I have a confession…I hate nail salons. Now, let me first clarify something. I LOVE having my nails done, and pretty much always have them painted. What I don’t like is having them done in a salon. I find the whole process extremely stressful and it makes me anxious every time. And don’t even get me started on pedicures. YUCK! I’ve never had a relaxing pedicure in my life. They always hurt, my feet are too ticklish, and I feel like the people are making fun of my feet. I know, I have some issues. My lightbulb moment came when Matt decided to treat me to mani/pedi and I came home in a worse mood than when I went, and I redid my fingernails that night to suit me. Ok, so I may have some control issues as well. But that’s another post.
So, because I love my nails being “done”, and I hate the salon, the natural solution was to arm myself with the tools and skills to do them myself at home. So that’s what I’ve done. I have a great collection of polishes from every brand and price point, a really good manicure set with tools, etc. But I really wanted those super shiny, two-week long gel nails you get at the salon. Enter…the at-home UV Gel Nail system. Hallelujah! I purchased this little gem about a year ago, and since that time it’s paid for itself multiple times. I love this thing. No, seriously, I love it. I purchased the starter kit at my local Walmart for about $50. That was all I needed to get started. It’s so easy to do at home, and you really do get the same results you get from a salon.
The brand I have is Sensationail, but there are many different ones. Living in a town where we only have a Walmart and a Walgreens I’m pretty limited unlesss I order online. Honestly, though, this one fits my needs fine, and I can get polish from either place or Sally’s Beauty if I want the Gelish brand. As long as you use the UV polish you can use whatever brand you like.
The other day my Mom asked me if I would do her nails because she didn’t want to go to the salon. Like Mother like Daughter. So I said sure, come on over! Now, I have never done anyone else’s nails, just mine, so I was a little nervous about getting the polish smooth and nice. They turned out great! She loved them too, which is the important part. Here are some photos of during and after:
Thanks for being my first customer Mom!
Ah, confession is good for the soul! And so is an awesome manicure 😉