If, like me, you’re used to regular visits to the salon for a manicure, chances are your nails aren’t in a great way right now. My mani skills are a little weak, to say the least. I absolutely hate the feeling of filing my nails, and whenever I attempt to paint them myself, they turn into a total mess.
Approximately six weeks ago, I had no choice but to remove the remnants of my last salon manicure. After soaking off the gel polish and attempting to tidy up the monstrosities that were my cuticles, for the first time in months, my nails were in their natural state. And quite frankly, I absolutely hated it.
Don’t get me wrong. I love the look of well-looked-after natural nails, but mine were dry, brittle and starved of any TLC. I tried cuticle oils, hand creams and a rainbow of different nail polishes in a bid to get them looking even a little bit better, but nothing worked. So because misery loves company, I thought I’d turn to Instagram to see how other people were taking care of their nails. However, when I clicked on a close friend’s page (a close friend who loves acrylics, might I add), I noticed that actually her nails didn’t look bad at all. In fact, they looked freshly done and chic at that. Desperate to find out what this sorcery was, I called her.
When she told me that actually her nails in all of her recent posts were stick-on, I basically choked on my tea (rosé). Sure, I had used stick-on nails in the past for specific events, but the idea of wearing them every day just around the house hadn’t crossed my mind. On top of all of this, I would like to make a gentle nod toward the fact that stick-on falsies have a bit of a bad rep. They’re considered cheap-looking and flimsy, with a tendency to ping off when you least expect them to. However, inspired by my friend’s impressive results, when I reached for my stash of emergency stick-ons a couple of weeks ago, I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised.
Unlike the styles of yesteryear, 2020’s version of stick-on nails are chic and cater to basically every taste. Not only that, but by using a brush-on glue, I found them incredibly easy to apply and didn’t experience a single ping until at least three or four days after I first applied them. And since I tried that first set, I have continued to go back for more. I have tried everything from bright coral-pink stilettos to shorter, squarer (and easier-to-manage) instants, and I’ve got to say, they are definitely filling the manicure-shaped hole in my heart.
Sound like something you could get on board with? Keep scrolling for the prettiest stick-on false nails out there.
