FAKING IT: My first acrylic nails experience

So I had my first proper fake nails experience this week. As it’s Valentine’s Day this weekend and I haven’t seen my boyfriend for nearly 6 weeks I thought I wanted to make an extra special effort to look nice (not that you need a guy to look nice for!) Also, my nails are in such awful condition at the moment that painting them would just not do.

So I went to a proper nail bar and got acrylics. I felt like such a newbie walking in as I wasn’t really sure what I needed to get done. But we finally got there in the end and this is the final result!

First, they put extensions on. They did this by attaching some kind of plastic nail shape to the end of my fingernail and gluing it down to give me long nails (finally)! They look a bit ridiculous when they’re first glued on because they are so so long but then they cut them down to the length you like.

After that comes the acrylic part where there’s a mix of some sort of liquid with a powder and when brushed onto the nail it gives the whole nail and extension an even finish. This makes the nails really hard and durable as well.

Then you have the nails filed into whichever shape you like. I wanted the most natural as possible so he started filing them down and then I just said if I wanted them more round and we carried on until I was happy with the shape. But you can pick ballerina, round, square – anything!

Then the nail colour you want is applied. I picked this nudey pink colour as I wanted my nails to look as natural as possible and this colour goes with most of my clothes which is great as these nails will last a couple of weeks. Then a top coat goes over the varnish and you’re done!

I’m actually pretty pleased with the result. I was a bit worried they would look very fake and a bit out of place as I have tiny hands but they blend in really nicely. At first I struggled taking cards out of my purse and getting my contact lenses out but the it just takes some getting used to if you don’t normally have long nails!

I wouldn’t have these all the time just because it’s not the cheapest thing to keep having as a student and also I do really want to grow my own nails nice and long and strong. Also I know its not the best for your real nails once they’re removed but if you’re like me and your real nails are a mess anyway you’re not really losing out on anything! I think I’d like to try gels next time and see if they look even more natural, but I really think acrylics don’t need to look big, bulky and fake as long as you get the right shape.

I realise a lot of this may be so obvious to some people but I just thought this might be a useful blog post for people who have thought about getting their nails done but weren’t 100% sure of what it entailed! If you have a certain event coming up where having lovely nails would be a great addition to your look then definitely give this a go!