Great Glue Experiment

Everybody is talking about the 'new' discovery of using PVA glue as a base for glitters.  Of course, the hipsters have been doing this 'forever' and what's the big deal?

Trust me, it's a big deal - no one needs to be scared of glitter polish removal ever again! Hurrah!

I did this experiment three different ways. There are a lot of pix, so please follow after the jump!


The first time I tried the glue base, I started with a thin layer of Elmer's Glue-All, the US version of PVA glue.  It goes on white, and when it's clear, it's dry and ready to be painted on.

I went with 3 layers of Butterflies by Orly.  I don't normally do three coats, but this was such a *sheer* polish!  And brighter than I thought it would be. 

I topped that off with a nice thick dabby layer of Nail Sauce Guns N Roses. 

I love the gunmetal and silver hexes against the pink.  Perfectly named!

A day later, after a shower and numerous hand-washings, the polish held up as well as any other on me - which is to say that I had a few chips and tip wear, but I always do.  Look how cleanly it peeled off - no muss, no fuss.

Then, I (stupidly) thought - what if the glue is bad for my nails?  Maybe I should put a layer of base coat down first?  NO. NO. NO.  I started with OPI Nail Envy, then the Elmer's glue, then 2 coats of China Glaze Desert Sun, and topped it all off with China Glaze I Herd That.

Sorry for the bad pix.  We've all seen a million swatches, though.  These two colors go perfectly together, and are so pretty.  I think I had this on for almost 2 days, and washed my hair in there, too.  You can see the chips and tipwear in my crappy pix.  This is actually pretty minimal for me - Nothing wrecks polish faster than scratching a dog, and I have 4.

Then, I tried to peel it off, just like before.  I couldn't really get it off some of the nails.

This sucked.  *cry* You can see how the edge of my nail just peeled off and is stuck on the peeled polish.  You can also see that some of the top layer of my nail is slightly pitted.

I think I was traumatized, because I don't have more pix, but it damaged my pinkie nail, too before I just gave up and removed it with acetone.

Then I read some other blogs about reversing the order of the glue and base, because the glue doesn't stop staining.  So I figured if anything would stain, it would be blue and teal, so I picked out Butter London Blagger and Slapper.  I love these.  They are gorgeous and the formula is impeccable.

This time, I started with the glue, THEN put OPI Nail Envy on top of the glue, followed by Slapper and Blagger.

Two generous coats of Orly Spazmatic on top.  I didn't think I would like this glitter as much as I did.  And, I got it half off the clearance price at Sally's - about $3.

No more damage.  I had to work a little harder on the tips, but overall, it peeled off nice and easy, and my nails weren't stained any more than they were before.  This is a winner combination!

Elmer's and other PVA glues I've read about are listed as non-toxic, but as far as I know there is no information about the long-term effects of using glue on your nails.  Anecdotally, I've read of people using this for years to do projects, or even to create nail decorations with no adverse effects, but your mileage may vary.  I don't guarantee any results.

Will you be trying PVA glue as a glitter base?