Fair warning: this post is a little different from most of my others. This is primarily for my FB friends – and anyone who appreciates pretty poIished nails, LOL.
I was a nail biter for the first twenty or so years of my life. I realized a few months after I moved into the college dorm that I had stopped biting my nails. (Who knew that college life would be less stressful than home?) I also discovered that I loved the look of polished nails but traditional nail polish and I just don’t get along so I rarely went to the trouble. Then, about four years ago, I discovered Color Street nail polish strips. The strips are 95% dry so you just apply them and go – no dry time required. In roughly twenty minutes I could have fully polished nails on both hands with no smudging or peeling. I was in heaven and had “fancy” nails most of the time.
Hypothyroidism made my fingernails brittle; they would break if I looked at them sideways. In spite of trying numerous products to strengthen my nails I was having more and more problems with them so, in 2022, I took a break from polish for several months in an effort to get them in better shape. While the break helped, my nails still weren’t as healthy as I wanted them to be so even though I started wearing polish again, I limited it to once every few months. Then, earlier this year, I accidentally found the product that worked miracles on my nail health – Vaseline Intensive Care Healthy Hands lotion with keratin. I grabbed a small tube to keep at work and after using it 2-4 times a week for 3-4 months, I suddenly realized that my nails are healthy: they’re strong, their color is good, and – most amazing of all – the ridges on my nails are starting to fade. Mind. Blown.š¤Æ
Say what you will about FB (and believe me, I have opinions), their algorithms work well (except when I’m the one running the ad) so I frequently see ads for nail polish strips. The ads for Lily and Fox piqued my interest and I took the plunge and ordered a few sets. The main thing going for Lily and Fox is price. I ordered three sets for a total of $12 dollars including shipping and handling. With Color Street, $12 will get you one set (maybe). Lily and Fox also included an extra set as a “tester” for those who aren’t familiar with the process and an adorable origami fox.
Lily and Fox has a lot of cute sets but I’m a glitter girl and they have very few full glitter sets. Most Lily and Fox sets are a gloss with glitter accents. I have now used 2 of the sets I purchased and the verdict is in… Color Street works better.
Both Lily and Fox sets went on easily but they are much thicker than Color Street strips so they don’t have that little bit of stretch that comes in handy if you chose the wrong size strip or accidentally apply it off-centered. The extra thickness means that I also need scissors and a nail file to remove the excess portion of the strip instead of just my fingernails. Also, the Lily and Fox sets lose their gloss quickly. I don’t want to have to apply a top coat to keep my nail strips shiny. The biggest problem with the Lily and Fox sets is how well they adhere. Even though I prepped my nails by washing my hands and cleaning my nails and finger tips with an alcohol prep pad there were issues with both sets. The first set formed bubbles under a few of the strips and the number of bubbles increased each day. The second set was fine – until the next day; the strip on my left ring finger started peeling off. I could push it back down, but the next time I checked, it would be peeling again. I have no patience for this. However, due to the fact that Lily and Fox strips don’t adhere like actual polish, I was able to simply peel both sets off with no damage to my nails.
CAUTION: Do NOT attempt to chip/peel off traditional polish or Color Street nail polish strips. Use nail polish remover. Attempting to chip the polish off will damage your nails.
I’m glad I tried Lily and Fox but, going forward, I’m going to be sticking with Color Street. I’ll pay the extra money to have an easier application and a longer lasting product.
Any other nail strip users out there? If so, which brand(s) do you use?
Linda Lou's Life 
I also chewed my nails until college…which was way less stressful than living at home. Mine still break and tear (thanks to a lifestyle with kid, pets, baking, gardening, etc.) enough that I don’t bother with polish. But thanks for the heads up on the hand lotion–it’s super dry here right now, which is killing skin and nails!
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I didn’t know nail strips existed! I was a long time nail biter, but, just for fun once, I got fake nails. I saw how much nicer my hands looked; I guess it was a great visualization. After those fake nails (which I only got once), I never bit my nails again. More than 20 years now. I used to use clear polish, but now I just go au naturale. Good for you for figuring out Facebooks ads! I’ve tried to do that for my e-book, but it’s a puzzle to me. Thanks for the tip about the hand lotion!
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Linda, I’v never heard of nail strips – what a novel idea! I bit my nails until I got braces on my teeth, (the kind that wrapped around each tooth and were strung together with heavy wire and I also had rubberbands and headgear); that discouraged biting my nails and I’ve never gone back. š I was a slave to my nails once upon a time, though I always did my own manicure – pinky-beige tones half the week and a darker shade of pink or even red the other half of the week. But despite using a base coat, my nails were stained, so I cut them very short and only used Clinique clear nail polish until they grew out healthy and white again. It is the formaldehyde resin in nail polish that causes the nails to get so yellow.
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Hiya! This is exactly was hoping to get… An honest review. I was curious if I should try Lily and Fox because the price is so doable. But I was skeptical. Why so inexpensive? Now I know why. I’ll stick to my Color Street. Did you know that if you use a partial pack of Color Street you can heat seal the plastic package to keep them fresh? I used a curling iron. I had some that were stored in plastic Ziploc baggies and some that I sealed in the original plastic. The ones in Ziploc were useless, but the ones I heat sealed were just as good as when I opened them…. Like 3 years ago! Yes! 3 years at least. I just found my stash after moving and took the chance. So happy!
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I’m glad my review was helpful!
My hair is so short I don’t have a curling iron, LOL I’ll have to figure another method. It would be nice to be able to reuse partial packs.
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If you put the unused Color Street nail strips in the freezer, you’re able to reuse those partial packs! š
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Thanks for the tip!
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I have been using color street for sometime and I was told about the stylist that once you open the pack then put the remaining back in the same bag it came and put the whole pack in a ziplock, seal the ziplock and stick it in the freezer. I did that and went back to reuse the same shade after 5 months and it was still perfect and same as the original sealed pack.
she did mention the curling iron but I thought the freezer trick was much easier.
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Thanks! I’ll try that next time I have a partial pack.
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thannk-you. I also tried Lily & Fox, although they are cute & cheap abd have grwat designs. I don’t like them except for one strip I got compliments. They are too thick & don’t last as long or are as easy to apply as Color Street is and the designs are clearer with Color Street. I have been a Color Street customer for 3 yrs now, except for my 1 lapse in judgement. I do a mixed mani-pedi each time and usually have only a couple of small strips left.
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I was most disappointed in the set I bought for Halloween. They were adorable… and peeled off on the 2nd day. I’ll stay with Color Street from now on.
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I sold Color Street and loved them till I started noticing that my nails were getting extremely weak and bending. I took breaks, I used strengtheners, etc etc till I just stopped using them. I’ve got SO many sets from all my stock (lmk if y’all are interested lol) I will still use now and then and I do miss having pretty nails. I literally just ordered 1 set of lily & fox just to try them since one set cost almost nothing. They may not last but for a few bucks, I just wanted to see the difference! Thx for your review though š
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I sold Color Street too! I had similar issues with my nails. Vaseline Healthy Hands lotion with keratin has made a world of difference in my nails. They are much stronger and healthier – a lot of the ridges are even smoothing out. I now only wear Color Street once every 4 – 6 weeks. I miss having pretty nails in between sets.
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well I just put the lily & fox set on. For most part it was fine. Occasionally longer to get plastic part off, I could use my nails to take off ends ok. It was a bit annoying not to be able to use other end mostly for design of set & I’m not totally confident that they will all stay on thru sleeping (I’m rough on my hands during sleep, no clue wth I do lol) so we shall see. I will have to try that lotion!
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Good luck!
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well the nail strengthener I put on after is what helped them stay on overnight but unlike CS, these don’t seem to cure and I’ve had little parts on ends peel right off. Disappointed as I thought they’d be as similar to CS but not so much. If ya had a 1 day thing they’d probably be ok but…..thx
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Iām interested in your Color Street overstock!!
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Have you used the new set yet? Please let us know.
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I tried two sets of Lily and Fox. I was so excited about the set I bought specifically for Halloween; it was glittery black polish with adorable bow-wearing skulls on it. I applied the strips, and it looked great. The next morning, when I got out of bed, several of the strips were peeling off. I was so disappointed. I’m glad I gave Lily and Fox a try, but I won’t do it again.
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Thank you for all the comments everyone made. It gives me something to think about trying.
I’ve always had very short, weak and brittle nails so in 2000,
I started having acrylics, then gel nails from the salon for most of 20 years until my nails got so bad from not taking a break other than when I had to because my own nails were lifting away from my finger. And I removed them all.
It’s been about four years now.
I so miss having beautiful nails.
Last year and first of this year, 2025, I used Sally Hansen nails with adhesive. Some times I ended up using glue.
I took them off today and my two index fingers are starting to look bad, worse than before I started wearing fake nails from end of last year.
I may have to give Color Street a try!!!
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I have to give my nails a break periodically, or some of them start separating. In between sets, I use Color Street’s brush on nail strengthener, and I use their strengthening nail serum all the time.
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