If you are like me then you love nothing more than a beautiful, shiny, fresh manicure. For years I have been wearing normal polish that air dries and can be removed with a simple wipe of nail polish remover. However, over the past year I discovered the vast world of gel manicures and all they have to offer - and what can I say i'm in love!
My gel polish experience has varied from the professional salon experience to the DIY at home kits. I have a little to say on both experiences so I am going to run through my thoughts on everything gel from the professional service to the DIY removal.
Salon VS DIY
I originally had my first gel manicure done at a beauty salon by a professional manicurist and as much as I loved how beautiful my nails looked I felt that it wasn't worth the price that I paid. I paid £23 for the service and my nails were pretty much ruined when I was finished. At that moment I was put off gel manicures for the foreseeable future.
This all changed however, when a very dear friend of mine told me she had just purchased her own gel nail kit including the lamp. I immediately ran over to hers and she gave me a manicure - I was in love. It was simple, pain free and best of all it cost me nothing. I had to get involved immediately.
That Christmas (2014) I then received my own gel nail kit and lamp. I have since been obsessed with gel manicures and so have my family. I am building up my colour selection and I totally love being able to have a beautiful manicure in the privacy of my own home.
With regards to the price the kit and the lamp that you will need to get started costs between £40-£50 depending on what you get. I bought mine from eBay and I felt that it was a good price as after two manicures I would start saving and earning back the money I would have spent on a professional service.
Ultimately I couldn't be happier with my decision to stop using a professional service and start doing my own manicures. There are so many tutorials online explaining the best ways to remove the gel polish as well as the steps involved in completing your manicure.
The Look of The Nails
This has to be my favourite part. The nails just look amazing. They have such a high shine gloss and the manicure lasts for at least a couple of weeks depending on your nails and how much stress you put them through. I love the finish of the gel nail manicure it is hard, doesn't chip easily and is visually stunning.
Removal
Removal is always the trickiest bit. You need a high content acetone nail varnish remover to soak through the layers of gel polish in order to remove it. Acetone is what can ruin your nails but if you give them a rest and apply a nail strengthener they should recover no problem. I start by taking a course nail file and filing the top coat of gel off and then I wrap each nail in tin foil, with a soaked cotton pad underneath it and leave the nails until the polish starts to peel off. Once the polish starts to peel I take a nail scraping tool and gently scrape away the gel polish.
The only reason I say that this can be tricky is I find it awkward, being right-handed, to easily get rid of the polish using my left hand. Other than this and the time involved the process isn't too difficult and certainly shouldn't put you off trying gel manicures out.
The only reason I say that this can be tricky is I find it awkward, being right-handed, to easily get rid of the polish using my left hand. Other than this and the time involved the process isn't too difficult and certainly shouldn't put you off trying gel manicures out.
Overall
Overall I have to say that gel wins for me for many reasons but the long lasting nature of the polish blows any bad qualities out of the water. I am so OCD about having chipped nails and I am impatient waiting for the polish to dry so I love that the gels are dry when you are finished and they don't chip easily at all! What could be better.
I do know however, that this kind of manicure isn't for everybody. Some people like to change their polish four or five times a week and removing gels constantly like that would result in very damaged nails, that are hard to come back from. On the other hand, if you like to have a long lasting manicure that looks beautiful and you feel you are up for the challenge I would give gels a go in a heat beat.
I do know however, that this kind of manicure isn't for everybody. Some people like to change their polish four or five times a week and removing gels constantly like that would result in very damaged nails, that are hard to come back from. On the other hand, if you like to have a long lasting manicure that looks beautiful and you feel you are up for the challenge I would give gels a go in a heat beat.
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