Magnetic Polish Instructions, Troubleshooting and Frequently Asked Questions

I've gotten a lot of questions about magnetic polish, so I thought I'd put all the information here in one place for easy reference. If I've missed something, please let me know so I can add it to this post!

HOW TO APPLY MAGNETIC POLISH

1. Apply your usual base coat and let it dry.
2. Apply your first coat of magnetic polish to all ten nails and give it a minute to set.
3. Apply one coat of magnetic polish to a single nail. If it looks opaque enough, continue to step four. If it looks too sheer, add another coat to all nails before continuing.
4. Working one nail at a time, apply a coat of magnetic polish and then immediately hold the magnet over the nail.
5. Hold the magnet completely still for at least 10 seconds. Holding it longer will give you a clearer design.
   
6. Continue this process (apply final coat, expose polish to magnet) on all ten nails.
7. Wait a few minutes for the magnetic design to set before applying topcoat.

TROUBLESHOOTING

Magnetic polish does have a learning curve. It's not extremely difficult to use, but it can definitely take a few tries before you start to get the hang of applying it. Knowing how much polish to apply or how to hold the magnet to get the design to come out just right takes practice, but, to me, the results are worth the extra effort! These are some of the problems I've personally encountered when using magnetic polish.

For reference, these are the shapes I'm using below. Left to right: China Glaze diagonal pattern, China Glaze star pattern, Nails Inc. wave pattern, China Glaze chevron pattern.


The design looks like this:

Reason: Finger or magnet were moved while creating the design.

Solution: Hold still when exposing the wet polish to the magnet. If you wiggle or shift positions, it will create a blurred design.


The design looks like this:

Reason: Final coat of polish was already too dry when the magnet was applied.

Solution: Expose the magnet to the wet polish immediately after applying the final coat. Don't wait. If the polish is already too dry, simply add another coat.


The design looks like this:

Reason: The nail made physical contact with the magnet.
Reason: The final coat of polish was too thick or the magnet was too strong, so the magnet attracted the excess polish.

Solution: A thinner coat of polish will help prevent the polish from being attracted to the magnet. If your nail is actually touching the magnet, viewing your nail position from the side should help you to know when your nail is level.


The design looks like this:

Reason: Magnetic polish is too sheer.

Solution: Apply an extra coat of magnetic polish to each nail. Some magnetics will be opaque in one coat, others need two or three.


The design looks like this:

Reason: Final coat of polish is too thick and runny.

Solution: Apply a thinner coat of polish as the final layer. The magnetic design will still form when thin coats are used. When the coats are too thick and wet, the design will deform and blur as the polish pools and settles.


The design looks like this:

Reason: Topcoat was applied too soon.
Reason: Particular topcoat doesn't agree with the magnetic polish.

Solution: If this happens with every topcoat you use, try waiting for ten or so minutes to allow the polish to dry and the magnetic design to set before applying topcoat. If it only happens with certain brands of topcoat, switch to a different kind for your magnetic manicures.


The design looks like this:

Reason: The nail is very curved and the magnet is not strong enough.
Reason: Nail not level with the magnet.

Solution: If your nails are very curved, sometimes the magnet won't form an even design across the entire nail. This can be helped by choosing a magnetic polish with a stronger magnet. If you're having trouble holding your nail level under the magnet, view your position from the side to see if you're holding it straight.


The design looks like this:

Reason: Magnet or nail were off center while forming design.

Solution: The center of the design is usually in the center of the magnet. Be sure to hold the middle of the nail (or wherever you want the design to be centered) near the middle of the magnet. This is not always a problem; you can customize your design by centering it in different areas, it doesn't have to be right in the middle. It tends to be more of an issue on designs that look best centered in the middle of the nail, like the star or chevron patterns.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: Do I have to use a magnet?
A: Yes. The magnetic polishes won't do anything without a magnet. Some brands come with a magnet on the bottle, other brands sell them separately, but you do need one if you want the magnetic design. If you don't really care about the design but you like the color and want to wear it like regular polish, then no, you don't need the magnet. But magnetic polishes will not form a design without one.

Q: Can I use a regular magnet that I have at home, for example, a refrigerator magnet?
A: No. The magnets designed for magnetic polish are embedded with patterns. A normal magnet doesn't have a special pattern and will just make an uneven blurry spot on the polish.
EDIT: Three people so far have told me that they have successfully used household magnets with magnetic polish. I tried a refrigerator magnet and it didn't work to form a design, but apparently there are some that will form a striped design. It definitely wouldn't hurt to try different magnets from around your house to see if the polish reacts to them!

Q: If I have a magnetic polish magnet, can I use it on normal nail polish?
A: No. It won't do anything on a normal polish. Magnetic polishes are made with tiny particles of iron that move when exposed to a magnet.

Q: Can I use one brand's polish with another brand's magnet?
A: Yes. All magnets designed for use with magnetic polish will work across all brands. You can use the China Glaze magnet with the Lancôme polish, the Nails Inc. polish with the Layla magnet and so on.

Q: Will topcoat ruin the magnetic design?
A: It depends. From personal experience, I've found that China Glaze Fast Forward topcoat does mess with the magnetic design, but other brands of topcoat like Seche Vite and Nubar Diamont don't disturb the design. Most magnetic polishes dry fast enough to not need a quick dry topcoat, but if you want to apply topcoat, I'd recommend giving the polish at least five to ten minutes to set so you won't streak the design.

Q: Can I use a regular, non-magnetic polish as a base layer for the magnetic polish?
A: Yes. I've done this frequently to conserve the tiny bottles of magnetic polish. You can apply as many coats as you'd like of normal polish and then apply a single coat of magnetic and the design will still form perfectly.

Q: If I use a normal polish as a base layer, will the color show through the magnetic design?
A: Sometimes. It depends on the magnetic polish. Some magnetic polishes are too opaque at one coat to let the bottom color show through. The more sheer magnetics (like the light greens and greys) will allow the bottom color to show through the design.

Q: Is magnetic polish harder to remove than regular polish?
A: Slightly. It comes off with nail polish remover just like regular polish, but I've found that some magnetic colors take longer to dissolve. I may need to use an extra two or three cotton balls with polish remover when removing a magnetic polish than my usual one or two with regular polish.

Q: Why won't the magnetic design stay as crisp and perfect looking as it did when it was newly applied?
A: I don't know what causes the magnetic design to blur over time, but it has happened with every magnetic polish I've tried. It will stay perfect looking for about a day, and then by the end of the second day, the design will start to spread out and blur, as if the iron particles are mixing back into the base color. I have not found a way to prevent this, but making sure your design is set and dry before applying topcoat seems to really help.

Magnetic polish after three days of wear, no basecoat.

Restoring Polish: Quite Possibly The Most Important Post Ever

I want to talk to you guys about the shelf life of polish. How long does polish last? Do I have to throw it out after a certain amount of time?

To put it bluntly, the polish will outlive you. Seriously. There is no reason to ever throw away polish. It doesn't spoil, it doesn't get moldy, it can't 'go bad.' It can separate, but that is fixed by shaking before use. It can thicken or, in some strange cases, thin. That doesn't mean you have to throw out your polish.

I want to show you how to fix a completely dried polish. This will come in handy some day.




I saw this poor bottle of L'Oreal Bijou Crystals in B.Shocking on a store shelf and thought it would be the perfect chance for me to demonstrate this point. Look at it. It's completely dry. People would never buy this because they think it's garbage, but it's not! It's just a wilted flower, waiting to be watered.


Tip it over- it's so dry, it stays put. That's a solid mass of dried polish in the bottom. The brush is embedded in the dried polish. Tug gently to remove it.




My secret weapon: Seche Restore. I am in love with Seche Restore. I've gone through bottles and bottles of this stuff. Most people will tell you that it doesn't make a difference which polish thinner you use. While all polish thinners will thin polish, Seche Restore contains Toluene- a wonderful, magical substance that turns finicky polish into smooth, quick-drying chemical loveliness. This is especially handy for restoring older polishes because it's the toluene that has evaporated from them. Adding Seche Restore can also improve the texture of gooey three-free polishes. No, I don't work for Seche- I just freakin' love this stuff.


All you have to do is pour in some Seche Restore. I don't bother with a dropper when I'm using this much, but if you have some disposable pipettes, those work quite well. I try to add as much Restore to the bottle as I can- I try to picture where the polish would be in a full bottle and I add Restore to create that amount of liquid. Place the cap back on the polish.



You can see that the the Restore starts to dissolve the dried polish immediately. Once the cap is on tightly, shake the polish vigorously. Don't be alarmed if some Restore leaks out of the bottle. It's much thinner than polish and can sometimes make it out of the bottle. And to all of you out there who are gasping in horror when I say to shake your polish: Don't worry. It's okay to shake your polish. It absolutely WILL NOT HARM your polish. The worst it can do is cause bubbles, which settle on their own within five to ten minutes of shaking. So please, be kind, shake your polish. Much safer than rolling, because without a firm grip on the bottle, you could potentially drop the bottle and break it. I speak from experience.



If the polish is completely dried, like this one was, you may have to loosen the dried polish from the bottom of the bottle. I use a toothpick to pry the dry polish lump away from the bottom and sides, and then I stir it a for a little while to break up the dried lump.



After a little while of stirring and shaking, voila! Good as new. The texture is perfectly smooth- or it would be if it didn't have so much glitter in it!- and all of the dried polish has dissolved. You would never know that this was a reconstituted polish. It goes on smoothly and dries quickly. Now you have a full bottle of amazing polish that someone would have thrown in the garbage!


Here's the polish on my nails. It applied like a dream. However, I can't say I really like the color that much- streaky silver metallic and loads holographic glitter don't play well together. If you want a holographic silver metallic, it's best to use a holo topcoat, like China Glaze Fairy Dust or Piggy Polish Sunshine On Snowflakes on top of a silver polish to avoid the lumpy look that mixed-in glitter causes.



Here's another bottle that I revived from a dried clump of polish. It's CND Pucker Up. I ordered it online and when it arrived, the bottle was actually open and the polish was completely dried. I don't know how they didn't notice that when they packed my order, but somehow it did. I wasn't worried, I knew how to fix it and now I have a perfect polish that would have otherwise been trash!

Here's my message to you: DON'T THROW OUT YOUR POLISH! It can be fixed. I wonder how many old, rare, wonderful polishes have been chucked in the bin because they had thickened, separated or dried. The thought of it breaks my heart! To me, the older the polish, the better.

I hope this was helpful for you. I consider this to be very valuable and useful information. When I was younger, I never knew that polish could be fixed and I threw away so many bottles of gorgeous polish that I really regret getting rid of now. I wish I had them. Beautiful, unique, irreplaceable polishes that had separated or thickened. I am positively kicking myself for not holding onto them. Don't be like me!

Scrangie's Nail Care Must-Haves!

In response to a request from lovely reader Gef, here's what I use to maintain my nails:

TOOLS:
Glass File (I like OPI's and Essie's)
Buffer (cheap three-ways from nail supplies work well)
Metal Cuticle Pusher (Round on one end with a pointy thing on the other)
Cuticle Nippers (must be extremely sharp and clean!)
Nail Brush (cheap disposable ones that I change out often, used every time I wash my hands)

Treatments:
Creative Nail Design Cuticle Remover (the clear gel in the big squeeze bottle)
Creative Nail Design Solar Oil
Creative Nail Design Cuticle Eraser
Qtica Intense Cuticle Repair Balm
Qtica Half Time Drying Drops
OPI Nail Envy
Seche Vite (or Poshe)
Cutex Original Nail Polish Remover (or if I'm feeling fancy, Zoya Remove+)

So, there are my absolute must-haves. Now, how to go about using them...

My basic routine is mostly upkeep. I never really take much length off my nails so I usually just file them to maintain their shape. When I do a full manicure, it goes something like this:

1. Remove old polish
2. File nails to desired shape using glass file.
   
3. Apply CND Cuticle Remover and wait a minute.
4. Begin pushing back cuticles and cleaning up around sides of nails and under nails with metal cuticle pusher. Be gentle, but remove as much as you can.
5. Wash off cuticle remover and scrub hands with a grainy sugar scrub.
6. Using cuticle nippers, cut only what's hanging off or sticking up. I never actually cut my cuticles, but if I have a hangnail or just too much excess cuticle I carefully trim it.
7. Gently buff nails with 3-way buffer. I only do this if I need to. Too much buffing weakens my nails, so I only buff when they look rough.
8. Apply tons of lotion and Solar Oil.

Pretty simple, nothing fancy, but that's how I do my manicures.

Now for the "treatments" portion of the list. You'll notice that I have a lot of favorites. I love cuticle oil and cuticle balm and I apply it several times during the day. With the CND Cuticle Eraser, I apply that once or twice a day, sometimes only every other day or whenever I remember to. I also like Poshe's AHA Cuticle Therapy- it comes in a better tube with a label that doesn't peel off and it doesn't smell like rotten lemon juice.

The Solar Oil (or OPI Avoplex, which I also love) I apply constantly. I have the big bottle near my couch, so whenever I'm watching TV I apply it a few times. It soaks in really quickly, so you can apply it repeatedly without getting greasy fingers. I buy tons of mini bottles and stash them all over- in my purse, in the bathroom, in my car, in the kitchen, everywhere. Apply the oil every time you see it.

The Qtica Intense Cuticle Repair Balm is special. It's a new favorite of mine and I don't know how I didn't find this sooner. It's super thick, rich and a little sticky- perfect for after you wash your hands. It really locks in moisture and it's so soothing on dry cuticles. I put this on before bed also.

OPI Nail Envy is one of my favorite treatments, but I'm also really digging Qtica Natural Nail Growth Stimulator. I use them as a base coat before polish. They seem to prevent chipping and staining quite well, with the added benefit of strengthening your nails at the same time. If I'm using a base coat, I like it to double as a treatment. I used to use Nailtek II Foundation, but I've misplaced my bottle and have no idea where I left it.

As a topcoat, I always use either Seche Vite or Poshe. I tend to favor Seche Vite because it seems to dry a bit faster, but Poshe seems a little shinier. Anyway, I don't know what I would do without these! The way to use them, if you've never used them before, is to apply it directly on top of wet polish. You get a decent sized bead on the brush and you spread it over the nail. it will even itself out, but it does start drying right away. Once you apply the topcoat, your nails will be dry to the touch in a minute or two and completely dry in 10-15 minutes. To speed it up, I use Qtica Half Time drying drops. All you do with the drops is drop a tiny amount onto each nail and it protects your polish while it's drying and helps it to dry faster. They rock.


So, there you have it. My bare necessities, my basic nail care must haves!