By the time I got to college, though, I traded one bad habit for another. With my $25 monthly allowance, I wasn’t buying ramen or stretching a dollar the way Lisa bragged she could with her $20. Nope—I was in the salon chair, blowing my budget on acrylic nails. Scrimping was never my style.
For nearly 20 years, I kept them up. Fake nails became my signature—until the damage (and the bills) finally caught up with me. That’s when I decided I’d had enough. I gave up the acrylics and started doing my own manicures.
My routine was simple but ritualistic. First, I soaked my nails in white vinegar warmed for twenty seconds in the microwave. After a minute, I’d file and shape the ends, push back and trim the cuticles, then dip them again for another thirty seconds before starting the polish. The vinegar stripped away oils so the color lasted longer, encouraged growth, and kept my cuticles healthy.
Eventually, the “paint job” gave way to something even easier—nail polish stickers. They are actual nail polish, apply like stickers, and actually last. My old manicures would chip or peel within a day; the stickers stay shiny and intact for nearly two weeks.
The only real benefit I can admit to from those years of acrylics is this: when a fake nail breaks, you just replace it. When a natural nail breaks? You’re stuck waiting a month for it to grow out while pretending you don’t care.
So in the end, I’ve traded instant fixes for patience, polish for stickers, and monthly salon bills for a microwave cup of vinegar. Who knew my nail journey would end with a DIY science experiment in the kitchen?
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