So, I wish I was writing this post for the theory only. I wish I could say that nail polish splatter art has never happened on my carpet. I wish I could say that I didn't completely forget that I hadn't screwed the lid on my nail polish bottle before trying to pick it up. Sadly, I cannot say any of this. I had a total, complete, epic nail polish fail last night that prompted a few tears. Of course, it HAD to be bright pink, neon in fact, polish. On our anything-but-hot-pink carpet. Ugh.
Ok, so here's the story. I just got the China Glaze Poolside Collection. Also, my toenails were in need of a new coat of polish. I figured I'd polish them before my nails, so I pulled out Pool Party and went at it. Between coats, I set Pool Party on my nightstand and I didn't screw the cap on. When I went to pick it up, it somersaulted beautifully, spraying polish all over the carpet as it swirled through the air. I was left with a gorgeous, well spread out design. I reacted quickly, ending up with polish all over myself as well, but prevented any major pooling. After blotting up what I could before it dried, I resigned myself to crying over my stupidity. I never thought that would happen to me. After a day of thinking and a Google search, I was determined to fix the carpet. And here's where I'm at:
Right after the catastrophe, after I had soaked up the excess polish and my tears.
What it looks like now. I'm still going to work on it over the next few days. *UPDATE: The nail polish is completely gone from view and you can't even tell that there was a massacre!*
Though I hope you're NEVER in this situation (learn from my mistakes and ALWAYS screw that cap back on!), here's what to do if the unthinkable happens.
1. Blot up excess before it dries.
2. Put nail polish remover on a cloth (I used an old t-shirt).
3. Use the least harsh nail polish you have. I used one that contains some acetone, but not much at all.
4. Rub the polish! Continue this until your cloth comes back clean. For the areas that just had a little spray of polish on them, I just snipped the tip of the carpet fiber with some sharp scissors.
5. Finally, steam clean or spray your carpet with cleaner to remove any remaining nail polish remover.
The lighter spots in the picture are just areas that the fibers are laying the opposite way from the rest of the carpet because of all my scrubbing. The nail polish remover didn't discolor the carpet in any way! I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out and even though I'm still mad at myself, I'm glad it isn't absolutely terrible. :)
The lighter spots in the picture are just areas that the fibers are laying the opposite way from the rest of the carpet because of all my scrubbing. The nail polish remover didn't discolor the carpet in any way! I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out and even though I'm still mad at myself, I'm glad it isn't absolutely terrible. :)
A friend of mine introduced me to a company called Melaleuca. They have a product called Sol-U-Mel that will remove the polish from anything. I had got some on the upholstery in my car because I was in a big hurry to leave and it came right out. It is all natural so there was no damage or spotting which made me very happy.
ReplyThank you so much for the info! I hope to not have this happen again, hahaha! :)