Sally Hansen • French Manicure Pen-Pure White-Traditional Tip • Nails

scandalous on 12/15/2012 2:14:00 PM more reviews by scandalous

Age: 36-43   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium, Neutral   Hair: Brunette, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Brown    

Omg I'm shocked at the bad reviews of this. I have short nails and was thinking of getting acrylics because I love pink and white nails but saw this and thought I would give it a try first...


I LOVE the fact that its not "white out" white! It still gives me a distinctly white tip without looking fakey fake. Going over it one time works for me, but I will need practice.


This is a felt-tip type pen. The tip is a chisel shape so you can do a thinner line or a thicker one. This is also SUPER convenient for touch ups if you happen to chip a tip. Another HUGE plus? It dries pretty fast, unlike conventional nail polish. I love this and will buy again. :)

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dvlbny on 3/8/2012 12:56:00 PM more reviews by dvlbny

Age: 25-29   Skin: Sensitive, Olive   Hair: Red   Eyes: Brown    

Terrible. The "polish" in the pen is not completely opaque and when you try to apply a second coat it wipes off some of the first coat even after it's fully dried.
I have better luck freehand with a detailing brush.

Same as the "Tools - Sally Hansen - 5 Minute FRENCH Manicure Pen Kit"

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*TOP REVIEWER* MrsTefee on 12/30/2011 4:52:00 AM more reviews by MrsTefee

Age: 19-24   Skin: Very Dry, Fair   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Blue    

I was really excited to try this pen but... it kinda let me down. It works but not very well. It applies really really wet and runny and very sheer so it was really messy and I couldnt get a straight line at all. It also left weird bumps all over my nails where I used it which I dont understand.. I think it was from the tip of the pen because its made out of a very weird hard material.

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ontheglam on 6/26/2011 3:44:00 PM more reviews by ontheglam

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Blond, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Blue    

This is total crap. I wanted to make it easier to give myself french manis than those stupid stickers and white polish, but this is just awful. For starters, the formula is quite thin and sheer. You have to layer it so many times to get it to be an opaque white, but when you do that it just flakes and gets lumpy. The pen itself is really bad, as well. You have to hold the tip down forever to get anything out of it, and then suddenly it'll pool EVERYWHERE. What a mess and what a total waste of money.
I'm going to buy some more of those stupid stickers.

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sleepingbeauty617 on 6/20/2011 2:00:00 PM more reviews by sleepingbeauty617

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair   Hair: Brown, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Hazel    

This is CR*P!!! I bought this product thinking that it would make it easier for me to do a french manicure, but it was a waste of my money. The nail polish is not very pigmented, and even after shaking it and holding the tip down for a while, the color came out watery and not very white. It also got extremely messy when I tried to put on 3 coats to make the white more white. This product is only meant for 1 coat. Besides that, it chipped and cracked only 1 day after I put it on! This has never happened with any sally hansen nail polish that I used. My manicure looks like it's a week old, when I only put it on 2 days ago. You also need a little brush to shape the line exactly as you want it, because this product does not do it. The tip breaks and opens up quite easily too. This product is horrible, I will never buy it again.

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JessJess5 on 5/24/2011 4:18:00 PM more reviews by JessJess5

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Tan, Warm   Hair: Black, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Brown    

This is so convenient and easy to use. It's pigmented and dries fast. The white did chip a little bit the next day but it's so easy to touch up. It seemed watery at first but not for long. I have no complaints. Even my right hand (drawn on with left) turned out good. I'm surprised. The packaging is easy to store, easy to spot in your collection, the cap snaps on tight, and it's very utilitarian.

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zeezeezee on 2/22/2011 7:26:00 AM more reviews by zeezeezee

Age: 25-29   Skin: Normal, Olive   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Hazel    

A few weeks ago I would have given this one star. It IS too runny and very very white, but after using it a few times I think I'm getting the hang of it. You really have to rotate your nail under the pen and not try move the pen tip over your nails. I did this at first and it was too thick, too white and the line was crooked. While I'll keep using it (it's easier than a brush) it does chip easily and when my nails are very long the white can look too stark.

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vwzen81 on 4/2/2010 11:00:00 AM more reviews by vwzen81

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Fair, Cool   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Green    

Wow, I’m really surprised at all the negative reviews. I think this pen is great and it makes doing my French manicures so much easier than using white nail polish (which tends to get goopy, real fast). I’ve been using this pen for over a year; it does take some practice to get used to it. I don’t have any problems with it being runny or watery like some people; make sure you shake it very well, press the tip in on a paper towel to get the polish to soak the tip; then I swipe the tip back and forth over the paper towel to get any excess polish off. Then the trick is to position the tip at the edge of your nail and rotate your finger, not the pen, keep the pen still. This method works for me every time and I always have perfectly straight lines. The only thing I don’t like is my French manicure will only look good for about 3 days before the tips start to chip; however, I haven’t found a white yet that will last longer than 3-4 days on natural nails.

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fionarocks on 1/15/2010 3:48:00 PM more reviews by fionarocks

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

I gave this a try today and really liked the results. It gives a nice, clean line without looking tacky. Quick, convenient, compact...I have no complaints except...packaging is immensely dull. But I can deal with that.

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floralipke on 11/8/2009 10:11:00 AM more reviews by floralipke

Age: 36-43   Skin: Very Dry   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

I would never be able to do French Manicure myself at home with regular nail polish. I dediced give this a try. It takes pratices. It is very runny and first time it got over my nails and smeared under the nails. It was very messy. After severail pratices, I am able to manage it. I am able to draw fine and thin lines. It is stark white. I use two coats of OPI transparent pink Passion to cover the harsh. It is OK but I wish they make soft or sheer white.

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lowenbajowen on 5/25/2009 1:08:00 AM more reviews by lowenbajowen

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair   Hair: Black   Eyes: Black    

I'm not sure which Sally Hansen product this review should go under, but i basically bought a pack of Sally Hansen natural pink color, a white nail polish pen, and a sheer pink top coat.
The sheer pink top coat seems pretty ineffective. It says you can use it daily to help your nails grow, but I haven't tried using it that way.
The pink nail color IS a nice nail color, but it streaks like hell and looks horrible and uneven.
The pen is okay, but if you don't put on any kind of base or top coat, it'll just peel off like a sticker. Its not as opaque as my other pen. [I got it two years ago in some cheapo set at TJMaxx. It's called 'manicure magic' and it seems awesome compared to this.]
However, I'll probably use the Sally Hansen pen, just because the sheer white color looks a little bit more natural, and not as stark.
I don't know how the strips are because I never use strips. I'm good at just free handing with a paint pen on my tips.

So again, like all the other Sally Hansen products I've tried, I was disappointed. Bottom line, Sally Hansen products SUCK horribly, and I will never buy anything from them again.

From now on I'll be experimenting with O.P.I. and some other brands.

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rbrown4 on 12/2/2008 8:04:00 PM more reviews by rbrown4

Age: 25-29   Skin: Acne-prone, Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

I've bought this several times... I ONLY use this for touch ups, not the entire tip, as this does not last for me. It's great to throw in your bag or leave at the office for a ick mani/pedi repair.

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*TOP REVIEWER* user24678 on 8/28/2008 11:35:00 AM more reviews by user24678

Age: 19-24   Skin: Sensitive, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Black, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Green    

I'm not sure what to think of this pen. I've used it once and it can apply very nice and look really good but sometimes the flow coming out of the pen is too heavy and it goes on too wet and thick so I had to erase small areas with nail polish remover on a Q-Tip and re-do it. It'd be great if it applied drier. Also, when I went to do a top coat over it about 30 minutes later, it smeared. I don't know if it just takes a ridiculously long time to dry or if it doesn't set like regular nail polish does. Very odd. Next time, I guess I'll try letting it dry for an hour or more to see if it makes a difference, although I do think that's a long time to have to wait.
Update 11/13/2008: I tried this again the other day. After a few tries on most nails, I got it to look pretty good. Sometimes the flow is too heavy and it comes out globby so it has to be re-done. I let it dry for a couple hours just to be safe. Then I went to apply a top coat over it (Sally Hansen Diamond Strength), and still, it smeared! I've come to the conclusion that it's not nail polish in the pen but maybe something water-based. I can't see any other reason why it would smear like that even after having dried for a couple hours. I managed to keep the smudging to a minimum by swiping the top coat across it really quick and not dragging it at all. But after all that work, it was already chipping quite a bit within 24 hours. All that work and it hardly lasted a day! It was quite frustrating. It can be done to look good if you really put the time and effort into it, but it just wasn't worth it in the end. It might be worthwhile to take the time and do the day before a wedding or something (when it only has to last about a day), but otherwise, it just isn't worth it considering it takes a long time to apply properly and then it doesn't even last. I wasn't very impressed.

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*TOP REVIEWER* glamourdoll on 6/13/2008 11:05:00 PM more reviews by glamourdoll

Age: 36-43   Skin: Oily   Hair: Black   Eyes: Black    

A rare misfire from Sally Hansen. It is impossible to control the amount of paint on the tip. The neat, handy, pen-style presentation cannot make up for how difficult this is to control. I have to agree with the other reviewers who pointed this out. This seeped under my manicure guides and I noticed that another reviewer complained of the same thing. This is going in the trash, and I will definitely not repurchase.

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peacegiraffe on 6/11/2008 3:02:00 AM more reviews by peacegiraffe

Age: 19-24   Skin: Normal, Tan   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

One day my friend and I were at target looking for nail polish and we came across these in a manicure kit. I thought it would be a little weird and wondered how it work... we bought them and omg I LOVE this pen! I admit that at first it was horrible. I couldn't make straight lines for crap! But after a few uses and getting used to it my manicures started looking better and better. Now I'm pro at it and people always compliment my nails and are surprised when they learn I did it myself! I've been buying this for the last year. :)

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robyn72 on 4/17/2008 6:54:00 PM more reviews by robyn72

Age: 30-35   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Hazel    

I was getting tired of making a mess with polish and stucky tape manicure sets, so I gave this a try and I love it! It makes giving your toes a french mani VERY easy. Only problem is that I'm right handed - so my left hand looks great, right hand needs some practice. I too, put a sheer pinkish over it to soften the look. Love this stuff!

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achick on 4/6/2008 2:24:00 AM more reviews by achick

Age: 19-24   Skin: Acne-prone   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

Easy to use, but not fool proof or anything. Way easier than when I used to do it with normal nail polish (brush). I give it a yay because it went on pretty fast and nothing seems really wrong with it. Not sure how it'll hold up though, I'll edit it in here in a few days.

When you get it just shake it and push the tip in a few times to get the polish out/down.

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*TOP REVIEWER* Tina68 on 2/13/2008 9:26:00 AM more reviews by Tina68

Age: 36-43   Skin: Acne-prone   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

I like the idea of using a pen for a French manciure, but I don't like Sally Hansen's version of this idea. First off, the colour is a very stark white and I loathe that look for a French. I prefer a more subtle, understated look that I get with OPI Desire, for example. To get the pen started you have to hold it down for about 30 seconds until the polish has saturated the tip. Then you start polishing where you want the white along your nails. The thing is, however, you have no control over the amount of polish that comes out and if you're not careful you will end up with a thick line of polish that looks horrible. It took me three attempts to get the look I wanted, but then it took the polish forever to dry. I ended up removing all my polish because when I went to apply the topcoat the white streaked into the rest of my manicure. It was a very frustrating evening. I will not repurchase this, nor will I ever use it again. Maybe if the white was more natural looking, I would give it another shot, but I'll stick with Desire and my free hand.

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*TOP REVIEWER* crazyfrog13 on 2/12/2008 6:00:00 PM more reviews by crazyfrog13

Age: 19-24   Skin: Very Oily, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Blond, Curly, Medium   Eyes: Blue    

Sally Hansen makes some great products, but this is not one of them. The polish is very runny, which makes it damn near impossible to get a perfect line or even coverage across the tip of the nail. This is a good concept, but there's no way to control how much polish comes out, and I have yet to be able to get the results I want. I won't waste my money on this again.

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roses888 on 12/2/2007 6:45:00 PM more reviews by roses888

Age: 36-43   Skin: Oily, Fair   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Green    

I had trouble with this product. The polish was very running and it ran under the tape guides for my french manicure - it was a mess when I pulled the guides of! It had seeped under the guides! The product is on the wet side. On the bottle it says to use one coat but you really need 2 or more to make it even. This product reminds me of white-out. It's the same consistency. It chips like other nail polishes no special chip proof here. On a plus side the pen is easy to use just like a fat magic marker.

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