Whether you’re doing acrylic nails for clients in your own salon or for yourself at home, there are many steps to the process - from applying acrylic nail polish to shaping the tips. Learning to perfect each of these steps is an art form in itself.

What’s the secret to perfect acrylic nails?

While we know that every step in the acrylic nail process is important, the time we’ve spent working with nail artists has taught us that one of these steps is more important than all the rest: prepping the nails. That’s right—the secret to perfect acrylic nails happens before you use any acrylic at all.

Over the years, we’ve seen many of our customers turn to YouTube for information on how to best apply acrylic nails. Unfortunately, most of those videos don’t show don’t show the nail prep, which is crucial to ending up with a beautiful and durable set of nails. Similarly, learning from your nail tech won’t always get the best results. After all, not all nail techs are created equal and some nail techs simply aren't educated about the importance of prepping nails before applying acrylic nail polish.

Why is prepping for acrylic nails so important?

By prepping nails properly, you can avoid fungal infections, which are not only unpleasant, but can also lead to lifting, which is when the acrylic nail lifts up from the bed. Lifting occurs when there isn’t a solid bond between the nail bed and the acrylic products being used. That bond can only be created when the nail bed is properly prepared by the nail artist.

So, how do I prep for the application of acrylic nails?

Follow our step-by-step guide to prepping for a perfect set of acrylic nails. This set of instructions—along with the salon quality products listed—will get you pro results every time.

First, remove the cuticle.

Using a cuticle remover and a cuticle pusher, push back the cuticle so that it is completely off of the nail bed. This is an essential step in preventing lifting of the acrylic nails. It’s important to note that a cuticle nipper is not as effective as the cuticle remover paired with the cuticle pusher (this is true for any manicure!).

Buff the nail.

After removing the cuticle, use a three-way nail buffer to remove excess dust and product from the surface of the nail.

Clean the nails.

To clean the nails, apply ScrubFresh Nail Surface Cleaner with a plastic backed cotton pad. This is an oil-free method for cleaning the nail that also sanitizes and pulls moisture and body oils from the nail, greatly lowering the risk of fungal infections and acrylic nail lifting.

Nearly half of all nail techs tell clients to wash their hands during the prepping process, but this is a mistake that often leads to lifting and breakage. The soaps used during hand washing can leave oils on the nail beds and the water absorbed to the nail surface during handwashing can keep the acrylic nail polish from adhering.

Moral of the story? Stick with ScrubFresh!

Wipe and dry the nails.

After removing the cuticle, buffing the nail, and applying ScrubFresh to clean and sanitize the nails, be sure to wipe down each nail with a lint free wipe. Using lint-free wipes is essential, as it minimizes the risk of left-behind particles that can disrupt the bond between the nail and the acrylic nail products.

Now that you have tidied, buffed, cleaned, and dried the nails, they are all ready for that gorgeous set of acrylic nails!

Tell us your acrylic nail success stories!

If you have success with this process of prepping for acrylic nails (and we think you will!), let us know in the comments! We love to know how our expertise and our products are working for you.

And remember, you can also contact us directly with any questions about the products—we’re happy to talk all things nails + beauty!

Beautifully Yours,

Kim Phan, VP