Stickers! Stickers everywhere!

While gallivanting through Five Below the other day, I came across a great deal: 3 for $5 for Sally Hansen Nail Art Stickers! Considering that the cost of these is about $8 a pack, I could not resist such a deal even if they were the same design in different colors.

I had used the stickers once before for a Halloween design and they lasted me for about two to three weeks. The application process was very painless and the removal was even easier.

You might think that these are only made for a specific type of nail, however like press on nails, they come with a variety of shapes to fit every nail.

Because one of the trends is to paint your ring finger a different color, I did just that, which makes these stickers last twice as long since I now have the design for the ring finger saved.

The Application

As per usual, take off any existing nail polish and get your nails to a nice shape. Now the kit will come with a cuticle stick for you to push your cuticles back and I suggest that you do follow that because without it, the stickers might not fit your nails.

Now take the fine side of a nail file and rough up the top and sides of your nails. Like with a gel application, this helps the materials stick to your nails.

With a cotton swab (of some sort) give your nails a final cleaning with nail polish remover. This is very important as it helps remove the oils on your nails and helps it stick better.

Then you pick out which stickers will best fit your nails. After that take off the clear film on the top, followed by the film on the back of the nail (where it is tacky).

Fold the excess over the edge of your nail and take your nail file (usually one is provided but not always) and gently file off the excess of the sticker.

Repeat this for all of your nails and you are good to go!

Now, something that they don’t tell you to do is apply top coat. I would highly recommended doing this because it allows your nails to stay in better condition for a longer period of time.

To Gel or Not to Gel…Is that the question?

There is nothing better than getting your nails done at a salon, and there’s nothing better than getting gels that make your nails indestructible.

The price of a gel nail set is different each time depending on the designs or if you completely chewed off your nail. Typically it is about $30-50 to get them done the first time and its $20-30 to refill them (depending on color and designs).

Now begin a college student I do not have the time or money to go to a salon to get my nails done and sometimes I am shocked by the amount of people who get their nails done every other week religiously that do not have a job.

Last year there was a craze over this home gel system because you paid for it once and then you didn’t have to worry about going to get it refilled or even not having the money that week to spend on it. This system required a light that it provided in the starter kit, which starts at $60 and the nail polish is $15 each.

I have used this kit and the nail polish did not last on my nails more than a week. Now for me this is unusual for me because when I paint my nails with regular nail polish, it lasts for about two weeks because I am not hard on them and I pay a little bit more for a better top coat. So for me the home gel system was not a good deal.

Then…the no light gel system came out! Now this system is much cheaper, simpler to follow, and produces a good product. I actually have it on my nails now. The starter pack contains one polish and the top coat for $15 and each polish is $9.99. It only requires two steps and the other package has too many steps that sometimes I forget them.

With everything there is always a health risk and thanks to “Mommy Greenest” I have been able to view some of the issues that can happen with getting a gel manicure and the issues that the UV light can cause too. Check out the four health issues that they can cause!