Elan Beauty: No-fail False Nails

It appears that all the female celebrities in the world, from Victoria Beckham to Beyonce, wear false nails. Artificial nails can be subtle and natural-looking or extremely long and heavily embellished. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when considering getting artificial nails.

1. Choose false nails that suit your lifestyle. If your daily routine involves using your hands a lot, for example, if you work in a laboratory or type a lot, or if you work in a conservative industry like banking, shorter, more natural nails would be a better choice for you.

2. There are all sorts of false nail types available, from acrylic to plastic stick-ons. ‘Acrylic' refers to a mixture of a liquid called a monomer and a powder called a polymer. It is the mixture of the monomer and polymer that results in the acrylic that is applied onto nails. Ask your nail technician's advice before settling on a particular type.

3. Acrylic artificial nails are achieved in different ways. Sometimes, the acrylic is applied directly on the natural nails or over false nail tips or they are sculpted and moulded over a wedge which is then removed once the acrylic has set.

4. There are many technicians who can create amazing designs on nails, from Louis Vuitton logos to snake-skin effects. Nail technicians who can achieve such results are hard to find locally.

5. To achieve the radically-patterned nails seen on music videos and so on, first create your desired pattern on a computer (or get someone to do it for you), print out the design and hand it to your nail technician, who will then cut out shapes to fit each of your nails. Your technician will then stick the paper pattern onto your nails with nail glue before applying the acrylic onto your nails the normal way.

6. Sometimes fibreglass is applied over the nails instead of acrylic, although this usually results in thick-looking nails.

7. When acrylic is applied directly onto the nails without adding tips or false nails, the process is called nail-wrapping.

8. Because acrylic remains on the nail as the nail grows out, after a while, a gap between your cuticle and the bottom of the acrylic edge shows. When this happens, the nail has to be ‘filled' again for an elegant look.

9. False nails are one way to achieve glamorous nail looks and can help to discourage nail-biting. However, when moisture is trapped between the acrylic and the real nail, fungi may grow leading to nail infection. In addition, because your natural nails are filed a lot before acrylic is applied, when you get the acrylic removed, your natural nails end up very soft.

10. It's best to give your nails a break between applications of artificial nails to give them a chance to ‘breathe.'