Visual Fashion Beauty Friend Friday: Hand, hand, fingers, thumb (manicures!)

This week, Fashion Beauty Friend Friday has taken a visual turn and is focusing on manicures. Nail art has exploded in popularity, so much so that the New York Times included a feature on the trend back in June (which is worth checking out.) Though I don't possess artfully decorated nails, I thought it would be fun to participate.

I am a dunce at polishing my nails. There, I said it. The act of applying polish makes me break out in hives because no matter how hard I concentrate, my polish always smudges and ends up on my clothes/bathroom sink and dripped on the floor. AND, on the extremely rare occasions I have the dexterity and patience to create a decent-looking manicure, inevitably it chips and I'm left with hands that look like they belong on a five year-old who applied her own polish in the dark.

So I have acrylics. My propensity for Jersey girl nails lies on the fact that they always look great, resist chipping, and make my hands look like they belong on a grown-up. I turned to acrylics largely because my nails are extremely weak and I could never grow them beyond a few centimeters without splitting and peeling. That, combined with my failures at home manicures, made acrylics appealing.

I realize that acrylic nails are cheesy and suburban and really, really bad for my nails. I get that. But truthfully, I love how they look, and I can worry about one thing less in my beauty routine. I keep them short and slightly square, and I can go up to three weeks before needing a fill. They might mark me as a resident of suburgatory, but I love 'em.

As usual, I’d love to hear your on this topic in the comments! Fashion Beauty Friend Friday was created by Katy Rose of Modly Chic. Become a member at the Fashion Beauty Friend Friday Google Group to join in the discussion!