Most ladies these days have turned to acrylic nails to add some glam and length to their nails. As cool as they make you look, you cannot have them on forever. You’ll usually want to take them off after a month so you can have a change.
This is where the challenge lies, taking the acrylic nails off. No need to sugarcoat it, we all know that the process is very painful. This is why it is advised that you visit a salon and allow pro help with the removal process.
You may not always have the luxury of time to visit the salon, apart from the fact that you can save the money to be spent. We’ve got your back which is why we have brought you the necessary steps to remove acrylic nails at home.
Taking off Acrylic nails at home
Considering how painful the process can be, every lady searches for the fastest way to get rid of the nails? Your best bet for this is acetone and we will tell you why. Acetone is a chemical in liquid form that rids you of the rigors of removing your acrylic nails by dissolving them. Did you just smile? It’s okay to do that, your savior is here.
No doubt, there may be a little bother of whether the chemical may cause harm to skin or if there are other side effects. If you have any concerns, you are right to have them. But about damaging the skin, you are safe, acetone will not cause such damage, else we wouldn’t recommend it.
An established fact is that it could cause a bit of redness and dryness of the skin. These occur in very rare cases. Asides these, there really is no harmful effect of acetone on the skin. Still, we advise that you do not allow it to come in contact with your skin too often. As much as possible, check out the safety precautions regarding the use of acetone and follow them to the letter.
How to use Acetone to take off Acrylic nails
We have already established Acetone as a way out of painful removal of acrylic nails and its safety. The question that begs to be answered is how do you use this liquid chemical to take off acrylic nails?
There are two established methods of doing this and we will be discussing them in detail in the next few paragraphs.
Method 1: Making use of Acetone and Aluminum Foil to take off Acrylic nails
Before we go ahead, you should note that most of the items, in fact, all of them are readily available. You probably have them at home or can pick them from the store around the corner.
Items needed
- Acetone
- Nail file or buffer
- Nail clippers.
- Petroleum jelly
- Aluminum foils
- Cotton pads or balls
The process
- Make use of the clippers to shorten the acrylic nails as much as possible.
- Use the nail file or buffer to file off any form of nail polish or color used as the top coat for the acrylic nails. This will help you avoid any unnecessary mess that could result from the colors.
- Apply the petroleum jelly on the skin that surrounds the cuticles. This is necessary to protect your skin from the effect of the acetone. Once you have done this, dip the cotton balls in the acetone and place them on each nail.
- Cut a piece of aluminum foil and wrap it over each nail to keep the cotton in place.
- Allow it to stay on for between 25 and 30 minutes.
- By this time, the nails must be loose enough to come off. Here’s what you do. Pull off the aluminum foil gently from each nail, the nail should come off along with the foil. If there is still some resistance, it means the process is not complete and you need to give it more time.
Method 2: Using Acetone with warm water to take off Acrylic nails
If you feel the first method is too farfetched or wouldn’t work for you, then you can try this method. It might be a bit more straightforward or simpler, especially if you have the materials readily available.
Items needed
- Acetone
- Nail clippers
- Orange sticks
- Two bowls
- Tweezers
- Petroleum jelly
- Warm water
The Process
- Just like in the first method, you need to cut the nails as short as you can use the nail clippers. After you do this, pry your cuticles as much as you can using the orange stick.
- The bowls you will be using should be of different sizes. Fill the smaller bowl with acetone and the larger one with some warm water. Put the bowl containing the acetone into the larger bowl of warm water. This is important to heat up the acetone a bit.
- Generously apply the petroleum jelly to the skin surrounding your cuticles. You need to do this to prevent the harshness of the acetone from acting out on your skin.
- Now that the acetone is warm and you have sufficiently protected the skin around your cuticles, dip the nails into the acetone. Ensure that the whole length of the nails is submerged in the acetone. Leave the nails submerged for between 30 to 40 minutes.
- When the time is up, gently poke at the nails to see if you can get them off now. If you notice they are loose enough, then you can make use of the tweezers to pull them off gently. However, if you notice any resistance, rather than becoming violent with the nails, soak them back in the acetone.
Taking off Acrylic nails without using Acetone
Let’s face it, no matter how convincing we are about the safety of the use of acetone, not everyone wants to risk having it on their skin. If you fall into that category, it is normal so don’t feel weird. There is still hope, you can still get rid of those acrylic nails.
There are several other measures through which you can take off acrylic nails. Guess what, they are not as painful as you expect. They all require simple items that you can get easily, and acetone does not make the list in each case.
Method 1: Using Acetone-Free Nail Polish Remover to take off Acrylic Nails
Here’s a simple fact, though you may not like it so much, it’s going to take more time than any of the methods using acetone. However, since you don’t want acetone on your skin, it is worth every second spent. Did you know your regular nail polish remover could be useful in removing those acrylic nails? Let’s see how.
Items needed
- Acetone-free nail polish remover.
- Bowl
- Tweezers
- Nail clippers.
The Process
- As expected, you need to cut the nails as short as possible using the nail clippers.
- Make of the pointy part of the tweezers to pry the edges of the nails gently.
- Pour some of the acetone-free nail polish removers into the bowl.
- Submerge your nails into the remover for a minimum of 40 minutes.
- You should feel the nails loosen up after 40 minutes. At this point, make use of the tweezers to take off the nails gently. It shouldn’t be a struggle, so if you notice some form of resistance, it means you need to soak the nails some more.
Bonus tip: Usually, acetone-free nail polish remover gets to evaporate very quickly when left in the open air. To ensure that you have enough nail polish remover at the end of the day to remove the nails, you need to keep adding more of the nail polish remover.
Method 2: Taking Off Acrylic Nails with the use of Dental Floss
Dental floss is about the commonest item in this post that can be used to remove acrylic nails. We bet you never expected it on this list. If you though dental floss was only useful for dental purposes, think again. There’s more to these strong oral threads.
The only downside to this method is that you will need the help of a partner. It cannot be achieved by yourself. Let’s check out what you need and the process.
Items needed
- Dental floss
- Orange sticks
- A partner
The process
- Make little inlets on each of your nails by prying the cuticles using the orange sticks.
- Indulge your partner to assist in passing the floss into the inlets.
- When this is done, your partner should begin moving the floss in a sawing motion. This should be done until the acrylic nails fall off.
Bonus tip: here’s what we didn’t tell you before. It is important you know this. The process can be quite painful. Although, how much pain you will feel will depend on your pain threshold. It is important that you prepare yourself for the pain so it doesn’t catch you by surprise. You also need to arm yourself with a whole lot of patience.
Method 3: Using Nail Filers to remove Acrylic Nails
Surprised? You shouldn’t be. You can actually get rid of your acrylic nails simply by filing them off. The advantage of this is that you get to protect your skin from coming in contact with any sort of chemicals. Though the process is quite decent, it is very time-consuming. So before starting at all, be sure that you have enough time on your hands.
Items needed
- Nail buffer or file
- Nail clippers
- Orange sticks
- Cuticle oil
- Cuticle scissors
The Process
- As usual, the first thing to do is to cut the nails as short as you can use the nail clippers. Along with this, you need to get rid of any designs or colors on the nails as well.
- With that done, you begin filing the nails using long strokes. You should continue this process until you hit the actual nail bed. You should, however, take precaution so you don’t get to file off your nail bed in the process.
- If you feel like some of the acrylic nails are still remaining, it is time to get the rest off using cuticle scissors. To do this you need to pry the edges open gently before using the cuticle scissors to clip them off. The secret to this is clipping small pieces at a time. it important that you do not pry open large chunks so you don’t get yourself injured.
- When you have successfully taken off all that is left of the nails, scrap away any acrylic glue on your nail bed using the orange stick.
Bonus tip: If you are familiar with nail files, then you know that the process is going to be harsh on the nails. This is why it is advised that you used some cuticle oil after completing the process.
Method 4: Using Laminated Business Cards to take off Acrylic nails
Whoever knew that business cards could remove acrylic nails? This is one of the fastest ways of removing acrylic nails. This is why we suggest that if you need to get the nails off urgently, you should absolutely try this method. Another plus of this method is that finding a business card is one of the easiest things to do. You probably just need to look inside your purse and you’ll find one.
Items needed
- A laminated business card.
- Some orange sticks.
The process
- Simply make inlets in each of the nails by prying the edges using the orange sticks. The same is done using the dental floss method.
- Slide the laminated business card into the inlet gently and then begin to apply gentle pressure by moving it upward. It is essential that you do this one edge at a time, else you might end up ripping off some part of your actual nail bed. Do this gently and in no time, the acrylic nails should pop out.
Bonus tip: If you can’t find a business card, your debit or credit card will suffice for the process.
Also See: 97 Beautiful Black And White Nail Art Ideas Only For You
Method 5: Using warm water (without acetone) to take off Acrylic nails
Many people have labeled this process as the simplest, easiest, and safest way of removing acrylic nails. You do not need much to do this, let’s go through the items needed and the process.
Items needed
- Warm water
- Nail file
- Nail clippers
- Orange sticks
- Bowl
The Process
- Make use of the clippers to cut the acrylic nails as short as possible. After this, pry the edges using the orange sticks.
- Pour some warm water into the bowl and be sure that the water is not too hot. You need it comfortable enough for your nails to be submerged for a while.
- Submerge the nails for at least 40 minutes in the warm water. This is necessary to ensure that the glue dissolves. If after the 40 minutes the nails are not loose enough, add some more warm water and keep the nails submerged.
Bonus tip: As you will expect, the warm water will keep getting colder with time. To keep the water warm, you need to keep adding more warm water.
Precaution to take note of while taking off acrylic nails
- Never try yanking out the nails under any circumstance. If you do, it could lead to an injury to your actual nail bed which may be bloody or result in an infection. Even if none of these happens, one thing is sure, it’s going to be really painful.
- Once the acrylic nails are off, make use of cuticle oil to restore the nail bed to its natural condition. You should also consider using some moisturizer too.
- Ensure you scrape off the residue of the nails and whatever remains of the acrylic nail glue that may be left on the nail bed.
- Ensure that the table to be used for the procedure is covered properly. This will keep the table from damage or stain from the acetone.
- Ensure that you sit comfortably for this process and be sure you are not going anywhere in a hurry because the process takes longer.
- Every time you remove acrylic nails, allow the natural nails to stay for a week before fixing new nails. This way they gain some balance.
- Acetone is very inflammable so when using any of the methods relating to acetone, stay away from fire. Also, when you notice your skin is reacting to the acetone, get professional help immediately.
How to Take Off Acrylic Nails roundup
We hope that all the tricks and techniques shared with you in this post have been beneficial. Now, you can rock your acrylic nails without fear of how to remove them. Share your experiences with us in the comments section, we’d love to read from you.
