Manicures have a long, fabulous history. In fact, painted nails date back to ancient Babylonian and Egyptian cultures. A lot has changed since then, with innovations popping up left and right. Gel polishes that set without an LED or UV curing light are the latest craze, though professional gel continues to stick around on fingertips and in trends. Not everyone has time for the proper professional removal, but there’s still a safe and quick way to clear nails of gel polish at home. Skyy Hadley, owner of As U Wish Nail Salon, shared her step-by-step tutorial to safely remove your own gel manicure:
- File – Use an emery board to lightly buff each nail to remove the shiny top coat so you’re left with a powdery finish. Be careful not to over buff so you don’t hit your natural nail underneath the gel.
- Soak – Next you must soak your nails in 100 percent acetone polish remover. To do this, take a piece of cotton ball the size of your nail and pour the acetone on it, place it on your nail and cover your nail with a piece of aluminum foil or tape to keep it in place. Do this on every nail and let soak for 15 minutes to relax the gel.
- Remove – Remove the cotton pieces from your nails and take a wooden cuticle stick to push the gel polish off your nails. If you have trouble, instead of forcing it, soak your nails with a cotton ball for 5 more minutes and try again.
- Moisturize – After the gel has been removed, wash your hands and apply a cuticle oil to the nail and cuticle. This will rehydrate your nails after using acetone on them to keep them strong and healthy between polishes.
Hadley says, it’s important to take your time when removing a gel manicure yourself as it can be a slow process and you want to treat your nails very delicately and carefully to avoid weakening them.
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