While dip powder and gel manicures are amongst the most popular nail manicure jobs, acrylic powder nails also have their admirers. People with short nails generally prefer to have nail extensions to make their nails look long and beautiful. Thus, everyone should know about acrylic nails and the ingredients required for an acrylic nail manicure. This article discusses acrylic nail powder in detail.
What Is Acrylic Powder?
Acrylic powder is a primary ingredient in an acrylic nail manicure. You do not use it alone but combined with a liquid chemical that serves as the hardening agent. Generally, you have an acrylic manicure in a nail salon, but you can have it at home. It is inexpensive, especially if you buy acrylic powder wholesale. While an acrylic nail manicure is a safe procedure, it protects the nail and improves its appearance. However, removing acrylic nails requires you to seek professional help.
Ingredients in Acrylic Powder
The primary ingredient in acrylic powder is polyethylmethylmethacrylate, also known as PMMA. Chemically, PMMA is a combination of methyl methacrylate (MMA) and ethyl methacrylate (EMA). Besides, acrylic powder contains chemical compounds like benzophenone-1 to prevent discoloration of the powder on exposure to UV light. In addition, the mixture includes benzoyl peroxide. Manufacturers add specific pigments to offer variety, whereas some acrylic powder has glitter.
How Does Acrylic Powder Work?
To prevent the molecules from combining soon, people mix acrylic nail powder with EMA, a monomer liquid, and other ingredients. It also helps prevent discoloration and ensures smooth flow after spreading on the nail. The benzoyl peroxide present in the acrylic powder acts as a catalyst to enable the liquid monomer to form strong bonds, like crosslinks between the powder particles. As a result, you get a hardened resin.
How Do You Apply Acrylic Powder to the Nails?
Compared to gel and dip powder manicures, the acrylic nail job is more challenging. Hence, it is better to visit a nail salon. Using a soft brush, salon technicians mix the acrylic powder with the liquid monomer. They start from the base of the nail and move gently towards the edges. The chemical reaction between the powder and the monomer is that the mixture hardens as soon as the ingredients are mixed. Hence, every application requires you to have a fresh mix.
Individuals should learn the acrylic powder nail application procedure because it can help fill the nail base gaps when the nail grows naturally. It also enables them to maintain their acrylic nails and not depend on the salon technicians every time.
Where Is Acrylic Powder Available?
You can buy acrylic powder wholesale online. Besides, these products are available at departmental stores selling cosmetic items. Purchasing them online is preferable because it is inexpensive.
Is It Safe to Use Acrylic Powder?
People confuse acrylic nail powder with MMA, which the FDA has banned. However, the ban is on using MMA in the liquid monomer form. Acrylic powder in the polymer form is not harmful. The polymers have larger molecules that cannot penetrate the skin. Besides, it is easy to identify if the manufacturer has used MMA because of its distinctive odor. In addition, products containing MMA do not soak quickly in acetone and are harder to file.
Acrylic powder is not harmful, but it requires specific solvents to remove. These solvents can emit toxic fumes and irritate the skin. When used with conventional nail scraping tools, they can reduce the nail’s thickness by 50%. In addition, these solvents can cause nail infections because they can damage the cuticles and the skin surrounding the nails.
How to Remove Acrylic Powder from Your Nails?
The most common nail polish removal solution is acetone. The resin that forms by mixing the acrylic powder with the liquid monomer dissolves in acetone. However, acetone has disadvantages because its odor can cause dizziness or nausea. In addition, acetone can dehydrate your skin and nails. Besides, it can irritate your respiratory tract. Hence, salon technicians use nail files to remove as much nail polish as possible before subjecting your nails to the acetone soaking treatment.
The actual removal process can take more than 20 minutes. Besides, one should moisturize the nails after the removal process because acetone removes all water content from the nails and the surrounding skin. You can also use petroleum jelly or Vaseline on the skin before the acetone soaks to prevent exposing your skin directly to acetone.
Final Thoughts
The acrylic nail manicure is a perfect alternative to the dip powder and gel nail jobs. Hence, every woman should know what acrylic nail dip contains and how to use it as part of the beautification process. This article has decoded everything to know about acrylic powder.