Doing Your Own Acrylic Nails

[Guest nymphblossom]

I've been seeing the girl at the manicure shop down the street so she can fix the split on my one finger with an acrylic patch. After several trips, I said to myself, Hey, that doesn't look too hard and stopped by Sally's for an acrylic nail tip kit. It turned out that the acrylic is actually pretty easy to use. I've been repairing the split myself for a month and it lasts about a week, just like when the nail tech did it.

I actually have nice active length nails, but was wondering if anyone does their own acrylic tips or forms. I'm a daring DoItYourselfer and after getting the hang of the acrylic, wouldn't be afraid to give it a shot

Blossom

[Guest Joanna Phipps]

That is the one thing I would love is some decent length nails. I have tried some of the compounds but always seem to break mine so they look horid most of the time. I cannot afford to go to a pro, any suggestions?

[Guest rachael1]

My wife is a qualified beautician and sometimes does her own acrylic nails but it is very time consuming so she usually goes and gets them done by a nail technician.

I have tried to talk her into doing mine but she refuses as I can't leave them on for work and they are hard to remove and can damage your nails.

I am hoping one weekend she will do them for me, I would love a set of french nails.

Rachael

[Guest ChloëC]

Johanna,

Regarding costs, have you tried looking into beauty schools? Often because they are students, they will charge a lot less, but still do a very credible job (they do want to graduate and are under the supervision of licenced professionals).

Also, I would suspect there a number of nail technicians (newspeak for manicurists) that do things privately rather then through a spa (newspeak for beauty salon), and not as a primary occupation, so they might charge a little less. It might take some asking around.

Why do I sort of know something? My daughter just finished 400 hours of state required instruction and yesterday passed her state board practical. Even tho 3 shops have asked her if she would be interested in working there, she actually found a different job through a friend that includes benefits (medical, etc) which she knows she needs, so she will be doing nails on the side, with her board certification. And I helped her pack for her exam yesterday, so I know what she carries with her, and it can be a very mobile profession. (As a parent, I already know it's a noble one.)

Hugs,

Chloë

[Guest ChloëC]

I'm sorry, I mean Joanna,

and anyone else who is thinking about having their nails done professionally.

Chloë

[Guest Charlene_Leona]

I learned how to do acrylic nails by watching my mom do hers for beauticians school and have been doing mine off and on since I started my transition. I would recommend getting the kit from Wal-Greens that has the sticker guides in the kit. You also want to get the primer and acrylic nail remover to safely take the nails off. It's not hard to do but it does take a little practice to get it right.

Charlene Leona