Our Founder's Story: Beautiful Nails Without the Salon

Nail Concrete started with a simple problem: I couldn't get to a salon.

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I'm Katie, the founder of Nail Concrete. For years I lived with chronic illness, and long hospital stays made regular salon appointments impossible. Sitting in a chair for an hour, booking weeks ahead, or even leaving the house on a bad day wasn't always an option. But I still wanted to feel put-together, and to look down at my hands and feel like myself.

I also have ADHD. Remembering appointments, sitting still through a long service and keeping up with infills every few weeks never fit how my brain works. I also don’t like being touched for long periods of time and not having access to my hands, many people with ADHD will understand this!

Other leading press on nail brands were awful, they looked fake - like dentures on my fingers, were bulky, didn’t fit and popped off really quickly. It was a nightmare!

Australian women deserved better!

So I set out to make the salon finish something you can do at home, in about 10 minutes, on your own schedule.

Nail Concrete was created in a hospital bed on an iPhone. Now they are nationally recognised as the best press on nails and glue in Australia.

Beautiful nails shouldn't depend on your health, your time or your brain

Salon nails assume you can get there, sit still and come back every two to three weeks. For a lot of women that isn't realistic:

• Chronic illness and fatigue. Flare-ups, treatments and hospital stays don't fit around salon bookings.
• ADHD and neurodivergence. Long appointments, noise, waiting and remembering rebookings can all be barriers.
• Mobility and accessibility. Getting to a salon, parking and sitting in one position can be hard.
• Mental health. Some days, leaving the house for an appointment is a lot.
• Parenting and work. When your time isn't your own, an hour in a salon chair is a luxury.

Nail Concrete press-ons are made so you can have a salon-looking set at home, whenever it suits you, with no booking, no drill and no UV lamp.

Nail biting, skin picking and body-focused repetitive behaviours

I developed this type of OCD as my illness worsened - nail biting, skin picking and skin biting (dermatophagia) are body-focused repetitive behaviours, often called BFRBs. They're common, and they're often linked with anxiety, ADHD and OCD-related conditions. They're not a lack of willpower.

Many people with these habits feel self-conscious about their hands. A set of press-ons can cover nails while they grow and give you something you're proud to look at. Some people also find that having a set on gives them a pause before they bite or pick. Press-ons aren't a treatment, so if a BFRB is affecting your health or wellbeing, please talk to your GP or a psychologist. But feeling good about your hands can be a lovely part of the journey.

I’ve been in support groups about BRFB for years and one of the most common complaints was that a salon wouldn’t even touch our nails because of the open sores and risk of infection. Besides embarrassment - it wasn’t an option.

Made to be easy, inclusive and kind to your nails

• About 10 minutes at home. Our interactive step-by-step guide walks you through every step.
• Up to 3 weeks of wear with the Precision Bond brush-on glue in every set, or about 24 hours with the sticky tabs for a single event.
• 16 sizes, 32 nails per set, for wide and narrow nail beds.
• Ultra-thin 0.6mm soft gel that looks like a fresh salon mani, not plastic tips.
• No drilling or filing to remove. Soak off gently, then reuse your set two to three times.

Award-winning, and made for real life

In 2026, Nail Concrete won Best Press-On Nails at the Prevention Beauty Awards, after months of testing by Prevention Australia's beauty editor. Our nails were also featured on 7NEWS.

Every set is designed in Sydney for women who want beautiful nails without the salon, whatever their reason.

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