Just last weekend, I found myself in this exact conundrum where my nails were in desperate need of TLC, but my jam-packed calendar simply couldn’t accommodate an hour or two for a salon appointment. Factor in extra time needed to account for holiday crowds, traffic, and parking woes, and I knew my gel manicure ritual was out of the question this month. I eyed the Kiss press-on nail kit that the brand recently sent me and decided now was as good a time as any to give it a go. To buy: $9; target.com. For a little background, I typically have a standing appointment at my nail salon, and since I can’t paint my own nails to save my life, I will happily pay any amount of money for a proper professional manicure. I gravitate toward light neutral shades that always look elegant, and I should add here that I’m pretty hard on my nails since I’m constantly typing or traveling, so gel polish is my jam. Admittedly, I was a little skeptical that I’d find success with press-on nails, but desperate times call for desperate measures. I quickly filed and buffed my natural nails and added a small drop of glue (included in the kit) to the artificial nail and held it on each natural nail for about five seconds at a time. The entire process took mere minutes, and I couldn’t believe how incredibly seamless and, well, perfect they looked. The Acrylic French Nude Kit features 28 flexible, thin, natural-looking nails that are both comfortable and strong, and can be filed down to your desired shape and length. To buy: $9; target.com. After wearing press-ons for a solid week (which included dashing from holiday parties and work events, to packing and traveling for a tropical vacation where hikes, beach days, and hot tubs were a daily occurence), I can solidly say that these modern press-on nail kits are nothing like they were in the past. They stayed on and looked great no matter what came my way, and even garnered a few compliments from onlookers. To buy: $7 with coupon (was $14); amazon.com. If you’ve always wanted to experiment with statement nails without the commitment, Kiss has countless colors and chic styles to pick from, plus different lengths. At under $10 per kit, this genius time-saving hack is also budget-friendly, which means there’s no excuse not to try some pretty press-ons for yourself.
