I started getting gel nails a few weeks ago. Although they last a little longer than acrylic ones, they are pretty pricy. So, in order to save money, I am trying to figure out how to have pretty nails without seeking a professional. And - by the way - I am terrible at paining my own nails. Any ideas?
I think you can definitely learn to paint your own nails. But I'd suggest starting with baby steps, invest in a buffer, some cuticle oil, a great pair of clippers and a cuticle pusher. Weekly trim your nails, push your cuticles back and lightly buff. Every night before bed massage some cuticle oil into your cuticles. This will give you well shaped, shiny and healthy nails. After you get the hang of this start by painting your nails with clear polish weekly, this way if you make any mistakes they won't be noticeable, when you get comfortable with that move on to nudes, light pinks and possibly shimmer pastels (I have found that shimmer, glitter, metallic and foil finishes are rather forgiving). After working with light colors for awhile you can graduate to darker shades if you so choose.
I guess forextraspecialstuff has pretty much detailed what any frugal woman would do to save money on nail polish. It took quite a while before I had the confidence to DIY my pedicure. Start with the clean up process, and just keep you nails cleansed and buffeds unless you want them colored when you wish to show your toes to the world when you wear a nice slipper or a pair of strappy sandals. Later you will develop the confidence you need to do your own nails. Painting the fingernails is more challenging to me, since when it's time for my left hand to do its work, I usually fail, so I just leave my fingernails nude.
I think the best way to save money on nails is to take care of your natural nails, shape them with a filer, and paint them yourself. Once you start to develop your strong nails again they come out beautifully. :]
I keep my nails natural. I do my own nails and only use clear nail polish. I used to splurge on colored nail polish. Too much maintenance.
I agree with the others. I don't do much about my nails other than keeping it clean and short to be honest. I occasionally use clear nail polish too and that actually makes a big difference to how my nails look. I know having someone else to paint our nails is nicer but there are times that we need to learn it on our own in order to cut the cost of maintenance.
I rarely spend any money on getting my nails done, so for the most part it is zero for me. I hate acrylic nails. I have really thick nails so I am able to grow my own out to the length I want them to be at. I purchase nail polish when it is on sale and save some money there too. You can do just about as good of a job painting your own nails.
I used to get gel on my nails but like you said they can get very pricy. I also found they really damaged my nails. I don’t have time to constantly keep up with it so I started painting my own nails a few months ago. I am not the best but I use lighter colors which doesn’t show the mistakes as much. It also hides chipping pretty well. I rarely paint my nails red or other bright colors because every little mistake shows. I also recently bought the Essie gel top coat. I’m a fan of this. My nail posh lasts a few days longer when I use it compared to days I don’t.
I'm pretty low maintenance when it comes to my nails, because they break easily whether they're wet or dry, so I opted to just keep them short and plain. I used to apply nail polish to my nails when I was younger, but now not anymore, and I just keep my nails short and plain.
I almost always do my nails at home myself. It took some doing, but I now have the hang of it. I don't like acrylic nails, so I keep my nails natural. They tend to grow, but they're thin and snap off very easily. It's just weird, but they grow to a certain level then just break off. It's very frustrating, so I just keep them short, nicely filed and apply either a clear polish or one solid colour.
