Shellac Manicure Follow-Up: Removal and Carnage

Pinky McLadybits

Via

I got my Shellac Manicure on March 13th. I was quite pleased. The color was gorgeous and it really did every thing that it was supposed to, like not chip.

But then, tragedy struck.

While in the shower, thinking thoughts, I accidentally cut my finger and sliced through my manicure on my left ring finger. It looked like I had cut a slice of manicure pie right out of the color. I was so mad at my wandering thinky grey whale.

The good news was that even with that piece missing, the manicure on that finger did not chip, crack, or peel any further. That was pretty sweet.

But I had this damned chunk missing from the polish on that finger, which sucked. I'm just glad it wasn't my middle finger so I could still be confident while flipping off bastard-coated bastards with bastard filling. Priorities, y'all. I have them.

Eventually, my nails outgrew the manicure, which rules. And then my shower scrub stole the polish off of my right ring finger. So I decided to remove the polish yesterday using something I'd seen on Pinterest. You know, before all of the pins turned into spammy bullshit. Anyway, the pin detailed using nail polish remover, aluminum foil, and cotton balls. I don't like using acetone polish removers, so I used my nail strengthening polish remover without acetone and hoped for the best.

I dipped each cotton ball into the polish remover and then, one at a time, put a cotton ball on a nail, wrapped it with foil, and then wiggled my fingers like some sort of robot witch. It was pretty cool. I left the nails alone as long as I could, which was probably about 10 minutes. It felt like 20 minutes. Metallic witch fingers are awesome, but they aren't very practical.

When I removed the wraps I was pleased to see that the polish scraped right off. I suppose I should have used an orange stick, but I used my other nails. I was a bit frightened that my nails were brittle because of how they looked, but I've found that they are stronger than they were when the shellac manicure went on. I was not expecting that. I finished removing all of the polish and then waited a day to paint my nails with a nice ULTA concrete color and a top coat of Gone Gonzo by OPI. It's purty.

All in all, I would definitely do a shellac manicure again. It lasts a long time, when you don't accidentally destroy it with a razor, and it removes as easily as any other polish. Delightful! This tip is what I'm rating, so I give it...

Rating: 8/8 tentacles

Nails stronger

For Cindy's experience with Shellac Manicure removal, check out her review here.