Ok yes, i know all the warnings about what acrylics do to your nails but I get so sick of looking at the ugly mess i make trying to paint mine and, well, damint, I had to try it just once.

Gotta say, whatever the future holds....I LOVE the way they look!

What I'm wondering though is this - is it normal for them to make your fingertips ache a bit? I wonder if it's just that my pudgy fingers are too wide for the normal curve of the tips...

Anyway...showing off while they are new...

I got acrylics myself after giving up on the battle to grow my own nails. I LOVE them! Mine are very long and it took a while to learn to type and use my iphone again.

I had pain for a couple of days after. Then it went away and back to normal.

Depending on who does your nails, it can really damage them.  But after having them for a year, I have found that what can damage the nails is the popping off of the acrylic nail.

If a nail becomes loose, soak it in acetone nail polish remover. and gentle pry up.  If it does not come off clean, soak it again.

Regular fill-ins helps.  The use of a dermel will also kill the nail ( most shops use them ).  Learn to do your own.  It isn't that hard.  That way you can do your own fill-ins and use a acrylic nail file to smooth down the area to be filled.

Also use an anti-fungicide everything.  Check your nails regularly for dark spots.  That is a nail fungus, and the nail must be removed to kill it off.

Use primer when applying the acrylic.  Helps the hold of the acrylic.

Any pain after having your nails done, means that they went too deep or allowed the dermel to stay in one spot to long.  And guaranteed your nails are damaged.

Mine are starting to get to the point that I do not use the glue on tips, just acrylic over my own nails.  And with patients you can use nail polish to simulate the French tips.

I've never had acrylic, but they do look very nice.  I'm cheap, so I usually do the $5 walmart (polish) french tips.     They're not quite as nice as professional acrylic, but they work well enough...especially if you're on a budget.
.
(Darn.  I was going to upload a picture, but can't seem to figure out how.  Does it have to be hosted off-site?  Or can it be uploaded directly?)

Quote from: Kay on March 21, 2010, 11:56:54 AM.
(Darn.  I was going to upload a picture, but can't seem to figure out how.  Does it have to be hosted off-site?  Or can it be uploaded directly?)

photobucket, imageshack, tinypic, or as an attachment as janet did (although the latter requires mod approval, expand "additional options" for it)

Thanks Flan.    I appreciate the help.
(I don't have those options under "additional options," so I'll try photobucket)
.

.
Woot!  Success! 

Gorgeous!

Such pretty hands!

Quote from: Dana Lane on March 21, 2010, 07:46:11 AM
I got acrylics myself after giving up on the battle to grow my own nails. I LOVE them! Mine are very long and it took a while to learn to type and use my iphone again.

I had pain for a couple of days after. Then it went away and back to normal.

Oh, my gosh... I just wonder how you can maintain such pretty nails. I know it is very time-consuming... every sunday night...

Barbie~~

Kay, that looks quite beautiful!

I personally never put anything on my nails.. people always ask me if I did put anyways. Calcium is the key

There are some vitamins and other things you get from foods which completely change the appearance of your nails, hairs..

My nails are naturally shiny pink, one of the reasons is due to high calcium. I get asked a lot if I have anything on (sometimes about lips too, but I have no idea what might cause that.. probably also good diet).

I helped mom improve her diets and vitamins deficiency, things seem so much better for her too.

But I still think the photo Kay posted is just beautiful work on the nails, probably much beyond you can get with naturally. Makes me want to consider messing around with stuff too
Also makes me wonder, Kay, are you using some skin regime? it looks smooth and bright with a bit of shine. Or is it just healthy skin and maybe some camera/light smoothing it a bit more?

I also have a few photos of wearing manicure.

I once tried white manicure instead of french, as I am not good at applying french manicure set and it always ended with mess-up.  White manicure was also funny as much as french...



In summer, I like wearing blue manicure. It is very simple and easy to apply.

https://www.susans.org/forums/MGalleryItem.php?id=2021


Barbie~~

*blush*  Thanks Laura and Myself. 
.
It's really pretty easy to do.  The kit I bought was a Sally Hanson french tip kit...that gives you a white polish for the tips, a clear overcoat, and a pinkish undercoat (which I never use), along with a couple sheets of sticker guides.  I probably spend more time getting the stickers situated correctly than painting them.  I've tried the subtractive method before (where you don't use guides, paint a swath of white, and then use polish remover and a brush to set the shape)...but found it was a real pain, and the results never came out right.  Give the guides a try though, they're pretty easy to work with, and can give you some good results (as long as you leave plenty of time between coats for them to dry).
.
Myself:  I don't have too much of a skin regimen.  I use some Vaseline intensive care skin lotion before bed every night (it gets pretty dry here), but I probably should do more.  I think you're right about the camera/lighting smoothing things out a bit.

You ladies have lovelier nails than most of the girls I know! Those look great!

I've been wanting to try a french tip forever, and i've been growing out my nails. So, after reading this thread I decided to give it a try. I went with a black tip because I don't have white nail polish and it turned out pretty good