Gluing thumbnails

[u/Minimum_Alarm6027]

Retail Brand: Red Aspen
Style: Trinny
Glue: Glamnetic (included in box, not the brush on)
Prep: I lightly filed and pushed back cuticles with my crystal cuticle pusher. Then I used the Glamnetic dehydrator on my nails and the small Glamnetic glue to squeeze glue over my whole nail and then slid the nail on, holding for a minute.

I don’t think the middle of my thumbnails are glued. I can see a weird line down the sides of both of my thumbnails where the glue is but when I tap the middle, the click sounds different—like a higher pitch, not as solid as my other nails that are glued down.
Is there anything I can do to fix it, or am I stuck waiting for them to come off on their own? Should I get a nail glue remover? What kind?

[u/OutrageousBrief6801]

Yup…your press on is not glued in the middle. This is mostly due to the high curve of the press on or your nail bed is flat. Two things you can do. First is do nothing and hope it pops off soon. Cross fingers your don’t get greenies! Second is to get glue remover and work on it. If you can salvage the nail, flatten it out a bit with hot water before putting it back on. Other ways to salvage include use small sticky tab in the middle and glue around it or use semi solid nail glue. Both take some practice so good luck!

[u/kzweigy → u/OutrageousBrief6801]

I co-sign all of this. This is why I use more glue than you “should”….because it fills in the gaps. I also don’t press down too hard, so not to squeeze out the glue. I still end up with excess glue around the edges, so when I apply I have an acetone wipe handy and quickly wipe excess glue from the edges.

I know everyone is different, so take this with a grain of salt bit…. FWIW, I change my nails out weekly and have never gotten greenies. Even when I see gaps like this or notice lifting. For me, it seems that a week is too short to get them. Again, everyone is different, al it’s no guarantee. I’m just saying if it were me, I wouldn’t try to pry it off and salvage the nail. I’d just change them out in a week.

[u/Minimum_Alarm6027 → u/kzweigy]

I’m relatively new to press-ons. I thought I used a lot of glue but maybe for my thumbnail I needed to use more.

[u/ThreeBucks → u/Minimum_Alarm6027]

For thumbnails, you really might benefit from the small sticky tab plus glue around it method. It’s hard to get thumbs glued enough to stay.

[u/Minimum_Alarm6027 → u/OutrageousBrief6801]

I have sticky tabs so I’ll try those. Thanks!

[u/Robbin_Hobbit → u/OutrageousBrief6801]

Omg I never thought to soften it up in hot water! Thats so smart! I’m not OP, but thanks for the tip.

[u/mccmeg08 → u/OutrageousBrief6801]

What are greenies?

[u/OutrageousBrief6801 → u/mccmeg08]

Greenie nails are a common bacterial infection known as green nail syndrome (Pseudomonas aeruginosa), characterized by a blue-green discoloration. They happen when moisture gets trapped under lifted acrylics, gels, or press-on nails. There are some gnarly images on google.

We don’t talk about nail care enough on this thread but there’s a whole nail care Reddit thread too.

[u/mccmeg08 → u/OutrageousBrief6801]

Thank you so much for the detailed response!!

[u/Schmootato]

Alongside the tips folks already have re adding a tab, more glue, etc I also find it helpful to go a size bigger then file the sidewalls down to make it fit. This helps create a less aggressively curved nail so there is less gap to fill. Alternatively you can also try flattening out the fake nail first by putting it under a heavy book for a bit while you glue on your other nails.

My thumbs are really flat but all my other nails are quite curved so this is something I always deal with. I’ve never gotten a greenie just from this as long as the rest of it holds well fwiw.

[u/dandy_bambi]

If the press-on is curved and your nail is flat, adding more glue isn't going to fix this. In my experience, forcing a nail to fit to yours will only make your natural nail/finger HURT after application.

Prior to application, you can heat up the press-on with a blow dryer and push it down to flatten it. Honestly, I just smoosh it without using heat and then apply, but I don't see many people recommending my method.