Lifting

[moushax37]

Okay so im sure this question has been asked, but ive been out of school for 7 years and have never done nails professionally, only my own and friends. I have recntly been using OPI Absolute and I swear, no matter which product I use I lift. I know my nails are prone to lifting even when I get them done my a more experienced nail tech.... but I havent gone since ive been licensed lol.
I know how to properly prep the nail, I am assuming my problem is the ratio. My main question is how thick should the acrylic be at the cuticle? I know not to touch the cuticle of course... but it seems if I make it to thick i always end up filing it down and it lifts even more if its thinner.....

[Donna in Huntsville, TX.]

it's a really hard question to answer, First I'd say you need to go to the web site and see what the ration needs to be. You could be working either too wet or dry. Both of those could cause lifting. Over filing, yes, that can cause it.

the acrylic should be beveled down to blend in with the natural nail.

your application technique could also be part of the problem. Where are the nails lifting? All around the cuticle or just one side. More on one hand than the other?

You say you're doing excellent prep, have you ever prepped your nail, cleansed it then checked it under a magnifying glass? You might be surprised as what's still on the nail. Fingernailfixer has an excellent video out on how to clean the nail. It's a real eye opener. She uses a cuticle remover and currette and she really gets a lot of stuff off of the nail.

[Footie]

I agree with post above. And the fact that they lift even more when you file them thin is really odd to me. Maybe you are making them too thick and filing way too much and way too hard to compensate for the thickness. Even under acrylic, your nail is still flexible, and if you bang it or do weird things like that you can get lifting. So that may be why making them thinner around the cuticle is causing lifting. I make my nails so thin around the cuticle a client could not come in for a fill and simply polish over the nail and hardly tell it grew out at all.