Hello to all of my fellow press on nail lovers! I'm here to share my guide on how to make press-on nails last for up to two weeks. I wore this set for 14 days without ANY greenies (bacterial infection) and I'm so proud / surprised. I don't plan on wearing nails this long again BUT I really wanted to know how long my methods would hold up. This set is Bronco Brown from NailBoo and it's my second set from this pack.
This guide is for beginners and anyone looking to prevent nails from popping off / make your nails last longer, even if you aren't going for 14 days. I learned everything from the amazing users of this subreddit and I want to pass along everything I know and use in one very long post: from prep to removal.
I hope I can split everything up to read easily! I'm open to all questions & suggestions!
My top tips:
- Choose the right nail size
- The press-on nail should cover almost all of the nail bed
- Some cuticle and nail should be visible, but the press-on shouldn't touch any skin
- Curve of the nail should match your fingers' natural curve, squeezing is bad- it can cause pain and damage to the nail bed
- Size up or down for best coverage / fit
- File the press-on nail to match the shape of your nail bed
- This really helps the fake nail look more natural, most of us don't have perfectly shaped nail beds
- I file the cuticle area and the sides if I'm using a nail that is too big
- Use quality nails
- Quality doesn't equal price but you need the nails to hold strong and not bend, break, or chip before you want them removed
Prep - Day 0
- Clip + File Nails
- Length: I leave enough free nail to prevent extra glue from touching my skin
- Push back cuticles
- Trim hang nails
- Carefully clip away dead cuticles, or use a cuticle remover
- Choose nail sizes and file them into shape
- Use lots of lotion and cuticle oil
Why the day before? All of this takes me a while and I can double check the nails I shaped with fresh eyes before application. You can combine these two days of prep, but beware of cuticle remover - it can really mess up adhesion.
Prep - Day 1
- Keep hands clean, dry, and free from lotion or oils at least 2 hours before starting
- Push back cuticles
- Lightly buff the nail surface
- Dehydrate the nail bed with rubbing alcohol (I have iso 91% at home)
- Take a cotton swab soaked in acetone and rub onto the underside of each fake nail everywhere glue will go - this'll be the length of your nail bed
- Wipe nail thoroughly with a nail kit prep pad, or alcohol again
Application - Day 1
I always do this a few hours before bed to avoid any exposure to water or heavy use for 8 hours or so. I use Glamnetic Brush On Nail Glue and the process won't be the same with traditional or semi-solid glues.
- Push back cuticles and brush a thin layer of glue onto outer 6 fingers - middle to pinky on each hand
- Wait for glue to dry and buff the surface of each nail - I leave the dust behind
- Push back cuticle of first finger + brush on a layer of fresh glue
- Hold press-on nail and brush glue where the acetone was applied
- Line up the press-on nail with your nail bed and hold at a 45 degree angle, touching the press-on to the spot it will adhere
- Lower press-on nail onto nail bed until the cuticle side of the press-on is completely flush against the cuticle area of the nail bed
- This part is really important because we want the base/cuticle edge of the press-on to adhere and not move at all. My pointers have a strong apex near the middle of the nail and it curves down at the tip, so if I kept pressing after the cuticle area meets the nail that part would lift away and I would press it back down. Really not sure if that makes sense but I tried my best to explain it.
- Hold close to the cuticle with even pressure for 30 seconds
- You don't need to press very hard and squeeze out glue you need
- Spillage of some glue is normal for me but pressing too hard can squeeze the glue out a place you need it
- After 30 seconds apply the same pressure to the sides of your nails and hold for 30-60 seconds
- Check the underside of the nail and if there is any space between the press-on and your fake nail at the tip you can fill the gap with glue (my pointers again!)
- Add a dab of glue directly or apply with a toothpick
- Seal nail's free edge with glue and wipe away any extra glue with alcohol
- Repeat for other glued nails, remember to push back cuticles every time to really get close to your cuticle
- Apply pointer fingers and thumbs with extra care repeating these steps
Sealing - Day 6
I started noticing lifting on day 6 annnnd this is where I would normal just remove them, buuuuuut I did this for science. This part made me the most nervous, but if did give me an extra 8 days of wear and my nails came out greenie free. If you aren't sure of your abilities or are extra worried about greenies please just skip this.
I noticed the lifting really early. My first sign was that the nails just felt less secure on my fingers so I applied some pressure to different parts of the nail and confirmed that some separation was starting. My nails hadn't gotten to the point that a hair could get caught but I was definitely one day away from that. Only my pointers were showing lifting but I sealed my thumbs and middle fingers too.
If the gap in the nail isn't fully dehydrated any moisture will be trapped after gluing. Use your best judgement here based on how much is lifting.
Supplies
|| || |Glamnetic Brush On Nail Glue|Toothpicks| |Cuticle Pusher|Rubbing Alcohol|
- Push back cuticles
- Scrub hands clean
- Keep dry at least 1 hour
- Use alcohol around cuticle and exposed nail bed
- Saturate lifted area with alcohol
- Let dry 5 minutes
Apply Fresh Glue
- Push back cuticle
- Pick up glue dot onto end of a toothpick
- Place onto lifting edge
- Spread across edge of fake nail
- Seal free edge of natural nail on the bottom
- Add more glue to lifted cuticle area if needed
- Clean away any spilled glue with alcohol
- Repeat for any lifted nails
Removal - Day 14
Yaaay I was so relieved at this point and excited for removal. I use a hot water, soap, and oil soaking method. I usually end up with peeling near the tips of my fingers but I clip away most of that length! I tried the remover that goes with my glue but I really struggled with that and ended up with really bad damage. This is the most gentle and relaxing process I've ever done with my nails, but it takes a lot of patience.
Supplies
|| || |Double bowl of water|Dish Soap|Cooking Oil| |Floss Picks|Nail File|Buffing Block| |Cuticle Oil|Nail Clippers|Cuticle Nippers|
- Heat water in both bowls
- Add 15 ml of cooking oil and 5 ml of dish soap to main bowl
- Use floss pick to break glue seals around the edges of the press-ons
- Soak hands in the hot water mixture for 20 mins
- Remove hands + pat dry
- Reheat the clean water from the outer bowl
- Use floss pick to separate natural & fake nails
- no nails are removed yet! just adding some space for moisture to soak in more
- Soak hands for another 20 mins
- Remove + dry hands. reheat water
- Gently slide the floss between your nail bed and the press-on nail
- Nails that are ready will pop off with light pressure from the floss
- half of my nails were removed at this step
- the more tugging and pulling done with the floss, the more peeling you will have after
- Repeat this process, soaking for 10 minutes at a time until all the nails remove easily
- the rest of my nails came off after 10 minutes
- Scrub your hands clean using a nail brush, soap, and water
- Clip nails and lightly buff away excess peeling
- File nails and carefully trim dead cuticles
- Apply lots of cuticle oil and lotion!
So that was very very long. I hope I'm able to help some people out. What do you think? Did I miss anything important? Any suggestions for me? Questions?