The trick is to create more surface area. We're going to do that by unrolling the cottonball so that its a strip and no longer a ball.
You'll notice the rolled up ball looks like a hay bale or roll of toilet paper. So, I kind of pick and pull around the rolled edge (like I would a roll of toilet paper!) until the end starts coming loose. Then gently unroll it the rest of the way.
Next, cut small strips/squares from it to match the size of your nails. We're going to cover each nail with these pieces. If you have small nails and make careful cuts, there may even be a tiny cottonball leftover!
Once the pieces are cut, soak them with 100% acetone one by one and apply on top of the nail.
There are a few ways to soak them with acetone:
1. Put a small amount of acetone in a glass dish and toss the pieces in to soak it up. (watch for drips)
2. Hold five pieces together at the bottle opening and tip it, then separate them to apply to the nail. (spill risk)
3. Using a pump bottle, which is the way I prefer most. It's less risky of spills/drips and can be done with one hand.
Apply the soaked cotton pad to the nail and let sit for a bit. About a minute is a fair time frame for a couple of layers of cream polish. Let it sit longer (and reapply acetone if it dries out) for more layers or polishes with shimmer.
Remove each piece by pressing down near the cuticle and sliding the cotton to the free edge of the nail. This will remove most if not all of the polish. Avoid scrubbing back and forth, as this will just smear the color from the cotton onto the skin. If there's a litlte polish left on the nail grab a clean square and remove it in the same manner, dragging from cuticle to free edge until it's gone.
Above is my result! I had about three layers from my previous mani.
Afterward, I used the tiny cotton ball remnant and removed the little spots of leftover polish.
This method is very similar to the foil method, but without the foil. I've come to love the unrolling technique that I have used since 2008, it is key to making a bag of cotton balls last much longer.
I hope you find this useful and try it out some time!
What are some of your your tips and tricks to remove polish?
Awesome to see it worked so well for you!
ReplyDeleteHehe! Now all I need is a trick to save cotton for stamping plate cleaning. oy vey!
DeleteNeat. I use cotton pads though :(
ReplyDeleteHmm... I wonder if it would work well to pull the layers apart into two pieces and then cut them into the strips? Something to try perhaps!
DeleteI use this method too, different brands work better than others I found :)
ReplyDeleteohhh do tell! Which brand do you like best?
DeleteI like the ones from Waitrose. But the bigger and fluffier the better for this they tend to be :D
Deleteoh thank you! I'll keep an eye out for those - I love a fluffy cotton ball!
DeleteHi Jen, Haha!! It looks like I've been wasting way too many cotton balls over the years! I'm also guilty of using too much shampoo, face lotion, toner, soap, etc., etc. It's so easy to overdo! :(
ReplyDeleteLol - try it sometime! You may be surprised at the result - plus that means money saved = more polish. yes?
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