So just days before I left on my trip, the worst of all disasters occurred: I broke a nail.
I don’t usually care about all that. Writing involves typing, and short nails are typically good. But I was going to present, and I like to use my hands a lot, so they had to look good.
This is what I found out: they actually grind some of your nail off to make the nail stick better. Ugh. And the nails are quite thick, so that anything I might think of trying to do with my nails, like picking up tiny beads, I couldn’t do. And though I kept them relatively short, they did get in the way of my typing.
Taking them off was an epic ordeal. And once they were off, the fields of my nail beds had become a wasteland. It’s going to take months to grow them out.
So, acrylic nails, never again. And now, a few months to my normal nails, and this time I’ll keep up a regimen of nail strengthening polish for a month before any public appearances with my hands.
4 responses to “Acrylic nails”
Hi Amy. Sorry to hear you had such a bad time with your nails! It really shouldn’t be that way! No way should ‘they’ have ground your nail plate (not nail bed, that’s underneath the plate) and they should have been a nice thin enhancement so they look and feel as natural as possible, and so can flex with your natural nail. How did you take them off? If you took them off yourself, then you have no-one to blame, if however you went back to that chop-shop you had them put on at, then I would seriously go back, complain, and get your money back.
To help nurture your nails back to health (which should take around 6 – 8 weeks), use a good cuticle oil like solar oil, twice to three times a day. You can put a clear or pale polish on them as this will add a little strength (dark colours will only show up any imperfections), but only remove the polish with a non-acetone remover or you will damage your nails further.
Good luck with it all, and I want you to know, not all us Nail Tech’s are like that!
Sarah. x
Thank you for the advice Sarah! I removed my nails with 100% acetone, which is what I’d heard. Frankly, I didn’t really even trust them since I’d read that some nail parlors rip them off, and I figured this one would.
When doing nail polish, I always use non-acetone remover.
Ah, the joys of being a guy. I don’t even have nails, really. Just chewed nubs. 🙂
Sorry to hear about your nail issues.
No problem Amy :). Just remember that if you get your nails done again, ask to see certificates if you don’t see any on the wall, and if they can’t/won’t show you, then personally I would run away very quickly 🙂
If you want to remove acrylic nails again, use 100% acetone but put a few drops of nail oil in to lessen the harshness of the acetone on your skin. After about 10 minutes, remove the acrylic that has dissolved (you can use an orange stick if you have to but make sure that what you use cannoy damage your natural nail) and continue to do so until there isn’t much left, then file the rest away with a soft abrasive (240 grit). Then slather your nails in oil. It shouldn’t take any more than 1/2 hr to remove them.
Take care Amy 🙂