Afternoon beauty fix: The trick to removing a Shellac soak-off UV gel manicure at home

Can I remove a Shellac manicure at home? My nails were perfect for weeks but now that they’ve started chipping I can’t stand how it looks.
We’ve been there! For two weeks or more your nails are in manicure heaven, with not a blemish in sight. Then, suddenly the Shellac starts to chip and you need to get it all off—now. With a few simple tools you can remove your Shellac, Axxium, or any other soak-off UV gel polish at home without damaging your nails. Here’s what you need: wooden manicure sticks, a nail file, a bottle of pure acetone—such as Beauty Secrets Pure Acetone ($3, at Sally Beauty)—cotton balls, tinfoil, and a soft nail buffer. First, lightly file the top of each nail to “bust up” the topcoat of your manicure. Most soak-off gel polishes are sealed with an acetone-proof topcoat, which is why you can paint and remove regular nail polish overtop without damage. Once the topcoat has been roughed up, soak a cotton ball in acetone and use tinfoil to secure it to your nail, covering over the cotton ball completely. Repeat on all ten fingers, make a joke about looking like Edward Scissorhands, and turn on your favourite TV show—you’ll need to wait about 20–30 minutes. When you remove each cotton ball, pull it off while gripping your nail. There may still be some gel polish on your nail—use the flat end of a wooden manicure stick to gently lift and scrape it off. (If it’s a significant amount or refuses to budge, apply a fresh acetone-soaked cotton ball and wait another ten minutes.) Then, lightly buff each nail with the soft nail buffer to remove any lingering bits of gel. Bonus: this technique is also an easy way to remove glitter polish without any struggle!

In need of an afternoon beauty pick-me-up? Email us at beautyfix@fashionmagazine.com.

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