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Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Nail Art for the Time Crunched and Polish Challenged

There are lots of ladies out there who don't have time or the inclination to do nail art (including me, many days).  I have to admit that crystal and flower laden nails aren't for me. When I refer to nail art, I mean an interesting pattern or a little glitter.  There are products out there that can give you a nail art look easily.

Nail Polish Strips
Lots of companies are making nail polish strips but my personal favorite are by Sally Hansen.  They are easily found at your local drugstore, they come in tons of colors and patterns and they're affordable.  I've occasionally found coupons for them as well.  The bonus is that they last for about 7 days or more.


Incoco, Sephora, and Kiss also make strips. I've tried Incoco and Sephora.  In fact Incoco were the first strips I tried.  The Sephora strips are more like stickers. There were think and I didn't like them as much as the Incoco and Sally Hansen versions.

Magnetic Polish
One of the latest nail polish trends is magnetic polish.  The polish has metal particles in it. While the polish is wet, you hold the magnet cap over the polish and it creates a design.  The magnets with each brand have a different pattern (star, wave, stripes).  This post by Scrangie has details and shows the designs you can get with the China Glaze magnet.  The Sally Hansen version has a wave design.  The difference is the way you paint your nails.  You'll put a light base coat on you nails.  Then you'll need to paint a single nail and hold the magnet over the wet nail (without touching it). Then move onto the next nail.  The Sally Hansen version dried quickly.

Sally Hansen Magnetic Nail Color in Silver Elements
Glitter Polish
With a single swipe of glitter polish, you can turn a basic nail color into a fun, artsy manicure.  Almost every brand has glitter polish. I always go for the budget brands like Wet 'n Wild. They have lots of options and the polish costs 99 cents to $1.99 per bottle.

Spoiled by Wet n' Wild - Jewelry Heist over Show Me Some Skin
These are my quick ways to get a better than basic manicure without spending tons of time.  Do you have any quick manicure tricks?

Have a great Tuesday!