Acrylic Nails are Gorgeous but Have Drawbacks

My hands are a challenge. My fingers are short (so much for artistic people having long, slim fingers), my nail-beds are short, and the nails themselves tend to peel and break. In addition to this, they tend to grow out funny, curling under at the tips. A few of them become claw-like. It's not pretty.

So a few years ago I got my first set of acrylic nails. I didn't know the process until I first had them done - a multi-step process involving filing, grinding, gluing, and painting. The end result is nail tips glued to your own, coated in a layer of acrylic, with your cuticles trimmed back and a flawless application of color or white tips. You can have them relatively short or quite long. At first I opted for relatively short - just beyond my fingertips.

The two best things about acrylic nails are the strength of the nails and the longevity of the polish wear. Those things were solid and at first I had to adjust to the feel of them. The polish seemed to meld with the acrylic; seriously they did not chip even a tiny bit, for weeks. I finally had long, un-chipped nails. Oh, happy day!

Having someone else handle my hands was uncomfortable for me. They were always telling me to relax my hands. A friend of mine always finds getting her nails done "so relaxing". I didn't find it painful, but it wasn't all that fun either. The time and cost involved with getting the nails touched up was kind of a hassle. I got them touched up about every two-three weeks, and it cost about $25. The end result was so gorgeous, though, I was hooked.

The hygiene aspect was a deterrent. I had no way of knowing if the salon's tools were truly sterile or not, though I never experienced any problems. More disturbing, though, was the way they never completely felt clean throughout the day. I knew that a gap could form between the natural nail and the acrylic, trapping bacteria and fungus underneath. I never had a problem with it, but I was always a little apprehensive.

It is recommended that you have them taken off in a salon, but I bought some remover and did it at home myself, taking my time. I had heard that in salons they might be more aggressive in removing them quickly, and that it was painful. Your mileage may vary.

Once you take off the acrylic nails, your natural nails are thin, weak, and sensitive. Since my natural nails weren't nice to begin with, I wasn't worried about wrecking them. It was a shock seeing my nails short again, though. My fingers seemed as if part of them had been amputated.

If not for the threat of infection, I would sacrifice the time and money to get acrylic nails again. The length, strength, and un-chipped polish make your hands look beautiful, even if your fingers are short and squat like mine.