Nailed It! in Mod About You

I know I'm a little behind on the whole nail-strips trend, but as a design major there was never any point in spending a lot of time on my nails, I was just going to chip them the next time I had to comp a project (better that than losing a finger with an x-acto blade, though). Now that I've graduated, I'm still not the most dainty person in the world--my brother claimed me and my sister walked around like an elephant stampede every morning we got ready for school--but on a daily basis I'm not doing anything with my hands that is going to threaten a manicure.

 

So, to be honest, when I first opened the package I couldn't help thinking: what the hell had I just gotten myself into? Then I turned the directions over from the Spanish to English side, and things started getting easier from there. I struggled a bit with choosing the strips that fit my nails best--I'm indecisive over the most minute details in my life--but with a little experimentation I managed. Although the directions suggested using the tiny vampire stake to smooth over the nails, I found it was most effective to use the pad of my finger to smooth everything down first, and then curve it over the edge of my nail with the stick.

I was a bit reluctant to drag the nail filer over anything I had paid close to 9 bucks for, but as long as you have securely adhered the nail strip to the ends of your nails, you're all set to saw away the excess. I ended up just snipping off most of the extra before filing down the rest.

 

Sally Hansen Salon Effects in "Mod About You"

 

Now, it probably took me a good two hours to do both my hands (by the time it reached 1:30 AM I considered leaving my other hand undone and claiming it was trendy not lazy) but after the first hand I started to get the hang of it and things went more smoothly. I was pretty pleased with the results though. The very edges of my nails are most sensitive to a little bit of chipping, but otherwise it's been a few days and the manicure's still holding up pretty well. And if you consider that there is no drying time or base/top coats involved in the whole process, the time pretty much evens out between a conventional manicure.

What do you think? What have your experiences been with similar products?