Lady Queen My Neighbor Totoro Nail Wraps: Review & Swatches

I've got quite possibly the most adorable nail wraps ever to show you guys today! These are from the website Lady Queen and feature designs from the classic anime movie "My Neighbor Totoro."

As you can see, these are non-sticker style wraps, which is what I prefer. I find them much easier to smooth out on the nail and just easier to work with in general. Here's how they look on the nail:

My experience with these was much better than the other Lady Queen wraps I reviewed. I absolutely love these! The wraps are sturdy yet still flexible enough to make application quick and easy. Plus the designs are so ridiculously adorable!

I had some shipping issue with Lady Queen, which you can read about it in my previous review. As for the product itself, absolutely no complaints from me! I'm obsessed with my Totoro nails! :)

If you'd like to purchase anything from Lady Queen, they offer 15% off for Nailed readers using the code DSLC15. These particular wraps are available HERE.


Disclosure: This product was provided for my honest review. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

Lady Queen Ice Cream Nail Wraps: Review & Swatches

Can someone please explain this product to me? How can something so adorable go so awry?

So I was recently contacted by the website Lady Queen and asked to review some of their products. One of the ones I selected was these ice cream nail wraps:

Cute, right?

But every time I try sticker-style wraps (ones like these that you peel off of a sheet versus ones that come with their own individual backings like Sally Hansen, Incoco, etc.) I am reminded of why I don't like them all that much. They are much stiffer, making them harder to apply and prone to creasing on the nail, so getting the wrap to adhere smoothly with no creases or bumps is very difficult. These had all of those trademark problems.

But that's not my biggest gripe here. It's the design. The proportion on those half-moon shapes is waaayyy off. The half-moon is much larger than I was expecting. In fact, they take up so much room on the nail that you wind up cutting off almost all of the design. My nails aren't super long right now, but they're not nubs either. I think the half-moons would be a really cute addition if they were smaller, but as it stands, you almost get more of the half-moon than the actual design on the nail. Boo! Why would you design them this way?! Why?!
 
On the customer service end, shipping took a looonnnggg time, y'all. I am used to waiting longer when dealing with overseas shipping, but this package took almost three months to arrive. I honestly thought it had gotten lost in the mail. I am not sure if the package was just caught up in the jumble of the international mailing system or what, but I wanted to give a forewarning that shipping may not be the most expedient and that you should plan on extra time for shipping if you're ordering something for a specific occasion. My service rep at Lady Queen kept in touch to make sure I received my package and for what it's worth, I couldn't find any other online reviews that mention shipping issues. So this could just be a fluke, but I wanted to be sure I mentioned this either way, for the sake of 100% transparency with you guys.

If you haven't guessed it, these were kind of a flop for me. Quality-wise they are typical of most sticker-style nail wraps I've tried, but the real letdown is with the design layout. If you don't mind the half-moon or if you've got longer nails than I do, then these might be worth a look for you, but I found them disappointing. I've got one more product from Lady Queen to review and I'm really excited about it, so hopefully that one won't let me down!

If you'd like to purchase anything from Lady Queen, they offer 15% off for Nailed readers using the code DSLC15.


Disclosure: This product was provided for my honest review. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

Born Pretty Frame Design Nail Wraps: Review & Swatches

Today's nail wraps from Born Pretty Store fulfilled a long-time nail art wish of mine! I've been dying to try a frame-style design ever since I saw Marina of Marina and the Diamonds wear it in her video for "Primadonna."

I didn't really trust myself to try and freehand it, so when I saw that Born Pretty carried these wraps with the same design, I knew I had to have them! I'm dumb and forgot to take a picture of the wraps before I put them on my nails, so I'll just cut to the chase and show you how they look on. :)

The wraps you get are a mixture of pastel pink and mint green, so I decided to do one hand with each! Here's the pink (sorry about my yucky-looking cut)...

...and then the green!

I got soooooo many compliments on these, you guys! Even complete strangers noticed them! The design is simple but very striking. I love the pastel pop of color! I had a lot of fun wearing these and I would definitely like to try a design like this again.

The wear time and quality were both excellent. You can wear these sans topcoat but I always put some on top just to make them extra durable. I removed them after several days and they still looked almost good as new.

If you would like to purchase anything from Born Pretty, they offer 10% off for Nailed readers:

Disclosure: This product was sent for my honest review. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

Twinsie Tuesday: Ruffian Manicure

We're doing ruffian manis this week! I haven't done one of these in a while, so I thought I'd try something a little different this time. I've got these plain black Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail wraps that I haven't known what to do with. Unfortunately I no longer have the original packaging so I don't know what this design is called. I got these in a set from Target a long time ago and these are the only ones from the set I still have left, because honestly, I don't quite get the point of plain nail wraps. I like wearing them for the fun and intricate designs. If I wanted black, I'd wear black polish, ya know?

But I digress. My point is, i figured now was as good a time as any to use these wraps. I layered them over a base of Orly Key Lime Twist, a neon highlighter yellow, to create the ruffian design. The wraps had dried up a bit, so they were more stuff and brittle than usual, but they still got the job done!

I always love a good pop of neon! The nail wraps made it easy to get a smooth, even curve. I think it'd be a lot of fun to do this same concept with one of the fancier Salon Effects too.

Thanks for reading and don't forget to check out my Twinsies too!

Tiffany at Polished To Precision

Steph at Lovestruck Lacquer

Sharon at Behind Green Eyes

Savannah at Addicted to Polish

Sarah at Cloudy with a Chance of Lacquer

Sara at The Call of Beauty

Róisín at Cuti-CLUE-les

Megan at A Beauty in the Business

Marisa at Polish Those Nails

Marisa at Polish Obsession

Lisa at The Polish Playground

Jessica at Blue Velvet Lacquer

Claire at Kerruticles

​ ChiChi at I'm Just Me...ChiChi

Chelsea at Nailed Blog

Bridget at A Painted Nail

Amber at Nails Like Lace

Amanda at Fashion Footing

Amanda at Amandalandish

Alice at Nail Art in Wonderland

Alaina at The Little Canvas

Jamberry Accent Nails: Review & Swatches

I've got a couple different manis to share with you guys today, all of them incorporating Jamberry nail appliques. Nine times out of ten, if I'm wearing nail wraps and someone comments on them, they will ask me if they're Jamberry, so they seem to be pretty well known. But if you're not familiar with Jamberry, they're kinda different from other nail wraps, so here's a quick crash course for you!

Jamberry is sold through individual consultants. This time around, mine was Maureen. She was super sweet and willing to help troubleshoot if I had any questions or application issues. Consultants offer their appliques through their own websites, which feature a TON of designs. Click HERE if you want to check out Maureen's.

The biggest difference between Jamberry and other nail wraps in that you have to heat the appliques.  After you peel them off the sheet, you have to expose them to heat for 3-5 seconds to make them more flexible. I always use my blow dryer and that works perfectly. Next, apply the wrap to your nail, trim and file the excess, then hit them with a little heat again to fully bond the wraps to the nail.

These are a little more time consuming to apply than traditional wraps, since you have to involve a heat source, but I've found them to be extremely sturdy on the nail so taking a little extra time with them typically equates to long, worry-free wear. I also like that if you get a crease or a bubble when applying, you can smooth it out with a little patience and an extra blast from the blow dryer. To remove, soak them in acetone for 30 seconds to break down the adhesive, then gently peel them off.

Maureen sent me a selection of different Jamberry accent nails to play around with. These little sheets feature six different wraps, each with a different design, so that you can see what patterns you like and get a feel for how Jamberry wears and applies. I'm obsessed with nail wraps, but I've never tried them as accent nails. Here's a couple quick and easy combinations I came up with using these designs!

Grey: Barielle Feathered Slippers

Green: Essie Chillato

Red: Barielle Blushing Beauty

There's a bit of a learning curve with Jamberry, but I've found I can get the hang of it pretty quickly. It's been a while since I used any Jamberry wraps, so my first attempt (the flower wrap with Barielle Feathered Slippers) wasn't perfectly smooth, but this was due to user error rather than a flaw with the product. After that though, I got back in the groove and didn't have any issues applying the rest of the wraps.

My favorite of these was the overlay wrap I wore over Essie Chillato. I believe the name of this design is Island Energy. It adhered really well to the polish already on my nail and added a fun bit of depth to my existing manicure.

Have you tried anything from Jamberry before? I'd love to hear how what your experience with them was like in the comments!


Disclosure: These products were sent for my honest review. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

Twinsie Tuesday: Splatter Mani

I feel like a bad nail blogger for saying this but I really don't like doing splatter manis. I love the way they look, of course, but I find the process of creating them to be messy and tedious. So I busted out my favorite nail art cheat: nail wraps! They truly are the lazy manicurist's best friend.

These are the Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail wraps in the design Sweet Marble Floret. The name doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, but the pattern is a lovely abstract mix of pastel shades with black splatter over top, then a shimmering pearl glaze to bring it all together.

Okay, so it might not be a 100% match for a splatter pattern, but it's at least in the neighborhood, yeah? 

I love Sally Hansen's wraps and over the years I've had good luck with finding cool designs on clearance. I don't think I've ever paid full price. These only set me back a buck and some change! All it takes is patience and good timing.

Be sure to take a look at my Twinsie's splatter manis today too! Let's see if I'm the only dirty cheater in the bunch. ;)

Tiffany at Polished To Precision

Savannah at Addicted to Polish

Róisín at Cuti-CLUE-les

Marisa at Polish Obsession

Lisa at The Polish Playground

Lakeisha at Refined and Polished

Kristine at Pink and Polished Nails

Jessica at Blue Velvet Lacquer

ChiChi at I'm Just Me...ChiChi

Chelsea at Nailed Blog

Bridget at A Painted Nail

Amber at Nails Like Lace

Amanda at Fashion Footing

Amanda at Amandalandish

Incoco Pride Nails Nail Wraps: Review & Swatches

I've reviewed many, many nail wraps on here, but this particular design is a special one--and especially timely, given the fantastic news about the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on gay marriage last week! Incoco has created some Pride Nails nail wraps in partnership with the Vancouver Pride Society, a non-profit LGBTTQ organization. A portion of the proceeds from these wraps will go directly to the Vancouver Pride Society to help support the health and vitality of the LGBTTQ community.

The Pride Nails design features a white base with a triangular cut-out revealing all the colors of the rainbow.

Since I've reviewed the quality of Incoco's wraps in the past, (click HERE if you would like to read more about application and longevity) I wanted to focus most of my attention on the design itself. But as a quick note, I will say that Incoco makes some of the best quality wraps on the market and these are just as good as anything I've tried from them in the past.

I absolutely love these wraps, not just for the beautiful design but also for what it represents. It's a cause near and dear to my own heart and this is such a fun way to give back and look good doing it! You're getting a great quality product that supports a fantastic cause. Everyone wins! :)

You can purchase these wraps through the Pride Nails online store. If you're in the Vancouver area, there are also several retail shops where you can pick up some Pride Nails (see website for details).


Disclosure: This product was sent for my honest review. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

Twinsie Tuesday: Born Pretty Starry Night Nail Wraps

This week, we're doing nails inspired by artwork. I swear this wasn't pre-planned but when I saw this theme, I knew there was something in my "to review" pile that I just had to use: these Van Gogh "Starry Night" nail wraps from Born Pretty Store!

I was a bit unsure about whether I'd like these wraps, as I've found the sticker-style wraps can be kinda stuff, making them trickier to apply smoothly than the ones with little silver tabs. But thankfully, these were a sinch. I didn't have any issues with creasing or bubbling.

The glitter on these wraps does obscure some of the details of the design, but it also adds some extra depth and I think a dash of glitter is appropriate for a starry sky design.

If you would like to purchase anything from Born Pretty, they offer 10% off for Nailed readers:

And I do hope you'll check out what my fellow Twinsies are up to today as well!

Alaina at The Little Canvas

Amanda at Amandalandish

Amanda at Fashion Footing

Amber at Nails Like Lace

Bridget at A Painted Nail

Chelsea at Nailed Blog

ChiChi at I'm Just Me...ChiChi

Jessica at Blue Velvet Lacquer

Kristine at Pink and Polished Nails

Lakeisha at Refined and Polished

​Lisa at The Polish Playground

Marisa at Polish Obsession

Róisín at Cuti-CLUE-les

Savannah at Addicted to Polish

Tiffany at Polished To Precision

Disclosure: This product was provided for my honest review. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

Twinsie Tuesday: Watercolor Nails

Just a quick post from me today. I'm writing this at about 1:00 in the morning (what can I say, I'm a massive procrastinator), so I'm pretty beat! We are supposed to do watercolor nails for Twinsie Tuesday this week, but I kinda-sorted-totally cheated and just used some Sally Hansen nail wraps I happened to have lying around. I picked these puppies up on clearance a while back and they fit perfectly with this challenge! The design is called Spot On.

If you've never tried Sally Hansen's nail wraps, I can't recommend them highly enough! They work just as well as more expensive ones I've tried before and they have so many fun designs. I love the spring colors in this one--super cute!

Alaina at The Little Canvas

Amanda at Amandalandish

Amanda at Fashion Footing

Amber at Nails Like Lace

Bridget at A Painted Nail

Chelsea at Nailed Blog

ChiChi at I'm Just Me...ChiChi

Jessica at Blue Velvet Lacquer

Kristine at Pink and Polished Nails

Lakeisha at Refined and Polished

​Lisa at The Polish Playground

Marisa at Polish Obsession

Róisín at Cuti-CLUE-les

Savannah at Addicted to Polish

Tiffany at Polished To Precision

Born Pretty Nail Wraps: Review & Swatches

I've got some fun nail wraps from Born Pretty Store to show you today! This design, QJ-1040, features eyeballs on different colorful backgrounds.

It's kinda funky-looking, but I really like it! It's not the typical type of design you see on nail wraps or decals. I was bummed that the yellow one was too big for any of my nails; I think it's my favorite of all the different designs in this set.

The wraps were very easy to apply as well, with no creases or bubbling. You can wear them without top coat, but I put a little bit on, just to give my nails an extra layer of protection. I wore these wraps for four days and they held up very well. By the fourth day, I had small chips on two of my nails, but the wraps were still sturdily in place. I easily could have worn them for a few more days.

Born Pretty offers a ton of different nail wraps and virtually all of them I've tried have been excellent quality. I find the ones that have the silver stripe where you peel them off (like this design has) are the best, whereas the ones that look more like individual stickers can be a bit hit or miss.

If you would like to purchase anything from Born Pretty, they offer 10% off for Nailed readers:

Disclosure: This product was provided for my honest review. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

Sally Hansen Salon Effects in Orange You Glad?

I'm home visiting family this weekend, so I thought some nail wraps would be a good choice for the trip. I recently picked up a whole bunch of Sally Hansen Salon Effects (some of my favorite nail wraps) on clearance. It's extremely rare for me to pay full price for nail wraps, given that I like to change my polish so often, but I always try to stock up when I find them on sale. I think these only set me back like 99 cents!

This design, Orange You Glad?, is a creamsicle orange base with darker orange snakeskin detailing. I love this fun, colorful twist on a snakeskin pattern!

So far, the wear seems typical to my experience with Sally Hansen wraps--some visible tipwear on the first day, then near-ironclad durability from there on out. I didn't wear topcoat this time (the wraps have a smooth, shiny finish all on their own), but when I do, the wear is even better!

Born Pretty Rose Stripe Nail Wraps: Review & Swatches

 As someone who's, shall we say, artistically impaired, I love me some nail wraps! And I've got some lovely rose-themed nail wraps from Born Pretty Store to show off today. These red, white and seafoam green wraps have a pretty mix of designs from stripes to polka dots to rosebuds. So cute!

The wraps apply just as good as they look. They're very easy to use and have a nice, sturdy feel to them. They're thick enough that you don't have to worry about ripping them but not so thick that they're difficult to mold onto the nail or tough to file the excess off of. Top coat is completely optional with these wraps, but I opted to put some on anyways, to seal the tips and extend the wear time even further.

If you would like to order anything from Born Pretty, they offer 10% off for Nailed readers:

Disclosure: This product was provided to me for my honest review. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

Twinsie Tuesday: Sally Hansen Salon Effects in Tribal It On

This week's Twinsie Tuesday theme features my nail art nemesis: stripes. For some reason, I have extreme difficulty drawing straight, even lines. I don't know why it's so hard for me, but it is!

So rather than make us all suffer through a terrible manicure with sad, lumpy stripes...I took the easy way out and cheated with some Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail wraps. I know, I know, I'm awful. But hey, at least the wraps look cool! This particular design, which features a black and white striped pattern, is called Tribal It On.

I love all the different interlocking stripe patterns here. Plus the fact that these wraps are in black and white really makes the intricacy of the design stand out. As usual with Sally Hansen, the quality of the wraps themselves is excellent and they were very easy to apply.

So that about wraps it up for this week's TT! Hopefully you enjoyed my post, even if it was a bit of a cop-out. ;) If you want to see some real striped manis, take a look at what my fabulous Twinsies created!

​

Alaina at The Little Canvas

Amanda at Amandalandish

Amber at Nails Like Lace
Anna at Going to the Showing
Bridget at A Painted Nail

Casey at CaseyLane Loves Polish

Chelsea at Nailed Blog

ChiChi at I'm Just Me...ChiChi

Cordia at Seriously Swatched

Elizabeth at Did My Nails

Erin at Paint Those Piggies

Jessica at Blue Velvet Lacquer

Kelly at Tuxarina

Lakeisha at Refined and Polished

​Lisa at The Polish Playground

​Marisa at Polish Obsession

Róisín at Cuti-CLUE-les

Stephanie at A Little Polish

Tiffany at Polished To Precision​

Twinsie Tuesday: Sally Hansen Salon Effects In Disk-O Queen

We're busting out our nail wraps, stickers and decals for this week's Twinsie Tuesday theme: nail appliqués! There are a couple different ways this theme could be interpreted and I decided to go with nail wraps. Sally Hansen makes some of my favorites. They're sturdy, easy to apply and there are lots of designs to pick from!

The one I went with this time is called Disk-O Queen. These wraps have a half moon design in gold and burgundy glitter.

I'd never used nail wraps with glitter in them before, so I wondered if they would be more difficult to work with or if they'd feel gritty at all. Thankfully, the answer to both questions is no. These feel and apply the same as the other Sally Hansen wraps I've tried in the past. My only complaint is that on the burgundy part of the wrap, you can see that the actual wrap itself is tinted burgundy underneath, to provide a clear outline for the half moon design, and then there's a glitter overlay on top. I wish the gold portion had a tinted base as well, to make it more opaque, because I could see a bit more of my natural nail peeking through that I normally like.

But that being said, I enjoyed these wraps! I think the glitter is a fun twist on a classic design like the half moon, which has been around for decades. I'm not really a French manicure kind of girl, but I do love the half moon look! I like how it accentuates the curve of the nail bed, plus retro designs always make me feel all fancy and lady-like!

What is your favorite brand of nail wraps or appliqués? 

Alaina at The Little Canvas

Amanda at Amandalandish

Amber at Nails Like Lace

Anna at Going to the Showing

Anne at Grape Fizz Nails

Casey at CaseyLane Loves Polish

Chelsea at Nailed Blog

ChiChi at I'm Just Me...ChiChi

Elizabeth at Did My Nails

Erin at Paint Those Piggies

Kelly at Tuxarina

Lakeisha at Refined and Polished

Maribeth at Obsessive Cosmetic Hoarders Unite

Marisa at Polish Obsession

Rachel at Top Coat It

Róisín at Cuti-CLUE-les

Stephanie at A Little Polish

Tiffany at Polished To Precision

Traci at DrinkCitra