Should I let DD1 (14) (just) get fake nails?

[HeartsTrumpDiamonds]

I am taking DD1 for a manicure tomorrow as a birthday treat and I know she will ask for gel or acrylic nails. I don't even know the difference. Will it ruin her natural nails? They are quite long but thin and bendy and tear / break easily. And is she too young for this sort of thing? I feel like she's too young but that might just be me not believing that I have a FOURTEEN year old

Gel is just a type of polish that last really well - up to 2 weeks, it's great! Ruins nails underneath and easier to remove at a salon but go for it

Is gel the same thing as shellac then? I usually get shellac on my toes.

She wants fake nails so I guess she means acrylic.

Is she allowed it for school ? Otherwise she might be told to take them off and you'll have wasted your money

I'd be surprised if she was allowed acrylics at school. She may get away with Shellac if it's not too bright but DS school don't allow any nail varnish. I'd get her a basic mani wait for Christmas for posh ones.

School is a good point but we now live in Canada so not a problem! DD2 went to school with purple hair the other day

She could go in with black and red striped Elvira-like talons and no one would bat an eye.

Tis very refreshing.

acrylics fucked my nails took about 1 year for them to recover and i was in my 30s

I don’t know about the UK but gel fake nails is definitely NOT the same as gel polish where I live (Netherlands). Here I can get gel polish which needs to be removed and reapplied or gel fake nails which can be filled in at the bottom as your nail grows, doesnt chip like gel polish after a few weeks and is much harder, but still a lot softer and more flexible than acyrlic nails.

Thanks user149

Chipsandpeas the one time I had acrylic nails it fucked mine up too, that was years and years ago though so I was wondering if things had improved.

I've not long taken my acrylics off having had them done for my wedding. My nails are horrendous - sore, weak, splitting, useless. I knew there was a reason I've not had them done in years!

Shellac would be kinder to her nails and look as good.

It is the cost of the upkeep, either the infills or repairs. I used to have acrylic nails done in a salon but the cost just got ridiculous. It needed doing every 2 weeks.

Now I do my own at home with an acrylic dip powder, (resin painted on, dip in powder, spray an activator) but you have to be good at filing both left and right handed. Shaping the side walls, the top and then the thickness of the acrylic on the nail.

Shellac/CND nail is a cured nail polish where you do not file the natural nail plate, but you need to soak it off to remove it every time you have the nails done.

Gel nails are like acrylics but they use a gel on a brush that is painted onto the nail, again you have to soak them off to remove them, or they can be filed down and just the growth area refilled.

Acrylic is a monomer liquid you dip a brush into then into acrylic powder and this is applied to the nail. Again to remove them they have to be soaked off, or filed down and infilled.

The filing down is because the nail needs "re-balancing" because the acrylic is shaped to be thin at the cuticle then thickens up the nail.

The short answer is you need to consider upkeep if you go down the fake nail route.

And if anyone is interested in seeing a pro do nails, then Nail Career Education is a fantastic watch here

Jungle that is amazing, do you have a degree in chemistry

No, don't, they ruin your nails and are seen as very "common". Just get her nails painted a nice colour instead.

gel/shellac is basically polish that is set with UV light, will last 2-3 weeks and doesn't damage nails.

Acrylic - can damage nails and is true artificial nails ie you have 'tips' put on.

Acrylic nails are not damaging but electric drill filing of the natural nail is and the majority of nail bars do this when applying and infilling acrylic nails. If you can find somewhere that doesn't it'll be fine. But also a good quality place like that is unlikely to put acrylics on a child that age.
Hard gel nail extensions are similar to acrylic nail extensions but using a thick sculpted uv cured gel.
Gel polish and shellac (shellac is a brand name) are uv cured nail polishes that last 2-3 weeks but add only colour no length.

My recent acrylic nails were not done with an electric drill, and I was impressed at how little she damaged them, despite this, it has still wrecked my nails and I'm really surprised to see the extent of it!

How did it wreck your nails?

Nail tech here, acrylic themselves do not ruin nails. Just avoid places where they use electric files/drills on the natural nail. The natural nails will be thin and in some cases-painful.
The Asian shops often use acrylic liquid which contains mma which is actually banned in the US. Again avoid.
If you decide to let her get them done, go back to get them soaked off when they grow out rather than letting her pull them off, Super painful and can wreck the natural nail underneath.

They are cracking, massive dents from the filing, coming away from the nail bed etc.

I've n eve had fake nails but have gels/shellac every 4 weeks for over 3 years and my nails are fine and as strong as ever - even with me removing the gel myself. My nail technician will not put gels/shellac or fake on anyone until 16 though

Well we both went for shellac in the end and both quite happy although she is now a bit 'meh' about the colour she chose (sort of tangerine). We had a lovely time though

Thanks everyone for the advice. I'm really glad we didn't go for the gel/acrylic.