How To Fix A Cracked Acrylic Nail

Stocksy/ Raydene Salinas Hansen

Out of the many things my natural clumsiness ruins in my life, nothing pisses me off more than than breaking a boom. I swear every time my nails await long and perfect—similar, could-brand-it-on-the-'gram perfect—I end up with a massive flake or snag. But since going dorsum to the salon every time I accept a crack is unrealistic (and waaaay out of my upkeep), I've perfected the side by side all-time thing: fixing my broken nail at home.

Ahead, I rounded up everything I've learned nigh fixing and smoothing cracked, jagged nails in the comfort of your abode, including all the tips and tools from an ~bodily~ expert: Pattie Yankee, celebrity nail artist who works with Priyanka Chopra, Allison Williams, and Hailee Steinfeld. Keep reading for some ridiculously practiced nails.

How to Set a Broken Smash With Glue

If your blast is just split, rather than completely cleaved off, attempt Yankee's favorite quick-fix method: glue. Proceed in heed this definitely isn't a permanent gear up—you'll however have to volume an date with your manicurist—but it should hold y'all over until you tin can make it to the salon. Here's what you lot'll do:

Footstep 1: Lightly vitrify the surface of the nail—the key here is to be suuuper gentle, since likewise much pressure can actually cause more than damage.
Footstep 2: Apply two coats of a fast-drying nail mucilage (like Boom Bliss Brush-On Glue) to temporarily fuse the crevice together until your adjacent professional blast engagement. This will too forestall information technology from catching and snagging.
Step 3: When the glue is 100 pct dry, cover the expanse with a sparse coat of clear smash polish to help hold the crevice in identify (Deborah Lippmann's Hard Rock Nail Strengthening Tiptop and Base Coat is ever a good option, since it besides helps strengthen your nails).

How to Fix a Broken Nail With a Fake Smash

Sadly, sometimes when your broken nail is beyond repair, your merely solve is to fake it. "One of my favorite tricks for a broken nail is to employ a quick set of printing-on or glue-on nails to hold you over until your broken blast grows out," explains Yankee. She'due south a fan of the Dashing Diva Magic Press-Ons, since they "have a pre-adhesive backing that holds up to seven days," just you lot tin employ any of your favorite false nail sets.

How to Fix a Broken Nail With Gel and a Silk Wrap

If your blast is fully cracked and hanging off your nail bed, you may need to take more intense measures, says Yankee—similar with the gel and silk method. Here'south what you'll do:

Step 1: After wiping the crack clean with nail polish remover, gently buff the smash with a file. Your goal here is to make the nail every bit smooth and make clean every bit possible (no backlog oil, shine, or snags).
Step 2: Very gently, use nail glue to mend the crack. Once it'south totally dry, paint a layer of clear gel smooth over the nail.
Pace 3: While your shine is still wet, shine a slice of silk (it should be pre-cut in the shape of your blast) over the expanse and wait for the gel to cure. The silk will kinda act like a bandaid and give your nail an extra layer one time information technology dries down.
Stride 4: Advisedly buff your nail once everything is dry and follow with a second coat of gel polish.

Courtesy Paradigm

Dashing Diva Without A Trace Gloss Ultra Shine Gel Strips

How to Fix a Broken Nail With Gel Strips

Looking for something less complicated? Fair. Try a gel nail strip (like Dashing Diva's Gloss Ultra Shine Gel Nail Strips) as an alternative to the silk-wrap method. The results will be pretty like, says Yankee, but they're a lot easier to apply. Clean off whatever excess oil and polish from the broken nail, mend the crack with nail glue, and then stick the gel strip on peak as a record-like culling.

How to Fix a Broken Nail With a Tea Bag

This method is definitely the most pop broken-nail hack on the internet. The only catch? Co-ordinate to Yankee, this method requires a chip of maintenance "every few days by applying some other glaze or 2 of glue over the tea bag to continue information technology strong." But still, you lot tin can't beat out an ultra-cheap DIY method. Here's what yous'll exercise:

Pace 1: Cut the top off of a tea bag and make a foursquare roughly the size of the scissure.
Stride two: Polish a layer of smash glue over the crack (a brush-on formula is easiest here), and while it'south still moisture, place the tea purse foursquare on height.
Step 3: Once it's dry out, paint ane more layer of blast glue and you're practiced to go.

How to Fix a Broken Nail With a Powder Fill

This hack is one of the more than "durable" at-home fixes on the list—and it'southward besides got Yankee's seal of approval. Here'southward what you'll practice:

Footstep one: After painting a layer of smash glue over the crack, sprinkle a little nail pulverisation on peak while it's yet moisture.
Step 2: Continue this procedure a few times (waiting for each glaze to dry in between) until you've created two or three layers on top of the scissure.
Step 3: Set everything in place by spritzing a mucilage-drying spray on elevation of the glue and powder, then vitrify information technology shine with a buffing block.

How to Set a Cleaved Smash By Trimming It

Alright, you may non want to hear this, simply there isn't a truly permanent fix for a broken nail. "No thing how good the repair, a difficult and deep crack or break volition ever seem to sneak its fashion back through the repair," says Yankee. "If the interruption is in a convenient spot to allow information technology to be cut downwards, information technology might be easiest to just cut it and trim the residual of your nails to lucifer."

And of form, to avert broken nails in the time to come, Yankees advises all her clients to moisturize daily with cuticle oil and keep their easily protected from the elements. "Fingernails are constantly exposed to harsh hand soaps, chemicals and h2o," she says. "Keeping them moisturized and polished is the best solution to avoiding breakage."

Ruby Buddemeyer Ruby was the dazzler editor at Cosmopolitan, where she covered beauty beyond impress and digital.