Nice nails - really, does it matter?

[Merguez]

Doing my nails comes very bottom of my list or priorities. Manicure and polish only for very special occasions. But other mums I know always seem to have immaculate nails.

Does anyone really notice or care? Is it important?

pretty nails are a bit of a talisman and a reminder that I am looking after myself and happy

yes, this!

It makes me feel good to realise that I think I'm worth it. When I was a teenager I thought people would laugh at me for trying to make myself look better when it was clear nothing would help......also felt that making an effort would somehow make me feel worse, like the only way I should allow myself to be proud of looking good was if I was totally natural e.g. I had to leave my hair unbrushed. Really needed to let go of those neuroses.....which to be frank are totally useless.

My nails are always "done", with gel. It means they always look nice, and groomed, and don't chip or break. If I put polish on my own nails myself, they usually end up chipping within a couple of days, and obviously break more easily. This way I don't have to worry about it.

I can assure people that I get taken plenty seriously enough by my clients who pay me for professional advice.

I don't like making small talk with strangers but my nail lady is lovely and it fairly quickly became more like a catch up with a friend than stranger small talk.

I get compliments about my nails all the time.

I notice if people have scraggly, bitten or dirty nails or if they are long (all give me the heebie jeebies, even well cared for long nails).

I don't tend to actively notice if people have tidy, clean, neat nails but I suppose i must do, subconsciously, if I'm noticing their opposite. I'm not bothered re painted or unpainted on others but prefer my own hands to be unpainted and feet to be painted.

I'd have gel more often if it was as easy to get off as regular polish. Mine look obviously grown out after two weeks but I don't want to go that often to the salon to get them removed and it is such a faff at home, so it's holidays only for gel for me. I also don't want to be stuck with the same colour for a fortnight, I only ever have nude colours in gel, whereas doing it at home means I can chop and change all the time and do dark colours, brights and glitter at Christmas.

As for "important", well that's relative isn't it?

Compared to what? Paying your mortgage? The West Bank conflict? No, it's not "important" per se, but I find having nails that are at least filed into shape is more convenient as they don't catch/snag on everything and I do think it looks nicer, but important is probably the wrong word.

It's in the same category as not ironing your clothes for me, they probably look OK, just shaken out of the dryer and hung up, but ironing definitely makes them look just that bit better.

Admittedly peoples tastes in manicures differ wildly, but I know for myself that any sort of cuticle care, buffing, nice shaping, polishing definitely looks better than when I go through a lazy patch and don't bother at all, just like the ironing.

My gel nails lady comes to my house. So one evening every two weeks instead of plonking myself in front of the telly I have a good natter with her and get my nails sorted. It doesn't conflict with my world domination plans my obligations.

That sounds like bliss Fibonacci

Fibonacci, I'm a mobile tech and that's exactly how most of my appointments are - I turn up at my clients houses and spend an hour or so catching up with each other's lives, and I do their nails while I'm there!!

Fab way to make a living

Astro, M Thatcher is an excellent example. Yes, she was always well turned out (in her own style) but she wouldn't have been seen dead with painted nails.

I think long, painted nails look horrible. Not nicely-groomed or professional at all, just tacky.

Clean, short, neat cuticles, and buffed to a shine. Done. Maybe a professional manicure in a colour for a big night out, but then removed as soon as it starts to chip (which for me is about 24 hours).

Those thick, super-shiny coloured nails (gel? shellac? whatever they are) look like beetle carapaces. They make me shudder.

M Thatcher is an excellent example. Yes, she was always well turned out (in her own style) but she wouldn't have been seen dead with painted nails

Thank goodness for that. If Margaret Thatcher wouldn't have been seen dead with painted nails I must be doing something right.

Fortunately, for most people, the idea of having to emulate Mrs Thatcher's kind of style in order to get taken seriously as a woman is about a quarter-century out of date.

Mine are short, square and painted a bright blue that Thatcher would probably have liked. Not that they are in any way an endorsement of the Conservative party past or present. They looked good with the matching cobalt trousers yesterday. CockBollocks those nails are gorgeous!!! (what a weird sentence!) and so are all the ones with photos on the thread!

These stick-on nails are fab - cheap but effective, they last 4 days on me, I use them when I bite mine which I do in stressful times:
Impress Nails

Merguez
I seem to have missed the posts accusing people who do their nails of being bimbos

OP I dont think it is your post which has done that (explicitly). I think people are referring to this post which came across as very condescending:

TeaAddict235
in my profession it was the non qualified, or non-titled colleagues who largely wore obviously false nails. My profession is male dominated anyway (engineering), but at a professional level I know that I wouldn't be taken seriously describing the intricacies of nanoparticles to both industry & academics wearing fake nails

I did feel a little sorry for the poster that her professionalism would be undermined if she wore fake nails. I suppose I'm just lucky that I'm very well respected in mine.

Anyway in answer to your OP...surely having "nice" nails is the same as having clean hair? Some people will wash and go, some will style and blow dry, but clean is the minimum. I'm not bothered whether someone has shellac-ed nails with dangly bits hanging off or short, neat nails clipped with a pair of kitchen scissors. But I would judge someone who had scruffy/dirty/bitty nails as someone who didn't necessarily give much thought to personal grooming and hygene. I'm sure it wouldn't actually impact on their life or mine.

Agreed KarenHill, I would make damn sure that my professionalism wasn't called into question by having painted nails.

To be honest I don't actually believe some posters on here. I don't think their professionalism would be doubted at all, I think that these particular people do not like painted nails (fine) so try to think up some thinly veiled insult that they think will get their point across. It's all bollocks IMO.

My mum was very highly thought of in her profession ( a very male environment) and wouldn't have been seen dead without well manicured and painted nails. The idea that she would have been considered unprofessional because of this is laughable.

I'll go against the grain and say I love nail art, I've seen some tacky, I've seen some fun, I've seen some sophisticated. I love it all and whenever I have the time I paint my nails and decorate them. Only ever get positive comments and I am a professional. I'm lucky that my nails also look lovely when not pained, I have very white nails (must be all the milk I drink) and very pink beds. File them up and they look done without help. Paint is far more fun though.

Why thank you sticky the sparkles create pretty lights that shimmer and dance around my eyes, thus exercising my empty vacuous brain.

Meh, never had my nails done but am having extensions in a week or so. Just fancy a change. Probably will keep them relatively short compared to some I have seen but my nails break when they get to a certain length so I feel an extension is in order.

Who knew that MN was such a hotbed of very important, high flying business professionals

Sofa, I know, so many of them, its quite amazing ...

shrug some snark here, but I know what my job is and what I'm getting paid. But of course, 'on the internet nobody knows you are a dog'

Who would have thought it? Women with professional jobs? Whatever next!

The snark runs in all directions as far as I can see.

For the record I couldn't care less what you do with your own nails, providing they're clean. The OTT defensiveness amused me tis all.

"Who knew that MN was such a hotbed of very important, high flying business professionals"

Goodness, miaow! I'm sure it's not the case but you are certainly giving the impression that your shoulder is weighed down by a giant fried potato product there Sofia.