Collection: LAVIS Acrylic & Dipping Powder 80oz

What is LAVIS Acrylic & Dipping Powder 80oz?

This page holds the salon size of the LAVIS Acrylic & Dipping Powder line: a white tub with 2,268 g of powder inside, which is 5 lbs or 80 oz. Each tub carries one shade, and the five shades on this page are the basics of a pink and white menu. LAVIS sells the powder as a 2-in-1: the same tub works with acrylic liquid and a brush for sculpted acrylic, and as a dip powder over a dip base coat. Neither method needs a UV or LED lamp, because acrylic sets in the air and dip hardens with activator.

The product photos compare the 2,268 g tub with the 10 g and 30 g jars most brands sell, and that is the reason to buy this size. A station that does pink and white sets every day uses powder by the pound, not by the ounce. One tub per shade keeps the color the same from the first client of the month to the last, and it cuts the time spent opening, labeling and reordering small jars.

The five shades

The shade names below come from the tub labels, and the descriptions from the nail swatch printed on each tub photo. Powder looks a little different on screen than in the jar, so treat the swatch as a guide.

• Clear: a see-through powder. Use it to encapsulate glitter, foil or rhinestones, to add thickness at the stress area, or as a clear overlay that leaves the color underneath unchanged.
• Natural Base: a soft nude pink. It covers the nail bed with a natural, even tone and is the usual bed color for a quiet pink and white.
• French Pink: a pink with more color than Natural Base. It gives the nail bed the classic pink of a French set and works as a pink overlay on its own.
• Soft White: a softer white for the free edge. The smile line reads natural rather than stark, which suits shorter nails and clients who want an everyday French.
• Super White: a bright, opaque white. It makes a crisp, high-contrast smile line and is the white most often asked for on long, square or coffin sets.

LAVIS describes the powder as usable for the base layer and the color layer, and it can be mixed with other LAVIS powders to make a custom shade. A small amount of French Pink in Natural Base, for example, warms the bed color without buying another tub.

Which shades should a salon stock first?

For most stations we suggest two tubs to start: one bed color and one white. Natural Base with Soft White gives the soft, natural pink and white that most clients ask for. French Pink with Super White gives the stronger, more traditional contrast. Add the second white or the second pink when clients start asking for the other look by name.

Clear is the third tub to add. Once encapsulated nail art or clear extensions become a regular service, it is easier to have a tub of Clear on hand than to work from a small jar. If you only do a few sets each week, a smaller jar from our French Pink & White Powder page or the Pink & White Acrylic Powder page may suit you better than a 5 lb tub.

How do you use it for acrylic?

The LAVIS label covers the powder only, so pair it with the acrylic liquid you already use and follow that liquid's directions. The steps below are the standard order for a pink and white acrylic set.

1. Prep. Push back the cuticle, remove the shine from the nail plate, wipe clean, and apply a tip or a form if you are extending.
2. Smile line. Dip a clean acrylic brush in liquid, pick up a bead of Soft White or Super White, and place it on the free edge. Press and shape the smile line before the bead starts to set.
3. Bed color. Pick up a bead of Natural Base or French Pink and place it just behind the white, blending it toward the cuticle area without flooding the skin.
4. Clear or overlay. A thin bead of Clear over the stress area adds thickness without changing the color, or seals in any art you placed.
5. Shape and finish. Once the acrylic has set hard, file, refine the smile line, and finish with your usual top coat or buff.

Brushes for each step are on our Brush page. Wipe the brush often on a lint-free towel; powder left in the bristles turns the next bead lumpy.

How do you use it for dip?

The same tubs work as dip powder with any dip base, activator and top coat. Pour a working amount into a small jar or tray rather than dipping into the 5 lb tub, so base coat never gets into the main supply.

1. Prep the nail plate the same way as for acrylic.
2. Base coat and dip. Paint a thin layer of dip base, dip the nail into the working jar at an angle, and tap off the excess. For a French, dip only the tip into the white first.
3. Build. Repeat with thin layers until the nail reaches the thickness you want. Two or three thin layers look more natural than one heavy one.
4. Activate and finish. Apply activator, file and shape, apply activator again, then the top coat.

Liquids for each step are on our Dip Essentials page. Our dip powder thickness guide explains how to keep a dip set slim.

Storing a 5 lb tub

• Keep the lid on. Close the tub between uses so dust, filings and moisture stay out.
• Decant for the station. Fill a small jar from the tub each morning and work from that. The main tub stays clean and lasts longer.
• Away from heat and flame. The label carries this warning; keep the tub away from lamps, heaters and open flame.
• Separate acrylic and dip. Use one working jar for acrylic and another for dip, so liquid and base coat never meet in the same powder.
• Out of reach of children. Also printed on the label.

Related collections

• French Pink & White Powder Pink and white powders in smaller jars.
• Pink & White Acrylic Powder The SNS 16 oz pink and white range.
• Dip/Acrylic Powder Every powder that works for both dip and acrylic.
• Dip Essentials Base, activator and top for the dip method.
• LAVIS Nails, All Products Every LAVIS line we carry on one page.
• Nail Art Glitter, foil and rhinestones to encapsulate under Clear.

Related reads

• Pink and white manicures with dip powder
• Dip powder vs gel vs acrylic