How to : get salon worthy nails, for less!
It’s my birthday on Friday (finally 18!) and so I wanted my horribly chipped nails to look half decent for this weekend. Although I’m sure going to have your nails done is absolutely lovely, I prefer doing my nails myself because not only does it save me money – but it also means that I can get them exactly how I want them. I’m not sure about you but whenever I get my hair/nails/makeup done by someone other than a relative – I’m way too shy to say what I really think and usually come out with ‘oooh, wow they look... great’ before handing over the money.
I’ve never really worn false nails before, because I have heard some horror stories about them – but I spotted a set of Nailene false nails on Amazon for £2.99 and decided to give them a go. I also chose a Barry M blue glitter nail polish and a clear nail top coat from the same online store (as the packaging is cheaper) and away I went. The final result has actually turned out much better than I initially thought. I’m not entirely sure how I will go about removing them after they start looking a little worse for wear, but I have watched a few online videos and so have a good understanding of what’s involved.
The nailene full nail covers are actually surprisingly easy to apply, especially considering I’d never applied false nails before and so was bound to get it a little bit wrong first time. The set I bought came with 10 different nail sizes, and 200 false nail covers – so I had a lot of choice in the way of size and shape. After measuring up each nail, I glued them on using the adhesive included. The only problem I found with this was that the glue dries very quickly, which is great but not when two of your fingers are pressed together. If glue does dry on your skin, just hold it under a warm tap for 30 seconds and its back to normal.
After fitting all the individual nails, I painted them with the Barry M Blue Glitter polish. I was pleased to find it dried very quickly – which is great considering you need quite a few coats before you get the desired effect. Overall, I’m really pleased with the outcome (I might not be when it comes to removing them) but it’s great that I’ve had a chance to try them out and hopefully they will hold in place in time for Friday! And best of all – the whole thing only cost me £8, as I bought everything I needed from Amazon for under £10. So I’ve probably saved £30 (as nail bars near where I live charge about £40 for gels/acrylics).
If you’d like to try out a similar look here are the links to the products I used! Barry M Nail Glitter Polish, Clear top coat, Nailene False Nails. Let me know if you give them a go, I'd love to see them!