Glue on Nails -Pros, Cons, and Tips for Press On Nails

I've been using different brands of artificial nails that are glued on to my fingers since September 2015.  

I'm very happy with how they look, the low cost and the speed with how long it takes me do a full manicure.  I get lots of compliments on my cheap-o nails and several readers have asked for tips so I am happy to share.  

There are several brands of glue on nails. 

Dollar Tree has sets of 12 nails for $1.  The 12 nails are in 6 sizes.  This works great for me because the smallest 5 fit my fingers perfectly.  But everyone's hands are different and they aren't going to fit everyone the same.  

Dollar Tree nails are the lowest cost of any artificial nails that I know of.  Dollar Tree nail products are called Sassy Chic brand.  

At my Dollar Tree, these nails are popular and don't stay stocked very long so I always check for them and if I see some I like, I buy them right then.  

I try to buy 2 or more sets when I like the design so I have some spares for repairs too.  

Dollar Tree nails have to be attached with glue - my thought about glue will be below 

French Style nails with Dollar Tree nails.  

Impress nails are my other favorite.  They can be bought at Walmart, CVS, Amazon - they are a national brand and sell for $5.97-$8 a set.  

Impress have 24 to 30 nails in each set so it takes a little longer to select the right sizes for each finger.

The bigger sets allow some spares for repairs too.  

Impress nails have an adhesive attached to the back.  There is a sticker back so you just pull off the backing to reveal the adhesive and attach it to your nail.  

I have also tried Kiss brand nails and I mostly like them the same as Impress. 

I tried a brand that I don't remember which brand, that had a seperate double sided adhesive pad that went on the fingernail and then the nail was attached to that.  It may of worked great but it was too many steps for me so I just attached those nails with glue.  

Glues

there are several to choose from.  

Super Glue is the first adhesive I tried.  Super Glue does hold the nail on very securely.  To remove them was the hard part.  I had to soak my finger tips is Acetone nail polish remover until the artifical nail softened enough to scrape off. This took me at least 15 minutes of soaking.  I don't want to use so many chemicals so I don't do Super Glue and I don't recommend it (but other people do. )

Dollar Tree sells Sassy Chic nail glue, also $1.   It holds just fine but when the nail is removed, the glue turns to a thick goo on my nails that also requires Acetone soaking so I don't use it anymore either.  

Kiss, Nailene and 5 Second brands of glue are all brands I like and recommended.  They come in brush on and with a squeeze drop applicator.  Both are fine, I just prefer the brush on applicator.  

These brands are in the $5 a bottle range and can be purchased at drugstores, beauty stores, Amazon.  

Applying nails

The first few times I used glue on nails, it took at least 30 minutes because I wasn't sure how to match them, etc.  

Now, I can do a full manicure in less than 5.  In fact yesterday, I put on a new set in the car while my husband drove us to church. 

First, remove any polish on your nails and clip the nails short.  

Then file the ends.  Some nail users say to also lightly file your nail surface to rough them up a bit to give the glue something to hold on to.  My natural nails are so thin,  I don't dare file my surface.

Take care of your cuticles however you like. 

Then clean your nails with alcohol or remover or the moistened pad that comes with some nail sets.  

Natural nails need to clean and oil free for the adhesive to hold. 

Now, look at the nails you purchased and match up the artificial nail to each finger.  I lay them all out on the table top, in the order of my fingers.  

Then adhere them, either with the peel off back or with whatever glue you choose.

Once you put on a nail, hold it in place with your other hand with gentle firm pressure for at least 5 - 10 seconds.  Then move on to the next one.  I start with my pinkies and do both thumbs last.

A manicure usually lasts me 5-7 days.  Some bloggers say theirs last 2-3 weeks.

The biggest enemy of a glue on manicure are water and not letting the manicure set for at least an hour.  This is especially true for the nails like Impress with the adhesive sticker back.

When I do a manicure, I prefer to do it at the end of the day, AFTER  I'm through  cleaning and after a shower and hair washing.  Once the nails are on, I sit and do nothing to put any stress on the nails and I also give them all more squeezes and then I usually go to bed.  

I do take showers and wash my hair again but not right after putting on a fresh nail set.  

I still do a lot of housework but if I am doing something messy, I usually wear gloves.  

Repairs

Sometimes a nail pops off for no reason.  I usually know when it happens and I can just brush on some glue and reattach it.  It the nail is lost or damaged,  I just glue on a spare one from the same set.  

Sometimes a nail breaks.  If possible, I go ahead and remove the broken nail.  But sometimes, I just glue an identical nail right on top of it.  I did this last week when I ended up with a notch missing from one nail.  That repair lasted until I did a new manicure.

To make repairs convenient, I keep the spare nails from my current set and a bottle of brush on glue in a sandwich bag in my purse.  I also keep a spare bottle of nail glue in the kitchen.  

Removing nails

After about 5-7 days, the nail glue starts to dry or get brittle or something, anyway it just starts to turn loose.  When I can tell the nails are getting loose, I use the end of an orange stick to GENTLY go under an edge that is loose.  The artifical nail will usually pop off easily.  Don't force a removal,  I never have but I'm sure if it was forced, you could pull off your natural nail with the artificial nail.  

If they don't come off easily,  I soak my tips in remover.  It usually just takes a minute or two for the glue to loosen enough to release the nail.  

When all the artifical nails are removed,  occasionally  I need to use some polish remover to finish removing the glue but usually I can just lightly buff with a nail buffer to finish cleaning my nail.  

I had solar artifical nails put on at a salon for over a year. They were very strong and looked pretty but they were expensive,  $40-$50 every 2-3 weeks as I live in an expensive college town.  I was also concerned about the lamp used to set the polish.  Several times I had a mild sunburn after salon manicures.  

Time wise- it took at least an hour, maybe longer. 

And the worst was all the drama at the salon -

I am very happy with glue on artifical nails.  They are cute, easily fit in our budget, don't require a big time investment and use a minimal amount of chemicals.  

Glue on nails do require more tending to than salon nails but I'm OK with that.  

  

What my nails look like right now - Impress nails from CVS

I really enjoy having fun nails from time to time.  

If you are interested in press on nails, I hope I answered any questions.  

These are just my opinions and thoughts- I have not been paid or sponsored by any nail company.

Questions about press on nails

This post is just about wearing press on nails -

I've been asked several questions about them 

Below, I'm wearing Dollar Tree glue on nails.  I don't like the glue on nails quite as well as the Impress press on nails with a sticker back but I do sometimes wear them. 

Yes, sometimes these nails pop off or start loosening before it is time for a new set.

It is quick and easy to fix a priblem.  

I keep this small zippered bag in my purse.  Inside is a bottle of nail glue and extras of whatever nails I am currently wearing.  If I lose a nail or need a repair,  I just get this little bag and can fix the problem in a minute.  

Sometimes a loose nail needs a drop of glue.  Sometimes I need to put on a whole new nail.  

So whether I am on the go or at home,  repairs are quick and easy.  And way quicker than waiting for polish to dry or going by a salon for a repair.  

To do list, press on nail update and our 7 grands

Here is my new list for this week and my new manicure done with a chevron design press on nails from  Dollar Tree.  I am not an expert on nails but after one week of wearing them,  I really like them.  

This is a link to the YouTube video that made me first try the Dollar Tree nails. 

manicure video with $1 Dollar Tree press on nails 

I will keep updating you on them and I plan to keep wearing them.  They are lots of other YouTube videos about press on nails too.  

All of our seven grands, all of their parents, my parents and my brother were at our home this weekend.  We really enjoyed seeing each other and the cousins have the best time playing together.

Frugal February #1 for lots of reasons

Hello everyone 

I plan on being more frugal than I have been in recent years and blogging about some frugal things I’m doing.  

Use What You Have - when possible- is the best way to not spend money and below are a few things I did,  using what I had.  

First, have you all heard about the tier tray decorating craze?  

I knew some people did it and then I found a Facebook group that’s all about tier trays.  And people are really serious and extravagant with tier trays.  

I’ve had a tier tray for years but never really decorated it for a season. 

So, I got out my shoe box of valentine decorations, that I  use every Valentines- and decorated my tier tray.  

I think a tier tray makes a cuter display than just having these doo dads spread out on a table. 

I didn’t buy a thing new. 

 My trays are deep so I needed some risers.  I used an extra set of measuring cups turned upside down and covered them with fabric to set the little Dreamsicle cherubs on.  

Some people buy a bunch of stuff at Hobby Lobby and Dollar Tree to decorate their their trays.  But I won’t be doing that.  I think tier trays are a great way to display decorations, little sentimental things   and doo-dads I already own.  

Tier trays can be bought or they are easily homemade by stacking/glueing plates with candlesticks in between.  Look on Pinterest or Facebook if all of this is of interest to you.  

For Americans, we are in tax season.  Our finances are simple and I’ve done our taxes online pretty much since we first had access to the internet.  

The last few years I used E-file.com 

A few weeks ago they sent me a postcard with a half off code to use as a returning customer,  so I used it and saved almost $30.  

And I’m happy to say our state and federal returns have been filed and accepted.  

Having one less task to think about is a great feeling.  

I’ve been wearing press on nails for years.

Every set has 30 or so nails of various sizes and I only have 10 fingers,  so I always end up with some spare nails when I switch to a new set.  

I’ve been keeping the spares and sort them by color groups.  

So, another way I’m going to pinch a few pennies, is I plan on using up my spare nails before I buy new sets.  

I pulled out a bag of assorted dark red nails.  

That is a lot of nails!  I can’t use all of them as nails are different sizes and some are too small and some are too big.  

But I imagine there are quite a few full manicures in this bag. 

  
Last weeks manicure                                      And this weeks manicure 

Meals- I plan on using ingredients that have been hanging around in our freezer and pantry the longest and I did just that at lunch and snack time. 

Meals today 

We weren’t hungry and didn’t eat breakfast.  We just had coffee and tea.  

Lunch- I baked pork loin chops with sauerkraut and made mashed potatoes

For a snack,  I baked a spice  cake mix that was past date by 3 months.  It smelled fine so I added a teaspoon of baking powder and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon as we like lots of cinnamon.  It baked fine and tasted really good.  It will be nice to have the rest of this week.  

Supper will be the rest of the tossed salad that I made and served yesterday.  

I think almost everyone is feeling a pinch, and many are feeling lots more pain than a pinch, during this inflation cycle we are all in.  

I don’t know that anything I plan to post here is going to help anyone who is truly struggling.  

So you might want to look at the more hardcore blogs than mine.  

Husband and I both feeling much better.  Except for being a little tired,  I felt normal today.  I think he has another a day or so of healing and then he will be normal.  

Colds are not usually serious but they certainly are no fun 

❤️Rhonda 

First day of Spring

Happy Spring everyone.  For you readers in the southern hemisphere,  is this your first day of Fall? 

I usually start Monday off with a to do list.  This was taken early this morning and I've checked off several and added a few more tasks.  It won't all get done this week but a list will keep me track to get as much done as possible. 

I put on a new manicure last night- I like Impress press on nails.  A set has 30 assorted size nails and because my nails are pretty average size,  I can usually get 2 manicures from one set.  This is my second from this set.   

My husband does some frugal things.  The Lowes in our town sells their ripped or busted bags of all garden materials for $1 a bag.  He went this morning and got 17 bags of assorted soils and mulch. 

Our Oklahoma dirt is hard packed red clay and it won't grow much but weeds without some improvements added to it. 

Lowes even loaded it in his truck and gave him a 10% military discount on it all. 

view from the front of his pickup bed above and from the rear is below. 

I had planned to bake a Mexican casserole for supper but it was almost 90 degrees today- way too hot to have on the oven in the heat of the day. 
So I improvised and used most of  the ingredients that would of been in the casserole and we had make your own taco bowls. 
I cooked rice in a rice cooker,  heated up a can of jalapeno pinto beans and some frozen corn and also a container of my homemade taco meat that I keep in the freezer.  Toppings were cheese, salsa, jalapenos and diced tomatoes mixed with onion.
It was delicious and made me think of how Wendi needed to improvise meal prep at her home while their oven was out of commission. 

this evening I put out some Easter decorations.  I was tired of the green tree and we had this small white one in storage so I think it looks a bit more spring like 

The quilt was my baby quilt,  sewn by my great grandmother. 


Bunnies are lined up on the mantle. 

and the egg wreath is back on the front door- but this might be it's last season.  It has been re-glued many times and I think it has more hot glue on it than eggs now 

One of the projects we worked on last week was lightening up our home for warm weather.  You may of noticed the heavy curtains in the living room were switched back to the muslin ones edge with ball fringe. 
In the breakfast room,  we got rid of the white armoire that was on its last leg and moved the smaller refrigerator out to my husbands workshop.
The chest freezer is still in the nook but there was room to add back our old dining table.  I'm liking it so much!  there is a high chair at the end and its much more convenient to have meals here when a few kiddos are here instead of  in the formal dining room   We can also do crafts at this table with no danger of marring it. 
The heavy curtains on this bay window were switched back to pink toile ones. 

the pieces of "art" don't really match the room but they are things I know my grands will like seeing.  One is a cross stitch sampler of all 50 states made by Aunt Evelyn. 

The other is a calendar from the Holy City of the Wichitas.

I like seeing them too. 

More projects and more CVS

Hello - I stayed busy all Monday with housework and errands and I'm thankful our home is clean again and the kitchen is stocked.  

I did not do any deals at CVS last week but I did fill a prescription and it was enough to earn a $5 ECB so I started this week with $15 in ECBs.  

I wanted to get candy to pass out and I wanted to do a toothpaste deal as I had coupons and also a $4/$14 CVS coupon.  

I bought 10 bags of candy.  They were $3 a bag, and I used $2/3 coupons from the newspaper a few weeks ago and a $1.50 CVS app coupon.  I earned $10 in ECB for buying then ($5 ECB for $15, limit 2 per household)

These Colgate twin packs were $7.79.  I needed to purchase $14 or more to use the CVS app coupon for $4/14 and this seemed like the best deal to me. I also used $2 off each pack and earned $2 ECB on each. 

I also used a $10 gift card that I earn every 3 months for doing a weather survey for a university. 

That brought my cash spent total down to $5.08 and I got back $14 ECBs.  

CVS has an app that they are using to link up customers with coupons, prescriptions, rewards, etc.  I have it on my iPad and it is very useful.  So if you are wanting to maximize CVS savings, I suggest you try it.  

Sewing- bandana style baby bibs - I found a number of free printable patterns and tutorials to make them.  

I sewed up 7 little bibs quite fast but didn't have a baby here to try them on, so I put one on this Cabbage Patch doll.  He is a vintage CP, he first belonged to my children and now is loved by my grands.  

I used either flannel or terry cloth on the backs for absorbency,  Buttons for the closures.  

Below are the other 6 bandana style bibs.  

I also altered a purchased costume to fit that sturdy 5 month old grandson.  

It's a crocodile.  The tail was attached to the back but he couldn't be safely buckled into his car seat with that in the way.  So I removed the tail and handstitched the opening closed.  The legs were too long so I shortened them.  Then I used that cut off pants bottoms to make a waist band to snap the tail onto the little crocodile.  The hood was a bit loose so I added more Velcro under the chin so it can be fastened a bit tighter.  

So, if you have a costume that needed some resizing, I say just do it.  This job was not hard and it's just a costume! 

I wrapped a few more clothes hanger for me.  I wear skirts a lot.  I like to hang them up with clothes pins on hangers, and when the hangers are cloth-wrapped, the clothes pins stay put nicely.  

I use sturdy wire hangers, fabric glue and fabric strips.  I just used scraps in the past but I found this roll of pink polka dot bias binding in my Mom's cast off pile so I used it.  

What do think of my nails?  I put on a set of press on nails from Dollar Tree.  My husband really likes them and the $1 price tag is great.  

New hair doo-dads, cooking, grands, etc.

This will be a post covering many subjects......

Have you ever noticed on EBay some of the crazy-cheap items that come directly from China?  I have ordered several and have only been a little disappointed with one.  

Link for the recipe for the Pickle cheese spread that I talk about at the end of this post.  But I'm on my iPad and the Blogger app likes to do things it's own way. 

Those pictures don't really show the actual size but this stretchy elastic all rolled up was about the size of a big cookie and the envelope was just big enough for it.
Seems things in the US are shipped in packaging much larger than needed.  I recently got a tiny bottle of nail glue shipped in a 10 by 13 envelope.
Stuff coming straight from China also takes awhile, 3 weeks at least or longer.
This elastic was a true bargain.  

EBay polka dot elastic lot

What the elastic looked like after some of grands played with it 😱

I bought it to make headbands for myself.  I had enough to also make pony tail holders.  I made mine on the small side because I have thin, fine hair.  

This was a very quick project, I just cut them to comfortably go around and stay on my head and then tied a knot.  The Pinterest tutorials said to sear the ends to stop fraying but mine don't seem to be the fraying kind.  

I'm happy to have so many new hair so dads for $3ish.  

I'm still happily using Impress press on nails.  I can usually get two manicures from each set.  They cost about $6 a set.  I think $3 a manicure is a great deal as a gel manicure in my town is about $40. 

I haven't wrote out a pretty to do list in months but I did this week.  It's just notebook paper on a clipboard that hangs outside our pantry.  The washi tape was from Dollar Tree and all these stamps were from a thrift store.  

I don't always get it all done but the list helps keep me on track.  

One of the tasks was bread baking.  I mixed up two double batches of sandwich buns and one double batch of cinnamon raisin rolls.  The bread machine does most of the work for me. 

We eat some, we share them with family and they keep in the freezer beautifully. 

I rarely buy store bought bread.  

I try to garden but I truly don't have the green thumb gift.  But 2 years ago, my brother gave us a potted Easter lily.  When it was done blooming, I planted that bulb in our front flower bed.
I was so surprised when it rebloomed last spring.
And I was even more surprised to see that over the year, it has reproduced and is growing up lots of lilies.

The past weekend was busy as all our 8 grands were here off and on.  

I didn't take any group photos but I did get them to all help make this handprint rainbow of their sweet little hands.  

The younger the child, the harder it is to get a good handprint.  My brother and our oldest granddaughter helped with the painting and printing of the 

3 youngest.  

I wasn't sure how many people would be here and when over that weekend so I did some meal prep ahead.
I made 2 fresh fruit trays as all the grands like fruit and so do the adults. 

I also made a fresh vegetable tray and some dip made of cream cheese, dried beef and dill pickles.  I was inspired by a recipe Cheryl posted on her blog.
I was going to make Cole slaw too but ran out of prep time.  

The last 10 days or so.......

We pick up grandson JJ one day a week at his preschool.  One of his classmates had a birthday and the classmate brought these super cute Super Hero capes for everyone.  JJ was so happy with his and he wore it continually.

The capes were made so nice and were a completely no-sew project.  They were cut out of felt for the cape and the circle and star ironed on with a fusible.

The closure was Velcro attached with fabric glue and it held just fine.

I still like doing my manicures at home with press on nails. 

I found these cute sets over the weekend at Dollar Tree.  They need a glue to hold them on but I don't like Dollar Tree glue.  

I wore the black and white polka dot set first.  

Then today, I switched to another Dollar Tree set, a French manicure look with a tiny silver stripe.  

I also like the Impress brand nails that have adhesive already on them.

We haven't done much shopping but my husband got these USMC goodies and a few other things when his favorite Marine store was having a moving sale.

He paid $6.50 for this mug and shirt.

As usual, I cooked a lot. 

Silver dollar pancakes and oven baked bacon cooked when grandsons Gavin and Braeden were here. They requested bacon AND sausage but I think one meat at a time is plenty.

I cooked extra pancakes to freeze for future breakfasts.  

Sandwich buns - I make a batch of them just about every week 

My Texas brother was visiting and we all met up at my parents retirement home.  Pizza was delivered for the main course and I took Cheese Squares and some dip and fresh vegetables cut up. Both dishes were empty when I came home.

I have mostly  loosely been following the Trim Healthy Mama plan as I try to lose some weight and not need blood pressure medicine anymore. 

These next 3 are Trim Healthy Mama approved recipes.  You can find them on my Pinterest under "eating my way" 

These are some sausage cheese balls I found on Pinterest that were delicious and a keeper.

This is a recipe called Dirt E Rice by the Coers family.  I really like this and my son in law is crazy about it.  

Below is Egg Roll in a Bowl.  

I've been making this Taco Seasoning from allrecipes.com for more than 10 years.  This a batch for my daughter.

We are having spring like weather even though it is still winter.

My husband, JJ and I enjoyed a picnic lunch in our backyard.  It's especially nice to eat outside this time of year as the pesky flying insects aren't around yet.  

Oklahoma is home to many many bugs, ick! 

Then, my husband put 2 chickens on his rotisserie.  

His grilled food is so good and his chicken is my favorite. 

I added some green beans, homemade rolls and fresh strawberries.

Then we packed it all in a big ThirtyOneGifts tote and took it to my parents for supper.

It is a simple plain menu but when I cook for a group, especially for 4 generations with different food preferences and dietary needs, basic food just suits us all best.  

Believe it or not, I haven't been to CVS since I last blogged.  

We've also been busy doing some more cleaning and organizing at home.  

I've done a little sewing but nothing I photographed.  

That's about it!  Nothing crazy exciting but I prefer it that way.