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Nail Prep & Dehydrators

A great manicure starts with proper nail prep

If you enjoy doing your own nails or are a professional manicurist, you love that satisfying reveal of perfectly finished nail art. But in order to get to that beautiful finished product, you need to lay a good foundation.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Properly prepping your nails does require a few steps, but if you want to create that salon professional look at home, it’s well worth taking the extra time! Start by shaping your natural nail, trimming if necessary, filing the tip of the nail to smooth any roughness, and then buffing over the face of the nail to create a smooth surface.

If necessary, use a cuticle remover as well to reveal the surface of the nail. Use a dusting brush and sponge to clean away any dust or debris. After buffing and shaping, a nail prep dehydrator should be applied to clean and prepare the nail plate. Follow with a nail primer to promote better adhesion.

A nail dehydrator is an essential step to get your manicures and nail art to last as part of a nail prep routine. Nail dehydrators work to clean nails and provide a good surface on top of which you can apply nail primer and then polish, acrylic or gel.

Unlike alcohol wipes or acetone, which can be unnecessarily harsh on nails, nail dehydrators are designed specifically to help nail products adhere and sit smoothly on the plate of the nail, helping manicures last longer and making the removal safer and more straightforward.

Nail primer is designed to help promote the adhesion of nail extensions, hard gel sculpting and acrylics. Before you apply primer, use a nail dehydrator to prepare your nail plate. It will remove the natural oils and other contaminants that can interfere with the effectiveness of products like primer. By applying nail dehydrator first, you’ll provide a solid foundation for any style of manicure to lay over the top.

Acetone is an option for removing nail polish and other manicure products, but it’s very harsh and damaging when used to strip the natural oils from the nail plate as part of nail prep. Especially when working on clients or if you regularly wear manicures and nail extensions, professional nail products like a dedicated nail dehydrator will give you a much better result and help protect the integrity of your nails in the long term.