How do you do it?

[Emy10]

Ok so i just wanted to ask how you guys paint your nails and manage to do it "perfectly".

Do you just paint and them removes the inequality with acetone?

I did that before, and i still dont like it, because its not easy to remove nail polish on a certain spot, mostly if its on the side of the nail in the space between the nail and the skin.

Do you use peel off latex?

I thought about buying one to try, like maybe the one from Simply Nailogical.

Any other tricks? 

Thank you guys 🙂 

[saturnsays]

One trick, that's cheaper than liquid latex, is applying a bit of Vaseline around the cuticle/sides of your nails -- when your nails are dry you can just wipe if off/any polish that smudged onto it won't stick to you skin... Definitely easier then trying to wipe up with acetone afterwards, although that definitely works, too

[RGbrown]

@Emy10 

I only use liquid latex if I'm sponging something on. For me, smaller messes like a regular polish job just don't warrant the hassle of dealing with it otherwise, but some folks would much rather use latex for dang near everything...it just boils down to personal preference!

A small brush and acetone are your best friend for cleanup, like @CookieGirl1 mentioned! Some folks do it as they go, others (me included) wait until after they are done...this'll just be a little trial and error while you figure out your best method. Since I'm not doing a final cleanup until the end, I keep a cuticle stick handy; if I get a big sloppy glob somewhere, I'll use the stick to carefully clean out as much as I can before it dries, but my hands shake a bit, so I have to leave detail cleanup until my topcoat has set. 

And of course, there's practice practice practice involved 😋 The more you paint, the more you'll get comfortable with it. Experiment with different positions to find your best mix of stability vs mobility. My sis can paint her nails with her hand just hovering in the air (witchcraft), but I have to sit at my kitchen table with my painting hand resting on the table, and one finger that I'm painting up on the table top at a time to help keep my tremors in check and keep me from smudging freshly painted nails. 

For painting the cuticle line, drop your bead of polish up the nail a little, away from the cuticle, then slow push it back towards the cuticle; unless the polish is super thin and watery and runs everywhere, this motion can nearly eliminate flooded cuticles. For sidewalls, your biggest help is making sure you don't have too much polish on the brush; you want just enough to cover the nail without a ton leftover...excess polish can get out of control pretty quickly!

[tracy011193]

LANEIGE Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Cream Moisturizer for Moisture Barrier Repair is good for ya 

[CookieGirl1]

@Emy10 The liquid latex does help (as a super-cheap alternative you can even use Elmer's glue, like the kind we used in elementary school, because it literally peels off) but also as far as removing the excess with acetone, how are you trying to do it?  It usually is easier if you're using a really tiny brush (just pick up a cheap dollar one from Elf or WNW). 

[Emy10]

@CookieGirl1 i never thought about using a tiny brush!!! I used to use Q-tips, and stopped because its just not working lol.

Ill buy a brush and try it!!

Thank you 😃😃😃

[Tina30219]

When it comes to brushes for cleaning up your nail messes I would like to know what everyone uses

[WinglessOne]

@Tina30219  Any small, thin, and angled eyeliner or brow brush can do the trick. Or you can use a very small, thin, domed eyeshadow brush; that’s what most nail cleanup brushes sold by polish brands look like. Synthetic bristled brushes can take more abuse than natural hair brushes. 

Here’s the brush I use: 

Travel size angled eyeliner brush, from a ColourPop brush set. It's small but mighty.

There’s a fun quick story behind that brush: 

Spoiler

Someone in Poland ordered this 4-brush set of ColourPop My Little Pony makeup brushes, and CP sent it to me instead. (I’m in the US.) I know it was supposed to go to Poland because the customer’s address was on the packing slip. Meanwhile, CP sent my order of single eyeshadows and lipsticks to someone else. 

After I contacted CP about their shipping error, they resent order and let me keep the brush set. I didn’t want the brush set, so I’d planned to donate or gift it. But I wound up using this small angled eyeliner brush to strategically apply concealer. A few years later, I discovered this brush is good (for me) as a nail cleanup tool. 

I hope CP resent the person in Poland their order. I also sincerely hope they're the one who got my order, got to keep it, and had fun using it! 

It’s not the world’s best eyeliner brush, but it’s well made enough to withstand frequent acetone dips and hasn’t fallen apart on me or shed all over the place. I like that the bristles are quite stiff yet a bit flexible, which gives me good control in the skin folds along the sides of my nails. And I can use the flat sides to remove excess polish or top coat from fingertip skin beneath a nail. The only problem is the skinny handle: it's sometimes hard to hold with wet nails. (I clean up my nails as I go.) 

Your nail cleanup brush doesn't have to be a makeup brush. Check your local arts & crafts store for individually sold paint brushes. 🙂 I use those brushes for nail art. 

[Tina30219]

Ok so correct me if I am wrong this is a eye liner brush? 

[WinglessOne]

@Tina30219  Psst: when replying to folks here on BIC, remember to @ them so they'll get a notification about your reply. 🙂 

Yes, that's an eyeliner brush. It's a travel size brush with synthetic bristles, made by ColourPop. 

[Tina30219]

Thank you.

[ellie50]

Definitely need a clean-up brush, Q-tips are way to thick and leave fuzzies. I tried Elf and NYX, they dissolved in a few manis. I bought one of amazon (it was $10) but I've had it for 2 yrs now. Eventually they get dry on the ends from the acetone. I use straight up 100% acetone and not nail polish remover.  Blot the clean up brush on a paper towel or you'll end up having the acetone dissolve the polish and it will run into your cuticles and sides, esp with a shimmer or holo :-). 

[Tina30219]

Could you please share what kind of brush you got