slight addiction

(the first step is admitting you have a problem. 
well, i don't have a problem)

i have discovered a new and slightly vain obsession in the past few years. 

don't judge me. but i think i have 35 bottles, not including base and top coats. 

every time i go to a drug store, target or walmart, i have to check out the nail polish section. in reality, i'm sure i have more than enough colors, but at less than $5 a pop, i feel like i can totally justify a new, quick, feel-good spend so it's easy to keep adding on. plus, it gives me so many nice nuances of choice when i'm doing my nails for an occasion- do i want pretty pink? party pink? dark pink? professional pink?** 

and because i'm obsessed (coughaddictedcough), i have seen all the new fun trends in polish these days. last year the trend was crackle- typically a metallic top coat you put over your normal color that then 'cracked' and showed both the metallic and base nail color. that was fun, but i felt like it matched my zombie ensembles a little too much to be a daily wear. plus, i still had a desk job then and wasn't sure that ol' papa kaiser would be proud of the silver cracks that looked like i'd been neglecting my nails for too long. 

the next trend i saw was over the summer was a magnetic nail polish that somehow changed composition under a magnet. each bottle was a metallic color (muted silver, black, red, blue, green) and had a little magnet on top of the lid. the gist is to paint one coat of the polish, let it dry, then paint a second coat on, one nail at a time, and hold the magnet on top of each nail for 10 seconds. apparently the magnet drew weird magnetic stuff in the polish into funky waves of a darker, different color. the result was pretty trippy, wavy nails. i really liked that one for special occasions- i got it in a dark grey/black color that was perfect for halloween. 

the ongoing trend i've seen a lot, and LOVE, is the 'party nail', or painting the ring finger on each hand a different color than the rest. this isn't anything special, it's just choosing colors, but i've done this for almost every single manicure since august, just because it gives me a good excuse to mix and match fun colors (and i definitely have enough to do that).at first i was worried it was a secret way of communicating something elicit, like i did drugs or picked my nose or something, but i've done a bit of 'net  searching, and can't find any meaning behind it, so i think it's safe, harmless trend. i think it's safe to say i will continue participating in this trend, probably to the point of embarrassment and uncoolness. and guess what? i don't care. 

the newest thing i've seen, though, is not nail polish at all, but something called 'salon effects' from sally hansen. 

at closer look, this is not a nail polish kit at all, but essentially nail shaped stickers made of nail polish in an outrageous pattern. and at $10-12 a box for one application, it's not a trend i was readily going to jump on board with. plus, (and i hate to admit it as the daring nail polish connoisseur that i consider myself), some of these patterns were just a little too bold for me. 

however, i was secretly dying to try it. but i can be a very picky, hesitant buyer, especially around trendy thing (it took me three months to pony up the $7 for magnetic nail polish). so for about six months, i've been eyeing these boxes each time i'm in the nail aisle with longing. i stop myself from buying them, arguing about  the price and the outrageous, possibly teeny-bopper look i was afraid would result. what a potential waste of money and fashion! 

however, the steal of a deal girl in me was in target the other day, glancing through the clearance items in the end caps, and found a few boxes of these salon effects for super cheap- $5! and it was a very cool, silver snakeskin pattern that fit my current obsession with silver and gold shiny glittery things for the holidays. so without any thought at all, i checked the price and the pattern and threw the box in my basket, and off i went, without a second glance. 

i decided to wait to try them until my current mani was toast, and that happened to be last night. so a few glasses of wine into the evening,  i decided to break out the ol' sally hansen and see what i could do. 

results? AMAZING! i loved loved loved. putting them on was super easy- it was just matching the size of the sticker to your fingernail bed, peeling and pressing. and bonus? (super bonus?) NO DRYING TIME. they are ready to go the second after they are pressed on to your nail. and of course, being the frugal gal i am, i covered them with a clear top coat to help them last a bit longer (they are supposed to last 10 days as is), and stretched each sticker just a wee bit when i applied to make each one enough for two applications vs. just a single one. so now i have two $12, no mess, no dry, long lasting manis for $5. pretty sweet if you ask me. 

VOILA! my new favorite addiction.