I really love painting my nails, but sometimes nail polish strips can give you an amazing mani that cant be duplicated by hand. OMGNailsstrips.com sent me a set of strips to try and see what I thought. I received the blue bubbles version easily could have chosen several others to add with it.
I want to point out that OMG nail strips are actually different from any other set of strips I’ve tried before. The application process is slightly different, but the durability is very similar to other ones I tried. These are 100% different from nail stickers which totally stink in my opinion, I have never seen a set that looked 100% good and stayed on without lifting and catching everything you touch. Nail stickers are just that. Stickers that most of the time look terrible and are very temporary because they aren’t sealed down. In comparison to say SH strips, the OMG nail strips apply the same way, but actually use nail polish remover to “set” it in place.
Weird, right? You read it right. I used nail polish remover on this manicure to set it, and then topped it off with a nice shiny coat of SV. When I applied the strips they almost felt like very think plastic vinyl sheeting. I didn’t think it was ACTUAL polish when I was handling them. I’m still not 100% sure because I would think it would have messed up the manicure but it doesn’t. Let’s move on to a step by step of the application process.
They have a video tutorial on their site here, but I usually like to follow photos so I can scroll back and forth easily.
I soaked my hands so that my cuticles would get soft and I could push them back with an orange stick. I usually use some cuticle remover while doing this to speed things up.
After soaking, I moisturized with a rich cream that would seal in the moisture for my hands and keep the cuticles moisturized and elastic so they don’t crack or split.
You need to make sure the nail bed is 100% clean because nothing is going to stick to a moisturized, greasy nail. Clean the nail beds with a cotton swab dipped in nail polish remover and make sure to get the edges where lotion can collect.
Next, you size out which strips fit your nails. I usually start with thumbs on both hands and go from there. If I try to measure all nails at the same time it becomes a mess and some fall on the floor (of course) making you spend more time organizing than doing your nails. Place the strip on the nail starting from the center cuticle area, and stretch it over the free edge of your nail. If the strips are too wide they wont work so if you need to trim them, do it. Do not think you can just press it into the sides and you can file that off. It’s too difficult. Just trim them if they are too wide. You can file the excess off the free edge (go in one direction, no sawing it off)
I also use the orange stick to make sure all the edges are pressed down.
After all nails have the strips on, grab a cotton swab and dip it in nail polish remover. This is the freaky part…….now your going to swipe all your nails down with nail polish remover to “set” the polish. It left my strips a little dull looking, but that’s OK, because you need to top it with a clear coat anyways.
I usually rely on SV for top coats and base coats along with my nailtiques formula 2. With this type of manicure I only use the top coat to get a nice shiny finish.
Everyone in my office totally loved the design and though it looked really cool. Only problem was that I took a shower the night I did this manicure and three of them came clean right off in the shower. I didn’t see when it happened but when I was drying my hair I noticed my hand in the mirror. darn it. That was annoying. I (thought) I waited \long enough for them to set and dry, but maybe those three didn’t have good seals and got wet or lifted when I was scrubbing away.
I salvaged the manicure by painting the three missing ones with a matching blue polish. For you know,
a edgy, I meant to do that look. And hey, it worked! Everyone thought I did it on purpose. Don’t tell them the truth, lol.
Would I buy these? Totally possible. I like patterned nails without the hassle of doing it myself. I love that these are real strips that remove with nail polish at the end of a week when you want them gone. Yep, you get about a weeks worth of wear with these babies. When I first checked out the site, I found tons of strips I liked. If I went back, I would go with any of these:
How Much? Where do I get them? The price is slightly below what other strips are going for. The prices vary slightly from design to design, but you can get four sets for $20 using coupon code: 4PACK or ten sets for $45 using coupon code: 10PACK which is a total steal!. If I get SH strips it can cost around $8-10 a set. These are closer to $3-7 per set, depending
on the style chosen. And you’ll get free shipping all the time.
You can find them on their website: OMGNailstrips.com
Want to know more about the brand? Follow them on facebook and twitter for updates and info. Have you tried these strips before? What did you think? If you haven’t tried them before, what pattern would you choose?
XOXO
Claudia
I’ve got the NCLA nail wraps on right now. They are holding up great but I have to admit the whole ‘sticker’ effect takes some getting used to.
Loving them. I like a lace look, I also like the bird pattern!