It’s a Wrap! Try This Perfect Manicure the Next Time You Travel
I’m always tempted to get a manicure before my trips, but I’m hard on my nails. It’s not worth spending $30-$60 when even a gel manicure doesn’t last long after I’ve grabbed my suitcase a dozen times, scrabbled over rocks, etc. And since my nailpolish has a tendancy to develop air pressure leaks on long flights, I don’t want to have to haul along the bottle for touch ups.
Then in April a reader at the Frequent Traveler University in Dallas suggested using nail wraps — durable stickers for your nails that can last several weeks and avoid many of the chipping problems you get get with nail polish.
A great idea, but something that got lost in the shuffle until last month when I finally remembered in time to try before a trip. I wound up snagging a pair of Essie Sleek Stick nail wraps off this website for $5.
I wanted something likely to be quality, but not too expensive for my first go.
Putting them on is a little bit of an acquired skill but my mom and I had a fun time trying it out. Two newbie tips:
- Have nail scissors ready to cut the edges that don’t quite fit the width of your nail or the end result can look a little childish
- When filing off the excess, make sure you’re filing down and not at an angle or you’ll wear the sticker off the tips.
So how did it go?
Overall I’m pleased! I’ve gained nail strength, so even though some bending occurred (yuck) when grabbing my bags in a hurry, nothing snagged or broke the entire week.
And, as a friend put it, my nails look “fancy.” Some wear and tear has happened on the edges over the 7 days but you really have to look to tell. I chose a light pattern which has the benefit of providing less contrast when the nail grows or the sticker wears.
The best part too, is when you’re done with the nail wrap you can just pull them off — no need to hunt down nail polish remover. And if you’re mid trip, you can remove them and apply new ones without having to cart around nail polish or remover.
This online store has quite a few versions at $5 (and you’ll be donating to a good cause). Target has them in an interesting giraffe kind of pattern for $9.99. I also tried the embrace the lace color that Walgreens has and unfortunately from a distance it looks like I had applied white nail polish poorly…
I saw that Opi also offers their version and interested in trying others to see which apply the easiest and stay the longest. Suggestions?
Love your blog! Keri if you are wanting to purchase any more of the Essie wraps at a discounted price I have a set of 9 on eBay for $18.99.
Love reading your posts! Keri, if you are interested in discounted Essie wraps I have a set on eBay for $18.99.
Great designs you got. I gotta try these out on my next travel. I’m always having a hard time with nails when traveling. I always wanted it to look new.