If you’re one to get caught up scrolling through Instagram’s top beauty posts or are mesmerized by oddly satisfying videos on Tik Tok and YouTube, there’s a good chance you’ve witnessed a dip powder process at some point in your life. But, what makes dip powder such a worthy nail choice, you might ask? 

To determine just that, we chatted with a couple of nail pros for the rundown on all things dip. Ahead, find out why dip powders are worth a try—including their biggest benefits and drawbacks, as well as three all-encompassing kits to try the trend out for yourself. 

As LeChat Nails Educator Syreeta Aaron points out, dip powder nails are a hybrid between gel nail polish and acrylic extensions. “Dipped powder nails give you the flexibility of gel nails and the durability of acrylic nails,” she says.

Board-certified dermatologist and nail expert Dr. Dana Stern adds to this, noting that dip powder nails, while currently trendy, aren’t some new-fangled nail technique. Rather, they’ve been around since the ‘80s and are simply comprised of a gentle-yet-effective glue paired with acrylic powder. 

How Does Dip Powder Work? 

Whether you’re getting your nails done at the salon or doing them yourself at home, Aaron says that the process takes special care and attention. Each salon varies slightly in technique, but you can expect the following steps to be true of most nail salons (and at-home dip powder kits):

1. The nails are prepped: “Before starting any manicure you must make sure the nails are prepped by cleaning and freeing the nail plate of any dirt and oils,” Aaron says. This is also where you should push your cuticles back and clip any hangnails, and buff the surface of the nail plate.
2. Bonder is applied: Once you’ve cleaned and prepped your nails, Aaron says you may apply a bonder so that the product can adhere to the nail plate and lessen the chance of lifting.
3. Base and powder are applied: “Brush on the base just as if you were polishing your nails,” Aaron instructs, noting to go one nail at a time. Once you’ve applied the base coat to a single nail, dip the nail in the dipping tray of powder and repeat on each nail, making sure to brush off any excess. Based on your desired opacity and color intensity, you may want to re-dip your nails two to three times.
4. Wait a few minutes, then apply topcoat: “This step is to dry and harden the product,” Aaron says. “You should wait two to five minutes before beginning to shape and file nails after applying activator. After you shape and file your nails to your desired look, apply a topcoat.”

If you're getting your dip powder done at a salon, your nail technician shouldn't actually "dip" your nail into the powder pot. While this was the technique when this trend initially launched, hygiene concerns over different clients' nails being dipped into the same pot have put this practice to a stop. Instead, your nail tech should brush the powder directly onto your nail or pour powder from the pot into a Dixie cup for single-use (this is wasteful, so most salons use the brush-on method).