Mariposa Allure sent me some free sample European nail art foils to try out this week, which I brought out for the Friday nail gathering:

The “foil” is a bit of a misnomer — these aren’t the metallic-base foil stickers you generally think of when you hear nail foil, or a foil transfer where you have to apply glue first and rub the foil on; instead they’re sticker-like, a flexible sort of vinyl with a sticky backside (I think the flexible nature is what gives it an edge over the foil stickers since those will crinkle and show mistakes where this sort of stretches and curves, even on my curvy talons).  I tried out the floral pattern and had my friend, who has never applied a foil, follow the instructions on the site with zero assist from me to apply the halloween multicolor skull pattern.

Removing them was a breeze — you just peel the sticker part off!  Since you sealed it with a topcoat you’ll want to remove that first so you can actually get to the sticker part to peel it back (and if you’re going for long wear, be sure to wrap your tips!), but it literally comes on and off in seconds (don’t mind the gross yellowing, I haven’t brushed my nails in awhile).

It’s a quick way to get a fun patterned mani going on without spending hours painting intricate designs — and they’ve got a few fun Halloween patterns to pick from on their site (there’s a pretty black spiderweb one that looks cool) so if you’re still stumped for Halloween night you’ve got options!  I can see the appeal of using these: if you don’t want to/can’t yet paint intricate designs like this on your nail it’s a quicky soution, and a way to sidestep expensive salons, or get a fun patterned manicure should your local salon folks not be up for the challenge.  You can order directly from their site for $9.99.  I’ll have the rest on hand for next week’s Friday Hook Club too if you’re in town and want to try them out!

My friend did note though that the foils weren’t quite wide enough for her nails; while certainly you can use a bigger size for your fingers (the sheets come with a varied range of sizes), once you get to the biggest one (the thumb) there’s no wider option, and that one definitely didn’t fit right.