendy at the same time. And the latest lovely example of the red nail resurgence: Selena Gomez.
On Wednesday, May 6, Gomez attended the Los Angeles premiere of her Only Murders in the Building co-star Martin Short's new Netflix documentary, Marty, Life Is Short. Hairstylist Ashley Ruiz pulled her hair back into a super sleek bun, and makeup artist Jenna Nicole gave her an almost-red magenta lip with a flawless, delicate cat eye. And while any nail color would have worked with the black, beaded Carolina Herrera dress she wore, Gomez and go-to nail artist Tom Bachik went with an absolutely perfect and easily accessible red.
“We haven’t used a bright red on Sel in a while, and she loves how good it looks,” says Bachik, who tells Allure he's been back and forth between LA and New York this week thanks to Met Gala events. And that bright red? Olive & June CV, which is available as both a long-wearing nail polish and a gel polish.
So why exactly are red nails having such a visible renaissance? “After a wave of clean and sheer nudes, red suddenly feels bold again,” says nail artist Michelle Humphrey, who's a big fan of Essie's Rock the Runway on short, natural nails. “It’s become a statement manicure."
If the idea of a bold, statement manicure feels a little intimidating, consider the advice we got from nail artist Julie Kandalec, who recently gave Emily Blunt a pearl-embellished red manicure. “Anyone can wear red, but the undertone is the most important thing to remember when choosing,” she tells Allure. Her general rule of thumb: the lighter the skin tone, the warmer you can go; the deeper the skin tone, the cooler.
That being said, Kandalec just wants people to try what she calls a powerful, in-control, sensual color, skin tone be damned. “A big part of me says, wear a bright classic red, and who cares if it's your tone?" she says. "That's how good red polish is.”
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28 of May 2026
