MANI MONDAY: SEMI-HOMEMADE

In the food world, Sandra Lee created an entire empire out her "semi-homemade" cooking style, which mixes 70 percent pre-packaged food with 30 percent fresh ingredients.

In the nail world, you're either a pro-artist who can paint perfect tiny designs on a pinky fingernail, or you do what most of us do and buy the Easy Mac equivalent (a.k.a. nail wraps).

On that note, we decided to take a cue from Ms. Lee and make a pre-packaged mani-in-a-box and change it up a little bit.

Here's how we did it:

1. Using our favorite funky tie-dye pattern from Kiss Nails new limited edition Nail Dress Series (designed by famed nail art queen Katie Cazorla), we prepped our nails as directed on the box (the same prep for any nail wrap/sticker/minx/etc).

2. Carefully applied the right size sticker to each nail, with the exception of one finger on each hand.

3. Sealed stickers carefully and sans any air bubbles against the nail, before filing each down to fit the nail.

4. Next, we picked a funky matte polish (we used this on) on both sticker-free nails.

5. Using a nail buffer, we carefully buffed each stickered nail, creating the same shine-free effect as as a matte polish.

The result? A semi-homemade mani that looks like it was done by a professional (and who will know that it wasn't anyway?). Okay, now go make your Easy Mac.