Painting your own nails? Not a new concept, we know. But, there are still a ton of misconceptions and mistakes happening when it comes to doing it yourself. So, we hit up Julie Kandalec (she/her), celeb manicurist and educator, to clear up any confusion. “As a child, I was obsessed with miniatures, but also painting and crafts,” she says. “I was always making or creating something! I’d cut out the pocket from a pair of jeans and sew on the waistband to make a purse or paint landscapes in watercolors and acrylic paints. I used to say ‘When I grow up, I want to be a manicurist!’ after a field trip to a local beauty school. I remember seeing the tiny nail art studs and striping tape in one of the student’s Caboodles and I knew right away that nails are what I wanted to do to combine everything I loved. I got my license at 17, and haven’t stopped since.”

Without further ado, here’s some nail safety advice, without the salon service fees. 💅

First things first: What’s the secret to strong, healthy, and gorgeous nails?
When growing out your nails, I recommend using KISS Salon X-tend. It’s an at-home LED Soft Gel System that lasts up to two weeks and is removed easily using KISS Glue Off with no damage. Nails are pre-designed and pre-sculpted, so they’re one-and-done!

People are developing allergies to certain nail practices/products that they do themselves. How can we avoid any reactions and be as safe as poss when taking care of our own nails?
The reason this is happening is because unauthorized sellers are selling gel kits on sites like Amazon, SHEIN, and Temu, and/or people are mixing products and lamps, so the gel isn’t curing properly. I cannot stress this enough: Products are meant to be used as a system, not a base coat from one company, a color from another, and a gel lamp from a third.

Reputable nail companies like CND, The Gel Bottle, and OPI have spent years testing products rigorously for safety. A set of 30 gel colors plus a lamp for $35 on Amazon simply isn’t the same. I always recommend going to a licensed nail professional, but if you want to DIY your nails at home, I do have safety tips. Don’t mix brands, make sure the brand is practicing safely, be sure you’re following the manufacturer’s directions perfectly, get the MSDS sheets from the manufacturer, and, remember that in this case, it’s worth it to spend more on products that won’t cause an allergic reaction because that can be long lasting, if not forever in extreme cases. Or, you can get press-ons like these, these, these, or these.

What mistakes do you often see when people try taking care of their own nails?
During removal, they’re not soaking them long enough. People think that all it takes for a clean removal (gel polish, press-ons, etc.) is 10-15 minutes. While that’s true with some brands like CND Shellac, it usually takes longer with other brands. If products have been mixed (another reason not to mix-and-match!), or if they have been spending time in the sun, it over-cures the enhancement, making it more resistant to removal. Add at least 10 more minutes to the suggested removal time and it will not only come off easier, it will cause little to no damage.

Also, when removing press-ons that have been glued on, soaking them in warm water for removal is still damaging. The reason that you don’t feel the damage and that they come off in the water is that the water swells the nail plate, making it softer. When the nail comes off, it still has the nail glue (which is not dissolvable with water!) on the nail, attached to—you guessed it—layers of your natural nail.

Are there any tricks to avoid these problems?
Soak in 100% pure acetone, not acetone-based remover—it’s not strong enough and will just stay gummy. Companies also make their own removal products, like CND’s Offly Fast for gel polish or KISS’s Glue Off.

Is there anything else you’d like to share?
Gel lamps are not going to give you cancer, so please don’t listen to the overdramatized scare tactics! You get more UV exposure walking to your mailbox than you do in an entire gel manicure service.