Looking after your nails afterwards
How to get the full three or four weeks out of your nails.
The quality of the work decides how good your nails look on day one. How they look three weeks later depends mostly on what you do with them in between. Below is everything we recommend to clients of our studio at Dunajska cesta 13 in Ljubljana.
The first 24 hours
Gel and gel polish cure completely under the lamp in the studio, so there is nothing to wait for them to dry. Even so, avoid long soaks in hot water on the first day — saunas, long baths, or washing up without gloves. Hot water expands the natural nail under the material, and the first few hours are when a small crack at the edge forms most easily.
Cuticle oil, every day
This is the one step that genuinely changes how your nails look between appointments. A drop of oil on the cuticle morning and evening keeps the skin soft, prevents it growing over, and keeps the edge of the material looking fresh. Dry cuticles are the most common reason nails look neglected after two weeks even though the material is still perfectly intact.
Your nails are not tools
Opening cans, scraping off stickers, poking at a lock — those are the three most common ways a perfectly made nail gets broken. Extensions are strong but not indestructible, and force always finds the weakest point, which is the edge against the natural nail.
Gloves for cleaning
Household cleaners, acetone, disinfectants and bleach do not harm the material straight away, but over time they dull it and the colour loses its shine. A pair of rubber gloves saves both — the colour and the skin on your hands.
Do not peel or file it yourself
If an edge lifts somewhere, do not try to take it off yourself. Peeling takes the top layers of the natural nail with it, and that is what leaves nails thin and sensitive — not the extension itself. Call us; a small repair is quick and cheap.
When to come back
Come for an infill every three to four weeks. Sooner is not necessary; later shows in ways you will not like: as the natural nail grows the centre of gravity moves forward, the load on the edge increases, and the risk of a break rises quickly. It is worth booking the next appointment as you leave.
If a nail does break or lift, call us — repairing a single nail is far quicker and cheaper than a new infill. Details are on the price list.
What is normal and what is not
- Normal: after two weeks the grown-out part of the natural nail shows at the cuticle. That means your nails are growing, not that the work was faulty.
- Normal: gel polish loses some shine after two to three weeks.
- Not normal: burning, redness or swelling around the nail. Call us if that happens.
- Not normal: a nail coming off completely in the first week. We repair that free of charge.
Taking a break
If you decide to take a break, let us remove the material. Forcing it off with a file or pulling it takes layers of the natural nail with it, and recovery takes months. Removal is quick and leaves the natural nail intact.
More answers are collected in the FAQ. For the services themselves see nail extensions, gel polish and BIAB or pedicure.
If something is wrong
Do not wait for the next appointment. Call us on 064 277 047 or write to info@dior.si — a small repair is quick and cheap, and a late repair often is not small any more.