Nails - diy or Professional?

I would definitely get them done for your wedding. I do my nails regularly and I can still never get them as perfect as a professional. I wouldn't worry yourself with trying to DIY.

I would 100% get them done professionally for your wedding. Since your wedding is 1+ year out, I'd start trying salons near you to find one you like and find a color/style you like (shellac, gel, acrylic, dip, etc.) so you feel confident for your wedding.

Getting our nails done the week of the wedding was one of the best things we did for ourselves. We both had a chance to relax and enjoy being pampered before all the chaos of the wedding weekend began.

As someone who bit her nails and picked at cuticles my entire adult life, but finally decided to try to change old bad habits before daughter's wedding, I have to say professional mani-pedis have become an absolute joy in my life.... LOL! Seriously, after more than 50 years of having nails & hands that looks awful, for the last 18 months I've been getting my nails done and I cannot believe they are my hands. I've never had luck with regular nail polish (even from a nail salon); it seems like I'd mess it up before I even got out the door. I started getting gel manicures about a year ago (I know there are some concerns about the lights/chemicals/etc.) and they are amazing! My nails look perfect for 2-3 weeks, no matter what I'm doing with my hands. I would definitely give yourself the gift of a professional manicure for your wedding. Even if it's regular polish, they will look so much nicer, and it really is a nice treat for yourself!

Getting mani-pedis together was something daughter and I did about every 3 weeks or so leading up to her wedding. Her rehearsal was on Thursday (for the Saturday evening wedding) and most of the BMs slept over that night. After a leisurely breakfast, we all went together and got our nails done on Friday morning and it was so much fun!

Get your nails done professionally! And I'm the reason why. I do my own nails regularly (I have really pretty natural nails). I used a nail color and did my nails the day before my wedding like I have done several times the last couple months. Looks great! Go to bed and I wake up and there's these little indents all over my nails. That has never happened before! So I grab some sparkly polish to put over it, go get my hair done, eat lunch, drive to the church. As I am putting on my wedding dress the paint started to peel off! Like smearing all over the place! At this point there's NO time to fix it and I didn't have remover. So I smeared the pain on all of my nails to make it look like I did it on purpose. Then asked the photographer to avoid close ups of my hands. Luckily my color was pale pink and not something extra so it wasn't noticed at all.

I painted my own nails for my wedding! I always paint my own nails so it wasn’t a big deal for me. I did it 3 days before. I swear by seche vite top coat.

Honestly I buy all my nails as press-ons from Walmart. My favorite brand is Impress, they come pre glued and in TONS of colors/patterns for roughly $6.00. I used to get my nails professionally done and always broke them (my real nails are very thin). These protect my nails, usually last about a week, and I always keep a little bottle of glue handy if one pops off (5 seconds to fix).

I work in a Drs. office handing patients papers all day long and get a lot of compliments. No one believes me when I tell them they are fake lol.

For the wedding I plan on putting on a fresh pair that morning.

Get them done professionally. I DIDNT because I ran out of time, and kind of regret it bc they don’t look their best so I don’t have any hand pics I like. I kind of rushed through them then RUINED them , so was literally doing touch ups to them while getting hair and make up done. Don’t be like me!

I would splurge to get them done professionally, because there’s gonna be a lot of professional pictures of your hands being taken (ring and bouquet close-ups) that day. Gel isn’t too expensive (~$30 for a full set typically) and lasts forever.

View Quoted Comment I do press-ons too!! As long as you cut and shape them, no one can tell. You get the look of a $30+ manicure for less than $10. I do plan to get professional tips and gel for my wedding, but press-ons are definitely a good option.

I've had like 2 manicures in my entire life, and I plan on getting my nails professionally done--both for my engagement pictures, and my wedding.

Trying out a salon next week for the engagement photos; if I like how these hold up, I'll see if I can use the same place for my wedding!

Professional all the way. I have acrylic over the natural nail so they always are.

Thanks everyone! I've decided to get my nails done for the engagement shoot too. I just need to find a place. I really hate fake nails because they ruin your real nails but I'll probably get 2 of them since all of my nails but 2 are long (the others broke).
Any opinions on gel vs acrylic vs whatever else is out there (I've gotten my nails done like twice in my life)

View Quoted Comment I would go for gel just so you don’t risk chipping—gel will stay put for 2-3 weeks. It does do some damage to your natural nails, even with professional removal, but if it’s for a special occasion like this I feel it’s worth it—they’ll grow back

Nails aren't super expensive (especially just a basic manicure with regular polish) so I'd have them done professionally because they'll also clean up your hands (push back and trim cuticles, take care of hangnails, etc) which will look good for hand close up photos. If you find they always chip when you do them on your own you might want a gel or different type of polish.

I haven't had my nails done since my high school boyfriend's prom (which was like 15+ years ago) but my bestie (who will be my MOH) swears that gel polish lasts forever on her and like me, she chips regular polish quickly. But it's almost impossible to get off, so I'm not sure I'll go that route. I am planning on having a manicure (or mani/pedi) for my wedding, maybe with my MOH or FH or both.

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I'm like you Amber. I hate getting my nails done because fake nails are really hard on your actual nail. The gel manicure won't be as hard on the nails because the person doing you nails can use a hand file to basically scratch the top of the nail so the gel adheres better. It won't do any actual damage to your nails unless you constantly wore away the nail.

Another option have them dipped with a powder. The powder is similar to the acrylic nails, but more flexible than regular acrylic. You can also have them use a hand file on the top of the nail which won't hurt your nail as much as the mechanical too they usually use for acrylics. I'll add the fake nail tips and it's not that bad on my nails... as long as I don't pick at them if I accidentally chip one.

I would get them done! I always get the gel no chip. If you don’t want a full manicure, just get the polish! It’s about $20 cheaper usually!