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Way before COVID lockdown, I loved my manicurist, Caren. Unfortunately, she moved back home to California and I couldn’t find another person I loved as much as her. She took her time and was a bit longer than most manicurists, but my gel nails lasted forever! I used to go to another salon before her for my gel manicure, but after going to them awhile, my nails would last less than two weeks. When I found Caren, I knew what a gel manicure should be like.
In February of this year, before lockdown, I decided to try my own hand at a gel manicure, finding out that the equipment and nail polish are much more affordable than they used to be and are all on Amazon! I’ve been at it for awhile now and with practice, can do an amazing gel manicure all on my own! I especially follow the rules of Caren to ensure my manicure lasts up to all the dishes and gardening I want to tackle. Here is all the equipment I bought to start doing my own gel manicures. These do have affiliate links, but so did the original article that showed me where to buy everything on Amazon when I started. It’s always good to give back!
- Airsee nail drill
- Instant cuticle remover
- Cuticle scissors and tool
- Gelish gel nail kit with pH bond, base coat, top coat and nourishing oil
- UV light for curing gel polish
- Beetles holiday colors, although I do use glitter nail polish year-round!
Here are my steps to an amazing gel manicure that lasts.
- Use a nail drill to sand off the old gel polish. Some salons and other online instructions have you soak off the old polish with acetone, but I find that very damaging to my nails and it makes them soft and easy to break. Caren used the nail drill to take off the old polish and I started doing the same. I use an Airsee nail drill. It takes some learning to use it carefully. Keep it moving so not to burn your nail or skin and be careful around your cuticles. I also put an old hand towel underneath my hand for easy clean up. Caren used to have a thing that would suck all the dust in, but I haven’t looked for one of those yet.
2. After removing the old nail polish, it’s time to clean up the cuticles. I use a Sally Hansen Instant Cuticle Remover and then push them back with this metal tool and clip any that are hanging.
3. Completing the job to clean up the cuticles, I’ll use the nail drill with one of the special tools for cuticles.
4. I was already happy with the shape and length of my nails, but if you need to file or clip your nails, now is the time to do it. We’re almost ready to paint, but I have two other tips to make a gel manicure last. First, I rough up the nail a little bit with this buffer block. Next, I paint on the pH Bond from this Gelish set and 60 seconds under the UV light. There are other lights out there, but this I like this one as it’s lightweight and portable.
5. We’re now ready to start painting our nails. Starting with 2 light coats of the Gelish Foundation. When you do the second coat of the foundation, brush a little on the tops of the nails. For each coat of paint, use the UV light for 60 seconds.
6. Time for color! I decided to do three colors from this holiday set. I often use this Beetles brand and while it’s not Gelish, it does work well and stands up to the beating I give my hands and nails. The bottles are small, but you don’t use a lot and when you consider how many bottles of nail polish you can buy, you’ll be using lots of other colors. No need to buy big bottles if you’re not running a salon! I usually do 3-4 light coats of color nail polish with 60 seconds under the light after each coat. Also with one of the layers I will run the brush over the tops of my nails.
7. After the color is all good, it’s time to Top it Off with the Gelish top coat. Two thin coats with one coat also going over the top of the nails as well and again, 60 seconds under the UV light after each coat.
8. After all the paint is done, it’s time to rub some alcohol on the nails to keep them from being tacky feeling and then run some nourishing oil on your cuticles. You now have 2-4 weeks of a beautiful manicure!!!
