This is How to Remove Your Acrylics at Home, Without Destroying Your Nail Bed
Nails looking a little, er, over-ripe? In an ideal world, you'd head to the salon to get your acrylics removed but when life gets a little hectic, it's good to have options to hand, especially if the end of the month rolls around and you can't decide whether you should fork out for infils or not.
Enter the DIY removal method, and no it doesn't involve shredding your nailbeds into next year. While all the best nail pros will of course point you in the direction of a salon when it comes to the best way to remove acrylics, there are a fair few who have assured us at WH that it can be done at home. Here's everything you need to know.
What are acrylic nails?
These babies are a combination of liquid and powder acrylic (known as a monomer and a polymer, respectively) mixed together to form a soft ball that can moulded to your nail bed.
Once applied, it hardens and becomes stronger, you'll choose your desired length, so extending doesn't have to mean super long. If you’ve lived a life of short nails, get excited, you’ll be tapping those tips off everything in sight.
What is the fastest way to remove acrylic nails at home?
First things first, this isn't going to be a super speedy task. It's important you take time, you don't want to any permanent damage. Faye Twigg, AKA The Gels Lady, explains: 'Start by cutting the acrylics down short, you don't need to keep the length - this will help shorten down the removal process.'
Next, they require a lot of filing. I recommend investing in a professional 180 grit zebra nail file and start by gently buffing the nails, this wears down the acrylic. Our top tip? Apply Vaseline around your cuticles. Acetone is drying and can be an irritant on skin.
For the next stage of removal, you'll need cotton pads, kitchen foil and pure acetone – this can be bought in professional beauty shops or online.
Roxanne Campbell, a session nail technician advises: 'Soak the cotton pads in the acetone for a couple of a seconds, allowing the product to be fully soaked in, place on to your nail and wrap the foil around to keep in place.'
Leave on for 20-25 minutes, this is the average time it takes for the chemicals to break down and come away from the nail.
'Get yourself some orange wood sticks, these are essentials for getting rid of any excess product, then take a white block nail buffer. This helps to smooth ridges, file and buff out any imperfections left on the nail bed,' Campbell explains.
How do you remove acrylic nails with hot water and TikTok?
You'd have to have been living under a rock to miss the ultimate nail hack that's been doing the rounds on TikTok.
@bysugarclaws literally changed lives when she revealed that soaking your acrylics in warm water with soap and argan oil helps them to come loose without causing damage to your nails.
How do nail salons remove acrylic nails?
The process of removal varies slightly in different salons.
'Always look and ask for a salon or technician that has a certificate in e-filing (electric filing,)' says Twigg.
An electric file is a devise that can be fitted with different enhancements to make the nail shorter and thinner.
One thing you must always note is you should never feel any heat or pain and if you do so, ask them to stop immediately as this will be filing down your nail bed. 'Once the acrylic is thinned then acetone will be applied to remove any leftover acrylic,' she adds.
Acetone takes around 15 minutes to penetrate acrylic. Once it is soft, it can be gently removed using a cuticle pusher tool.
Your natural nails should then be gently buffed and, ideally, a manicure should take place to ensure the nails and cuticles are hydrated and in good health.
Can you remove acrylics with hot water?
The simple answer is no. It’s not effective and you can run the risk of burning yourself on boiling water.
Water will not cut through the formula on the nails, meaning it won’t be able to break down the chemicals. You’re essentially giving your nails an extremely hot bath.
And what's the last step?
We know this sounds simple but it's important to pump moisture back into your nails and cuticles.
Use a nail oil first and let it soak in for a couple minutes, before applying a generous layer of hand cream.
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