OMG Disaster!!

I had my nails done today. A friend is training to be a nail technician, she's had plenty of practice but asked if she could have a go on me. I thought why not, she's done it plenty of times, done it for friends etc it'll be fone.

Oh. My. God.

My nails are sooooooo sore!! She's filed them down so much that one was paper thing and bendy half way down my nail. The acrylic is all uneven and stupidly thick. I'm not exaggerating when I say one nail is almost 1cm thick at the end!! The white tips are so uneven. My fingers are cut to pieces where she kept filing them, filing the edges and digging in to my skin. And some of them are so wide at the ends!

Now, I can cover up the uneven white tips by just putting polish on - that's no problem.

But what can I do about the rest?? Am I ok to file the acrylic down to even it up, thin it out and make them look less like triangle shapes?

And what can I do about my poor sensitive nails? Two of them are so painful. I realise it's going to be sore for a while because obviously it's been filed down so much that my natural nail is really thin, but as they grow out is there anything I can do? Obviously I can't just remove them now because the nail underneath is so so thin it would just be damaged easily. But I don't want to go back to the same friend to get them filled in and I can't afford to keep getting them filled in. The idea was to get them done for going away then get them removed and grow out the crappy underneath nail. But I can't do that with them being so thin and sore. Is there anything I can buy to fill them in myself? My nails grow quite quickly but not quick enough that I can just put up with it for a few weeks as they grow out, IYKWIM?

HELP LADIES!

Is your friend studying at a college? Could you talk to her/them about doing anything about it? I dont really know what else to suggest. *hugs* i'd be both angry and soooooooooo upset, and the thought of the pain makes me want to give u a hug and a large drink!

Hopefully someone more knowledgable will be here soon *hugs*

You need Freyasmum, she'll know what to do.

Crikey! How far along in her training is she?!

Poor you. I think the best thing you could do is tell us her name so we can avoid her

Not sure what to suggest as I'm not au fait with acrylics so I'm not sure the best way to remove them.

Yes, she's at college! In her second year, I think. She's done loads of other friends nails and they've never complained. Maybe it's because i'm fussier being a polish addict, but really - they're awful! I'll try to get a pic up later.

I could definitely do with a large drink, dragonette!

Ah yes, freyasmum! I may go post on The Other Side to try and get her attention.

xoxo wrote:Yes, she's at college! In her second year, I think. She's done loads of other friends nails and they've never complained. Maybe it's because i'm fussier being a polish addict, but really - they're awful! I'll try to get a pic up later.

I could definitely do with a large drink, dragonette!

Ah yes, freyasmum! I may go post on The Other Side to try and get her attention.

Some people just accept the pain - they seem to think it's all part of having your nails done

The thing about college, and I'm not being a snow or whatever, is that there isn't always someone there to teach you properly - my own first year teacher was a trichologist and beauty therapist. She was a really talented woman but freely admitted that she couldn't do nails but was the only one available to teach us! We had on two-hour session a week for six months and had to cover gels (which were just brushed on), acrylics, which were thrown on, and fibreglass which are pretty old technology. They also don't regularly update their training - they still teach to wax brazilians with talc and warm wax rather than oil and hot wax which is much kinder - and even they teach students to cut the cuticles.... but show them the wrong area! I had a student come to me for some rockstars for her wedding and she sat down in front of me and delightedly told me she'd cut all her cuticles to save me work and asked how she'd done. And then she pulled her nails of rather than wait for them to soak, cos it's quicker...

I came straight out and spent 2k on an acrylic foundation course.



Anyhoo, now that I'd gibbered enough ( )

If they're really paperthin and sore then the best thing to do is to leave the acrylic on. Time is the only thing that will right the damage, but the acrylic will at last provide a bit of cover while your nails grow - thin it down as much as you can and keep your nails short - they will eventually get top-heavy and you need to be careful that you don't hurt your nails even more.

The important thingto remember when filing is just to use a few strokes on each area and then move - friction is what causes the burning sensation. Your nail plate doesn't have heat sensors so the pain that you feel is pressure, pressure on the nail plate and bed which could even force the nail to lift off the bed - that's the last thing you need right now

If you were closer, you'd have been more than welcome to come visit and have them fixed.

Also, the pain from the filing will go in a day or two (I know )

For the cuts, slather on your chosen oil (I do like the solar oil as the vit e is soothing).

For the little egyptian hats at the top, gently file straight out along the side wall to bring them in and make them look a bit more natural.

linzi, me being nosey, but where are you based. I'll hopefully be home soon and would love some rockstar nails

Lol, well I don't wanna post specifics cos we're a bit open, but I'm in East Ayrshire.

Where is home?

Omg just seen the piccie. Poor you xx

ahh bit far. Lanarkshire for me. Living in Belfast at the mo though

shoppingaddict wrote:Omg just seen the piccie. Poor you xx

Where's the pic? Am I being really thick?

I've posted a few (or tried to, FB is being crap tonight!) pics on the fb group but not sure how to post them here on my phone.

Thanks Linzi! I've had a go with a file but they seem so rock solid it's not even touching it. It sounds daft but because they're so thick could I put acetone on a cotton pad and soften it and sort of scrape the top off then file/buff it? It's going to take me ages to get through them as it is.

It's funny you mention the burning and how to file! All I felt on one hand was burning!! She was filing like you'd scrub at a stain in your carpet though! I knew as she was doing it it was oh so wrong but I'm too polite to say. You could actually smell burning from my nail/tip she was trying to smooth down at one point! My sisters friend could smell it from the sofa while we were sat on the floor!

I'm thinking I might email a local mobile nail tech the photos and see what she could do/if she can sort them for me.

If the acrylic was removed what options do I have for false nails that would still protect the poor damaged nail underneath? Presumably because of the damage acrylic/tips wouldn't be an option? Nobody is going to want to do just tips on them are they?

Gillyx wrote:ahh bit far. Lanarkshire for me. Living in Belfast at the mo though

Aww, that's a shame - it would've been nice to have a little meet up

xoxo wrote:I've posted a few (or tried to, FB is being crap tonight!) pics on the fb group but not sure how to post them here on my phone.

Thanks Linzi! I've had a go with a file but they seem so rock solid it's not even touching it. It sounds daft but because they're so thick could I put acetone on a cotton pad and soften it and sort of scrape the top off then file/buff it? It's going to take me ages to get through them as it is.

It's funny you mention the burning and how to file! All I felt on one hand was burning!! She was filing like you'd scrub at a stain in your carpet though! I knew as she was doing it it was oh so wrong but I'm too polite to say. You could actually smell burning from my nail/tip she was trying to smooth down at one point! My sisters friend could smell it from the sofa while we were sat on the floor!

I'm thinking I might email a local mobile nail tech the photos and see what she could do/if she can sort them for me.

If the acrylic was removed what options do I have for false nails that would still protect the poor damaged nail underneath? Presumably because of the damage acrylic/tips wouldn't be an option? Nobody is going to want to do just tips on them are they?

Thank goodness you asked where the pic was - I thought I was going a bit daft!! How do we join the FB group?

The problem with the cheaper acrylics, like those that a student (who can't purchase the premium brands without a conversion, and the can't do tht without a qualification) might use, is that they tend to promote 'keying' in order to get the acrylic to stick and also they ARE so difficult to file. In theory, as long as you were only getting acetone on the top and not round the back then you COULD try it - but only on one of the nails that isn't JUST as painful incase the whole thing just wants to come off. Just be careful. Filing would be my preferred method, but you don't wanna cause any more trauma to the area.

I can imagine -and it is one smell that is really vile, yuck.

It would really depend how damaged the nail was - we can create nails on biters who have nothing more than a few mms of stump at the bottom - but if it's painful then I really would recommend leaving it on to grow out. You can thin it down as much as possible without removing it completely and you CAN infill over = perhaps with an opaque powder to cover any possible redness but you may see a slight infill line, depending on the differences in the products. You could attempt to apply tips/acrylic over your damaged nails (NSS tear the old nails off and put the new ones on, on top), but if they're so painful then I wouldn't recommend taking them off as at least your nails have a little protection at the moment.

Tips themselves don't have any strength - you might expect a weekend or so out of them, but the acrylic is what gives the strength/longevity.

Argh posting from phone is hardddd!

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Thickness: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
^ you can see the damage to my nail (ring finger) thru the acrylic!

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And here's a pic of my nail before the pinky bit went on but after the white bit! Look how thick it is, and the stats of my nail!
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I posted clicky links cuz I'm not sure of the size of pics from my phone

Thanks again! I'll give filing another go tomorrow. I'm ok to cover up the crappy white tips and redness myself with another polish. Maybe time to get all those glitters tested so the bumpiness isn't as obvious.
I'll give filing another go tomorrow, maybe with a cheaper rougher file than I used tonight to try and break it down quicker!

xoxo wrote:Argh posting from phone is hardddd!

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Thickness: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
^ you can see the damage to my nail (ring finger) thru the acrylic!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

And here's a pic of my nail before the pinky bit went on but after the white bit! Look how thick it is, and the stats of my nail!
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]


I posted clicky links cuz I'm not sure of the size of pics from my phone

I hope you don't mind - I'll delete this if you'd prefer - but I hope that's a trick of the light and not realy a hole in your nail I'm seeing

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You definitely can't take these off - your fingers will be in agony if you do, you poor thing

Use as low a grit as you can find - repeatedly going over with a very fine file won't achieve much other than sore naills - and only go over the area a few times.

Linzi, must ask. Your avatar on MSE, are they yours? The only thing that gets me more excited than polish is shoes

It's not quite a hole but very very thin! As in so thin I could push and bend it - and she wanted to file it more til I was like no you definitely can't! She went "oh it's fine your nails are strong" uhhh yeah....they WERE. Clearly not any more!
So I'm looking for a file that's basically like sandpaper? Haha!
I'll give it a blummin good go tomorrow. Can't end up any worse can they really?!

Can you believe she had the cheek to charge me £15 after all that and the state they're in?

As she was leaving she said "I've messed up the tips a little but it's ok you can't tell from a distance" Well I am of course relieved that the man on the moon can't tell I'm a victim of the worlds worst nail job, but seriously?! The messy tips are what she thinks is the problem??

You really must be tolerant, and you are clearly far too kind! I'd definitely not have paid, but then she wouldn't have got anywhere near that far before I was screetching to have her stop!
You poor thing. A large G&T at least, and it looks like you need an icepack for that poor ring finger - maybe just reutilise the ice in the gin;)

xoxo wrote:It's not quite a hole but very very thin! As in so thin I could push and bend it - and she wanted to file it more til I was like no you definitely can't! She went "oh it's fine your nails are strong" uhhh yeah....they WERE. Clearly not any more!
So I'm looking for a file that's basically like sandpaper? Haha!
I'll give it a blummin good go tomorrow. Can't end up any worse can they really?!

Can you believe she had the cheek to charge me £15 after all that and the state they're in?

As she was leaving she said "I've messed up the tips a little but it's ok you can't tell from a distance" Well I am of course relieved that the man on the moon can't tell I'm a victim of the worlds worst nail job, but seriously?! The messy tips are what she thinks is the problem??

Lol, that's about it, yes! Well, to be fair, no I doubt they could. If you feel any more pain, just stop and move onto the next nail.

Maybe give her a phonecall and tell her your nails are very, very painful and have been since they were done. You would certainly be able to get your money back if that was what you wanted. The problem is though, you don't want to dent her confidence. But at the same time - it's you nails!

Nails like these, student or not, are why I'd love to get into teaching.

Gillyx wrote:Linzi, must ask. Your avatar on MSE, are they yours? The only thing that gets me more excited than polish is shoes

No, I wish they were! I'd never be in anything else

*passes 2 large drinks*
I wonder if you could call her up and ask her to have another look? I know you won't want to upset her but surely it would be better for her to find out now than she sometimes over-files rather than in an exam etc.

Personally I would like to show her college tutor and maybe all three of you could work out the best way to (horrible phrase!) move forward. It would help you (maybe), definately help her learning and hopefully give the teacher a kick up the backside to keep a closer eye on their students.

I completely realise that the above is unlikely, I just feel really bad for you the pics made my fingers and toes curl up in sympathy! I hope you're in less pain now xx