How to retouch chipped nail polish

Chipped nail polish is inevitable, like sore feet from glam heels, panty lines in tight pants, and well, leg hair. Still, one shouldn't take the inevitable to be an excuse to be lazy. It's impossible to be perfect but it is possible to be neat at the very least. Nothing says "lazy girl alert!" more than obviously chipping nail polish!

Still, I get you. I get that you're busy with work, your social life, your hobbies, etc. so I'm sure nail polish is the least of your worries. But with great nail polish comes great responsibility. If you don't want to bother with the upkeep, then just don't bother putting it on and/or leaving it there. Seriously you won't miss much! If, however, you have a bit of time to retouch your chipping nail polish, then this tutorial is for you!

This is super easy and not at all time-consuming - well, not factoring in the drying time of course. All you need is the original polish color, a nice top coat, a toothpick and a scrap of tissue. Let's do it!

Step 1: Place a drop of nail polish on the tissue, then pick some up with the tip of the toothpick. Make sure not to get too much as thiis will smear on your fingers.

Step 2: Dot the nail polish on the chipped area. Try to avoid the edges of the original polish to minimize clumping. Just dot dot and dot until the bare sliver of nail is covered. Remember, the deeper the chip, the more polish you should pack it with. For shallow chips just use a thin layer of polish.

Ta-dah! Let's do that again.

Load the toothpick with color, dot, done! You don't have to worry too much about the drying polish on the tissue. The more viscuous it is, the easier it is to work with. It's usable as long as it's still wet.

Step 3: Finish off your work with a clear top coat. The top coat will actually smoothen out the creases/uneveness that may have happened while you're retouching. It will render the most obvious imperfections barely visible (if you're using a really good one). If you find that you applied too thick a layer of colored polish, pay special attention to the area by brushing it repeatedly with the topcoat. It will smoothen the bump.

Done and done! You won't be able to restore your polish to the perfect state you originally applied it, but the retouch job will be barely visible anyway. ;) So there you go, I hope you found this helpful!

Liz Lanuzo

Founder & Editor-in-Chief

I eat makeup for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert.

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