I have a distinct memory of sitting in a salon chair in 2008, watching a nail tech paint a thick white stripe across my nails and thinking, this is the height of sophistication. Reader, it was not. The French tip has survived every trend cycle since the 1970s for a reason—it flatters every hand and…
I still remember the first graduation party I ever helped decorate. I was 24, broke, and volunteered to make the table centerpieces for my cousin’s high school graduation. I spent $80 at a craft store on foam, glitter, and those little plastic tassels — and every single centerpiece looked like it came from the same…
I have a confession: I avoided aura nails for almost a year because I thought they’d look like a bruise. This was after a disastrous attempt in 2023 where I tried to DIY a “soft lavender glow” and ended up with something that looked like I’d slammed my hand in a car door. My friend…
I have a confession: I spent $65 on a salon pop art manicure last spring, walked out feeling like a walking Roy Lichtenstein painting, and then watched two of the outlines chip by Tuesday. That’s not the salon’s fault — that’s what happens when you put black linework on a curved surface and then use…
I have a very distinct memory of sitting in a nail salon in 2019, looking at a swatch of “neon pink” that looked less like a fun pop of color and more like the inside of a Stabilo highlighter. I politely asked for something else and ended up with a muddy coral that I hated…
I have a confession: I spent $180 on a graduation dress I wore for exactly forty-five minutes. It was a structured white midi with a corset back that looked incredible in the dressing room mirror and absolutely terrible under a polyester gown that made me look like a graduated trash bag with legs. The photos…
I still remember the sheer panic of my first grocery trip after moving into my first apartment. I had a cart, a vague sense of adulthood, and absolutely no clue what I was doing. I ended up with a pack of paper towels, a bag of frozen mangoes, and a box of Triscuits. That was…
I still remember the first graduation party I ever hosted. It was for my roommate Kayla, who’d just walked across the stage with a B.A. in psychology and a minor in stressing me out about whether we had enough ice. Our apartment was 650 square feet, our budget was roughly “whatever’s left after rent,” and…
I have what my nail tech gently calls “stubby nail beds.” It’s not a compliment. I spent years watching long almond nails on Instagram and thinking short summer nails just weren’t for me — like the whole category existed for people with naturally elegant fingers and unlimited time. Then my friend Dani got a micro-French…
I have a confession: I spent the better part of 2022 trying to find a pink nail polish that didn’t make my hands look like I’d just handled raw chicken. It’s surprisingly hard. Pink is one of those colors that can go wrong so fast—too pastel and it washes you out, too neon and it…