About a week an a half ago, I decided to spoil myself a little and get my nails done! Unfortunately, my nails aren’t very long and are pretty thin, so when I go to the nail salon, you know I’m getting a set of acrylics (fake nails).
I love the way my french tips look when I leave the salon, but anyone who has ever gotten their nails done knows that it doesn’t last forever. In just a week you’ll start to see that dreaded gap between your acrylics and your cuticles. You’ll probably just leave them for a while until it drives you crazy and you try to peel them off (which can be pretty painful).
Either that or you can go get a refill at the salon. But that costs money…
I decided I was done with my nails, and so I looked online for how to take off my acrylics nails. I’ve always had issues trying to get them off, so I thought I should try something different this time. I came across this WikiHow article, and in the middle of the process I had an idea.
Long story short, I think I may have saved my nails for a least a few more days. I didn’t fill anything in, but they look much better now. So I wanted to outline what I did so that you can keep your acrylics lasting.
Unfortunately because I wasn’t planning on making this post, I don’t have any pictures for each step, but if I get my nails done in the future I’ll be sure to insert them!
Making Your Acrylic Nails Last!
Step 1
If you don’t already have one, a cuticle pusher can be your best friend when it comes to your nails. You can get a really good one from Amazon here.
Once you have your cuticle pusher, use it to push your cuticles back and clean them up. You can even use scissors if you’d like (but that can be painful if you accidentally mess up).
Step 2
Now that your cuticles are taken care of, grab a nail file. Go ahead and file down the entire top coat of your nails. If you remove all of the color, that’s completely okay. You’re probably going to want to give it a brand new coat anyways.
Step 3
This part can be just a little bit tricky, but after doing it a couple of times, it’s pretty simple.
File down the ends of your acrylics, doing the best you can to even out the surface between the acrylic nail and your own natural nail.
Step 4
If the tips are a little uneven, or they are not where you want them to be, then go ahead and take some time to file down the tips. This step is completely a matter of preference. Although, I find that it helps give it a cleaner look.
Step 5
If there is any color left, you will want to remove it. Now take any basic top coat you have (if you happen to have multiple, the thicker the coat the better) and paint a nice top coat on your nails.
Step 6
Repeat the top coat process a couple times if you feel the need. Sometimes the first coat will look a little too scratchy like the nail underneath.
I really hope these tips have helped you to make your fake nails last! If you happen to have any questions, please feel free to leave me a comment below.
