I’ve never been able to figure out how to work with stick-on nails. It might be a simple question but what happens when I go to take them off? I’ve never tried them because I’ve never been able to figure out the entire on-to-off thing. Is there a tutorial you might suggest? Thanks so much. Be well.
Hi!
I rarely, if ever, do anything with my hands (I mean, besides moving them erratically when I am stressed or distracted or overstimulated).
What I mean is that I rarely paint my nails and I haven’t bothered with stick-on nails in years. There are different options for stick-ons but honestly I am not the best person to ask this question.
Luckily, there are a lot of girls who are better suited to help and some of them are reading this very question.
If anyone has any suggestions or insights, I would appreciate you commenting below!
Love, Hannah
Have a question for me? Oh yes you do. Ask me here!
Hannah McKnight 
Wow, what can I say about nails…
I don’t know what works for everyone, but I can comment to what I’ve evolved. I believe there are basically 4 levels of the manicure.
1) Press on nails.
Easy to apply, Kiss includes an alcohol wipe to ensure good adhesion.
Cons: Often times the kit does not have nails large enough for ‘man hands.’ End of the evening, just gently pry them off with the tool included. They can fall off without warning.
2) Glue on nails.
I’ve been able to find them in a wider selection. I’ll put them on a piece of double face tape and polish them the night before. Make sure the top of your nails are smooth by filing off the ridges (don’t file too much or you will weaken them). Clean with acetone
based polish remover. Apply a light coat of glue to both your nail and the new nail. Note that the glue can dissolve the polish. Wait 5-10 seconds and slide just a little to expose fresh liquid. Hold in place for 30 seconds and they should be good to go. You need to travel with glue and be ready if a nail decides to drop off. I’ve discovered several things to maximize success. First, you need FRESH glue and Loctite super glue seems holds better than Kiss. I need to MINIMIZE hand washing. Even if the Loctite says it’s waterproof, not for me. As a matter of fact, when it’s time to remove them, a hot shower practically makes them fall off.
Cons: While the nails come off easily in the shower, the glue bonds to your real nails and will be evident upon close examination.
3) Nail polish
This is my current favorite if I can let my nails grow a bit long. The night before I plan to go out I’ll do my polish, this allows everything to dry hard. Again, I make sure the top of the nails are smooth and clean. Then I apply a light coat of clear polish. This is important, I’ve had deep red polish stain my nails and when it’s time to
remove, I’ve had pink stained finger nails. Once dry, 10 minutes, apply your color. You don’t have to be perfect with the polish. The next morning, a hot shower with soapy water and you can scrub the polish that got on your skin right down the drain. The polish on your nails will survive and they will look awesome
.Time to remove, a couple of minutes with polish remover soaked cotton balls. I usually wear a disposable nitrile glove to keep from staining the fingers doing the work.4) Professional manicure
I’ve not done this yet myself. Many websites have commented that this is one of the ‘rights of passage’. My spouse once did the salon route for a wedding and then decided the maintenance was too great. Polish remover didn’t work on the gel and ended up letting the nails slowly grow out till the gel portion could be removed with nail
clippers. If you go to the salon, be sure to ask about the ease of removal.
Hope my experiments help you with yours.
Jane S.
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Thank you so much!
Love, Hannah
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For stick-on nails, there are two fundamentally different types of glue.
One is the typical liquid nail glue. This is usually some sort of cyanoacrylate (superglue). The issue with that is, that it is extremely brittle. As a result, the nails pop off at random moments. CA is not soluble with acetone, so you need to buff off any remainders of the glue.
The other option are nail tabs. These are some elastic double-sided sticky stuff. Because the glue is elastic, there are less issues with the nails just popping off. It becomes more of a slow-motion process, where first the nail becomes a bit loose, giving you time to fix things. However, the tabs overall won’t last that long, especially not when you have lots of contact with water. On the plus side, the sticky stuff can be removed without leaving any residue.
In conclusion: if you want the nails for just one night, go with the nail tabs. If you want them for a week or so, go with nail glue.
Hope this helps, girl!
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thank you
The information was very helpful and my questions were addressed!
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I have been using Impress Nails for years – they are the BEST. They are the tape type (peel off the backing and “press on”) and when properly applied, I have only ever had 1 fall off. That’s 1 in over 6 years of using this brand.
You need to prep your nails before applying – I use a basic alcohol wipe – then make sure you press them on firmly. They not only look great, but they offer a variety of styles and sizes. And when the evening is over, they peel off easily, too.
My biggest struggle with press on nails is my “guy thumbs” – in a pack of 30 nails there are usually 2 that are big enough to look good on my thumbs. But Impress offers a “Wide Size” pack. These are perfect for the thumbs, as well as the other 8 fingers!
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