Nine Inch Nails - In or Out

Okay - Nine-inch nails are probably an exaggeration - I do heart the band (or one-man band), NIN, but this isn't what this posting is about. I'm talking about fake fingernails. Are they still in or are they on their way out?

Growing up, there was no shortage of women in New Jersey that had long, fake nails. I know when I was little, I did somewhat admire them for the way these women could handle everyday tasks with these "claws." My parents were SO not into the "fake" anything - hair color, nails, what have you...so it was a rare occasion that I was able to sneak some 'Lee Press On Nails' into the grocery carriage to 'experiment' with my own fingernails when I got home - and it wasn't successful by any means. I think part of it was because I was DYING to grow up and be an adult - with my tiny fingernails. So naturally, the adult Lee Press Ons didn't fit my child-fingers. I think I had to use the 'pinky' size press-ons just for my pointer fingers. But it was just so fascinating to me, after watching the commercials, how you could get these perfectly sized nails onto your finger, and they looked so natural...not so. I see, now, the work that goes into nail extensions at the spa and it looks like a chore.

You'll be happy to know that I was able to get customized fake nails for my senior prom. Of course I couldn't carry off the 'claws' that many other women could because I was pretty rough with my hands - so I had to get 'sports length.' The adhesive that was used to get these fakers onto my fingers - I think she used Crazy Glue - no joke. I remember when I first got them on (my first, and last, taste with fake nails), I kept tap, tap, click, clicking them on the table - I couldn't believe I finally had fake nails that fit my fingers. The only other thing I remember about them was getting home from the prom that night and trying to RIP those things off my fingers. I felt like they were taking over like the adhesive was sinking into my skin. I also knew my parents would blow a gasket if I ran around the house with fake nails so I had to get them off ASAP. And that was hard - my nails looked like crap for DAYS afterwards because nail polish remover wasn't as effective of a 'glue remover' as advertised.

Fast forward to today and I feel like fake nails are not as 'in' as they once were. I mean, DJ Kool use to give a shout out to girls with the fake hair, fake nails, fake tans (a la 'Let Me Clear My Throat') - but I feel like nowadays, people either don't pay attention to getting the fake nails or they're going more natural with painted, short nails. I have since abandoned my 'long nail' envy and much prefer the clean, nicely manicured short nails with polish. I think it looks just as nice and it's certainly more manageable. I mean, I still wonder how real nails grow under those 'fake nails' but not so much as say 10-15 years ago. I've let that thought go by the wayside.

Maybe the ladies in the DC metro area are just more into the 'au naturale' look and my fascination has kind of died. Maybe ladies all over the place are just looking for a quicker way to 'look nice' without spending the time or the money to get the fake nails. Who knows....I say claws are out. That's what my gut says.

It Was a Breeze

So this past weekend saw me going into Georgetown for a birthday lunch and running an errand at the Paper Source - I LOVE that store. When I told friends that I was heading into Georgetown on Saturday, I got a lot of 'Hmmms' and 'That's very ambitious.' From my previous post, you can tell I was very hesitant about the situation but I looked at is as an opportunity to experience something inaugural and maybe catch some celebs shopping around.

The results - I experienced nothing inaugural (except for some signs) and I saw no celebs. It wasn't busy at all. We got into Georgetown, parked with no incident, and got a table right away for lunch. We were able to get the 'fish bowl' table at J. Paul's to make for optimal celeb watching but instead we saw...not much. As our lunch was ending, to make ourselves feel better, anytime we saw an Escalade with tinted windows or the Rolls Royce with the tinted windows, we said, 'There's a celebrity.' That was the extent of our celeb watching.

After lunch, we were even able to walk freely, without crowds, down a few blocks to the Paper Source. The weather was freezing but the walking definitely helped and after I was done with my errand at the Paper Source, there was no hanging about in Georgetown, no matter how optimal the 'crowd' conditions were.

Overall - it was a breeze - it was actually a little bit disappointing. Oh well. At least I was able to have a great lunch with friends and get my errand completed. It just goes to show you never know what's going to happen - your initial inclinations might turn into nothing at all....