What you need to know about Gel Polish

[jasmynpaige97]

So, I'm a nail tech in Boise, Idaho. I literally have women come in all the time and I'm ask them if they want Gel Polish or Regular Polish, most of the time I'm crossing my fingers hoping they will say Gel Polish because as a nail tech by the end of the appointment we don't want to sit their and wait for your nails to dry, regular polish is a pain in our ass.

 

Regular Polish

Pros

• you can take it off with polish remover

Cons;

• it smudges
• long drying process,
• chips easily,
• doesn't stay as long
• glitter with regular polish is rough and will come off a lot easier and faster
• nail art is impossible and turns out not as pleasing to the eye as one might think.

 

Gel Polish 

Pros

• Dries in 30 seconds
• Last Longer
• No Chipping
• Glitter stays longer and feel smooth, no roughness
• Nail art looks flawless

Cons

• If removed improperly by a nail tech or yourself, the nail beds can get ruined but it's not the gel itself, it's how its removed.

 

[auntlada]

I have a coworker whose gel polish is chipping after only 28 hours. Obviously it was done badly. She says the tech put on base coat, under uv thing, polish, uv thing, second coat of polish, uv thing, top coat and uv thing.

What might have gone wrong? (There is always the possibility that my coworker is not remembering the process correctly. I would believe it.)

[Miss Dee]

Is this the same as shellac? I really don't want gel nails - I hate how the nail beds always look unnaturally puffy - but a coworker uses shellac nail polish and claims it doesn't chip for a couple of weeks. My nails are very soft and easily torn, so I'm hoping a two-week nail polish might help with that.

[DeLurker]

Is this the same as shellac? I really don't want gel nails - I hate how the nail beds always look unnaturally puffy - but a coworker uses shellac nail polish and claims it doesn't chip for a couple of weeks. My nails are very soft and easily torn, so I'm hoping a two-week nail polish might help with that.

Sounds like shellac is a brand specific name although it is slightly different than gel according to this article in NY Magazine

[GaT]

I've never used gel polish because I don't want to deal with lights, & special top coats/base coats/removers, but also because I never keep a color on for more than a week. I get bored & want to take it off & try something new. No reason to use gel polishes.

[emma675]

Ditto. I'm all about changing my nail color every week, so I've stayed away from gel polish. I do have to thank whoever recommended Seche Vite Dry Fast top coat--it's fantastic! Rock hard nails in less than 2 minutes, glassy shine and I didn't get a single chip in a week (and I'm a swimmer, so this is rare). 

 

This week my nails are Essie Aruba Blue and my ring fingers have a silver sparkle embellishment.

[GaT]

I do have to thank whoever recommended Seche Vite Dry Fast top coat--it's fantastic! Rock hard nails in less than 2 minutes, glassy shine and I didn't get a single chip in a week (and I'm a swimmer, so this is rare). 

People are always recommending this to me, & I didn't like it at all. First, nowhere on the bottle I bought did it say anything about how it's supposed to be put on wet polish. I had no idea until someone told me, how is anyone supposed to know this if it's not on the bottle? Second, it didn't dry for me. I don't know if this is because I put it on dry polish or there was some other problem, but I ended up throwing the bottle away. I really like Julep Freedom polymer top coat, or Butter London Hardwear top coat.

Edited January 6, 2016 by GaT

[grisgris]

People are always recommending this to me, & I didn't like it at all. First, nowhere on the bottle I bought did it say anything about how it's supposed to be put on wet polish. I had no idea until someone told me, how is anyone supposed to know this if it's not on the bottle? Second, it didn't dry for me. I don't know if this is because I put it on dry polish or there was some other problem, but I ended up throwing the bottle away. I really like Julep Freedom polymer top coat, or Butter London Hardwear top coat.

 

I don't like Seche Vite either. I didn't notice that it provided any above-average protection against chipping, plus, it gets thick and gooey really fast. I usually change my polish once a week and will usually apply an additional top coat after a few days to add some shine. So, it's not like I wasn't using my Seche up quickly enough.

[DeLurker]

Just saw on the news where a woman was using acetone nail polish remover her nail polish and had a candle lit across the room which caused a fire.  Ended up with 3rd degree burns over her chest and torso.

 

She may or may not have been using the acetone correctly, I don't know - but I would never have thought a candle lit across the room would have been a problem.  I won't test my luck though.

[stream26]

I do my own.

I tried CND shellac but its hard to get hold of, now I buy the OPI gels on ebay, they are usually within a couple of £ of the CND shellac but the bottles are twice the size! The colour range is also sooooo much better. They can easily last 3 weeks but I usually get bored before then and change colours :-) 
Just finished a mani/pedi & on my toes with burgundy polish after inspiration newaylook :-)

Edited June 7, 2017 by stream26

[NutMeg]

On 6/7/2017 at 11:46 PM, stream26 said:

I do my own.

I tried CND shellac but its hard to get hold of, now I buy the OPI gels on ebay, they are usually within a couple of £ of the CND shellac but the bottles are twice the size! The colour range is also sooooo much better. They can easily last 3 weeks but I usually get bored before then and change colours :-) 
Just finished a mani/pedi & on my toes with burgundy polish after inspiration newaylook :-)

How easy and/or fast is it to take off?

[Giselle]

On 12/21/2015 at 1:12 AM, jasmynpaige97 said:

So, I'm a nail tech in Boise, Idaho. I literally have women come in all the time and I'm ask them if they want Gel Polish or Regular Polish, most of the time I'm crossing my fingers hoping they will say Gel Polish because as a nail tech by the end of the appointment we don't want to sit their and wait for your nails to dry, regular polish is a pain in our ass.

 

Regular Polish

Pros

• you can take it off with polish remover

Cons;

• it smudges
• long drying process,
• chips easily,
• doesn't stay as long
• glitter with regular polish is rough and will come off a lot easier and faster
• nail art is impossible and turns out not as pleasing to the eye as one might think.

 

Gel Polish 

Pros

• Dries in 30 seconds
• Last Longer
• No Chipping
• Glitter stays longer and feel smooth, no roughness
• Nail art looks flawless

Cons

• If removed improperly by a nail tech or yourself, the nail beds can get ruined but it's not the gel itself, it's how its removed.

 

I never wore nail polish before but did polish my own toes regularly. I had my first time pro mani-pedi for my wedding, gel polish manicure (soaked off at home) and regular for the tootsies. Even though two nails started lifting within a week, I'd like to try it again but I have a question.

Also my nails are already thin and have ridges, and one regularly splits in the same place  after it is free of the nail bed. The tech buffed all of my nails before  polishing which made the finger nails even more fragile. My nails are now finally grown out, free of buffing and are stronger.  Do they always have to buff the top of the nail before applying a gel manicure?

 What is the latest info about the UV and LED curing lights when it comes to skin cancer and aging of the hands?

Edited June 20, 2017 by Giselle

[Giselle]

On 6/10/2017 at 0:35 PM, NutMeg said:

How easy and/or fast is it to take off?

I soaked my own off after watching several you tube videos. I oiled my fingers first to moisturize. I had cut small pieces of cotton squares sized to fit my nails. I saturated them in acetone, wrapped them in foil and started checking them after 10 minutes, most needed a bit more time. The polish just crumbled off with an orangewood stick. There was no peeling nor white spots. After they were clean I did a hot oil soak and then kept them constantly oiled for a couple of days with solar oil. They were very weak till they grew out but I think that was because of the buffing the tech did.

It took a good 30-35 minutes to do both hands doing them one at a time. The hot oil soak was about 10 minutes more.

NOTE: That is how I did it but someone who does their own all the time or a tech may know best. 

Edited June 20, 2017 by Giselle

[callie lee 29]

That's how I've always gotten them of too. Never had a problem.

[Giselle]

On 6/7/2017 at 8:46 AM, stream26 said:

I do my own.

I tried CND shellac but its hard to get hold of, now I buy the OPI gels on ebay, they are usually within a couple of £ of the CND shellac but the bottles are twice the size! The colour range is also sooooo much better. They can easily last 3 weeks but I usually get bored before then and change colours :-) 
Just finished a mani/pedi & on my toes with burgundy polish after inspiration newaylook :-)

Do you know if you can do a gel manicure without buffing the nail?

Mine have always been thin and they now have ridges. One in particular splits all the time thankfully never to the nail bed. When the tech buffed them smooth to do the gel polish they looked pretty after I took the polish off but man were they all thin and breaking until they grew out. They still break but not as much.

FYI- Took HP biotin for a year and it did nothing for my nails.

[NutMeg]

It seems to me that the most aggressive buffing occurs when the gel is removed. A manicurist once told me that it's fine to do two gel manis in a row, but that it may be a good idea to switch to regular after that, depending on how strong you nails look. I'd add that it depends how often you do it - I'm quite happy to leave three weeks or even more between manis, as long as I don't have a nail breaking. I'd say a gel mani makes the breakage less likely while you're sporting it. 

Not sure I'm really answering your question... 

[Giselle]

3 hours ago, NutMeg said:

It seems to me that the most aggressive buffing occurs when the gel is removed. A manicurist once told me that it's fine to do two gel manis in a row, but that it may be a good idea to switch to regular after that, depending on how strong you nails look. I'd add that it depends how often you do it - I'm quite happy to leave three weeks or even more between manis, as long as I don't have a nail breaking. I'd say a gel mani makes the breakage less likely while you're sporting it. 

Not sure I'm really answering your question... 

It seems she used a sanding block to get rid of the ridges and remaining cuticle before applying the gel polish. They did feel stronger with the gel polish and I liked that.

Although she guaranteed for two weeks with free fixes, after about 10 days I took off my own because I had everything and three were already lifting, I also had read that the longer you left it on the harder it was to remove. After watching videos and looking at Google photos and knowing what not to do I was adamant to let the polish soak and crumble off and did no scraping or buffing.

For the last couple of months, sans polish, they were super thin and broke very easily if they hit something the wrong way. They are finally grown out  except for my thumbs which have another 2-3mm to go on the free edge.

I wonder if there is a gel ridge filler to smooth things out rather buff?

I've always kept my hands natural but I do polish my toes.With the gel polish I liked that I could work with my hands  and they still looked perfect. I wouldn't mind trying it again. How hard is it to do it yourself?

[stream26]

On 10.06.2017 at 10:35 PM, NutMeg said:

How easy and/or fast is it to take off?

Not fast. It might take 20, 30 or even 40 minutes to dissolve the gel properly

On 20.06.2017 at 4:25 PM, Giselle said:

Do you know if you can do a gel manicure without buffing the nail?

Mine have always been thin and they now have ridges. One in particular splits all the time thankfully never to the nail bed. When the tech buffed them smooth to do the gel polish they looked pretty after I took the polish off but man were they all thin and breaking until they grew out. They still break but not as much.

FYI- Took HP biotin for a year and it did nothing for my nails.

I personally don't feel the buffing helps maintain nail health. The gel over the nails keep them stronger and protects them. The buffing is sometimes needed for gel coats to adhere correctly based on manufacture recommendations.I think as long as you don't damage the nail with over buffing, the gel will keep the nail healthy and strong.

[RealHousewife]

My nails have never looked better since I started doing dip. Lasts much longer than a wet manicure, but no risky lights like with gel either. 

[lasu]

I wanted to give a plug for press on nails.  They have come SO FAR since the Lee Press On French manicure days.  I mean, they are truly amazing.  I buy Dashing Diva online and Kiss Impress at the store (which I FIRMLY believe are the exact same).  I get so, so, so many compliments.  The adhesives are easier on my nails, and give more of a warning when one is getting loose.  They say you can wear them for up to 10 days, but I get bored and want to change after 5 tops.  I've also found that Family Dollar has some as cheap as $1.50, though they don't come with glue or as many sizes.  But they are still a fun choice for very cheap.

Honestly, for $10 and not even 15 minutes of your life (takes longer to separate and size the nails than to put them on), this can't be beat.  If you are into doing your nails even a little bit, I can't recommend giving press ons a try.  However, I have not, nor do I a plan to, try the press on pedicure.  Just...no.

[callie lee 29]

7 hours ago, lasu said:

I wanted to give a plug for press on nails.  They have come SO FAR since the Lee Press On French manicure days.  I mean, they are truly amazing.  I buy Dashing Diva online and Kiss Impress at the store (which I FIRMLY believe are the exact same).  I get so, so, so many compliments.  The adhesives are easier on my nails, and give more of a warning when one is getting loose.  They say you can wear them for up to 10 days, but I get bored and want to change after 5 tops.  I've also found that Family Dollar has some as cheap as $1.50, though they don't come with glue or as many sizes.  But they are still a fun choice for very cheap.

Honestly, for $10 and not even 15 minutes of your life (takes longer to separate and size the nails than to put them on), this can't be beat.  If you are into doing your nails even a little bit, I can't recommend giving press ons a try.  However, I have not, nor do I a plan to, try the press on pedicure.  Just...no.

100% agree. I've used the press on a few times and get ALOT of compliments. 

Downside (?) though is that shit can be hard to take off!!

[lasu]

13 hours ago, callie lee 29 said:

Downside (?) though is that shit can be hard to take off!!

Soak your hands in hot water (or take a bath or shower), and then use the little stick starting under the cuticle.  Mine pretty much pop right off.