The Lazy Girl’s Guide to Press On Nails & Wraps

<<<SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEOS AND INSTRUCTIONS FOR BOTH PRESS ON AND GEL NAIL STRIPS>>> 

My life is busy. I am both the chef and sous chef, run 2 full-time businesses, travel a lot, and I rarely have a fabulous looking manicure beyond a week–even with gel nails.

Even worse, when I do get my nails done, if I’m too busy to get the gel polish removed professionally, I usually have damaged nails. Ahem. Because I pick at them. I know…I know…

Part of my job is to find ways to help you (and me) look great all the time with our busy schedules. We are the generation of revolutionary, technology paved, nail polish alternatives! So why shouldn’t we find new ways to make our mani’s last?

Enter: Gel Nail Strips and Press On Nails. Though conceptually, they’ve been around since the 1950’s, they’ve upgraded tremendously even in just the last decade.

Personally, I’ve tried a plethora of brands for wraps and press on options, so when I finally got around to trying Dashing Diva, I practically begged them to work with me on a project. Dashing Diva has distinguished themselves with salon quality, on-trend products. They do what they claim and don’t have that fake nail look. More details on their history in my tutorial below!

How did Dashing Diva Get So Fly?

Dashing Diva is manufactured in Korea, but based in New York. If you’ve ever had a conversation with any beauty expert, you’ll know that South Korea is known for their beauty technology and blow everyone else out of the water, separating them from the rest. Dashing Diva is super quality controlled–from fit, to high quality nail art details, to the look and feel of their nail polish strips.

I also think they’re awe-inspiring because they’ve made sure their products are completely customizable! I brought my DD nails with me on my last trip and added nail art stickers to my press on nails. They turned out so much more personalized than when I go to nail salons.

Why I use them:

No dry time and they last 2 weeks as advertised! These are my go-to for everyday wear. They don’t need an LED or UV lamp or heat that can ruin your hands or nails and last a really long time. A couple times I’ve had a mishap, like I didn’t prep my nails enough before applying or jumped in the pool and loosened one or two, but enough spares are in the package for a redo. Plus they come off with zero damage–like a nail sticker! To me, this is the biggest reason why I prefer this to gel nails. If I have one chipped gel nail, I feel like the whole set has to come off because I can’t redo that one chipped nail without a lot of work or a trip to the salon.

I also love that you can use nail polish with these (if you like). You can treat this like the “color” layer for your nails. You can do anything you want to them. This means you can add a base coat, top coat, nail stickers, bling, etc. Or, if you want to use nail polish, but want a barrier base coat, they make clear strips too!

Watch my video for my secret tips for an extra salon-worthy look!

How I apply them:

 

Step 1: Prep – Get the oils off your nails with alcohol or acetone and push your cuticles back

Step 2: Size – Pick out the size and direction that fits best for each nail

Step 3: Press

Step 4: Bend – Bend the excess down and file in an angled downward motion

 

How I take them off:

Dashing Diva recommends adding a little cuticle oil and then peeling off, but I’ve removed them without anything on and my nails were longer and prettier than when they started. When it hasn’t been fine to just peel it off was when I had a salon gel manicure that was causing weak and peeling nails. These nail strips do have (a gentle!) adhesive, so, I would recommend putting a barrier on first if your nails are in bad shape.

When I don’t use them:

These aren’t a 1-second manicure. Though I would consider doing them in an Uber because they don’t smell like anything and there isn’t a dry time, they still take about 15-20 minutes to do well and aren’t quite as fool-proof as the Magic Press (I occasionally have to reposition them due to user errors). I like to apply these when I’m relaxing before bed because they look amazing after I’ve slept in them. I also prefer to use their other products if my nails are peeling so I don’t risk additional damage.

Dashing Diva Magic Press

Why I use them:

I can do this in an Uber on a bumpy road and they have consistently taken me less than 5 minutes. Though they call this a 1-second manicure, I would refer to that as the application time per nail. So…it’s really like a 1 minute manicure.

I love that the very strong and durable adhesive is already applied inside of each nail so you literally don’t need to do anything but find your fit and press. Though I do enjoy nails with glue as well, these have zero mess and last almost as long. They easily last a full week (but I still put the extras in my bag just in case…why not when the packaging is so travel-friendly!?).

They’re also completely waterproof and don’t need any heat or LED lamp.

The shapes: They have almond, oval, squoval, short, and have new options regularly.

How I Apply them:

Step 1: Prep – Basically, just push back your cuticles and use the alcohol wipe

Step 2: Size – I can get 2 sets out of these packs if I am willing to file down a couple of the nails to fit better. If J Lo does it, why not us?

Step 3: Press

Add custom details when you’re done! Here are some of my top picks.

How I take them off:

First off, I’ve used multiple sets now and my nails look healthier than without them. Second, they say take them off on Day 7. Sometimes they’ve stayed on longer than that, but I typically take them off anyways to let my nails breathe.

When I don’t use them:

When my nails have grown out because GLOSS helps them get so long and healthy I don’t use these. I’d rather do another round of GLOSS! Plus the nail strips last double the length of time. I also don’t use these if I’m planning to be in water for any extended period of time.

Why I need both GLOSS and Magic Press Nails as part of my Nail Arsenal

GLOSS Gel Nail Strips are great! They protect my nails and look like-a-million-bucks. I don’t need to use a base coat or a top coat. All I need is a little time and a nail file. And my nails can be as long or as short as I want them. But what they don’t do is add length like artificial nails do.

I alternate between GLOSS and Magic Press depending on the length of my nails, the shape I want, and what I’m doing (activity-wise) that week. Press-on nails just don’t make sense if your nails are already long! Also, I don’t think I’d ever want to change the shape of my natural nails too drastically. So, if I want a trendy shape, I’m going to file those false nails, not my real ones.

 

Have you tried these products? Share below!

*Editorial Note: This post was sponsored by Dashing Diva. The compensation received in exchange for placement on The Vanilla Plum is used to purchase props, hire a photographer, write/edit the blog post and support the team behind The Vanilla Plum. Thanks to Dashing Diva and The Vanilla Plum team for bringing this post to life.

While compensation was received in exchange for coverage, all thoughts and opinions are always my own. Sponsored posts like these allow for the development of additional dynamic content to be produced, unsponsored. Thank you for supporting our partners!