Hello! Today I have a sad, unplanned post. I decided this afternoon that it'd be a great idea to clean the kitchen and wash up with only base coat on. Sitting down to do my nails after, I realised I had broken one, and on my swatch hand - how devastating!
Normally I would deny it for a bit and then cut all of my nails down, but I didn't want to go away for Christmas with short nails. Instead I attempted a tea bag repair for the first time, and thought I'd let you know how it went. Here's a look at the break (my poor nail!). Read on to find out more!
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| Nail Break @acertainbeccaa |
Apologies for the awful pictures in this post, it's a miserable Sunday and I was more worried about fixing my nail than finding decent lighting!
The first thing I did was go on the hunt for nail glue. I didn't actually own any until I received a set of Elegant Touch false nails in Novembers Meebox (post here). Thankfully the set included a bottle of 5 second nail glue.
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| Elegant Touch Nail Glue @acertainbeccaa |
I then fixed my nail in position with a drop of glue. I have to say I did not appreciate the dropper top at all. It was hard to control where the glue went and I ended up gluing the side of my finger to my broken nail. Having never used nail glue before I didn't realise how impossible it was to get off the skin. It took a good long soak in acetone to remove my mess.
After cleaning up I added another thin layer of glue before laying a small piece of ripped teabag over the break. I read somewhere (but can't remember where) that it's easier to blend in and smooth a ripped piece of bag than a straight cut one.
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| Broken Nail Tea Bag Repair @acertainbeccaa |
I then sealed in the teabag piece with another quick layer of glue.
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| Broken Nail Tea Bag Repair @acertainbeccaa |
I'm not sure how well you can see in the picture, but it was VERY rough and bumpy. I wasn't convinced I would be able to file it smooth but it went surprisingly well.
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| Broken Nail Tea Bag Repair @acertainbeccaa |
My last step was to add basecoat. I wanted to see if it would be a smooth enough surface to paint my nails as normal. I added two coats just to make sure and it was surprisingly smooth!
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| Broken Nail Tea Bag Repair @acertainbeccaa |
Although you can still tell somethings a bit off, it's not actually that noticeable. I'm quite impressed with the end result and don't think it's going to come off anytime soon! I'm not 100% sure how this will effect my nail itself but I guess I'll have to wait and find out.
I have seen people suggesting the use of basecoat instead of nail glue. Having glued my fingers together several times and having a bit of a clean up problem I can see the appeal. However I really wanted to make sure my nail stayed together for my holiday and I'm not sure basecoat would have done the job quite as well.
Have you ever tried a tea bag repair? Or do you have any better quick fix methods? I'd love some tips for the future!
Hope to see you in the next post!
Becca x
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Yeh I use nail glue and teabags and it works brilliant. I don't bother smithing it out though. I just put a texture coat on top,
ReplyDeleteBut it does work, sometimes the trabag can peel about so might need to stick it back down, but lasted on mine for two weeks before I could take the broken but off to a good size
I wanted to smooth mine out so I can carry on doing some more Christmas nail art while I can :) x
DeleteI do teabag repairs semi-regularly! I always use base coat rather than nail glue, I find that funnily enough, nail glue doesn't seem to stick as well! Plus it's a lot easier to smush down teabag paper with base coat than it is with nail glue. If you do still want to use nail glue, I recommend a bottle with a brush applicator! I use Sally Hansen Insta-Dri when I do my repairs!
ReplyDeleteOoh I'll have to try basecoat then! It definitely would be easier to do but I assumed it wouldn't last anywhere near as long! Thank you for the help :) x
DeleteIf you are going to use nail glue it is better to a glue that has a brush, then you get in the right place without gluing your fingers together. I get mine at Sally's Beauty.
ReplyDeleteI thought the same! Whoever thought a dropper was a good idea doesn't know how clumsy people can be lol! Thank you :) x
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