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Have you ever thinned out a nail polish? Share your technique! Any favorite thinners?
I don’t think I’ve done it in a REALLY long time. Truthfully, I don’t reuse a lot of shades because there is always something new to swatch, so if they thicken up, I don’t notice.
Thanks to Meme for today’s question!
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Yep – sometimes I find China Glaze a bit on the thick side, Seche Restore thins ’em out beautifully!
Yes I have but only once or twice. I find that, after thinning, the nail polish changes a bit so I’d rather only put a layer of it than adding the thinner – I’ve only used one product – banana oil – that is imported from Brazil.
Tickle My France-y is such a go to that it is the only one that I ever thinned out with the OPI restore.
I’ve done it, but it was years ago. I don’t think that polishes thicken, or even separate, like they used to. I’d love to say that it’s because I use nicer polish now, but I think the manufacturers are doing better.
I have thinned polishes occasionally. Usually quick-drying top coat that got too gloppy to handle.
Yes, years ago. Revlon used to sell a nail solvent especially for thinning polishes that had gone too thick and it was a great product. Not the same as polish remover or acetone (which cause the polish to break down), it was actually a solvent/thinner. I’d love to be able to find a similar product these days.
They still have many products like this! I bought one at a beauty supply store, haven’t noticed any at drugstores though 🙁
yes, i just pour a drop or two of any nail polish remover in the bottle, then shake it. it’s very effective.
Just a few drops of banana oil works to renew the polish to almost new.
I have had to thin down a couple of orly and some others. If a color is good then I do not mind thinning them down.
Yup! I use a nail polish thinner (forget the brand), bought it at a beauty supply store and it works like a charm. I’ve never used the nail polish remover trick, however, as I hear that actually breaks down the polish and can ruin it or cause it to perform poorly; the thinner actually replaces the chemical in nail polish that evaporates, leaving it thick and gloppy.
Hell yeah, I have many old (really old) nail polishes, and once I got myself a good thinner, I was excited that I was able to use a lot of them again!!
I’ve always got some seche restore around (seche vite is a pain in the behind but I love it) so I just use that to thin out any polishes that’ve gone gloopy. Works great! Banana oil sounds interesting….
I have a favourite OPI (Vampire State Building). It’s so old that I’ve had to thin it out a few times over the years. I’ve just used OPI’s thinner (2 drops max) and it worked fine.
the purple china glaze crackle but it was my fault since i didnt close it that tightly
I’m kind of in the same boat with tons of polishes to work my way through. But when I have found that the one I want to use has thickened, the Mavala thinner has worked great. I bought a tiny bottle a few years ago and it’s barely got a dent in it!
nope I’ve never done that!
YES! The only one I’ve ever thinned out is Basket Case by ORLY =) favorite & BEST “Barbie Pink” I’ve ever found out there….if you know of another amazing “Barbie Pink” pass it on!
Frequently. I think top and base coats most often, because they’re exposed to air more often and get thicker much faster than my colors. I thin to make things more workable, so sometimes old polishes and sometimes new ones.
Yes, I keep the Seche thinner on hand for any of my polishes that get thick.
Oh yes, I love Seche Restore cause I have a huge collection and goopy polish sucks! However, it is possible to get something too thin, then it just doesn’t apply right.
Yes, with the OPI thinner. Two to three drops and every single thickened nail polish I ever had turns back to a dream!
Only thin out ones that I love and use the entire bottle of. Most I never use 1/4 of the bottle up before I have left it and moved on. If I stamped and did nail art, I would use up a lot more polish I am sure. I donate my used stuff when I purge the collection to the local women’s shelters. They love getting things like that.
I tried it, once – I hated the effect. It didn’t work out for me at all. Maybe it wasn’t a good enough product.
Tons of times! I love my polishes!