If you are passionate about nail reconstruction (aspiring nail technicians or simply curious), this article is for you! Now, I will tell you about gel files and how to use them.

Features nail files

Nail files are made of plastic or cardboard and coated with an abrasive material. They are thicker than the other types in order to be easy to handle and more resistant. After some reconstruction they must be replaced, because they wear out quickly, as well as for reasons of hygiene. They differ in shape and grain (or grit, or roughness index).

Shape of the nail files

The different forms that can be found on the market are the following:

Straight file: used to file the length of the nail, artificial and natural (free edge) and to define its shape (square, almond, etc …).

Curved file (also called banana or boomerang): it is used to file the nails over their entire surface. The shape makes it practical to define the area around the cuticles.

Crescent (or jumbo) file: combines the characteristics of the straight file and the curved file.

Rectangular file: can be used as an alternative to the straight file.

Buffer (or brick): used to refine the opacification of the nail, in particular the area around the cuticles.

Grain of gel files and how to use them

The grit of the files tells us how abrasive they are. A lower index indicates that that file is more abrasive, while a higher number indicates that that file is less rough. The most common files are those 180/100, which means that on the one hand they have 180 grit (less rough) and on the other 100 grit (rougher).

In curved files, the finer grains are used to opacify the nail and to file the step of the tips and the reconstruction on the map. The straight and less rough ones are used to adjust the shape of the tips before gluing them and to file the shape of the nail before applying the builder. The coarser and more abrasive grits in banana files are used to file the gel to define the C curve, while the straight ones with greater grit serve to define the shape of the nails after crowning.

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Hoping to have been helpful and I’ll meet you at the next episode!

Read also:3 Tips for Gel Nail Reconstruction

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