Photo: Creatas Images/Creatas/Getty Images
Long nails are sexy nails, but sometimes too much length is a bad thing. If your new acrylics are so long that you can’t put in your contacts or text that hot new trainer you met at the gym, it’s time to shorten them. Natural nails are a snap to shorten, but acrylics take a little extra elbow grease.
1.
Remove all polish from your nails. Dip a cotton pad in non-acetone polish remover and rub it over the nail to wipe away all traces of color.
2.
Determine how short you want each nail. If you shorten the nails too much, you’ll have to soak them off and apply new ones. Draw a small line on each nail with pencil to mark the desired length.
3.
Place the cutting edge of a pair of heavy duty nail clippers over the pencil mark and squeeze hard on the handles. Acrylics are super strong and you might have to squeeze as hard as you can. Use a pair of long-handled toenail clippers for extra cutting power.
4.
File the cut edge of the nail with a coarse nail file. The rough grit of the file buffs away jagged chunks and chips of the nail that the clippers missed. Run your finger over the surface of the nail file; if you can feel the individual grains, you’ve got a coarse file.
5.
Buff the edge of each nail smooth with a fine finishing file. File back and forth along the cut edge of the nail to remove any rough edges. Tilt the file at a slight angle underneath the corners of the nail to round the edge and prevent it from catching on your clothes.
6.
Apply a layer of clear base coat to your nails before repolishing. The base coat extends the life of the color for a beautiful, long-lasting manicure.
Things You'll Need
1.Non-acetone nail polish remover
3.Coarse nail file
5.Nail polish
2.Heavy duty nail clippers
4.Fine finishing file
Tips & Tricks
If your nails are too thick to cut, file them back with a small rotary file.
Related Videos
Add to this Article
advertisement
advertisement
