Acrylic Nails vs. Gel Nails

Joanne had been slogging off the whole weekend preparing the presentation on Tuesday. She wanted to leave office early on Monday so that she could attend Amy's engagement party. She finished her work by Sunday morning. However, she realized that she had bitten off most of her nails while working on her assignment. She had been working for quite some time on her look for the occasion. She paid regular visits to the beauty salon and scoured through most of the shops in the city for the best dress. Could she let the evening be spoilt due to bad nails? Never! She needed a quick fix solution. That was when she remembered about artificial nails.

Thank God for acrylic and gel nails. They are a savior for women with brittle nails or those with a nail biting habit. But now the question was which one to go for? Joanne had to consider acrylic nails vs gel nails to be able to decide which was the right one for her.

Artificial Nails

Acrylic nails and gel nails are artificial nails that make up for short and brittle nails. Acrylic nails are made by mixing a liquid and a powder (a monomer and a polymer) which forms a liquid of thick consistency. This liquid is then applied on natural nails as artificial nails. Gel nail is a premixed polymer and monomer gel that is applied to the nail and then cured. There are two types of gel nails. The light cured variety is cured by exposing it to ultra violet rays after the gel has been applied. The no-light variety is cured with a gel activator that is sprayed or brushed on the nail. The no-light variety cures faster than the light gel nails and have the added advantage of not requiring the UV light equipment. These artificial nails are great as by adding desired length, various types of nail art can be done on them to give one's fingers a glamorous look. Acrylic nail designs have become increasingly popular with women in recent times.

Acrylic Nails vs Gel Nails

Acrylic nails came before gel nails. Hence these are more easily available than gel nails. It is also easier to find nail salons that offer acrylic nails as compared to gel nails. Since they have been around longer than their counterpart, most nail technicians at salons and spas have a lot of experience about how to apply and remove acrylic nails. Gel nails lose out on this advantage to acrylic nails as they are relatively new.

However, gel nails give a more natural look to one's fingers than acrylic nails. They look as good as natural long nails. They are softer and more flexible than acrylic nails. Also, gel nails are odorless as compared to their acrylic counterparts. They do not require the strong smelling chemicals to apply or remove as acrylic nails do. These strong chemicals used in acrylic nails can cause greater damage to the nails than gel nails can. Curing time for gel nails is shorter than the acrylic ones. Also they require less filling during the application process.

Despite all the advantages, gel nails do have their own drawbacks. Gel nails do not last as long as acrylic ones. When done correctly and with proper nail care, acrylic nails tend to last much longer than gel nails do. Also nail polishes do not stay as long on gel nails as they do on acrylic nails. If you break your acrylic nails it's easy to fix it up yourself. However, gel nails are difficult to be done at home. Besides finding salon technicians with the desired level of expertise in applying gel nails, these nails come at a higher price than the acrylic ones. Also gel nails always need to be filed off. They can't just be soaked away.

While considering acrylic nails vs gel nails, one must realize that each has its own advantages and disadvantages. Everyone wants perfection. However, when it comes to deciding which type of artificial nails to go for, money and time become important factors worth considering.