**For anyone thinking that Shellac can ruin your nails**

I sometimes hear people say “I had Shellac once but it completely ruined my nails” so I thought I’d clear up this up. A product itself doesn’t ruin nails, but what people do to the nails during application, wear & removal of the product might. If you’ve worn Shellac & feel that it has caused damage to your nails ask yourself the following questions:

*Was the product genuine?
CND Shellac is the original Power Polish & unfortunately there are many cheap imitations on the market. Some salons advertise a ‘Shellac’ service but might not be using genuine CND Shellac. At Artistic Nails we only use CND Shellac purchased from the only authorised UK distributor, Sweet Squared.

*Was cuticle oil recommended & the benefits explained during the application appointment? If so, did you purchase some? Have you been using it as instructed?
Advising the use of a good quality cuticle oil is not just your nail tech trying to sell you something. Cuticle oil is an essential part of keeping your nails healthy & hydrated. Hydrated nails are flexible & less likely to break, peel or snap. This will also help your Shellac to last longer.

*Did you return to the salon for the product to be removed? Or did you pick it off yourself?
Picking Shellac off will cause damage, having it correctly removed won’t. Even though you might not be able to see it, picking off the Shellac will mean that you are picking layers of the nail plate away too. This leaves your nails weakened & damaged. It’s understandable that you might not always be able to return to the salon for removal, this is why we also retail CND Remove Tubes which contain everything you need to remove your Shellac at home.

*Were the nails soaked in a bowl of acetone for removal?
Soaking the fingernails in pure acetone is not the correct way to remove CND Shellac. Instead, it should be done using CND Nourishing Remover & the wrap technique. CND Nourishing Remover is not only 20% faster at removing Shellac than pure acetone, it’s much kinder too as it contains macadamia nut oils & Vitamin E to reduce dehydration. Wrapping the nails (using either CND Remover Wraps or the cotton pad & foil method) ensures that the remover is concentrated exactly where it needs to be & limits unnecessary exposure.

The best way to avoid any of these mistakes & to ensure that you’re receiving a quality Shellac service is to use a CND Shellac Certified Salon. In the UK these salons can be found by using the salon locator at www.loveshellac.com

. The nail techs at these salons have received the correct CND Shellac training, they follow correct application & removal techniques, they use the full CND Shellac system & their products are purchased from the authorised UK distributor.

Remember though, it is just as important that you play your part in keeping your nails healthy by following the aftercare advice given at your Shellac appointment. CND SolarOil or Nurture Oil can be purchased at Artistic Nails.

The nails in the attached photo are mine and I have been re-shellacing them every 2 weeks without a break for the last 18 months. I could never get my own nails to grow this long without the help of Shellac.