Best Non Toxic Nail Salon in Houston

Avoiding nail polish and sanding any freshly completed finger nails will do wonders to cool things down on those long Winter days

When it comes to quality, artwork and nail care, summer is less about perfection and more about can-do attitude. Let’s just forget about the weather and just wait it out for Spring and Summer, when the immediate, practical response becomes matter of choice. Nail art is no exception.

See? You probably spent at least an hour or more taking pictures of your painted nails for the past few weeks. And no matter how the picture turned out, it can’t compare to just having your fingernails done (although you may have taken several photo after another on your fingers). But now that it’s time to leave all that behind and decide what the next best thing to paint your nails in is, do do so — it can be done.

Less than 48 hours

Much like creating custom jewelry, acrylic nails can vary from stronger acrylics made of wool to more delicate silicon (and nowhere in between). Currently it’s best to nail everything in under a day — especially with pressure-painted enamel manicures.

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Once you’ve grown your nails to a certain length, start with one nail color at a time — use gel nail polishes such as Caviar for more soft strokes of color, and choose stronger nail lacquers for a more mature, more intense look. You may need to apply a coat and a half or three coats, depending on the length of your nails, but the process won’t be more involved or take much longer than your typical manicure.

Before you start your nails in acrylic lacquer, begin by having your nails thoroughly dry out so they won’t feel too soft once acrylics come on. This will prevent them from existing in contact with the paint.

Finish off by letting your nail color dry completely and painting over with clear or semi-permanent acrylic gel polish.

Less than two weeks

Once acrylic polish reaches the right stage of vibrancy, you can begin polishing your nails with a diamond cuticle oil before proceeding with polish. Diamond-cuticle oil keeps your cuticles soft without getting dull and stuck in spots. You can either apply it directly onto your nails or reapply the top coat when finished. Avoid using this oil if you’re taking over 10 daily steps like cleaning out your sink, washing dishes, and ironing.

Liner polish is typically applied to the inside of your nails but can be used on the outside, too. Lid natural lacquer is generally shorter than oils, but if you need something a little thicker, opt for No7 Lotion Nail Polish and Top Coat ($14). To stay smooth, tacky, and straight, nail polish should adhere well to nail beds and around your hands and fingers.

Lip balm and cotton pads are excellent options for preventing nail color fading, as most strips are tinted. There are ways to get around this, though, using a super blue oil. This prevents color shifting, discoloration, and tapering. Rinse off your nail polish with warm water to get rid of all oil residue, and then the whole thing should be tacky enough to adhere without applying a super long strip or a coat or two.

Once you’ve established that your nails are stable and you aren’t constantly sanding them off in an attempt to solve the nail-polish mess, install your nail art artist.

They’re made for expressing and contributing to other arts, so it only makes sense to start with an acrylic manicure or nail art artist who knows the exact technique that will wow you.

Have more ideas for manicures? You can get inspiration from this nail art gallery, or check out the over 22,000 websites dedicated to nail art.