My nails and I have a rather difficult relationship. Though my hair is thick and strong, somehow my fingernails are neither. They break very easily, nail polish only lasts a couple hours if that, and (to my great frustration) they are constantly dirty. I seem to always have a dark layer of gunk showing under my nails.

I had pretty much just given up on them.

Then my friend Sue invited me to a “Jamberry” party. I thought it was going to be about making jam, so I signed up enthusiastically. You guys know I love to make things from scratch! But it turns out that Jamberry is a company that makes a nail art product that I had never heard of before. Along with the usual nail polish, they have things called “wraps.” The wraps are like stickers that adhere to your nail. (Sorry if you’ve already heard of this. Apparently many people are already sick of hearing about it. I’m way behind as usual!)

They can have really intricate nail art designs and they also should last really well (two weeks, I’m told).  I started getting excited for this party. Finally the chance to have pretty nails, to stop being embarrassed by my hands!

My Designs

It wasn’t long after that when browsing the website that I discovered you can design your own nail art wraps! I dove in immediately. Anything creative or crafty, count me in! I decided to create nail art wraps for various Hindu holidays. How cool would it be to have gorgeous fingernails themed to the party you’re attending?  Not to mention, fancy nails for sangeets and other wedding activities. Oh my Gods, I can’t wait!

Holi is coming up fast and I’m hoping to get my order of Holi nail art wraps in time!

Here are just a few of my designs:

How To Order

US: https://ambaa.jamberry.com/us/en/shop/marketplace/ambaa At checkout please select “launch party”

My custom designs are currently only available in the U.S. but if you are somewhere else, drop me a line if you are interested (moir.carolyn@gmail.com). I would like to show the company where there is interest internationally!

For the official company wraps, I can sell to the U.K., Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Mexico. There are some very awesome official wraps too.

(Like this one)

The Party

The party was a ton of fun and I did pretty well applying my nail art wraps the first time. Iplan to make a regular habit of doing these. Finally there might be a way to maintain pretty and well-put-together hands. I have been needing this product (okay, “need” is a strong word, but this product is targeted at someone like me).

Here they are! My first Jamberry wraps. Not perfect, but not bad! I know I’ll get better at the applying

Other cool things are that you don’t have to wait for your nails to dry at all. You can stop at any point in your manicure to do things. And there is no chipping. I’m on day nine now and my wraps look as good as the day I put them on.

I’m also excited for another outlet for my creativity and artsy-ness. I always like to take things like this and add a Hindu flair.

Money

In the U.S. the sheets are between $15 and $20 each (not counting shipping and taxes) but you can get multiple manicures out of each sheet. Each sheet is probably two or three manicures (possibly even four). So that means about one sheet a month for a continuous manicure. Plus they have a buy three and get one free deal (though that does not appear to apply to the custom designs).

A manicure at a salon is $50-100 usually. If you buy your own polish you probably pay about $10 (I think? It’s been 15 years since I bought polish) for base, top coat, and color and then you have to constantly touch up. And it would be very hard to get this kind of intricate nail art on your own. So all around I think it’s a great deal.

There are ways to get free shipping too. If you let me throw an online (Facebook usually) party for your friends you can earn three months of free shipping (and other rewards) as the hostess or host, so long as the party makes a certain amount in sales. Online parties are easy and fun. The party I went to had both an online part and an in-person part.

What About Zero Waste?

One concern I have is it doesn’t support my zero waste resolution. The nail art wraps are vinyl (but also non-toxic, vegan, and latex-free) and after about two weeks you take them off. I’ve been trying to figure out ways to upcycle the used wraps. My friend suggested using them in scrapbooking or jewelry or decoupage (could decoupage things like pictures frames and phone cases). I hope that will work because I really like the idea of having pretty nails on a regular basis!

Now I don’t want anyone to feel guilted into buying from me or anything like that. I’m not going to get all fangirl/culty crazy over this. I won’t post about this often (if at all again) but I wanted to make you aware that there is Hindu-themed nail art available!

(You don’t need the mini heater, you can use a hair dryer or a rice bag, though the heater is nice to have)

Join An Online Party

Since this is not the ideal place to be talking about nail art, if you are interested in my designs and in nail stuff, please come on over to the Facebook page I’ve just created. I’m also hosting an online-only “party”/event on Facebook that you should join (and invite any friends you’d like). I’ll have games, information, and a couple prizes!

Thanks for letting me talk about my latest creative endeavor!