Are you wondering how to sculpt acrylic nails? Maybe plastic tips aren’t your thing. I get it, I hate the feel of that plastic too. If I have acrylic on my nails, I would rather it be either over my natural nails or sculpted from scratch.
If you’d rather skip the glue and the tip blending and just go straight for the acrylic, it can be done with paper nail forms. The forms have adhesive on the back and can be positioned just under the free edge of your nail. This creates a surface for you to lay the acrylic on and mold into any nail shape you want.
Having good nail forms is key, as well as the placement of the nail form. It is also important to reinforce any areas prone to be weak. The lack of tips under the acrylic can create a fault line that can break easily if not done properly.
Acrylic Nails Supplies
- Nail forms – I like to use the forms by Young Nails. You can customize the fit to each finger, pinching it in a way to get the right angle under the nails.
- Acrylic Liquid and Powder – You can use any acrylic brand of your choosing. Again, I like to use the Young Nails acrylic system. It is smooth, holds nicely and doesn’t dry too fast so you can shape the nail to your liking.
- Nail dehydrator – Acrylic will lift if there are oils left on the nails. A good nail dehydrator will prevent that. I like OPI’s Bondaid. If you don’t have one, regular alcohol will work as well, as it will strip the nail of its natural oils.
- Primer – This is what makes the acrylic stick to the natural nail. You must be careful with this product, as it can cause bad burns if used incorrectly. Some primers burn more than others. It is imperative to keep them away from the skin. I usually use the same brand of primer and acrylic, but you don’t have to.
- Acrylic brush – There are different size brushes you can use, which is entirely up to personal preference. Some people like to use giant brushes and put all the acrylic on at once, while others prefer a smaller brush and apply the acrylic in sections. I usually go with a size 10 but you can use any size you like.
- Files and buffers – You will need files and buffers to prep the nails and shape them in the end. You can use a drill also, but if you don’t have one, files will work just fine. You should start with a grit of 180 for your files and use the white buffer blocks. With the right files, you will be able to smooth the nails out and prepare for polish.
Steps
- Prep the nails. Gently file or buff away the shine from the top layer of the nail. Etch the nails slightly with the file to rough up the surface for better adhesion, but not too much! You don’t want to take layers off of the natural nail.
- Dehydrate the nails. Use a lint-free wipe to cleanse the nails with your desired dehydrator. Be sure all dust is removed when you do this.
- Apply primer to the nails. Dip the brush and wipe the excess to avoid overloading the nail. Primer spreads, so simply put the brush down on the center of the nail and watch it spread. You won’t need much at all, and doing it that way should help keep it away from the skin.
- Place the nail forms on the fingers. Make sure that the free edge of the nail lays flush on top of the form. This might take some finagling.
- Once you are happy with the position of the nail forms, you can begin applying the acrylic. Place the first bead of acrylic on the nail form and over the tip of the natural nail. Use the guide lines on the nail forms to shape the nail as you please. Place the next bead over the center of the nail, being sure to give the nail enough strength in this area so it doesn’t break at the pressure point. Finish off by the cuticle area and let nails dry.
- After the acrylic dries, you can pull your forms off. They may be a little funny looking at this point. Enter: filing. File nails into shape, buff them smooth, wash hands, and polish!
Things to Keep in Mind
Sculpting acrylic nails is not the easiest thing to do. Frustration is normal.
Before trying it, practice as much as you can so you aren’t stuck filing your nails forever. It’s kind of a nightmare if you use too much acrylic accidentally, especially if you don’t have a drill. If you’ve never done an acrylic set before, try to get some practice first.
Beauty supply stores carry plastic fingers and hands to practice on. I spent many hours in nail school with that funky little finger and practiced a ton before touching any real nails.
Acrylic takes practice to get right. Consistencies of the acrylic beads must be just right, and should be different for different parts of the nail for optimum construction.
When working at the free edge of the nail, the acrylic bead should be on the dryer side. If it’s too wet, it will run everywhere and will be difficult to control and shape. The middle of the nail gets a bead slightly wetter, but still not too wet, and by the cuticle a wetter consistency is best.
Be absolutely sure no acrylic touches the cuticles. You want to try to stay 1/16” away from the cuticle. Basically, try to get as close as you can to the cuticle without actually touching it. Because if you do? Lifting occurs! Eek!
If you do happen to get acrylic on the cuticles, wet your brush with the monomer liquid and run the tip over the skin and cuticle to push the acrylic away before it dries.
And that’s it! Polish and design as you like, and enjoy your beautiful, new set of sculpted nails.
When you are ready to remove them, read this article to learn the proper method of removal so you don’t damage your natural nails.
Want to polish your nails a pretty and unique color? You can check out my nail polish line here!
