I love manis and pedis, though I only have my toes done in the summer.

My nails are weak and my nail bed is oddly shaped, so I've had acrylics since 1992. Oh, and they definitely eliminated the biting. I have them filled every 3-4 weeks, and it does make a difference in how I think I look in a professional setting. Mine aren't long, but they're not short either. If I remember correctly, they're about the same length as sara's (maybe a touch longer). Usually done in permanent pink and white--I can still put color on if I want to.

The hour it takes someone to do my nails is me time. I can zone out, read a magazine and not worry about crap for a bit. My concession to our budget was eliminating the winter pedicures and lengthening the interval between fills from every 2 weeks to almost 4.

I've had a few mani and pedis, but I'm just not the type to pay someone else to groom me on a regular basis. Unfortunately I'm also not the type to groom myself on a regular basis, at least not when it comes to things like nail polish, plucked eyebrows, and the like. (FTR I do shave, but that's about it.)

I had French nails for my wedding and loved them because they were so pretty, but pay for the upkeep? Not me.

Oh, which reminds me, I have a hair appointment for Tuesday. Yay! Now I just have to settle on a length.

The hour it takes someone to do my nails is me time. I can zone out, read a magazine and not worry about crap for a bit. My concession to our budget was eliminating the winter pedicures and lengthening the interval between fills from every 2 weeks to almost 4.

me too. If it's not warm enough for flip flops, I'm not getting a pedi. Unless I think I might get some (scarred for life by Boomerang)

I'm just not the type to pay someone else to groom me on a regular basis.

Heh. I tried to not pay for the grooming a long, long time ago. Let's just say it wasn't pretty. Drawing on eyebrows isn't as fun as it appears to be, and DIY acrylics always end up lifting and causing a fungus.

I pay so you people don't have to. The ugly, it buuuurrns.

Thanks for reminding me I need to make an appointment, Burrell! I haven't had my hair cut since July. It's loooong.

edit: And again, Vortex and I are as one. Well, as one as a tall, striking woman of color and a short, frumpy woman of no-color can be.

Well, I hope I'm not so ugly it burns, but I must admit my brows are not plucked, and my nails only sport polish occasionally. I do, however, know how to put on my make up, so I think I'm usually presentable.

I consider my every-six-week trip to the hair salon an investment in my peace of mind. I simply can't do my own color, and this way I keep my hair trimmed properly as well.

I used to be all more of a stickler about doing things myself, like oil changes and whatnot. Now I'm kind of lazy and honestly, I'm not nearly as good at most of this stuff as people who get paid to do it. So it's an investment in the local economy, that's what it is.

(I'm good at justifications!)

edit: And again, Vortex and I are as one. Well, as one as a tall, striking woman of color and a short, frumpy woman of no-color can be.

puh-leeze! I bask in your glow. Hey, I STILL haven't been to the restaurant.

Oh dear, I didn't mean it towards you. I was picking on myself. My Italian background gave me a unibrow and a few other things, and it's just better if no one ever saw me in my natural state. That's what I was calling ugly. I wish I could get away with never plucking or waxing.

Burrell, I'm sorry. You're not ugly in any way, shape, or form, and I never meant to imply you were. (Stupid internet, with no voice to convey tone.)

I think I'll go back to lurking for a while.

Drawing on eyebrows isn't as fun as it appears to be,

It is if you're me, but I'm widely acknowledged to be somewhat eccentric.

Oh, don't go away MFN, I realized you meant you, not me. You didn't step in the guac, I'll own my reaction as my own neuroses. What can I say? I live in LA and can't help but be aware that I'm one of the only grown up woman I know who doesn't have neat brows. EVER.