Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is an offshoot of another DC thread but fits here. So I grew up MC but now I’m UMC. My mom always said my hair and nails should be done. But I see a lot of commentary about nails not being done. Do you think UMC women always have their nails done? What about upper class?

Op, google photos of Jacqueline Onassis. Your welcome.

But she was Catholic. I would say the WASPy women I know (social registry) got manicures but nude, light pink, or clear polish. Never long nails, slightly pass the finger tips but not more.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nail polish screams LMC/WC to me. Nail polish is all about how you are perceived by others, and UMC/UC prefer to occupy themselves with things other than painting themselves for others' enjoyment/acceptance/amusement.

I actually can't think of anyone I know who wears nail polish regularly (except their wedding or other formal event) or plasters their face with makeup every day.

Almost everyone I know wears nail polish. I am solidly UMC with UMC biglaw job.

+1 in a fairly high prestige occupation and when I look around the boardroom, almost every woman has perfectly manicured and polished hands. And 100% are wearing makeup.

Sheep.

Whatever. If I didn't have my nails and make up done, I would definitely stand out as unprofessional.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't matter but French manicures and acrylics are trashy.

Agreed. French is very 1995.

I love a short french manicure!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Probably nobody will believe me but when I try wearing nail polish my fingertips feel like they are suffocating and I can't stand it. It's NOT my imagination, I can feel the weight or pressure or something.

I actually feel the same way. It feels gross to me.

Same here!

Waste if time and money for an unpleasant experience and end result. Just skip it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nail polish screams LMC/WC to me. Nail polish is all about how you are perceived by others, and UMC/UC prefer to occupy themselves with things other than painting themselves for others' enjoyment/acceptance/amusement.

I actually can't think of anyone I know who wears nail polish regularly (except their wedding or other formal event) or plasters their face with makeup every day.

Almost everyone I know wears nail polish. I am solidly UMC with UMC biglaw job.

+1 in a fairly high prestige occupation and when I look around the boardroom, almost every woman has perfectly manicured and polished hands. And 100% are wearing makeup.

Sheep.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Probably nobody will believe me but when I try wearing nail polish my fingertips feel like they are suffocating and I can't stand it. It's NOT my imagination, I can feel the weight or pressure or something.

I actually feel the same way. It feels gross to me.

Same here!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s also a trend thing. I do get my toenails painted but never my fingernails, it’s too high maintenance for me. I think because it’s so high maintenance it seems like it’s trying too hard and therefore isn’t cool. If you look at fashion people (look at the front row at fashion week) none of them have their nails done - just short, neat and buffed. According to that other thread I am squarely UMC.

As I said the other day, this "high maintenance" stuff is white women shit. I have never ever spent one minute of my day wondering if my grooming practices made other people think I was high maintenance.

Lots of black and Latina women get their nails done. This is definitely not a “white Woman” thing.

Acrylic nails, to me, are like tattoos. I would never, but it's just about taste, and not necessarily "class". Women can do whatever they want...

Occasionally. They typically keep their nails short and tend to stick to more neutral colors. LMC and MC women are the ones who are most obsessive about their nails.

Anonymous wrote:I can’t believe I just lost minutes of my life reading this thread. Do any of you really care whether I wear polish or not? There are way more important things to worry about, no? I love getting my nails done, I always get a dark color, always gel, and I always get tons of compliments on how my nails always look “so great” ... and that’s nice but the best part is I love how it looks.

As the person whose original discussion of this in Off Topic kicked off this thread, I don't care if you wear nail polish. Or not. You should live your life however you want.

I am prone to wearing red nail polish. And even red lipstick with black outfits for some drama. People who are constantly worried about the class implications of their choices are insufferable. And I say that as someone who is obviously acutely aware of class markers.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm French and the norm in France is not to wear nail polish but always to have a pedicure. Nails must be neat and well groomed though.

Oooh la la! I feel French now. I never get manicures, but I always get a pedicure a minimum of every 3-4 weeks year round. I can’t sit still waiting for a manicure to dry it drives me nuts and I don’t have time. At least pedicures you can slide into flip flops or sandals and leave before fully dry.

I used to work in a lab and washed my hands frequently. Then kids came and more frequent washings with diaper changes, etc. I always chip my manicures right away. They only look good for about 4 days.

I HATE the look of gel nails. They are thicker/clunky looking and I don’t want to f@ck up my nail bed.

Not when done right. I will only go to a few nail techs because they do gel properly. My gel manicures don't look thick at all. I've had some that do and they look horrible, I agree, but that's not true for all of them. I only get gel now because of kids, life, etc.

Anonymous wrote:I'm French and the norm in France is not to wear nail polish but always to have a pedicure. Nails must be neat and well groomed though.

Oooh la la! I feel French now. I never get manicures, but I always get a pedicure a minimum of every 3-4 weeks year round. I can’t sit still waiting for a manicure to dry it drives me nuts and I don’t have time. At least pedicures you can slide into flip flops or sandals and leave before fully dry.

I used to work in a lab and washed my hands frequently. Then kids came and more frequent washings with diaper changes, etc. I always chip my manicures right away. They only look good for about 4 days.

I HATE the look of gel nails. They are thicker/clunky looking and I don’t want to f@ck up my nail bed.

I can’t believe I just lost minutes of my life reading this thread. Do any of you really care whether I wear polish or not? There are way more important things to worry about, no? I love getting my nails done, I always get a dark color, always gel, and I always get tons of compliments on how my nails always look “so great” ... and that’s nice but the best part is I love how it looks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think that people who are truly classy don’t worry about things like this.

Really though? If you are headed to a wedding or nice event-you don’t think about this? How is this any different than any other beauty item??

What does it have to do with upper class? And if you are really thinking about it, just google Kate Middleton and take a look at their hands.

Kate Middleton/Duchess is not average upper class. She does use polish though. Short and very subtle.

To me it’s important because it deals with how well put together you look.

Royal protocol dictates this.

I'm the profile writer who said UMC women tend toward unpolished nails. I'll clarify this statement. Rich women like Jackie O are not UMC. Especially so because she's a fashion icon from decades ago.

Tendency doesn't mean ALWAYS. One of the charms of the UMC is that they are adventurous and express themselves freely, so a UMC woman would think nothing of painting her nails any color that strikes her fancy. She does not feel compelled to paint her nails in order to look presentable. This distinguishes her from the MC woman who regularly has her nails done and considers it an essential part of grooming.

I haven't weighed in on the nails of rich women. Most of my experience with the rich is with men so I won't opine on that issue.