The Ultimate Beauty Guide

Chipped polish is a bummer, especially if you’ve paid for a professional mani. And with all the dark, bold polish shades coming out for fall, those little mishaps will stand out like a sore thumb. If you can’t drop everything to give yourself a fresh new manicure or head to the salon, we’ve found several awesome quick fixes. From covering them up with glitter to adding simple nail art, so here's how to disguise chips–and even prolong the life of your manicure.

Add a coat of glitter: If you have lots of small chips and they’re not fixable, add a glitter top coat to your nails. Make sure that the glitter is in the same color range as your original polish (for example: if your original polish was black, use a black glitter). And since glitter is a pain to remove, it will actually make your manicure last a lot longer. We’re huge fans of this butter LONDON Nail Lacquer in Gobsmacked ($15).

Clip the edges: Once you see the polish wearing around the ends of your nails, use fingernail clippers to trim off the chipped parts. Chipped nails can get caught on things and create even more chipping, so it’s important to keep the edges clean.

File the ends: You can also file the edges of your nails to remove and prevent chipping. We love this Revlon Emery File ($2.39). It stays sharp and also prevents nail splitting.

Create a reverse french manicure: Cover up any chips near the edges of your nails with a reverse manicure. Just add a complimenting or contrasting shade to your nail tips, and you’ll be all set.

Create quick nail art: Opt for some easy artwork like dots, shapes, stripes and more to hide chipping. It’s a fun way to cover them up, and will change up your manicure look within an instant.

Create an accent nail: If you have chips on just one finger, cover it up with a contrasting shade, glitter or caviar pearls. If you have more time, remove the chipped polish first, and then apply then new statement shade. No one will ever suspect you’re covering up a chip. This Ciate Sugar Caviar Manicure Set ($25) is a great option.

Add another coat of polish: If you have a small chip, apply a thin coat of the original polish over the chip, followed by a top coat over the entire nail. If there are multiple chipped areas, it’s best to apply another coat of polish over the entire nail. We can’t get enough of this Deborah Lippmann Addicted To Speed To Coat ($20).