One way you can remove gel polish without acetone is by using dish soap and salt. Add dish soap and salt to warm water in a small bowl and fully submerge your nails into the mixture. You can also use olive oil to replace the salt. Let your fingers sit for 10-15 minutes before withdrawing.
Simply fill a bowl or sink with hot, soapy water and soak your nails for about 10 minutes. Soaking will help soften the adhesive and make it quicker to remove the false nails. Once you've soaked your nails, use a cotton pad or swab to peel off the fake nail from its base gently.
If you don't have acetone, don't fret. Repeat the same filing step, but instead of soaking your nails in acetone-doused cotton, place your hands in bowl of warm water, dish soap, and a teaspoon of salt for 20 to 30 minutes. This should soften the gel enough so you can easily remove the polish from the nail bed.
"You probably could remove gel nails with regular polish remover, but you would have to allow the nails to soak for a very long time. You need pure acetone to effectively and quickly break down the gel polish." A bottle of acetone like Pronto's 100% Pure Acetone ($10; amazon.com) will do the trick.
Remover: You have a few replacement options to use instead of acetone. Hand sanitizers, hydrogen peroxide, and cuticle oil are some of the most popular and effective methods. You can also try a kitchen oil like olive oil. If you have nothing else on hand, warm, soapy water or vinegar can be used to remove gel nails.
To remove shellac without acetone, soak a cotton ball in non-acetone nail polish remover, then press it onto the surface of each nail. Make sure to cover the entire painted surface. Wrap a piece of foil around each nail to hold the cotton ball in place, and leave it there for 10-15 minutes.
Each cotton pad will be dipped in the acetone and wrapped around each nail. This will keep the varnish remover pressed against the polish, but won't soak your cuticles. Yep, really. Tin foil is wrapped securely around each nail to keep the cotton pads in place.
Step 4: Soak them off
"Saturate a square of cotton (either a round cut to size or ball) in acetone, place it on the nail and then wrap the foil around as tightly as possible," Humphrey explains. "Leave this for around 10 minutes." Completely saturating the cotton round is important as sometimes it can dry out.
Soak. There are two ways you can approach this step, say Vieira and Diamante. The first is to fill a glass bowl with acetone or nail polish remover, place that bowl in a larger bowl of hot water to warm the acetone or remover, and soak your nails for 10 minutes.
You may be able to remove gel nail polish using apple cider vinegar. While it's not as effective as acetone nail polish removers, it can still get the job done with a little patience. To get started, mix equal parts apple cider vinegar and water in a small bowl.
Hand sanitizer
The good news is that most sanitizers contain a little bit of alcohol, which is a good solvent to soften nail polish. Soak your nails in lukewarm water to soften them, then wet a cotton ball with sanitizer and use it to wipe off the nail paint. Repeat till all is gone!
To use sugar to remove gel nail polish, mix equal parts sugar and warm water to create a paste. Apply the paste to your nails and cover them with aluminum foil. Leave the foil on for 10–15 minutes, then remove the foil and gently scrape off the gel nail polish with a cuticle pusher.
There are other ways to take off your gel manicure without foil or acetone. You can use warm soapy water, household oils, or a nail file. Make sure to follow a proper removal process with acetone to prevent any damage to your nails and skin.
All you need to do is type some micellar water onto cotton wool and wipe away the residual glue on your nails after applying nail gel. It's effortless to use, and it won't damage the gel polish either!
Though ideally you shouldn't be removing shellac nails without a proper nail polish remover, you can run warm water over your nails and try removing your nail polish by lifting a corner of your polish that has come loose until it lifts off fully.
While the main use of hand sanitizer is to protect you against harmful bacteria, it is also a suitable alternative to acetone-based nail polish remover even for a stubborn glitter polish. To apply, simply pop some onto a cotton ball and hold them against each nail for 10 seconds before rubbing off.
One way you can remove gel polish without acetone is by using dish soap and salt. Add dish soap and salt to warm water in a small bowl and fully submerge your nails into the mixture. You can also use olive oil to replace the salt. Let your fingers sit for 10-15 minutes before withdrawing.