Essie Nail Applique Review

Since I can’t seem to get out of the nail salon without dinging my manicure, and I don’t get the gels because of the removal process, I thought I’d try some nail applique’s to see how they work.

The selection is amazing! There’s everything from french manicure to python designs in wild color combinations. They even have some with tiny rhinestones! I chose the Essie Sleek Stick Long Lasting Nail Appliqué in “Stickers & Stones”. The kit comes with 18 stickers in various sizes, a cuticle stick, and a small file.

I followed the application instructions down to the letter and they went on easily. There’s a good range of sizes to fit most finger nails, but I did have to cut the thumb stickers down to fit better. For the most part they went on without any wrinkles or air bubbles… the one wrinkle I did get, I smoothed away with the cuticle stick.

The stickers wore great for the first 3 full days during which I did lots of typing, dish washing, showering (with 2 shampooings), and moisturizing. The tips of a few stickers did start to peel away after having my hands in water, but if I pressed them back down, they seemed to re-adhere. On the 4th day they just disintegrated. But they peeled off easily leaving a little sticky residue behind that was easily removed with soap and water.

I got so many compliments while I had them on, and everyone thought I had a small army of manicurists paste on each tiny bead. They looked like an expensive salon manicure. I thought they were a good value for the price ($9.99), and would be great for a special occasion. But, overall, they were definitely not “long lasting”, and I felt like I had to baby them to get them to last the 3 days.