QuestionQUESTION: Hello. I need some advice on what to do with what looks like a broken natural nail underneath an unbroken acrylic top. I had been getting overlay on my natural nails, and a new tech said that wasn't good and said I needed new tips and acrylic. And of course, the break of the natural nail is below where the nail tip was glued. My nail caught a hard immovable surface, it hurt as though I bent it backward but the acrylic didn't break. I can see a crack underneath the coating of the natural nail, and the nail is warm from the apparent injury. What should I do? Wait for my next appointment in a week and a half? The crack spans one-fifth to one-quarter of the nail on one side, and the acrylic didn't budge or lift that I can tell. I really don't want to see the nipped off -- I'm so afraid that will hurt worse -- and the nail glued. Thank you in advance.
ANSWER: If the acrylic isn't cracked or lifted over the crack in your natural nail, I would leave it on until your next fill appointment. By then, it should be healed enough that removing the old product won't be painful. If you have a pocket lift over the area, though, you might want to have it removed sooner. I would soak off the enhancement with an acetone-saturated cotton ball wrapped in foil(unless there are exposed open areas of skin--ouch!), prep the nail plate carefully, apply nail adhesive over the crack*, and then apply fresh acrylic to protect the crack. ABSOLUTELY NO NIPPING of the old acrylic! This will only tear up layers of nail plate and possibly pull at the crack.
*Yes, you can apply nail adhesive to the crack to seal it--cyanoacrylate-based adhesives are used for "liquid bandages" frequently in hospitals and doctors offices.
I hope this helps! Feel free to follow up if you have any other questions.
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QUESTION: Thanks so much for the advice. I do have one or two other questions, if you don't mind. Is nipping or sliding a nail tip between the natural nail and enhancement a common removal method? It seems that's what the techs here do most, and it's often uncomfortable. Have they been damaging my nails? So far my enhancement is holding, although it hurts, as do a few other nails. It didn't seem as though they were filed too hard, but I guess we'll see when the polish comes off. Is gel better than liquid and powder, which is what I have. The ladies in the salon said so, but I don't know what the difference is. I already had the liquid and powder on, when they said that. The tech said next time we take them off, I can do gel. So here's one last question, how often should the enhancements be replaced, rather than just filled? I liked having my natural nails under the acrylic overlay. I'm not as fond of the nail tips plus overlay. It feels far more unnatural. Do I need new tips when these grow out? Again, thanks so much.
AnswerOkay, if the nail techs at this salon are removing your nails by sliding a tip under them, or nipping them off--run away NOW. This practice is very destructive to the natural nail plate, because the acrylic is tightly bonded to the first few layers of your natural nail, and when you separate it forcibly, it will take layers of nail plate with it, leaving you with thin, brittle, and sometimes painful nails. This is a common practice in non-standard salons, and it is an unacceptable one.
Are gels better than liquid and powder acrylic? In a word, no. Both are great products for enhancing nails, it just depends on your lifestyle, and your preference. Gel and l&p are both acrylic, they just come in different forms and are applied differently. What's really bad (or good) for your nails is the nail tech who's performing the service--it doesn't matter what type of product she uses (unless it's MMA acrylic, but that's for another post!:D), if she's overfiling or nipping off product, you're going to have a weak natural nail underneath.
As for your last question, it is possible to go pretty much FOREVER with just rebalances and fills, if your tech is doing her job well, and you are doing your at-home maintenance. There is no set time that enhancements MUST be removed--and there's no reason to use tips when you do replace the set, if the product is removed safely (soaked off in acetone or product remover). The natural nail can be simply overlayed in that case. Some techs will file out the the natural nail underneath because it separates from the acrylic, but the best thing to do is to remove the lifted portion of product and replace it during the rebalance, to keep the natural nail intact.
It sounds to me like you need to look for a new nail tech. You can find some in your area by checking out the salon locators at both of these sites:
www.cnd.com (for CND trained nail techs)
www.beautytech.com (for techs trained in a variety of professional enhancement lines)
I hope this is helpful! If you were in WA state I'd tell you to come see ME. :D
