Bubbling Nail Polish. Aaaaaarrrrrggghh!

[Mrs.Clooney]

Okay, I have cleaned the nail plate of any grease and the nail is dry and has not been soaking. I have not used any cuticle remover or massage creams so there is no product on the surface of the nail. The polish is brand new and goodness knows that I have used loads of different polishes to date. I have even left long intervals between coats but what salon or tech has time to do this???

But still the polish bubbles on every single finger whether it be mine or a clients :grr:. Why is this happening?

It is one problem I cannot seem to overcome no matter what I try and it is unsightly and horrible. Can anyone get to the bottom of this please.

 

[loubylou]

Silly question but are you shaking the bottle of polish before you apply to mix it up ?

 

[Mrs.Clooney]

No Louise. I learned ages ago from this site not to shake but to gently roll. No shaking I promise. I've taken a pic and will upload it.

 

[xAnnaBannAx]

I will look forward to reading the replies on this thread as i often have this problem too and it is so frustrating...i know you arent supposed to shake the bottle..so thats not the issue for me as i just roll the bottle in my hands (so tempting to just give it a good ol shake tho! lol )

 

[nailpod]

some products do bubble it is annoying, how old is it, where do you store it, i find some get really ugly when old like the opi gets gooey so i never get the bottom i throw away
quarter left.
if it is all the products then what nail cleaner are you using, has it dried properly is it acetone alcholo based cos may react with some products.
hope it helps

 

[Deborino]

Hi, just thinking aloud but are you using different brands of prep, base coat and enamel during your service on the same client.

Is it possible , that if this is the case they could be reacting with each other?

I know when you are using L&P etc , it is recommended that you use a system rather than intermixing brands ad hoc.

 

[honeybeartalons]

Hi, maybe bubbles are due to you apply polish too quickly,

 

[Mrs.Clooney]

Hi, maybe bubbles are due to you apply polish too quickly,

I have wondered if it has to do with the fact that I don't allow enough time between applications. However, what tech realistically has 5 minutes between each coat to allow them to dry. Surely one should be able to work from one hand to the other and then back again to apply next coat?

 

[Mrs.Clooney]

Right, here's a piccie. This is on my nail but I've had it happen on clients too. And it happens on most of the nails if not all.

 

[Noodle]

Apologies if I'm asking the obvious, but is your polish being stored correctly, ie. away from direct sunlight and away from any heat source, such as a radiator or fan-heater?

 

[Mrs.Clooney]

Apologies if I'm asking the obvious, but is your polish being stored correctly, ie. away from direct sunlight and away from any heat source, such as a radiator or fan-heater?

Yup, stored out of direct sunlight and away from any heat source.

 

[adelekeegan1]

Is it just one make of polish or do others do it too ?

 

[Mrs.Clooney]

Is it just one make of polish or do others do it too ?

As I mentioned in my initial post it happens with loads of different polishes from Calgel, Pronails, Virgin Vie, Attitude to over the counter brands.

 

[Noodle]

Could it a problem with your base or top coats?

 

[wardo]

why dont you try getting someone else to apply the enamel, this way you can see if its the product or technique. I do this with my students so you can rule out the products been at fault before looking at their techniue. I think it maybe down to taking to much time applyling, therefor going slower. The enamel maybe starting to set as you are going over it with the brush.

 

[cherubs]

Just a thought....has the brush got contaminated somehow? I did this once, wasn't concentrating enough and before I knew it the brush had slipped off the end of my nail and touched the table, only lightly but it was enough to pick up tiny specs of dust etc, the polish was ruined :irked:
Like I said just a thought??

 

[Snugglepuss]

Hi Tracey :hug:

I may be way off track here but I think it is down to the consistency of the enamel and application. If the top is left off or the enamel is old then it can thicken and when applying sort of stick together - think of skin forming on a liquid, it sort of gloops together and then when you move it, it sticks together forming little lumps - think gloss paint or wood varnish!

Also, the reason I say the above is that when I once sanded down an old oak table for my old aunt and applied the varnish, the varnish was not quite dry and I did not "float it" over the previous coat and the finish was just like your picture - where I did float it, it was fine!

Hope you get it sorted hun xxx

 

[Urban Geek]

The polish does look quite thick in consistency. Some polishes need extra time to settle between coats and extra time to dry after top coat. On those occasions, I apply the first coat and let it settle for a good couple of minutes before continuing to the 2nd coat (if a 2nd coat is require - often with polishes so thick in consistency, one coat is enough) and then another minute or two before applying the top coat.

I also as a matter of routine take the shine off the nails and apply Scrub Fresh before applying enamel to ensure complete dehydration of the nailplate.

I really take my time applying polish as I find the end result so much better. The more I rush, the longer it takes in the long run.

 

[estherlou]

Until i saw the picture i was thinking that you were probably applying the polish too thickly as this will cause it to bubble sometimes, i find that i can go straight over each layer without more than 30 secs in between for drying, but my layers need to be really thin.
What other products do you regularly use is there something that may be out of date?
It could be down to your application i would agree with the idea to get another tech to try out a couple of polishes that you have had trouble with. hope you get it sorted x

 

[Mrs.Clooney]

Rather than reply individually to your comments, I'm going to try and knock it on the head with this reply, lol.

Polish is brand new. Never used before so no contamination.

Base coat and top coat (didn't even put top coat on) also fairly new. Certainly not out of date.

It could be that I am applying the polish too thick and spending too long on one nail ie. going over and over the same spot whilst the polish starts to set. I did play with a gorgeous bottle of OPI polish at college the other day. I noticed that the OPI brushes are wider and thicker so one should be able to cover more nail in less time IYKWIM. The cosistency was also quite thin.

As the bottle is new, I think the viscosity is fine but I will try to apply it more thinly when I attempt this again. If I use a thicker polish I will leave it longer between coats.

I also agree that it will be a good idea to let somebody else apply the polish to see if the same thing happens. Yes it could be my technique and not the polish.

I will give all these suggestions a whirl and let you know how I get on. Thank you so much for your input all of you :hug:.