A few weeks ago, I listened to a panel of fashion and beauty seers assembled by The Fashion Group International. Sarah Brown, senior beauty editor at Vogue had an interesting take on one of the hottest accessories for spring/summer. Nails. In a recession economy sales of nail polish have soared with an interesting mix of colors that are classic and irreverent. 

Along with variations on summer classics like peach, coral and shell pinks there are tough, futuristic colors like dark blue, hunter green and silver bullet gray that suggest an auto assembly line more than a bottle of lacquer. Neon yellows and hottest pinks are inspired by fashion's infatuation with sport clothes like neoprene surf gear. They have a New Wave 1982 look and are purely kid stuff. The ageless and modern look? Color with sophistication. There is nothing cooler-looking than a simply dressed woman with an unexpected color on her nails. Well, toes anyway. Some of  these colors can be pretty rough on mature hands but toes are an age-free zone so let it rip. The other day I spotted a good looking, 50ish woman on Madison Avenue wearing a very deep blue polish on her hands and feet as an accent to a minimalist outfit. She looked great. Experiment. 

My current favorites fall into two camps: Incendiary orange reds and the kind of taupe-gray mashups that looked so great on the spring runways at Chanel and Marc Jacobs. I love the way a fiery red lights up white and a pair of tan feet. And taupe adds edge to any look and toughens up soft colored clothes.