Who knows about BIAB nails?

[SirChenjins]

At the grand of age of 57 I got my nails done for the first time as a birthday treat from DD - and very nice they are too! They've started to grow out now and there's a gap between the cuticle and biab. I'm going on holiday in 6 weeks time and want them redone just before we leave - what's the best thing to do in the interim?

So you want an appointment just before you go and, depending on how much “gap” you can cope with, you’ll want one or two before then. Alternatively you can have the BIAB removed and your nails left bare and then have the BIAB re-done just before you go.
I first started having mine done in October and now get them re-done every 24 or 25 days. Leaving them four weeks is just a bit too long for me as I think they look at bit weird when the colour starts half way up your nail.
Actually, there is a third option - one of my colleagues sometimes just puts normal nail varnish over her entire nail (so BIAB and new growth) to keep
her going between appointments. If you look closely, it’s a bit lumpy but the colour is at least consistent

Ooh - the third option might work actually. No idea what it's called but I got a pale pink with a muted white tip - french manicure? I could maybe just use a rose pink varnish which might disguise the gap. Will standard nail varnish remover damage the biab though if I remove the varnish?

I don’t think it will.

You just need to get them infilled a couple of times in between

I had my nails done for the first time ever at 69, for DD’s wedding. I never thought I’d be that woman having ANY sort of beauty treatments (I’ve never used make up, and cut my own frizzy ponytail), but they delight me every time I look at them and I’m finding excuses to justify the three-weekly outlay. I’ve only once left it four weeks and managed to take the BIAB off when I forgot to wear glives to scrub a burned pan. I’ve never had infills, just soaked off and choose a new colour.

I tried to book an infill appointment but it cost the same as new biab (£67) which seemed steep - especially as I wanted them redone completely for going away

I get my BIAB infills done every 3-4 weeks, if they get too long they’re more prone to snapping in my experience. I have it refreshed completely every 2-3 months.

That seems pricy @SirChenjins whereabouts are you? I have a plain pink based BIAB every 3 weeks, occasionally with a colour buy I tend to keep the pink as it’s close to my natural colour so I don’t notice the growth as much. For reference I’m Midlands based and pay anywhere from £28-£35

I pay £42 for infills with shellac on top and £48 for a take off and redo with shellac on top in SW London.

I pay £34 for BIAB removal and a new set.

I have BIAB infills every 2 weeks with gel polish. Have done for years. It’s £35. I’ve never needed them completely removing and redoing, an infill is fine. A couple of times a year I do take them off completely but I’ve never had any issues with my nails at all.

I'm in Edinburgh - it was a very swish place, but it sounds like their prices are reflective of their swishness and that it's not a standard price for an infill - which is good to know! £67 every month seemed excessive.

Do they just take off the gel polish with regular nail varnish remover? If so, I take it that doesn't damage the BIAB?

I have mine done every 3 weeks otherwise they grow too long and look a bit messy with the gap. If you ca afford it have the done in between now and your holiday or have them soaked off properly and a new set for holiday

Sounds like boomer ombre but I am in Ireland so maybe called something different where you are. I get a full set done every 3.5 weeks and never had refills done in between, not even sure that is a thing where I go. My salon is in Dublin and a full set of biab is 40euro so you are really paying super high prices. I have been getting biab I think for about 3 years now without a break and my nails are still really strong underneath. I couldnt go back to doing my own at this point.

I pay £26 for BIAB with whatever colour/design I want. That's in Liverpool. I had plain French done 5 weeks ago and the gap isn't noticeable unless you are up close to them. I tend to get them done every 5-6 weeks.

I need to have mine done every 4 weeks at the most - ideally would be 3 weeks but I stretch it to 4 for the sake of my budget.
My lady charges £32 for simple BIAB then extra for any designs, I've never paid more than £36 with her.
I've been told that the longer you leave it the more risk the nails are at of breaking, due to the way they balance the "thickness" of the product on the nail it's no longer balanced as it grows out. I think you should shop around for somewhere cheaper.

No, it’s filed off (not with a drill, by hand, so no damage) then the BIAB is infilled and the nails repainted in whatever colour or design I want. Takes about 50 minutes.

I have a biab infill every 3 weeks. I live in the SW and pay £28 a time

OK - I'm definitely paying too much at £67. Will investigate infills elsewhere. Thanks everyone 😊

An infill is usually more expensive than the original nails as they have to do the filing first then the infill. I used to find that 3 weeks was the maximum amount of time I could go but my nail tech said that some people managed 4 weeks.

I now have hard gel and I can easily go 4 weeks between appointments.

I go to a salon who supplies a lot of other nail techs with their product and run training courses. I used to pay £35 for an infill (one colour or French) and I now pay £40 for hard gel.

£65 sounds a lot unless you are having a complicated design.

I am in Edinburgh, I pay £42 and they last 4 weeks

I thought infills were just filling in the gap left when they grow out, but (according to my nail salon) it's not - they take off the first couple of layers and then reapply on the whole nail. That's why it costs the same (although mine cost £40 in London - £67 seems very expensive).

Ahh - I thought the same. That would explain why the price is the same for both. I'm definitely going to find somewhere cheaper.

@SirChenjins you may find another salon won’t remove or infill another salons work. Just double check as if you want to go somewhere else you may find that. I push mine 4-5 weeks but I don’t mind the regrowth it’s only a few mm it’s not horrendous I couldn’t justify 3 weekly