Frequently asked questions
Why choose colour acrylic for a summer client?
Because the colour is built into the enhancement. It cannot chip off, cannot be scratched away at the free edge, and does not care about chlorine, salt water, or sunscreen the way a surface film does, so a client who swims or has her hands in water keeps the same look for the whole three or four weeks between fills. The trade is commitment: changing the shade means filing the set back, so it suits clients who rebook the same look rather than those who want a new colour each visit.
Why does my bead set faster in summer?
Because the room is warmer. Heat speeds the reaction, so the ratio that worked in February will lock before the bead is placed in July. Work smaller beads and place them sooner rather than trying to slow the product down, keep the monomer capped between nails since evaporation in a hot salon changes the ratio in the dish, and watch for a dry, dragging bead, which traps the air that shows as bubbles under a pale colour. A station beside an open door is the hardest place to work consistently.
Can these jars be used at the dip station too?
Yes. Every listing here is a colour acrylic and dipping powder, so the same shade sculpts on a brush with EMA monomer and dips with a base and activator. That is useful in the busiest months, when the acrylic tech is fully booked and the dip station is not. Keep two physical jars of any shade used in both services, because one drop of monomer clumps a dip jar permanently and a brush that has been in dip base is no longer usable for beadwork.
How much of this collection is year-round stock?
Less than on the spring page. Here 54 jars are also tagged for spring, 14 for winter, and six for fall, so a larger share of this collection is genuinely seasonal and should be bought as seasonal stock rather than as year-round depth. Eleven jars carry the clearance tag, which means they sell at their regular wholesale price until the stock is gone and are not reordered, so a clearance colour going onto a regular client's card should be bought twice at the outset.
What is in the summer acrylic collection
187 colour acrylic powders at wholesale, tagged for summer and drawn from four lines: LAVIS with 148 jars, Chaun Legend with 17, DND with 11, and DND DC with 11. Only six are out of stock as this page was written. Seventy-four jars are listed in 1 oz and 74 in 1.5 oz, and every listing here is a colour acrylic and dipping powder, so the same jar sculpts on a brush and dips with a base and activator.
The lines and the sizes
| Line | Jars | Sizes | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| LAVIS | 148 | 1 oz and 1.5 oz | The main summer chart across brights, corals, and wearable neutrals |
| Chaun Legend | 17 | Jar | Saturated colours with names such as All That Jazz, Kiss and Tell, and Barely Berry |
| DND | 11 | Jar | Shades that carry the DND numbers across formats |
| DND DC | 11 | Jar | Powders matching the DC colour numbering |
Why colour acrylic suits a summer client
Colour that is built into the enhancement cannot chip off, cannot be scratched away at the free edge, and does not care about chlorine, salt water, or sunscreen the way a surface film does. For the client who swims, gardens, or spends the season with her hands in water, a colour acrylic set holds its look for the whole three or four weeks between fills, which is exactly the promise a summer booking is made on.
The trade is the same as in any season: changing the shade means filing the set back or removing it, so this is the format for a client who rebooks the same look rather than one who wants a new colour every visit. The usual pattern in a salon is a colour acrylic base for the season and a gel or lacquer accent over it for the week of a wedding or a holiday.
Heat changes how a bead behaves
- A warm room sets the bead faster. The same ratio that worked in February will lock before it is placed in July.
- Work smaller beads and place them sooner rather than trying to slow the product down.
- Keep the monomer capped between nails; evaporation in a hot salon changes the ratio in the dish.
- Watch for a dry, dragging bead, which traps air and leaves the bubbles that show through a pale colour.
- Air conditioning helps the product and the tech, and a station near an open door is the hardest place in the salon to work consistently.
Building a summer colour set
- Prep and prime. Push back, break the shine to the sidewalls, dust, dehydrate, and prime a lifting-prone client.
- Structure in clear or cover. Build the apex and free edge first so the strength of the set does not depend on the pigmented powder.
- Place the colour thin at the cuticle. A colour set is judged at the regrowth line, and a heavy edge is what makes it obvious.
- Encapsulate any art. Foil, dried flowers, and glitter go on the set bed and are covered with clear so they cannot wear off in the pool.
- File with a light hand. Cutting through a colour layer exposes the clear underneath and cannot be repaired without rebuilding.
- Finish glossy or matte. Matte hides filing marks and suits the muted summer neutrals; gloss makes brights look wet.
The summer palette in powder
Bright powders behave differently from bright gels: there is no lamp, so opacity comes from the pigment load rather than from curing, and a bright acrylic usually covers in one properly placed bead. What changes is the finish. Powder reads flatter and softer than gel, which is why a neon looks strong but not glassy in acrylic, and why corals, watermelons, and warm pinks tend to be the summer shades that sell best in this format. The wearable neutrals sell alongside them all season, and those are the jars a salon buys in the larger size.
One jar, two stations
Because everything here is listed as colour acrylic and dipping powder, a shade can be offered as a sculpted set at one table and as a dip service at another, which matters in the busiest months when the acrylic tech is booked out and the dip station is not. Keep two physical jars of any shade used in both services: one drop of monomer clumps a dip jar permanently, and a brush that has been in dip base is finished for beadwork.
Shades that work either side of summer
At ND many powders carry more than one season tag. On this page 54 jars are also tagged for spring, 14 for winter, and six for fall, which tells a salon where the crossovers actually are: this collection is more summer-specific than the spring page, so a larger share of it is bought as seasonal stock rather than as year-round depth. Eleven jars carry the clearance tag, which means they sell at their regular wholesale price until the stock is gone and are not reordered, so a clearance colour that goes onto a regular client's card should be bought twice at the outset.
Storing colour powder through the humid months
Powder is ruined by moisture and by contamination, and summer brings both: open doors, steam from the pedicure room, and air conditioning that cycles damp air. Keep lids on between beads rather than between clients, store the jars upright and away from the acetone shelf and direct sun, and never return powder that has sat in a dappen dish. Label each working jar with the shade name and the line, because summer brights look similar loose and quite different cured, which is the mistake that shows up on the last finger of a set.
Fills through the busy season
A colour acrylic set is rebalanced every two to three weeks, and in summer that timetable collides with holidays. Two habits keep it manageable. Book the fill before the client leaves rather than after she returns, because a set that runs five weeks instead of three is the one that lifts at the sidewalls and needs rebuilding. And at the fill, file the regrowth area back to a feathered edge and rebuild with the same jar rather than a close match, which is the practical reason to keep a working jar of every shade that sits on a regular client.
Where a client returns with a lifted corner, take the product back to sound material rather than filling over it. Water gets under a lifted edge in a week of swimming, and a set repaired over trapped moisture is the one that comes back again.
Wholesale pricing at ND Nails Supply
Every jar on this page ships at wholesale pricing for everyone, with no business license, no minimum order, and no membership fee. Free shipping on orders $100+, and in-stock jars ordered before 2pm PT on weekdays leave the same day.