Who else paints their own nails?

[Globules]

I feel like I'm in a minority painting my own nails with a block colour.

Most of my friends pay £30+ every fortnight to get theirs done professionally.

I'm happy that it gives them a buzz, but I just don't understand the appeal myself.

Do you get your nails done regularly?

Never have painted nails. Don’t paint them myself if I have an event coming up (a wedding mostly) I’ll pay for a gel manicure bit 99% of the time I don’t wear nail polish.

I get shellac or gels if I have a special occasion maybe 2-6 times a year but it never lasts well, I usually want it off after a week and it leaves my nails
really damaged and dry.

I have tried manicurist as it is supposed to make your nails look good and nourish them. It doesn't seem to have helped them massively but they are not damaged and they're natural / clear so don't show chips.

I don't really get the appeal of having shellac constantly put on and removed in a cycle as some people do as I like the initial novelty of having my nails done but it soon wears off.

I also think it can look quite tacky.

I rarely paint my fingernails, but I do my toenails all summer when they can be seen, and leave them to recover over the winter. Has anyone else come across the online shop Rainbow Connection? It's slightly addictive!

I just soak some cotton wool in acetone nail polish remover and hold it on the nail for a bit. (Wrap in foil) Makes it quite easy to scrape off.

I do my own nails, twice a week. I wouldn’t say I am brilliant at it but I’m pretty good.

Gel destroys my already brittle fingernails, haven’t had it done since June 2021 and that was the last time.

Getting a non-gel polish is a waste of money for me as I always seem to smudge and need to repaint myself.

I do, however, get pedicure + gel for toenails every 6 to 7 weeks. In the winter I might stretch it to 8 weeks if I can.

I do need to look after my cuticles a little better.

I do my own once a week. I buy expensive nail polish and enjoy having pretty pink nails. I don’t actually like a lot of what I see people wear from salons as I favour a natural barely there look!

Used to get them professionally done but that was one of the first things that went due to CoL. now do my own. Would consider for a special occasion but then forget to book an appointment

Mostly do my own for several reasons:

It’s cheaper
Don’t need to make an appointment
A bit concerned about health risks from gels (and definitely wouldn’t get a home kit for that reason)
Can change them as often as I like
I enjoy doing it (although I also enjoy having them done in a salon)

I get them done once or twice a year for holidays or Christmas as they do stay glossy and unchipped for longer and my cuticles need professional attention once in a while to get them really neat. Always gel, no acrylic or builder or similar and I have them done very short as they need to last 3 weeks and I can’t bear having long nails. I remove them myself with acetone, cotton wool and foil and an orange stick, need to set aside an hour to do it properly (I have to do one hand at a time).

Of the various salons I’ve tried one damaged them by overuse of the electric grinder, one did a fairly shit job, one I now suspect is a front for people trafficking, one does a good job but you can’t book online and I never get round to phoning during office hours, one does a brilliant job but has a waiting list as she is always fully booked with regulars.

My top tips for doing them at home are to use cuticle remover gel to get bit of any dead skin, wipe them with remover before using a base coat then two coats of colour and a fast drying topcoat (I don’t leave them to dry between coats, just go back to the first nail straight away). Like a PP I do them in bed then read for a bit so they are dry in the morning. Don’t try and remove any overspill off the skin while they are still wet, leave it till the morning and they rub off easily in the shower leaving a mnuch neater finish.

I had mine done professionally for years and really think they were split, flaky and ridged because if this. My partner bought me an advent calendar with a different nail colour each day. So I decided to do my own, and they are much better for it. Sunday night, old colour comes off, file, cut if needed, use nail oil and push back cuticles with a hoof stick. Then use a base coat, two coats of colour, shimmer if I want, then top coat. It’s taken a year and a half and they are looking a lot better. Sunday nights are my nail night. Do my feet too.

Sometimes I paint them, most of the time bare. The only person in pay is my lovely niece who charges 20p a time.

Sorry but just not into the whole pay for false anything. I did dabble when younger just to try out, far too much upkeep and unnecessary expense.

Most of the time they are unpainted but now and again I'll paint them just for the hell of it.
I'm not forking out for other people to do it for me. I'm far too stingy for that. 😁

Loads I imagine, judging by the 100s of nail varnish colours for sale in Boots/Superdrug/supermarkets/etc! I like the occasional manicure and pedicure as I can’t be bothered with all the prep and sloughing off dead skin etc. I tend to buy the more eco-friendly varnishes now though that the salons don’t have.

I paint my own. I’ve never had my nails done & I like shortish ones on me. I wouldn’t suit what my friends have!

I've never had gel nails, couldn't fathom paying all that money. My toenails are always done, I paint them black. I rarely do my fingernails.

I paint my own with normal polish. Usually Essie or Zoya, with Essie basecoat and the brilliant Essie Good to Go top coat that dries polish fast (far better than Seche Vite to me!).

My nails grow fast, a gel manicure grows out in 5 days and I hate the look of it. My natural nails are strong, so I don't need gel or anything.

Yes, and people always asks 'did you do them yourself?!!'

I don't get on with gels and I use essie nail polish which seems to last a long time.

I paint my own - and stick with nail polish rather than gel.
My toes are always painted, but I only paint my fingers once or twice a year for special occasions.
I've never had my nails done at a salon.

I've also just started dying my own eyelashes. Before this, I'd get them dyed at a salon 3 or 4 times a year over the summer. I'd treat myself to an eyelash lift at the salon once a year for my holiday too, but tomorrow I'm giving this a go at home for the first time. Wish me luck!

I feel bare without polish. My friends know if they see me with bare nails, I must be having a really shit week!
Always paint them myself though. Go for a manicure about twice a year for the cuticles to be trimmed, other than that all my own work!

I use to have them done but after changing jobs found it very difficult to get an appointment. I won’t use Chinese salons as 1) they’d are often a front for people trafficking.
2) I don’t want them using the grinders on my nails.
I’ve started to leave them bare and my nails are on much better condition.

I see the big claw like talons that make you look like you've got clubbed fingers and while the patterns are undoubtedly very very pretty, all I can think is how can you properly wipe your arse with those on. 🤣

They just don't seem very practical.

I remove it myself.

Lightly file gel surface until the shine has gone (use normal nail file and you on my need to break the protective shiny surface. Don't go anywhere near your actual nail or use an electric file). Get some high strength acetone on a cotton wool pad, place on nail and wrap with tin foil. 20mins later, use cuticle stick to push off gel. Rub handcream and cuticle oil in and repeat the oil every day for a few days.

I get biosculpture or shellac and have never had issues removing or any damage. I'll usually wait at least a few weeks before getting them done again as I think nails are healthier with access to air (I think this also applies to normal polish too)

For anyone saying taking off gel is difficult - it isn't.
File the surface of what you want to remove (so that acetone can penetrate). Apply cotton pads soaked in 100% acetone (with clips if you have them to keep them in contact with the nail surface, or otherwise wrap them in tinfoil). After ten minutes you should be able to remove most if not all of it with an orange stick - just resoak for a minute or two more if you need to.
Your nails will be dehydrated so oil them and let it soak in before doing any further treatment.
Don't let nail technicians drill everything off down to your nail plate as it will damage your natural nail and don't let them trim your cuticle back leaving a pocket. (DC1 lost nearly all of their thumbnails due to a nail technician going too far with cuticle trimming. Luckily all is fine now.)

I wear stick on false nails from Primark ans tenure amazing, only a couple of quid and the glue is strong and doesn’t damage my nails underneath. They usually last about 5 days. But when I’m not wearing them, I do paint my own, nice bright colours. Love Barry M and Avon varnishes.

I always paint my own. It's taken ages of trial and error to figure out which polishes last and help nails grow strong. I find a combination of plenty of handcream and essie polishes work best for me. I also take hair skin and nail vitamins which have made a big difference to my nails. I have had them done professionally a couple of times in the past (gels) and while they look nice, I hate how you can't remove them by yourself without incredible faff and I would hate to spend so much on something that needs redoing so frequently.