This past week I have been sorting out my makeup and nail polish storage situation as there has been a bit of an overflow happening (it's also great study procrastination!) and discovered a few things from old Sample Bar boxes that I needed to try out. Sample Bar is a monthly subscription box for $25 a month here in NZ and I found these Incoco Dry Nail Appliqué strips that I got in a box a few months ago so decided to give them a go as I have never heard or seen this brand or product before. According to Sample Bar these retail for $13.49, which is a little expensive for one off nail strips. Plus I've got to say, I got a pretty plain colour in Sheer Blush.
These are 100% nail polish and are actually very thin strips, which is deceiving as the packet makes them look really opaque but that is simply the white backing that you peel off. The kit comes with 20 various sized nail strips, a cuticle stick, nail file and a polish remover cloth. If you're wondering what the gold strip is (it took me a while to realise what it was too), it is to seal up the silver packet with any unused strips so they don't dry out. I now have 10 extra but they are all different sizes that probably aren't going to fit my nails.
To prep the nail I made sure my hand were clean and dry and then filed them to smooth them and used the cuticle stick to push back any cuticles etc. You then take a strip that is that right size for your nail and peel off the backing and the clear strip on the top and you are left with a very flimsy nail appliqué. You have to work quite fast and be quite precise when putting it on the nails as you don't want to have to peel it off and re-stick as it can lose it's sticking ability. Once positioned start from the base of the nail and smooth it upward and then use the nail file to gently file the excess off the end in downward motions.
It definitely got easier as you went on, but I found a couple of the strips actually ripped on the edges when I peeled it from its backing which was a bit frustrating!
I wish I had got a coloured set, as the Sheer Blush really didn't make a lot of difference to my nails, they just gave them a light pink toned blush colour, but my natural nails are still evident underneath so I wish they were more opaque. As you can see it shows through a lot of my nail flaws, such as ridges, and these nail strips just tend to exaggerate them even more! I would be interested to see what the more opaque ones would look like and whether they would look smoother.
They claim to last up to 14 days, but to be honest I got too bored of the plain colour - wait for tomorrow's post to see an update. I wouldn't buy these, purely as I think they are overpriced for the actual finish and quality (perhaps it's just my average nails) and the Sheer Blush colour was just disappointing but I am glad I got to try them out, I think I'll stick to my $1 eBay nail stickers or the Sally Hansen ones.
Have you tried or even heard of these brand before? Let me know in the comments!