Should I buff the nail first?

Lightly at most, and rarely. Buffing thins the nail plate and the roughness it adds is not what polish needs — it needs to be clean and dry. A wipe with remover does more than a buffer.

Why does it peel off in one piece instead of chipping?

That is lifting rather than chipping, and it means the polish never bonded — usually oil, lotion or water on the nail. Wipe with remover immediately before the base coat and it stops.

Do press-ons last longer?

Usually, and they solve a different problem: no drying time and a finish that does not depend on technique. The trade is that they come off all at once rather than gradually, so a lifted one has to be dealt with there and then.

The answer

My nail polish chips after two days

Polish chips from the tip inward because the free edge is where every knock lands and it is the part people forget to paint. Running each coat over the edge of the nail — capping it — seals the layer and is the single change that adds the most days. The second cause is the surface: oil left on the nail stops polish gripping, so a wipe with remover before the base coat matters even on clean nails. Base coat for grip, two thin colour coats rather than one thick one, top coat over the edge again, and re-cap the tips on day three.

What answers it

OPINail Lacquer base coatAdhesion is the base coat's actual job, and skipping it is the most common reason a manicure lifts as a sheet rather than chipping at the tip.Buy on Amazon
EssieGel Couture top coatA long-wear top coat without a lamp. This is the layer that takes the knocks, and re-applying it on day three genuinely resets the clock.Buy on Amazon
OPINail Lacquer top coatThe plain version if a gel-effect finish is more shine than you want. Same job: cap the edge with it.Buy on Amazon
OPIDrip Dry drying dropsMost two-day chips are really smudges from the first hour, set into the surface. Drops set the surface in minutes rather than leaving it soft for an hour.Buy on Amazon

Prices live on Amazon, where they change hourly — so we never quote one. Every product here is a brand we would name out loud.

Capping the edge is the whole trick

After each coat, draw the brush along the very tip of the nail — the thin edge you look at side-on. It takes two seconds per nail and it seals the layer so water and knocks cannot get underneath it. Manicurists do this automatically and almost nobody does it at home, which is most of the difference between a salon manicure lasting a week and a home one lasting two days.

Thin coats dry all the way through; thick ones do not

A thick coat skins over on top while staying soft underneath, which is why it dents an hour later and why it lifts in sheets. Two thin coats set properly and are more even in colour. If polish looks streaky in one coat, the answer is a second thin coat rather than a heavier first one.

Hand cream is for after, and water is the real enemy

Oil on the nail plate before polish stops it gripping; oil on the cuticle after polish is fine and good. Long soaks in hot water are what lift a manicure fastest, because the nail plate swells and the polish does not. Gloves for washing up is unglamorous advice that adds days.

Questions

Should I buff the nail first?: Lightly at most, and rarely. Buffing thins the nail plate and the roughness it adds is not what polish needs — it needs to be clean and dry. A wipe with remover does more than a buffer.
Why does it peel off in one piece instead of chipping?: That is lifting rather than chipping, and it means the polish never bonded — usually oil, lotion or water on the nail. Wipe with remover immediately before the base coat and it stops.
Do press-ons last longer?: Usually, and they solve a different problem: no drying time and a finish that does not depend on technique. The trade is that they come off all at once rather than gradually, so a lifted one has to be dealt with there and then.

Your turn

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