So, by now it's pretty clear just how much I love my Smoke & Mirrors press-ons, but if you're used to close-cut natural nails, switching overnight to near-daggers can be quite the adjustment. From texting and typing to making my bed, washing dishes and even removing my makeup, I have constantly been aware of my nails and the fear that they'll pop off at an inconvenient time -- or worse, I'll injure myself.

Here's my advice though: I think the reason I felt so uncomfortable at first is because I'm used to having to be careful with press-on nails if I don't want them to immediately fall off. Unfortunately, in the first few days of wear I didn't fully trust that Static Nails were worth the hype and truly nothing to worry about. That being said, use your hands as you normally would and don't worry about pop-off -- these nails are made to last.

Image courtesy Rebecca Norris

You might roll your eyes at Static Nail's claim that they can last for up to 18 days. I know I did. But then I pressed the nails onto my short nail beds and they're still going strong. While I haven't worn them for 18 days, they have so far stayed intact for seven days, which is simply unheard of in the world of press-ons.

Update: As for how my nails fared when I removed them, I was pleasantly surprised by the result. While most manicures -- gel or otherwise -- leave nails feeling brittle, a week with my Static Nails mani left my nails looking no different than the day that I pressed them on, save for some residual glue that I was able to easily peel off. So, why only 7 days when they claim to last 18? Instead of giving them the full time to run their course and fall off, I opted to pluck them off by lifting the sides as instructed, knowing that they could be a potential hazard during my upcoming weekend away swimming through rapids (call me crazy).

In the end, only two nails (my pointer fingers) were difficult to remove in the process, which I suspect is because I put extra glue on those fingers, as they're always the first to go with any other press-on nails I've tried. (The instructions tell you how much glue to apply, depending on how long you want them to last.) Either way, 7 days or 18, that's seriously impressive technology for the world of press-on nails, don't you think?

As for the Static Nails, they were in as good of shape as ever and ready for my next application.

Image courtesy Rebecca Norris