Don't cheap out

I decided I needed to give myself a manicure this weekend, but I have kind of soft nails so they don't hold polish well. A coat of clear polish usually lasts a day, whether I do dishes or not. So I decided to look and see if there is some long-lasting polish or something that would help a manicure last longer.

I went to Beauty Supply and found a couple of OPI products. One was Chip Skip which you put on before polishing and it is supposed to keep the chips at bay. I have no idea what it is, but it smells chemical. It's about the consistency of water but dries immediately, like alcohol. Then I got their clear base/top coat combination to put on next. I don't usually use top coat, but I like clear nail polish so I usually just use a good base coat for that. Then I found an opalesque sheer polish to put on. I never put color on my finger nails because I don't have lovely nails and I have kind of short fingers. If I put color on the ends of them, it makes them look shorter. So I use light or clear polish to lengthen how my fingers look. Plus, I have nails that are naturally very white on the tips. It looks like I have French tips, so putting on clear or light polish makes it look like I got a real manicure.

Now the bad news. I spent $12.95 on the combo base/top coat and $8.50 on the opalesque polish. I did get the Chip Skip for free with the purchases I made. Still. More than $21.00 bucks on nail polish. That's a TON for me to spend. usually I spend $4.95 on a bottle of polish and call it good.

But the good news is I cleaned house today and did not put on gloves and my manicure held. That has never happened before. So maybe I'll save money in the end if I don't have to polish as often (or look like I should polish as often, even if I don't get around to it).

So tonight I treated myself to a hot bath and a pedicure (clear coat only on my toenails -- it's not like anyone will see them) and refreshed my manicure so I can see how it handles the work week. They look awesome, even for my nails.

Now isn't that way more than you ever wanted to know about my nails? Yeah, me too.