False and Lovely: Broadway Nails Real Life French Nail Kit

Okay, I’ll confess that there have been times that I have strolled by the nail aisle at the drugstore and press-on nails have caught my eye. I’ve even picked up a package and quickly shoved it back on the shelf after flashbacks to my Barbie Dream House days when I owned an entire purple plastic “nail salon” complete with 6-inch hot fuchsia nails, glitter and of course, stickers. These memories (or nightmares) of my not-so-successful at-home manicure tribulations have left me skeptical and a bit frightened of press-on nails of any kind. However, as a fearless SpaGirl willing to try almost anything, I decided to give my amateur nail tech skills another shot and overcome my fake nail fears. I chose to test my luck with Broadway Nail’s Real Life French Nail Kit in the “real short” length because they looked fairly natural and had no resemblance to sharp, acrylic claws. After breaking open the box, I placed each false nail against my own to determine the perfect size for each finger. Next, I set aside the chosen nails and started to glue. Surprisingly, the entire process was virtually foolproof: put a thin layer of glue on the fake nail, a thin layer on your nail, press down and voila! In minutes I had a full set of French tip nails that actually looked a lot better than what I started with. After letting the nails set for a few minutes, I went back with an emory board to shape and shorten each nail. The only issue I encountered was the excess glue that had accumulated underneath my nails. I washed my hands and used a nail scrubber which got some of it off, then pulled out my pumice stone and scrubbed away the remaining dry glue from my skin and nails. The glue disappeared pretty easily with the pumice stone and was completely gone after a few hours and several hand washings. Although the glue was a little messy, my nails could pass for professional salon quality and looked nothing like the hot pink glittery mess of my past. The Broadway Nails Real Life French Kit is about $10 at local drugstores and broadwaynails.com. (P.S., this review was brought to you by our spa-girl-in-training Carolyn. We think she’s come along way since making an mid-afternoon snack out of her nails. We’re so proud.).