How To File Your Own Acrylic Nails

For most of us women, growing long, beautiful nails on our own just doesn’t really seem to be possible. This is why we choose to wear acrylic nails. Acrylic nails are a popular choice as they are stronger than gels, they do not break as easily as gel nails, and they are less expensive to have applied.

Whether you have applied the acrylic nails yourself or you have done them at the salon, it’s important to know how to file your nails in order to maintain them and to keep them looking beautiful. If you have applied your own acrylics, then you will be able to file and shape the nails after the nail bed of the acrylic nail has been smoothed down. This process is also good for anyone who is in between salon visits.

Step 1: It’s important to have a high-grit emery board at hand in order to file acrylics. As acrylic nails are a lot thicker than a natural nail, you may need to buy a special emery board so that you will be able to file your acrylics.
Step 2: The position you want the emery board to be in before you file is beneath the nail, but also away from your finger. This may require for you to angle it a bit to get in the right position to file. Try holding the emery board so that it is just about perpendicular to the nail, but also slightly towards the side of your finger.
Step 3: Once you have the emery board positioned, move the emery board in a motion that is against the nail in both a downward and an outward motion. Do not file your nail in a back-and-forth motion like a saw as this will only damage the nail and cause it to become brittle and break. Continue with this step for all of your nails until the desired length and shape of the nail has been achieved.

TIP: If you want to create a greater curve to the nail, simply increase the angle of the emery board, but make sure that you continue with that downwards and outwards motion to protect the integrity of the nail.

Step 4: Flip the emery board over so that you are using the “low grit” side of the board. Run the low grit side of the emery board over the sides of the nail that were just filed to give you nails a truly polished look and feel.
If a nail is irreparable even with filing but you are in between salon visits, or you don’t have time to give yourself a manicure, you may want to consider applying an acrylic tip to the tip of that one broken fingernail. The acrylic tips will last on your fingernails for 2-3 weeks time, and if you do have a professional manicure the nail technician will be able to remove an acrylic tip that you apply to your fingernail for you.

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