Should You Cut Your Nails Before Putting Acrylics

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Acrylic nails tin be a great fashion to add length and shape to your manicure, merely tin become frustrating if they're besides long. To save some time and coin, you can cutting your acrylic nails at home in between salon visits. Just be sure to follow a few easy guidelines to avoid damaging or shattering the acrylic.

1
Determine how long you'd like your nails to exist. Before you showtime cutting, call up virtually how much you want to take off. If y'all don't want to reduce the length very much, you tin can skip using a smash clipper and simply file it downward instead.^[i]
- Non certain exactly how short y'all want to get? Start with a pocket-sized cut. You can always cut or file your nails shorter afterward on.^[2]
- If you'd rather but utilize a file, starting time filing from the sides of the smash towards the center. Acrylics are fairly tough, so utilize a coarse (effectually 100 dust) or medium (180-220 dust) file and opt for emery board or metallic file to shorten your nails more quickly.^[three]
2
Position the clippers on the outside of the nail and cut towards the middle. Use the edge of the clipper on the edge of your smash to make a small cut towards the center. Try to angle the clippers diagonally upwards towards the middle of the nail, so at that place is a small signal at the center.^[four]
- Don't use pair of scissors, which tin can apply uneven pressure to different parts of your nail, causing the acrylic to crack.^[v]
- If your regular blast clipper isn't strong plenty to cut through the thicker acrylic nails, effort using toenail clippers, which are generally larger and provide more leverage.^[6]
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3
Cut towards the heart of the acrylic on the other side. Use the clippers to mirror the cutting on the other side of the nail, coming together at a point the center of the nail. This two-pace process will assistance to keep your acrylic nails from breaking or shattering.^[7]
- The middle of the acrylic boom is a stress point that, if cut directly, could cause the whole piece to split. By approaching it from both sides, y'all minimize the gamble of ruining the blast.
4
Remove the cut tip by pulling with your fingers. The cutting acrylic tip likely won't fall off on its own, despite being discrete. Try gently pulling or bending the cut portion dorsum to remove it, only stop and become to a nail technician if you experience the nail starting to crack vertically.^[eight]
- You may need to employ the smash clippers to re-cut portions of the acrylic if you find it's still attached in some places.

1
Sparse out your nails using a nail file or motorized nail grinder. After you cut your acrylic nails, they will likely exist thicker than you want. You can thin them out using a motorized nail grinder if you have one, or simply utilize a regular nail file for like results.^[9]
- Thin with the grinder or file on elevation of the acrylic nail rather than underneath it.
2
Utilize a nail file to shine out jagged edges. As you did with the smash clippers, outset filing from the sides of the nail towards the center. Acrylics are fairly tough and then feel free to movement quickly at beginning. You'll need to slow down when you focus on shaping.^[10]
- Acrylic nails are much thicker than real nails, then filing them down will take longer. Exist patient and don't blitz, otherwise yous'll adventure uneven or too-short results.^[xi]
- Opt for an emery lath or metallic file rather than glass options. Their rougher textures will make working on acrylics much faster.^[12]
- Use a fibroid file (around 100 grit) to reduce the length of acrylic nails quickly or endeavor a medium file (180-220 dust) lath for more than control.^[xiii]
3
File the tips of your acrylic nails into your desired shape. Switch to a medium (180-220 grit) or fine (400-600 grit) file to shape the tips of your nails into the desired look.^[14] Three of the most mutual blast shapes include square, oval, and squoval (a mix between oval and square), but you lot can also try a classic round, trendy stiletto, or interesting almond shape.^[15]
- To effigy out what smash shape will look all-time on you, effort looking at the shape of your cuticles. If they are rounded or curved, a round nail is a adept bet. If they're more angled, a square shape would probably wait nice.^[sixteen]

i
Rinse and dry your hands to remove acrylic grit. Filing down acrylic tin can exit a fine dust on your fingers. Employ warm water to rinse it off earlier painting your nails so you don't end up with a bumpy manicure.
- Make sure your nails are fully dry out in guild to forbid moisture from getting trapped nether the polish and causing it to lift or flake.^[17]
two
Paint ane glaze of nail polish in a color that matches your acrylics. Apply 1 even coat beyond the nail and along the outer edge to seal and add strength to your nails. This volition also assistance embrace upwardly modest imperfections caused by trimming or shaping.^[18]
- If you don't take a color that matches your acrylics, endeavor a articulate acme glaze for a similarly finished effect.
- To make your nails look longer, extend the nail polish all the fashion to the cuticle. Use a cotton swab to clean up any polish that gets on your pare.^[19]
3
Let the polish dry fully to avert smudges and dents. Give your nails 20 minutes to an hour to dry completely and avoid ruining your freshly painted manicure. Polish more vi months erstwhile tin can take fifty-fifty longer to fully dry, then attempt to apply newer bottles for quicker dry times.^[20]
- In a hurry? To dry out painted nails faster, try dipping them in a bath of ice water, blasting them with a pilus dryer on the absurd setting, or using a shop-bought drying liquid.

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If you lot have a gel manicure on your acrylics, avoid shortening them yourself. Cut into gel polish removes the seal and allows water to get betwixt the smoothen and your nail. This tin can cause the gel to lift off and ruin your entire manicure. Instead, head dorsum to the boom salon where they can safely remove the polish and trim your nails. ^[21]
Rub cuticle oil into the pare around your nails when you're finished to keep your cuticles hydrated and salubrious-looking.^[22]

If, while cutting your acrylic nails, y'all feel them showtime to split vertically, finish and visit a nail technician for a repair. Otherwise, you take a chance ruining your manicure and potentially damaging your natural nail.^[23]
Avert putting unnecessary stress on your acrylic nails and then they don't break.^[24]