Color Street Nails Review

Every once and a while there is a craze that hits Facebook. You receive invite after invite from friends of friends who are selling some type of item; LulaRoe, LipSense and now, Color Street. This item is a nail polish strip that requires ZERO drying time. 

In order to purchase a set of Color Street nail strips you must find a "stylist" or, become one yourself. I received samples of the nail strips, ironically enough via someone I had purchased LulaRoe leggings from in the past. The sample came in a "twosie" with only two strips of a selected color.

In my sample packet I received my two nail strips, a one-time use pre-pad and a booklet that includes instructions on how to apply the strips as well as the brochure of colors and designs available.

I want to restate, I received these samples from a stylist and was not asked to review the item I am doing this at my own will.

I have never used nail strips, so when I saw this new item I was intrigued. I thought this might solve my woes of not being able to get to the nail salon as often as I like since becoming a mom. The pricing is less than your typical manicure; solid colors are $11, glitter are $12, designs are $13 and French tips are $14. I will now walk you through step by step of how Color Street works and provide my personal thoughts and feelings on the process.

Product

Here is my sample, "twosie" of Color Street. I received the glitter color, "LA Dreams" retail $12. On each nail strip, there is a clear film overlay that protects the polish. It is important to note part of the rules of this product is they must be stored at room temperature. 

They arrived in a vacuumed seal, plastic bag. When I first opened the packaging the smell of nail polish was overwhelming. 

Prior to opening I thought that perhaps one of the pros of using this item would be they would not reek of nail polish, however, that was proven to be incorrect very quickly. Even after application the smell of nail polish was lingering on the strip about 3 hours later. Another important rule of this product is, you must apply the strip quickly after opening as the polish will start to dry out once it hits the air. 

Application

Step 1: Prep your nails by using the pre-cloth.
Step 2: Separate the nail strips from each other.

​Step 3: Remove the clear plastic film from the top. 

Step 4: Peel the polish strip off of the white backing​.

Step 5: Remove the silver tab from the bottom of the strip.

Step 6: Apply the strip to your nail.

​Step 7: Once the strip is applied and in place to your liking, file the excess away.

It is recommended to apply the strips on the thumbs last; starting with the pinky and working your way in. Since I only had two, I applied them to my each of my ring fingers.

Part of the promotion of the product that I've seen on Facebook is you can apply your manicure in 10-15 minutes. I found applying the strip to be extremely nerve-wracking. The first time I placed the strip on my nail it was too far to the left, leaving my nail exposed on the right side. Luckily I was able to peal off the strip and try again where I found I did not place it close enough to my cuticle so I had to peel it off and try again. By the third try I still wasn't 100% happy with my placement but decided it was good enough. This was my right-handed self applying the strip to my lefthand, I was nervous for what would happen when my left hand gave it a shot.

As a right-handed person, painting my nails is not fun for me since my left hand always comes out fairly decent and then my right hand is a hack job. I imagine applying the strips will get easier in time as you do it again and again but this first application was not easy. I found it difficult to navigate the strip and get the perfect placement.

The good thing is since the polish is already on the strip and has a top coat, the colors are all even there is no mess of getting polish on your skin. Which happens to me often and I have to go back to my right hand and clean it up with a Q-tip and nail polish remover.

Finished Product

Now that the stress of applying the strips is behind me I have to admit I am happy with how my two nails look. I do not believe I will buy any. Though the prices are lower than typical manicures, they aren't that much lower where it makes it worth my wild. If I am going to pay $14 for French tip strips I might as well pay a few dollars more and go to the salon and receive the warm water soak, massage and lotion. Also, at my local salon they dip your whole hand in wax and let it dry, once they peel it off it makes your hands feel amazing!

A giant pro of this product is I can order these strips from my house and apply them when they arrive in the mail while the baby naps. Cons are the cost, stress of applying them and the odor which I found to be very off putting.