We are living through an unusual global pandemic, which has put restrictions on many non-essential services to close down in the past three weeks temporarily. The beauty services we’ve come to rely on are not able to accommodate our needs. Women everywhere are now trying to find ways to fix their nails, color their roots, and redo lashes. If you have gel and shellac nails, you are wondering if you should take this matter into your hands. The good news is that you can remove shellac nail polish and gel nails yourself.
Why manicure the nails
There are three reasons why you should not hold off on fixing your gel and shellac nails:
- Hygiene: The most important reason is to keep your hands and nails clean. Nails harbor dirt and bacteria, which may contribute to the spread of infections.
- Movability: long nails can turn into a “handicap” for women who are accustomed to short nails. For example, button or unbutton a shirt, type, crafts.
- Esthetic: Clean and well-manicured nails look elegant and attractive, something we continuously strive to achieve!
What not to do
There are two things you should avoid wasting your time doing: First, do not use regular nail polish remover as they’re not strong enough to remove shellac nail polish. And second, do not apply a regular nail polish coat on top of shellac! regular nail polish will not stick and will start to fake away the next day. Here’s how my nails looked like.
The first photo is the state of my nails before trying to fix them. The second photo is my attempt to apply a regular coat of nail polish as a cover-up. The third photo (the worst) shows how my nails looked like when I tried to remove the nail polish! Awful aren’t they?
Tools to remove shellac polish and gel nails
Before walking you through the tools you need, I’d like to point out that the secret to this process is time and patience. You will need to allocate about two hours in the daytime to remove shellac and gel nails. I highly recommend you work on them during the day when it’s bright outside to make sure you don’t miss a spot. Here are the tools you will need to remove gel and shellac nail polish:
Large nail clipper
Cuticle pusher
Cuticle nipper
Pure Aceton
Aluminum foil & cotton pads
Or you can buy these nail polish removal wraps for a great price!
Nail file
Electric nail file (optional but highly recommended)
Cuticle oil
Nail hardner
How to remove shellac nail polish and gel nail removal at home
Before walking you through the tools you need, I’d like to point out that the secret to this process is time and patience. You will need to allocate about two hours in the daytime to remove shellac and gel nails. I highly recommend you work on them during the day when it’s bright outside to make sure you don’t miss a spot.
- Before commencing the work, make sure you place a piece of cloth or towel on a flat surface (table or counter) in bright daylight.
- I recommend you work on one hand at a time and repeat the steps on the other hand.
- Cut your nails with the large nail clipper and file them to achieve the shape you like.
- Pour about 1/4 cup of pure acetone in a small glass or porcelain bowl.
- You can dunk your nails straight in the bowl and wait for 20 minutes, or:
- dip the cotton pads in acetone, place in on your nail, and wrap with aluminum foil sheets; wait for 20 minutes.
- Test to check if the shellac polish has melted and softened. If not, continue dipping your nails in acetone.
- Once the shellac polish melts, use the cuticle pusher to scrape the polish gently off your nails.
- Wash your fingers with gentle soap and warm water to remove the acetone.
- Use the electrical nail file to scrape off the gel and smooth the nail surface. You won’t be able to obliterate the gel, but you’ll be able to smooth and even the edges of the gel nail with your real nails.
- If you don’t want to invest in an electric nail file, a regular file should work too. Nevertheless, it will take a little longer to file the nails and even out the surface.
- After that, you can also use the regular nail files to work on corners and further even out the nail. However, if you have a good quality electric nail file, you won’t need this step.
- After smoothing the nail surface, use the cuticle pusher to push dead skin and excess cuticles towards the base of the nails.
- Cut the excess cuticles and dead skin with nail nipper.
- Rewash your hands.
- By now, your nails should look clean and smooth. So apply cuticle oil and rub around your cuticles to hydrate the skin.
- Once the oil dries out, clean the surface of the nails with a cotton pad and some acetone to remove oil residue off your nails.
- Apply nail hardener to strengthen your nails.
- You can apply nail polish or leave your nail looking bright and clean.
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