shape
carat
color
clarity

Acrylic nails

AprilBaby

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jul 17, 2008
Messages
13,234
I’ve had acrylics for the last three years and because I had surgery I needed to take them off which I did myself. I’m giving them a rest for a while and keeping them very short. I don’t seem to have a lot of damage but in general are acrylics really bad for you other than costing a fortune? I miss my long nails.
 

Wewechew

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Apr 8, 2017
Messages
2,008
I've used dipping powder instead of acrylics for the last seven years or so. It's the strength of acrylics, but they are super easy to take off every two week to change the color.
 

lyra

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jul 13, 2007
Messages
5,249
I think the bio gel stuff is better for your nails. My daughter does her own. She's done them on me once or twice. I hate the process of removal though. I just get her to do gel nail polish on me sometimes. Very strong and can be repainted. I'm incapable of growing long nails. Daughter grows them easily.
 

Calliecake

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jun 7, 2014
Messages
9,229
@AprilBaby , The main reason I started getting acrylic nails was my own nails are very thin and would split and break really far down on my nail bed. If your nails aren’t too bad after having them removed, my guess is you are lucky and have good nails. My nails have always looked terrible and were really thin when I’ve had the acrylics removed.

One of my friends also had acrylic nails for years. She quit getting them for a few years after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She is back to having acrylic nails.

I love the look of longer nails and pretty rings. I too would miss my nails.
 

MeowMeow

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Nov 27, 2009
Messages
1,645
I'm pretty sure what I got in the very early 2000's for a couple of years was acrylic and my nails were never ever the same. They are thin and so easily breakable. I have a split on my thumb that's refusing to stop too that I never had prior to using them. I wouldn't touch those things again if you paid me. Basically I just tried regular polish again 2 days ago. If i have to scrape it or lift it off my nail in any way it's not going on my nails. If you have little to no damage from them i think you're very lucky because that obviously wasn't the case for me :)
 

luv2sparkle

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Feb 3, 2008
Messages
7,950
I have not done acrylic nail for years and years but my nails used to be super thin and peel a lot. A couple things have helped them. I take vitamins but also Nailtiques helped but the biggest help has been collagen in my coffee. I love Further Foods-chocolate. I have been using this brand (over Zint) for about 6 months and have seen great improvement. I also have been getting a lot of compliments on my skin.
 

AprilBaby

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jul 17, 2008
Messages
13,234
I filed down the top level and then soaked in acetone. I used a orange stick to push the rest off. Took about an hour.
 

Nikki1415

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
May 17, 2018
Messages
1,216
I used to do my own acrylic nails and eventually a few of my nails got badly damaged. I switched to silk wrap nails for a few years and now I do gel nails with gel color. My nails are healthy but after they grow up to a certain point they break badly and I like having my nails long. Btw dipping powder is a form of acrylic. You need to get them filled regularly, have a good nail tech that knows what they are doing and using quality products.
 

Sunstorm

Brilliant_Rock
Trade
Joined
Feb 5, 2014
Messages
1,789
I have had my nails done pretty much all my life. I think that most people underestimate the importance of well taken hands. I am fine with doing my own hair and love doing make up but hands are a different matter. I feel literally sick if I cannot get them done every two weeks. They really do emphasize rings too! I get powder which can be acrylic or porcelaine I guess.

I noticed that it actually strengthens my nails and they can grow beautifully long and remain that way. It is just a layer that projects them. No ill effects, to the contrary. Surely I do not miss the days when I was applying polish, had to wait hours only to wake up the next day with them all messed up and having to start all over. I think gel polish and powder are the best beauty inventions!

I just wish I had the time to get mani and new color every week. But since my nail artist does an impeccable job it is ok every two weeks. I am extremely picky and cannot stand the look of worn or out grown color. I do mini manis at home and apply creams and oils all the time.

Today there are many organic cosmetics available, never had any sort of a reaction.
 

dazzle66

Rough_Rock
Joined
Jan 14, 2007
Messages
35
I've spent the last two years on a quest for the perfect nail product. I used to paint my nails religiously, but got tired of my nails constantly breaking off. So i got my own gel polish and lamp and started with that. Gel polish didn't keep my nails hard enough, so they still broke. Tried to do hard gel overlays, but those took forever and lifted and popped off after only a week. Tried to do powder dips, and I loved how easy it was and how hard it made my nails, but when they would grow out, I couldn't just do a fill I had to instead remove the whole thing and start over. Took _forever_ to remove every two weeks. Finally switched to old school acrylic overlays and I'll never go back! I do it myself, so I'm very careful about filing on my natural nail. I've been wearing them constantly for over a year and my nails are in great shape!
 

lyra

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jul 13, 2007
Messages
5,249
Envy is not the right word, but I've always liked the look of well manicured nails, and I've never been able to achieve it. I have gotten manicures, but after the grow out period, my nails end up very weak and brittle.
 

msop04

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Dec 3, 2011
Messages
10,051
I've had acrylics since 1998... love them. I also do the gel polish, so it dries super fast and stays perfect for at least 3 weeks.
 

Austina

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Feb 24, 2017
Messages
7,554
I’ve only had acrylics once, and I didn’t like them, so I started have Bio Sculpture gel. I gave that up several years ago, bought my own supplies and lamps, and do my own now. My nails grow very quickly so I redo them every 2 weeks. I had Poly Gel before we went away one time, as I’d broken a few nails, but I found they looked a bit thick. If I break a nail now, I use a tip until it grows out.
 

doberman

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Mar 2, 2012
Messages
2,417
I had acrylics way back in 1988. I got a fungus under one of them and that was the end. Then last year I tried gel nails. I loved the look and the fact that they didnt smudge or chip. But they were really hard on my nails so I took them off. My nails have always been healthy and grow long but I took the gel off in august and it's taken until now for my nails to be decent again.
 

Slickk

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jan 3, 2013
Messages
4,926
Same as @doberman I used to get gel manis and I got a fungus as well. It was a real PITA to get rid of so I was scared off. After all, they are using the products on many so it’s easy to see why it happens.
I have my own gel and UV light and can do them at home, but the acetone removal is still hell on the nails. So, as of late, I am using an all natural oil product that I love and I am just trying to bring them back to healthy. I love pretty nails though and do miss them.
 

elizat

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Mar 23, 2013
Messages
3,999
I have done gel and the dipping powder nails. My nails don't like anything on them that's a product like that. The method of removal is key. No drill attachment... My nails have been naked for months and it feels unkempt to me, but they are really strong without the chemical products.
 

AprilBaby

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jul 17, 2008
Messages
13,234
I havnt given in yet but the temptation is strong.
 

distracts

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Oct 11, 2011
Messages
6,131
My nails are naturally healthy and strong, but whenever I do gel polish they get TERRIBLE, flaky and breaky, until anywhere the gel polish has touched grows out entirely. They look so, so good with the gel polish on but it's just not worth it because once I start I have to keep it up or I have about an eight-month grow-out period. So my nails don't look perfectly manicured because at least with mine there's no way to get the natural nail or regular polish to look that perfect, but they are strong and long. And I'll settle for decent-looking and low effort.
 
Be a part of the community Get 3 HCA Results
Top