... the lamp! It has one 9 watt UV bulb and it's used to cure the gel top coat. Unlike regular polish, which airdries, gel polishes and top coats dry with the help of UV light. That's why you absolutely need one of these. There are a lot of different UV lamps: big ones, small ones, the ones with one, two or even four UV bulbs. The selection is quite big. I purchased this one because it's small and I figured it'll be good enough to try this techique out. I still don't know if I'm gonna like and use this gel-ish manicure so I picked the cheapest lamp. I got it off Ebay for $13.95 (buy it now, free shipping).
I've been searching the internet for information on using regular polish with gel top coat but without much luck. I decided to wing it and see what happens.
STEP 1
I used a regular polish just like I always do. I didn't use any base coat, I just applied 2 layers of Guppy nail polish in #64 to my nails. After the polish dried I did the clean-up with my brush. I waited for my polish to really dry before I continued with the next step. I think it took ~30 minutes for the polish to dry completely.
STEP 2
After the polish has dried completely, I applied a coat of Hong Nuo Soak Off Top Coat to my nails. I did the thumbs separately, 'cause they wouldn't fit into the lamp with the rest four fingers. I placed my fingers/nails under the lamp and cured the gel for 4 minutes.
STEP 3
Sometimes there's a sticky film on the nails after curing the gel. I didn't experience that, but in case I did, I kept a bottle of rubbing alcohol by my side to wipe it off. That's it! The nails are now dry and you can continue doing whatever you want. No more drying time. And the shine! It's amazing!
Removing soak off gel top coat:
Before I did a full manicure, I tried the techique on one nail - the application and the removal. Just in case to see the possible traps before I had gel on all my nails. Yes, the removal is a bit tricky and not as easy as with the regular polish, but that's why gel lasts longer.
I carefully filled off the top of my manicured nails trying to not file too much and damage my nails - you just need to file the gel part so it becomes rough. Then I placed a cotton pad on my nail and waited for a couple of minutes. The gel and polish went off pretty easily.
Let's see what are the good points of using a gel top coat and what are the downsides.
PROS:
+ Longer lasting manicure.
+ It's easy and quick.
+ Amazing shine of the manicure.
+ No air-drying time.
CONS:
- The removal takes time.
- Possible nail damage that comes with the removal.
I also have another con for you, but I don't know if this applies to all the gel top coats - my Hong Nuo Top Coat stinks! It stinks only until it dries, but man, that's one bad smell. I still don't know about the longer-lasting manicure thing, I'll have to just wait and see. I hope it will last at least until the end of this week. I'll make sure to let you know about it in my Part II post which will be a sum up of this new techique. Just to get a little glimpse: I applied my polish yesterday and it still looks impecable today. So good so far. And I've never had my nails so shiny! This morning I woke up and expected to see sheet or hair marks on my nails, but no - they're still glossy and looking great.
What do you think of this half regular half gel manicure?
Thanks for looking and commenting!
I'll try anything that would make my manicure last longer. I'm very interested in how this experiment of yours will work out. I hope it's for the best! You're really a pioneer in nail issues ;)
ReplyDeleteCome to think about it, I've seen some gel-like top coat from Essence in the stores. I remember it being in a black bottle. Have you tried it perhaps? Does it also require drying in the lamp?
I guess you mean the Better than Gel Nails Top Sealer. That's a regular top coat with no UV curing required. I love this top coat, but it can't prevent tip wear on my nails.
DeleteBut back to the "main article". I actually did the same research in the last two days. I couldn't find any real information either, so I was quite happy to see, that someone else was wondering too. I would love to read your final verdict! Especially with my current manicure, I would have loved to experience less damage... if a gel top coat could elongate the wear, I would definitely do it. Maybe not with every mani, but surely with a mani that took me hours to do!
As Kayono mentioned, that Essence top coat doesn't need UV light to dry and it actually NOT a gel top coat.
DeleteHa! I love that we think alike, dear sister. :) I actually asked a nailtech friend of mine last summer, if this was possible (she works for OPI, and I asked her if they were going to release a line of more simple home usage products), and she said yes (and they were working on it). So, yes, I have been meaning to try this out myself. I'm really looking forward to extend the wear of my pedicures, as bending down is such a hassle for us old ladies. ;) I have one thought though: instead of roughing up the gel surface with a regular file upon removal, why nut use a coarser side of a buffer file? It just might do the trick while considerably lessen the risks of damaging the natural nail, me thinks. :)
ReplyDeleteI used a gentle file. =) My nails are weak as they are and I really don't wanna make them even thinner and weaker. I'll let you know how this works out.
DeleteWell, I tend to chip my nails every single time! So perhaps this a great option for me! Looks quite easy and love the result! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeletePhlox
I used to do gel topcoat on my nails to keep them from breakin so easily and my gel top coat didnt smell so maybe it was just the one that you bought. i hope it works out great for u :)
ReplyDeleteYeah, I tend to buy the smelly stuff. XD
DeleteIt's ideal for women who have little time AND who don't get sick of a colour in few days :D
ReplyDeleteI'm not interested in manicures lasting longer, 'cause I love changing my nail color everyday, but I'm interested in this for one reason and one reason only! Have you ever tried nail foils?
ReplyDeleteThe holographic ones are to DIEEEE for but (always a but) they burn and crinkle up really bad with topcoat.
I have heard that this gel thing won't do that to the foils. If so, that's something I'd REALLY be interested in.
I think I threw out my foils after they got all wrinkly with my regular top coat, but I'll look into my nail stash and if I find it, I'll try it out. Just to see if it's true.
DeleteI can respond to that, on my blog I've done this before, but then with a pedicure.
DeleteFoil with two thin layers of UV-gel. It works, doesn't crinkle and stays very beautiful! It's only a pita to get off!
Oh... just to let you know: I didn't try this with holo foil, but just the regular metallic foil, but that stayed beautiful for a very long time!
Really???? I'll give it a go then! Wouldn't it be amazing if it worked with holo foils as well?? Thanks a lot to the both of you!
DeleteThanks for this experiment! I'm loving this gel top coat up until the removal time! I don't know how I feel about having to file it down! :(
ReplyDeleteI've actually got a polish by this brand (I think some sort of blue glitter) which I also bought on Ebay but have been dreading to use it because I was afraid removal would be so hard and would damage my nails in the process! Like Feline Flodin mentioned, I will definitely give it a go on my toes because I like my pedicures to last very long :)
Great post, I've tried out the same thing with another grand of soak of gel with no luck :( Maybe I will have to try the brand you used. Excited to see part 2, I think that will be the final decider for me.
ReplyDeleteOh, this is an amazing shine! And the shade of this guppy polish is so pretty, too!
ReplyDeleteAs for the attitude, I am the lucky one that can have a regular polish (once properly applied) last for 3-5 days with no chipping at all. However, the gel thing lasts on me for 2 weeks minimum, and it keeps being shiny. It is just so great for growing nails, you know. No chipping, no breaking... As for combining stuff, I've done a Jessica gel manicure once on a coupon offer, and the manicurist has told me that she could use whatever shade I like (not necessarily a gel polish) as the color coat. The only thing was, she said, that you'd have to wait some 45 minutes until it dries completely prior to applying a soak-off top coat. And I really lament I hadn't made this unique gel 'Victorian crush' manicure back then! Now after seeing your post (thank you!) I think of buying a lamp and give it a go!
I think the reason you can't find much info on it is because those of us who are using the soak off gels haven't really had much luck with regular polish. For myself, I've tried sandwiching regular polish between soak off base and top coat and the results were terrible compared to a full soak off gel manicure. I prefer to do a full soak off and then paint over it with regular polish a few times. I'm curious to see how long it will last for you without a soak off base. Also, be careful of the asian knock off soak off gels, some girls have had a nightmare of a time with removal.
ReplyDeleteHow long does this last for you? I wanted to do this tecnique after seeing a video by Loodiex3. I like changing colors but I need to add strength and this way sounds like it could work.
DeleteI do this all the using a the soak off gel basecoat, regular polish, and then the soak off gel topcoat. What I've found is that all soak off gel brands are not the same. I've used Blue Sky off Ebay and it is really hard to get off. I now stick to Shellac which will make your mani last longer and not chip but you can also get it off using the foil method just like you would for glitter.
ReplyDeletesí que le da brillo, sí.
ReplyDeleteI don't want to last my manicure longer, because I want to change it every second or third day. And it's a torture to get the gel off, so, no thanks!
ReplyDeleteLala
I can´t wait for part two, I´d love to have the opportunity to make my manicure last for a whole weekend or so, so if you are still happy with it afte rremoval and such I might purchase too!
ReplyDeleteThat shine is just.. WOW.
ReplyDeleteWith which product did you soak off the gel?
ReplyDeleteAceton? Or is there a special remover, if yes which one?
Lala
I don't think this method is for me, I'd rather change my polish more often than deal with filing and soaking every time. Also I think soaking for longer and filing might lead to weaker nails.
ReplyDeleteI'm wondering whether using the gel base with normal polish on top would give the same long-lasting result? I remember when I had artificial nails years ago, normal polish would last for weeks.
I do this sometimes - I bought the whole Red Carpet Manicure gel set, but found that I don't like the gel basecoat - it's too thick and peels off easily. So, I sometimes use the gel topcoat with the UV light instead of a regular topcoat. It does last longer for me than most topcoats, but it's not perfect - it sometime peels off like gel nails do. It removes easily with acetone.
ReplyDeleteDoubt very much if I'll ever try this. Too much work! The shine is incredible though.
ReplyDeletelooks great, but's not for me... big fear to remove filing my poor nails!!
ReplyDeleteI haven't done much research yet, but I'm a bit concerned about the UV lamp and how much I'd be using it...I don't want cancer, or a finger tan!
ReplyDeleteThis is what i worry about too. I have thought about using gel on my nails for quite a while now, but i always decide against it because of the uv exposure :(
DeleteUau, kapo dol za tale poskus! Držim pesti, da ti manikura uspe zdržati do konca tedna! Tudi mene zelo zanima rezultat, ker imam podobne težave s krušenjem in tole mi izgleda zelo zanimiva rešitev. Sama nisem niti pomislila na to možnost! :) Kadar sem kam šla za cel dan, sem s sabo vzela lakec, ki sem ga imela tudi na nohtih in če se je res preveč okrušil, da bi to še lahko "spregledala", sem ga preprosto namazala preko praznega dela nohta. Mene je sicer še vedno motilo, ampak ostali pa niso opazili pomanjkljivosti. ;)
ReplyDeleteI want to try it because I'm really sad when I accidentally ruin my fresh mani!
ReplyDeleteI have been using the Gelish for a few months now. I could not wear regular polish without chips right away and my job is hard on the nails. Although the soaking off is a pain, my nails are quite strong with the polish on and are longer than ever since the Gelish. After removing the gel polish, my nails are very vunerable to breakage, so I polish again right away. Also, even when I soak in either the Gelish remover or plain acetone, I still need to scrape some of the polish off with an orange stick. I am always afraid of damage then. My top coat does not smell bad. I would love to know if this technique will work for you because the possibilities of more nail polish colors to choose from would be wonderful. Looking forward to the update. My Gelish manis last two weeks- could last longer but I need a change then.
ReplyDeleteThe nail polish remover is normal or special? Kisses from Brazil.
ReplyDeleteI used a regular nail polish remover.
DeleteI have used this method in my Salon now for the past 6 months with great results...I have many more colors to choose from than Gel colors offers..I use Gelish and Artistic Gel for my product line with OPI and China Glaze as polish..love it!
ReplyDelete