Nail polish homemade. Nice to make it yourself

Nail polish

The drying time must be such that when the fingers of the second hand are ready, the varnish on the first hand is already dry. This makes it possible to brush the nails twice with the varnish to achieve the best possible result.

The dry lacquer must of course dry completely without pimples and without brush strokes. Furthermore, the paint must retain its shine for about 5 to 7 days and must not peel or crack during that time.

Nitrocellulose is commercially available in a very large number of varieties. For nail polishes, nitrocellulose is generally used, which provides the thinnest solutions. This kind of collodion, the ½-sec nitrocellulose, is made in two subspecies, one of which is normally soluble in the solvents such as acetone, butylacetate, arnylacetate, etc. The other kind is especially soluble in alcohol, so also in our common spirits. However, the coatings of this type are generally not as strong as those of the normally soluble nitrocellulose. For nail polishes, therefore, one generally takes the normal kind.

The composition of the solvent mixture must be selected in such a way that the paint dries completely clear and translucent under all circumstances. In addition, it must also keep the resin additives in solution until complete drying. In general, about 50% solvent with a boiling point below 100℃ is used, so that the paint dries quickly enough. An excess of volatile solvents is avoided, as the paint tends to dry white in damp weather. To be absolutely sure, a certain percentage of very high-boiling solvents is generally added. The glycol ethers used for this purpose also have the property of taking with them traces of water, which may be present in the lacquer, when evaporating.

Since nitrocellulose alone dries too hard and too brittle, a small amount of a substance is added to the lacquer, which dissolves the nitrocellulose and thereby makes it softer and more elastic. For example, castor oil, tricresyl phosphate, dibutyl phthalate, butyl stearate and camphor are used for this purpose. Dibutyl phthalate generally gives the best results for nail polish.

Resins are added to increase the gloss. Here one has the choice between natural resins, which generally require additional pre-treatment, and the new synthetic resins, which are immediately ready for use. The resins are previously dissolved separately in the appropriate solvent.

Mixing the ingredients is best done in glass, enamel or tin-plated equipment.

• The dammar solution is made by dissolving 4 kg of dammar resin in 3½ l of a mixture consisting of: 15% ethyl acetate, 15% acetone and 70% benzol.
• Then 2½ l methyl alcohol is added.
• Part of the resin, the waxy components, is then precipitated.
• The solution is allowed to stand for some time and then the clear solution is carefully poured off.