Acryllic Nails
 

I just got my acryllics taken off last week after having them on for over a year. My nails are really brittle now. For any girls whio have had them and had them taken off how long does it take before the nails are strong again?

I've had acryllics! :)

I've always had really soft nails due to a lifetime of biting them or picking at them. I started making some good money this summer at my internship and decided that I had enough to pay for the upkeep of my nails. I had tips and acryllic put on. I absolutely loved the look of long nails. I had tried to stop biting my nails cold turkey but it's really hard to do. Getting acryllics made me realize how beautiful long nails can be.

My real nail had grown out underneath the tip so I had the acryllic taken off. A week later, my long nails had all broken. I still have dents in my nails. It has been almost three months since my tips and acryllics have come off and my nails are still really weak. I tell my friends who are thinking of getting acryllics to NOT do it. My nails are in such poor shape.

I put nail strengthner on everyday and I constantly file my nails. It makes them stronger. I also invest in a weekly manicure. After spending money to have my nails professionely done, there is no way that I am going to bite them!

I heard that it takes about 6 months for your nails to officially heal after having acryllics. Any truth to that?

ZTAngel: Yeah, I heard the 6th month thing too. I've found that it's pretty much true on my nails. When I got them taken off last time, my nails were soooo brittle and weak with huge purple ridges in them. I find that cutting them a lot after the fake nails are taken off.

I get acrylic nails done about every two weeks. Now, my nails are about as long as the acrylic. What am I going to do when they cut them next time because they'll be cutting my real nails along with the fake. That's going to hurt!!! :mad:

Your nails don't really heal after having acrylics. You just have to wait for them to grow out... so depending on how fast your nails grow, that is how long you have to wait. To make them grow faster and stronger, take prenatal vitamins. Also, use a nail strengthener like Nailtiques and trim and file them regularly!

acrylics
 

I had acrylics since I was about 13 and just recently took them off, before i left for europe in june. my real nails now grow very quickly, but also break very easily and they were extremely weak for about 8 weeks. I file them and use nail strengthener and theyre pretty okay now. The only thing that bugged was that my nails would accumulate dirt VERY easily immediatel;y after I took off the acrylics and still have a tendency to do so, but not as bad as before.

I've heard that if you get acryllics that you should only keep them on a few days...in other words...dont go getting fills and whatnot. Its VERY bad for your natural nails. I usually just get them done for formal or semi, then just let them grow out and take them off once they are grown out. The longer you keep them on the worse off your natural nails.

This one lady who works with my mom with would get her nails done with acryllics all the time..She did this for i dunno how many years...but it was a long time. Now her nails are very very weak, always break and are always scaling (peeling). She has to apply medicine from now on so they wont keep feeling during the day. Her doctor told her that she shouldnt have kept acrylic nails for so long...thats whatmessed her up permanently!!!

Yuck!!! I'm not a big fake nails fan anyway, but heres another reason why:

A former good family friend had acryllics for 15+ years (she SO could've bought a car with that money!!!) and when she finally stopped getting them filled and such, she virtually had no nails left on her hands!! It was disgusting...She had like fleshy coverings on the end of her fingers, but no real nails to speak of... for almost a year!! :eek: EW

I work in jewelry and so I often feel the urge to get acrylics so I can show off the pretty rings with pretty nails. So for the past three years I've gotten them put on and taken off quite frequently.
I've had such terrible experiences that I won't get them ever again!

First of all they are terrible for my real nails which take forever to grow on their own. So I'd get them taken off and my nails looked horrid. One winter my thumb nail was down to a nub and then in cracked down the middle. Talk about PAIN! The worse part is that it took forever for the horrid purple ridge (as someone described) to grow out. So my poor thumbnail was constantly cracking further down my nail and snagging on things.

I know they look pretty but they're not worth the pain. I found that after having them on for a while they'd peel away from my real nail easily, turn my real nails yellowish (and I don't tan or smoke) and just be a pain!

I don't recommend them to anyone!

Hootie

has anyone else got silk wraps? what did you think. according to most of the nail places i have been to they are much better than acryllics but i haven't taken them off yet.

I've seen then done...looks like it takes forever to get them filled. As for seeing the nails afterwards...I haven't!
I had a friend try the gel nails...actually I've had two friends try them. The one had a few problems with them breaking easily and the other seemed pretty happy with them. But price wise it's sorta expensive to maintain!

Hootie

Ewww! I've never had acrylics 'cause my natural nails are pretty decent, but all my friends got them before our high school prom. When they started to grow out, one of my friends just PULLED hers off! Yeowch! Wouldn't that hurt? Acrylics also wrought havoc on my mom's nails after she took them off, which is why I'd tell anyone not to get them...they're expensive, anyway.

Nail tragedy........

One of my acrylics broke over the weekend. Nothing painful.....just ugly. If I went into an airport, the edge of my nail would be considered a weapon. It will be fixed by the end of this week of I'll go nutty!! :p

I've had that happen before. I went to the Warped Tour and my acryllic broke as I was trying to break free from the mosh pit. I had this jagged looking thumb nail that could have taken an eye out. Just take a nail filer and file it down 'til it is no longer sharp. That'll keep it from hurting you or other people until you have time to get it professionaly done. :)

Bumping this up.

Now that I have a job where I can afford to get my nails done every week, I'm thinking of getting tips put on my nails. Like I said earlier in this thread, my real nails suck. No matter how much nail strengthner or how much I file my nails, they still break and peel. I would LOVE to have nice, long nails.

A friend told me this weekend that if you get tips put on your nails and your let your real nail grow out to the point where the tip is gone (after filing it down each time you get a fill) that it will actually make your nail stronger. She said what makes your nails weak is when you use all that nail softeners and buffing to get the tip taken off prematurely. I don't know how true this is. Does anyone know? I would love to have beautiful nails and the only way I can is through tips/acryllic. But, I had always heard that it's so damaging. Last time, I had my tips taken off prematurely and I had all these dents in my nail. So, maybe if I wait for the tip to completely grow our fully, my nail will grow stronger? Any expert opinions?

i had mine taken off last week and they were at the point were the tips were fully grown out and i just had the acrylic layer. my nails look like crap now. they are very weak and have bumps and dents in them. everytime i've had them on, i also noticed that as the acrylic gets older, they tend to break easier. but, i still love having them and once my nails start to get stronger on there own, i'll probably end up having them put back on.

I can't wait until I can afford to have tips or acryllics done every week. A nice french manicure looks so classy, I love it!

I'm not an expert but was an aprentice manicurist and this is what I have learned.

DONOT get acrylics (sorry for the bad spelling). And silk wraps are just as bad.

You are still putting a tip (fake nail) over your nail and gluing and buffing and everything else to your nails and when you get the acrylics or the silk or whatever off your nails are a disaster for a long time. At least 6 months.

The best product I have ever used is called Revivanail and it's amazing. It's also expensive but you put it on as a base coat and then a top coat. Reapply another coat for seven days straight and then start over. Once a week take it off but make sure you put your top coat every night.

IF, you get a snag or a break where it's painful if you cut the natural nail, that is when I would recommend getting a gel patch put on. Or a silk wrap patch on. But I would not put anything over top the entire nail EVER. With the exception of if you were going skiing, a wedding etc but take them off right away. four-five days tops.

Oh, and also do not saw back and forth when you file your nails. file in the same direction only.

And, oily to bed, oily to rise. Cuticle oil is a MUST.

Hope that helps.

I had acrylics for 3 weeks for a special occasion. Friday, I went to get them taken off and the our Vietnamese friend who put them on put some softener on them and pried off the first nail. I jumped a mile--THAT HURT!!!! So he put them in warm chemcials and gradually the fake nail was rubbed off. My real nails appear to be in fine condition now but I almost whapped him whan that first nail came off.

I had some in high school and my nails were brittle for about a month. But now - years later - they are fine!! I had an acrylic nail on my big toe for my wedding b/c the nail was split. And the other day I jammed it and ripped -it hurt so bad!! but then yesterday i gently tugged at it and the acyrlic came off!

I have been getting acrylics on my nails since I was in high school. Then, I had them on only for special occasions, but now since a have a little more (read: a little, little, little more) money, I have been able to keep them on regularly for about the past two and a half years. Refills only cost $10 and I don't get any other designs. I am quite happy with them.

I was taught that well-manicured hands are the sign of a true lady. My mother is very old-fashioned. Anyway, my natural nails are very, very dry and brittle. None of the products that I have used have ever worked. For my nails to not break, I have to keep them fully polished at all times. If my polish chips, my nail will chip in the same place. It got so bad that I was having to fully polish my nails every night. I just could not devote that much time to my nails.

When I have taken my acrylics off, my nails have been ridged and weak but I knew that going into it. I would not recommend getting acrylics for special occasions only because your nails will look horrible far longer than they will look good. When I take the acrylic off of my nails, it will be for good. Until then, my hands will always look perfectly polished and magnificently manicured.

I've been getting my nails done for about 7 years now. I used to get tips with acrylic over them, but found they left a dent in my nail, which took months to grow out.

Now, I get silk wraps with glue. I love it. My nails have always been very weak, way before I started getting manicures. So weak, in fact, that I could flip them back and forth. (I know, it's gross.) I've just never been able to grow my nails out. I'm happy with my "fake" nails. lol. They're not super long or gaudy looking. They're short and clean, with a french manicure at all times. Yes, it's a lot of work and I hate sitting at the salon for an hour, somtimes 2 if it's busy.... But it's worth it. They make me feel classy and feminine. (Not saying those without glued nails aren't... but I like long nails and this is the only way I can get them. lol)

Anyway.... For the ladies that love their french manicures, but hate to have them chip away after 2 days... My manicurist paints the white line under the glue. They never chip! And when I go back to the salon for a refill, I don't have to pay extra for another french manicure, since it's still there from the week before. :)

question about acrylic nails
 

Hey there... I have a question for all the ladies out there who get acrylics regularly or who have done it a few times. I'm at home on winter vacation from school and got a gift certificate to get my nails done for christmas. I was just wondering if it would be ok to get acrylics put on here at home, and then get them filled when I get back to school? Will the fill look different if I do it at a different place? Also, after I've had them filled once, is there a way for them to fill the white and pink powder the 2nd time (so I don't have to get them taken off and put on again)? lol, hope these questions make sense- I've just always gone to 1 place to get my nails done- thanks!

I've had my nails done and filled at different salons before, and as far as I know it doesn't matter the location, the fill's usually standard -- they shave down the bottom of the acrylic as deep as possible so when they fill it, it'll be even.

I've been doing mine for about 2.5 years and I've gone to 3 different places. When you go to get them filled back at school, you just say "I need a fill" and they will give you exactly what you want. I have never had them completely removed and started over, you only need to completely replace them when/if you break one.

Every salon I've been to uses the same acrylic filler. The only difference I've had are in filing styles (flat vs rounded) and paint vs airbrush for the french manicure.

A little off topic:

Get what they call "pink and white" or "solar nails". It's a different process...like they use actual white acrilyc on the tips and pink on the base. They last a LOT longer and hold up very nicely. They're SO worth it.

Have fun :)

Thanks for the replies so far :) When I've gotten acrylics done before, I have been getting the "pink and white" powder. I was curious if all salons use the same pink powder (so that the colors aren't different)? Also, when I've gotten fills before, they've only filled in the pink (bottom) part. Pretty soon, the white part gets to be small at the top- how do they fill it to make the white part bigger again? lol, sorry- hope my descriptions make sense- and thanks again for all the info :)

I don't think they do. I've only seen them fill with pink. But I always get a french manicure so I never really notice the white/pink parts. My tips are always white when I finish.

The solar things sounds good. My problem is they grow so fast, and then are in my way..........

Hmmm, sounds like you got French tips and not the Natural (clear) tips. I also get the French tips myself. As they grow out, I usually get the French manicure painted or airbrushed on.

I usually go get a complete;y new set of French tips maybe every three months.

Thanks again for the replies :) just trying to decide if I should use my gift certificate here, or just go to my regular place when I get back to school... thanks again :)

Ladies,

Please do NOT get acrylic or gel nails! If you're going to get your nails done and what not, get fiberglass. It's more gentle on your real nails and the "glue" that's used is much cleaner than what's used in gel and acrylic nails. The fiberglass nails do not promote fungus or damage to the nail. Very little filing is done to the nails. Also, when you want the nails to come off, there is no indention in the real nails like there is with gel and acrylic nails. You use nail polish remover with acetone to get the fiberglass nails off.

I know you've always heard of those people's real nails getting fungus or literally falling off the individual's hands. Well, since the fiberglass doesn't promote such goings-ons, you won't have to worry about that.

Yes, the fiberglass is a tad more expensive (but just a tad), the fill-ins are the same amount as gel and acrylic nails. I get the fiberglass and would prefer paying a little more for beauty than paying a whole lot for treatment for nail fungus and/or what not.

One of my friends got the fiberglass nails and was not happy with them. Not sure if it was the look/the feel, or both... It may be worth a shot, but the place I have a gift certificate to does not do them- but thanks for the advice :)

I don't think I've ever heard of fiberglass nails. I may have to investigate this. ;)

I wanna check and see if we have fiberglass nails here cause i hate what acrylic nails do to my real nails cause I love my real nails but sometimes they just dont do what i want em to! lol and the breakage and all of that junk! but yeah Im gonna go check it out and ill be sure and let ya know if I get em :)


Nichole

hmmm I think if you ask the people for fiberglass nails they'll do it but I am not sure. Please try them. The lady that does mine does an awesome job. YOu have to get the right person to do the fiberglass if they're going to look right. They feel very natural on your hands and they can use your real nails. They just put a fiberglass strip across the real nails. The fiberglass nails made my nails much stronger and actually grow! I had gel nails and hated them. They made my nails weak and brittle. Whenever they all got off, my nails would want to bread off in the quick. shudder!

I have had acrylics for over 3 years and I have NOT had a problem at all. I have a regular salon, but when it comes to taking off and getting a new set, I go elsewhere. Another shop charges $5 for taking off if you are getting a new set...saves me $10. Other than that I go to my regular salon

I usually get a light color with airbrush

Are fiberglass nails widely available? I've been trying to grow my own nails. but once they get to a certain length, they start to peel.

To be honest, I don't like the artificial look of artificial nails, but I want to have pretty hands. :)