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You may have heard about nail wraps but aren’t quite certain what they are and how to use them. With the different types and the different ways they can be applied compared to all the other ways to get synthetic nails, I understand that it can be a whirlwind of information that you just want to get sorted. That is why I will be explaining to you everything you need to know about nail wraps.
Nail Wraps are strips of fabrics made from silk, linen, or fiberglass that can be used to repair nails or even create synthetic nails. They require resin activators and nail glues for them to harden and stick to stick to the nail plates. They are less durable than acrylic but are easier to be removed and preserves the health of your nails
I will describe how nail wraps became popular and explain how they can be used. I will also compare them to acrylic in terms of durability, ease of removal as well as affordability. I will also guide you on how to apply them, remove them, and how use them together with acrylics.
Table of Contents
What Are Nail Wraps
Nail Wraps are fabrics that are strips of fabric that are used with resin to make synthetic nails. Its origin can be seen back in the 1920s when nail techs used to get creative and use coffee filters and tea bags to repair broken nails. It progressed and enhanced over the years that, around the 1980s, the nail wraps we use today, paper, linen, silk, and fiberglass found their way as the most effective nail wraps.
Nail wraps can come in almost any design, but can also come as plain fabrics so that you have the opportunity to design them yourself once you have placed them on your nails. Many companies make nail wraps as they have grown to become quite popular in the nail tech industry. I’ll give you a rundown of three of the best companies to get your nail wraps from and why you can trust them to give you great nail wraps.
High’s Nail Wraps
If you’re looking for a wide range of nail wrap designs, then you can try High’s Nail Wraps. These are mostly for those who prefer to just stick those nails on and go instead of having them prepped, painted, and designed by yourself or nail tech.
I prefer having more control over how my nail wraps are designed so I would use clear nail wraps over-designed ones every day. But for those who want to make their nail appointment a lot shorter and easier these various designs will retain some originality on your nails.
Born Pretty
These are for the creatives among us. Born Pretty offers DIY nail paper for you to customize nail shape and size by cutting them out of the roll.
While my hands, which are gifted to cut straight lines into crooked ones, probably couldn’t go up to the task, if you’re looking for originality then look no further. You have full mastery of what you want your nails to look like.
If you have used nail wraps before you know that sometimes they don’t fit your nail shape and size. If this is usually your problem, then making tailored cuts may be right for you.
Blulu
Maybe you want more control of your nail wraps than what High’s give you, but you don’t want to go full Michelangelo like Born Pretty offers, then Blulu offers nail wraps that set you right at the midpoint. They offer blank nail wrap strips that you can place your own design on.
This is more my genre I must say. I can unleash the Da Vinci in me as I am offered a blank canvas for my designs. If you like this level of freedom with your nail wraps, then I would suggest this type for you.
Types of Nail Wraps
As I said before we have different types of nail wraps, each with its benefits. I’ll discuss the benefits of each.
Silk Nail Wraps
For the most natural-looking nails, you will want to use silk nail wraps. This is because it has a smooth texture that you can easily apply paint on, so it mirrors the smoothness of your natural nails.
You can wear these without color for a natural smooth appearance. It also gives your nails some “breathing room” as silk has tiny holes in its fibers. However, among the other nail wraps, this material is the weakest and will not last as long as the other types.
This may be good for some as removing these nails are easier than removing fiberglass and linen. All you need to do to remove silk wraps is to soak them in water. The water will dissolve them from your nails.
This is however bad for wearing silk wraps while performing everyday activities like washing your hands. Water can easily lift the wraps off the nails.
Linen Nail Wraps
You will find that linen wraps are stronger than silk wraps so naturally, they will last longer. Unlike silk wraps, linen wraps often come in white though which isn’t easily covered by resin activators. So, if you were planning on wearing these nail wraps without painting them, just know that the linen color will be peering through.
Some silk nails will have bits of linen in them to help with durability. So, you’re able to get the best of both worlds with these two.
Fiberglass Nail Wraps
If linen nail wraps were the prince of durability, then here you will meet the king. Fiberglass is made from melting glass into a plastic-like material that is strained through small holes to get thin hair-like fibers.
They are then woven together to form the strips that we use on our nails. This is why if you look closely at fiberglass nails you can see the weaving pattern. It is the most durable of the three materials. It may be the reason they are so expensive, even more than an acrylic job. They are however easier to remove than acrylic pain and are less damaging on the hands.
How To Apply Nail Wraps
You must first prepare your nails before applying your nail wraps. Buff your nails to increase adherence, then brush away any dirt or particles leftover from buffing. A material known as a resin activator will be required.
You’ll also need nail adhesive. The resin activator and nail glue will be used to strengthen and build up your nail wraps.
Shellac is frequently used to make resin. Shellac is the secretion of lac insects that live on trees in Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries. As these insects consume tree sap, they create a secretion that is gathered and used in items that require hardness and gloss, such as wood varnish, or even food products such as confectionery.
This resin will be used to strengthen the fiberglass during the application procedure. To begin, apply a layer to your natural nail plate. Using a tool, apply the nail wrap strip to the nail.
You cannot apply the strip with your hand since the oil from your skin would dampen the wrap, causing it to lift. Also, make sure the wrap doesn’t cover the nail all the way to the cuticles. It’s important to avoid applying the product too close to the cuticles since this will cause the wrap to lift, as it is with most nail grooming procedures.
After you’ve inserted and precisely positioned your wrap, apply a thin layer of glue over it using your nail glue brush. After you’ve secured it, you can cut your wrap to the length you want. The longer you want your nail wrap to be, the more layers you’ll need at the tip of your nails to sustain the wrap’s length.
Spray your resin activator on your nails once you’ve glued and clamped the initial layer to help the wrap harden.
Apply adhesive and resin to each layer to strengthen the nails. After the nails have sufficiently hardened, lightly file the nail to the desired form. After that, buff your nails to remove any weaving patterns that may have remained visible through your resin and adhesive layers.
A good way to improve the finish of the nails is to apply gel polish. For even stronger nails you can also apply tips to your nail plate before starting the process.
How Can I Make My Nail Wraps Last Longer?
One of the major drawbacks of wearing nail wraps is that it doesn’t take long before they start to lift. You could maybe get two weeks out of them at most. But there are things you can do to make them last just a little longer.
Avoid Heat
When your nail wraps are exposed to high temperatures, it weakens the wrap and causes it to tear. You might be wondering “Well that’s easy, where am I going to feel high temperatures anyway?” But we do in fact come into contact with heat.
From hand dryers to blow dryers to even cooking on an open flame, if you’re wearing nail wraps they can get damaged by the heat coming from these items.
Try to minimize heat by maybe towel drying instead or air-drying hair instead of blow-drying whenever you can. It will extend the life of your nail wraps.
Apply Top-Coat
Yes, I know we spoke about applying top coats when we discussed applying nail wraps to fingers. But here we’ll be talking about extending your nail wrap’s life expectancy using top coats. You can achieve this by applying a fresh dose of top coat to your nails every two days.
Any more frequent than two days and you will end up with clumpy thick nails. As top coats form a layer over your nail wraps you need to ensure that your first defense is fortified. So, keep adding your top coats to refortify those nails.