If you've been following my blog since forever and ever, you may remember my short obsession with super long glue on nails, inspired by Ms. Lana Del Rey's talons. My first brush with glue on nails was really positive - instant perfect mani at a much lower price point than if you'd get one at the salon. However, I sort of forgot false nails as an option until I recently received two parcels with a bunch of new sets of Elegant Touch falsies to review. Pictured above is the first parcel, which contained two sets of regular glue on nails, and to sets of pre-glued nails that you just have to press onto the nailbed. Let's take a look!
First we'll take a look at the preglued nails. This is the Twinkle set, which is black with a BUTTLOAD of multisize, multicolour glitter: super pretty! These have a bit of glue at the base, allowing you to just press them on and they'll stick, no messing about with a tube of glue. However, there's also some downsides to the concept: first of all, the preglued nails don't stay put as long. After a couple of hours, you're bound to have one or two pop off. In addition, the preglued base also makes it impossible to place the nail on top of your own to "try out" if the size of the nail will fit your nail bed correctly. But more importantly, these are SUPER thick, almost like those classic square acrylic nails of the early 2000s. That really isn't my preference to begin with, but it also has practical issues: the edges are so thick that they don't really taper to sit flat at the edges where the fake nail meets your actual nail(bed). See top right in the pic below.
There's a bit of a space between the nail and your fingertips, and
whenever I brushed my hair out of my face, it got stuck in the crevices
and the glue. SUPER annoying. I also feel like the shape just doesn't look good on my small fingers, it looks to different from my own nails: bigger, thicker, not every elegant. Too bad because the design of the nails is gorgeous!
However, that's basically the only bad thing I'll have to say in this entire post, so let's get going now that we've got my dislike for the preglued sets out of the way!
This is the Sparkle set: short, square glitter ombre nails. They generally fit my small nailbeds perfectly, I only filed off the sides of the nail I put on my index finger because it was a bit too square for my liking. That's no issue with these tho, they're easily filed off to fit your preferences. I kept these on for like 5-6 days until I was bored of them, and I only had to reglue my index fingers once. I kept a tube of glue in my wallet so I could fix my nails whenever necessary.
THIS set is a stunner, though! Omg Galactica, you're so gorgeousssss. Dark burgundy, mirrored metallic, and my favourite shape because it's so versatile and elegant: oval. The ONLY complaint I had was that the foil toplayer peels off to reveal a silver mirrored base when you're a bit rough on your nails, so these don't stay pretty as long as the Sparkle set above. However, you can increase the longevity by brushing on a good layer of topcoat right after applying this set.
Let's look at the second parcel I received, which contained my to ultimate faves: Hall of Mirrors and Helter Skelter.
Just to show you the contents of a set of Elegant Touch glue on nails: 10 different sizes of nails which should fit basically anyone, a tube of glue which you squeeze out onto your own nail right before pressing on the falsie, a nail buffer and instructions.
The application could be better (I was in a hurry), but the Hall of Mirrors set is SO GORGEOUS OMG, like metal or oil slicks or soap bubbles or mother of pearl, all rolled into one. I actually bought a second set just so I can rewear these a couple of times, because I have to admit that after 5 days, they lose a bit of their shine. Again, a topcoat will make the Hall of Mirrors set last longer, so don't forget to take care of these babies because I guarantee you will fall in love. I just kept staring at my hands! The foil on these doesn't peel off like the Galactica set btw. Oh and the square and oval sets feel super natural, they don't bother me in my daily actions at all. Not even washing my hair!
And finally, this kick ass Helter Skelter set: hot pink stiletto nails with a silver edge.
The stiletto shape would be my favourite if not for two caveats: they are very impractical for everything from typing to cooking to putting on your own pants (putting on a necklace is IMPOSSIBLE), and they pop off much more quickly because there's a bigger part of the nail that is exposed to pressure whenever you apply force with your nails. I kept losing my thumb and index finger nail during the two days I wore these, and then I just took them off because I was tired of the upkeep. I'd rewear these for a party, though, gorgeous!
Some tips:
- I like to first lay out the falsies I'm going to use in the order of my nails, making the application process basically fool proof.
- DO apply a basecoat underneath the nail glue, it will protect your nail from the inevitable damage that comes with buffing off the remainders of the nail glue after you remove the nails. Using a basecoat and buffing carefully makes the damage totally minimal, though, and your nails will look as good as new after you rub some oil in.
- Be sure to push the false nail down into the bottom cuticle, this makes them look like your own nails. Nothing gives away falsies like seeing that little bit of space between your nailbed and the glue on nail. You can sort of see that on my ringfinger and pinky in the pic of the Hall of Mirrors set.
- Don't cut off your nails completely, I try to keep them about just as long as the false nail so that the entire bottom of the falsie is covered. This keeps them from popping off because your actual nail bares the pressure rather than the false nail.
- And finally: if you're sick of the falsies, just grab a nail file or something else that's sort of blunt and thin, and wedge it between your nail and the false nail near the edges. Unless you've JUST glued them on, they should pop off without having to force them.
There! These sets are sold in Belgium at Di and online at various webshops, and they retail at about €10.
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