Diy Gel Nails Manicure At Home
Im so excited that Kaiti is here today with a tutorial for diy gel nails at home for us! If you arent following her on Instagram , you are missing out on some serious nail inspiration! Since none of us can get pampered at the nail salon right now, we need to pamper ourselves. Heres Kaiti with everything you need to know to get an amazing gel nail manicure at home!
Hey babes! With everyone on lockdown and unable to go to the nail salon, I figured Id give you all a little tutorial on how to do your own gel nails in quarantine! I did a quick video so you get the jist of it, but lets break it down a little so you get the best, long lasting manicure you can. Shall we?
Four: Smoothing The Natural Nail Bed
After the first round, there was a still a little polish left over, so we repeated these same steps. But even after, my nail beds still felt a little rough. That’s when Lin told me to use a drop of sundays’Hydrating Cuticle Serum on each nail and let it work its magic.
“You may buff your nails while you have cuticle oils on your nails, which creates a thin layer to protect your natural layer during the buff process and it will also gently remove dead skin on the side,” she shares. Lin suggests to also make sure you only buff your nails in one direction to avoid any damage.
The result? Beautiful, smooth, healthy nails immediately after gel removal.
Doing Your Own Gel Nails Step
Once you have all of your tools prepared, its time to get started! Get situated somewhere comfortable, and maybe put on a TV show in the background. If youre doing your own nails, we recommend working on one hand at a time. If you have a friend to help you, however, you can speed up the process by having them paint one hand while the other is in the lamp.
You want to start every manicure by first washing your hands and filing them into a shape that you like. If you wish, you can also push back your cuticles or use a cuticle remover.
Then, your next move should be to rough up your nails a little with one of the medium-rough sides of a nail buffer . Youll want to buff the nail plate directly until the natural shine is gone from your nail. Dont buff so much that you damage the nail but just enough so the gel polish has a textured surface that it can grip.
With your nails cleaned and shaped, you still need to do a little more prep. Any oil, dust, or dirt on your nails is going to create a gap that can cause your gel nails to slide off or chip later on. Using isopropyl alcohol or an adhesion enhancer, wipe down your nails to make sure theyre totally clean and dry.
Next, apply a very thin layer of your base coat to each nail. Be very careful not to get any of the base coat on your skin or on your cuticles, as that can hurt the seal over your nails. If you do get some on your cuticles, wipe it off with a cotton swab.
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Gellen New Gel Polish Set
Shine on with a metallic manicure. From purple glitter to silver shimmer, metallic nails are perfect for anytime of year.
What Reviewers Are Saying: These are nice colors and they are not too loud. Theyre great contrasting colors when matched with others. Im very satisfied with my purchase and will be buying more in the future.
10 of 15 Image Credits: Amazon
Gel Manicure: Step 2 – Paint with Metallic Gel Polish
Diamond Diy Rhinestone Beads
Customize your manicure with sparkling decals that will elevate your look from great to glamorous. Make sure to apply these when your gel polish is still tacky.
What Reviewers Are Saying: I love doing my own nail art and sometimes I like to use larger rhinestones as accent pieces on my nails. This is a beautiful set of 100 gems.
14 of 15 Image Credits: Walmart
Gel Manicure: Step 6 – Accessorize with Sparkling Decals
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Does It Contain A Gel Lamp
When it comes to choosing the right at-home gel kit, Aaron first says to check whether or not the contents of the kit require a gel lampand if they do, check whether the kit contains one or if you’ll need to purchase one separately. If you’re just starting out, it’s best to opt for a kit that contains all the tools you’ll need, gel lamp included.
Start With Prepped Nails + Prep Your Space
Make sure your nails are cleaned, filed, dried, and free of any residue/lotion/oils. Buff and shape the nails before starting. Wipe clean with rubbing alcohol or acetone.
Prep your workspace by laying down a towel and having a paper towel on hand. Pour a small amount of acetone into the cap of the bottle or into a small dish. Set out your polishes in the order youll use them and get your nail lamp plugged in and ready to go.
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What Are Gel Nails
There are a few different types of gel nails you can choose from. Heres a quick overview of our top three:
– Gel is applied to the real nail. Its simply brushed onto the nail in three stages: a base coat, polish colour and topcoat, before being cured under an LED or UV lamp . This process sets the gel solid with no sticky residue, creating a lovely shine with zero waiting time.
– An acrylic nail kit uses artificial nails, usually added to the tips using liquid acrylic and powder great if youre looking to add length or alterthe shape.
– Shellac is the brand name for a product made from both nail polish and gel. Its applied straight to the nail and is available in many different colours. Pretty nails in a flash!
How To Do Polygel Nails At Home What You Will Need
I first started with the Makartt set. The sets come in different colors but I started with the Pink Makartt set which you can click here to buy. The kit comes with dual forms, a lamp, and multiple pink colors. If you are not feeling pink that you can see additional suggestions below on the various types of colors, they have that includes the entire kit.
Now as a fair warning the lamp that comes with the kit is pretty small and it takes forever to dry. Like legit you can fit one or two nails in there at most and you must sit your nails underneath the lamp multiple times in order to get your nail dry.
This is why I ended up getting a larger UV lamp that is pretty affordable, that will try all of my nails at once, and is more powerful. This was worth the upgrade and it decreased the number of times it took to do my nails. You can ere to see the lamp that I use.
I also found that having an electronic nail file helps as well. You can to see the one that I have, once again pretty affordable and well worth it. This helps file down your nails, shape your polygel nails, and when it comes time to take off your polygel nails this electronic file helps tremendously. At first, I was using the file that came with the kit however, that file can be very time-consuming.
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At Home Gel Nail Kit Is It Worth The Investment
Gel nails are all the rage but heading for your regular salon appointments does not always fit into a busy schedule – and can be a hefty burden on your wallet. There’s currently a raft of at home gel nail devices, promising a salon look all from the comfort of your own home – they’re particularly popular overseas and are just starting to hit Australian shores. But should you buy one? Read on for our hacks to perfecting at home gel nails all by yourself and the top kits you might want to add to cart ASAP…
Four: Choose Your Polish
I went with Orly’s GelFX Kiss the Bride shade, a soft baby pink. Using the same steps Boyce suggested above, I started off painting one thin layer on my thumb, curing it for 30 seconds this time, then moving onto my other fingers. Once I was finished, I layered on a second coat and repeated these same steps for curing.
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How To Do Gel Nails At Home A Step
This post may contain affiliate links.
Shiny, strong, and long-lasting who doesnt love gel nails? The best part is that you can get your own gel manicure at home if you want to. Its a more involved process than simply painting your nails, but once you get good at it, your nails can always be shellacked to perfection. If youre particularly ambitious, you can even try doing your own sculpted gel extensions at home!
Youll have to pick up some essential tools first, but once you have everything, you can save yourself hundreds of dollars a year by doing your own gel manicure! To get you started, weve put together the most comprehensive guide imaginable for gel polish, poly gel extensions, and regular gel extensions. We included tips on what products to buy, a step-by-step guide, as well as some important troubleshooting tips.
How To Do A Salon
Below is a step-by-step guide for creating a perfect salon-quality gel manicure at home. You can also watch my IGTV video showcasing the process as well here. Before getting started, however, know that polishing your dominant hand can be challenging for some. Patience and practice make it absolutely possible. So, just go slowly and take your time. If youre really struggling, try making an evening of it with friends or family and polish each others dominant hand while you get used to this process.
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Equate Sterile Alcohol Prep Pads 100 Count
Gel polish has a tacky layer when its done curing. Use a sterilized alcohol prep pad to wipe off the tacky layer on top of the gel polish. Make sure to use different wipes for your nails to maintain each nails brightness.
What Reviewers Are Saying: I’m giving this product a thumbs up. The alcohol prep pad works great, and doesn’t fall apart like other generic brands.
15 of 15 Image Credits: Sephora
Gel Manicure: Step 7 – Remove the Tacky Layer
How To Do Gel Nails With Tips
This article was co-authored by Lindsay Yoshitomi. Lindsay Yoshitomi is the nail artist behind the blog, Lacquered Lawyer. She was featured as one of Nail It! magazines Bloggers You Should Know, and has been on the cover of Nail Art Gallery Magazine. She has been practicing nail art for over 15 years.There are 17 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 54,850 times.
Stylish and sturdy, gel nails take quite a bit of work to apply. With the right tools and techniques, youll be able to create a professional-looking gel manicure. To add length and drama, glue on a set of nail tips before applying the gel. Youll need to use a buffing block to roughen up the shiny surface from both your natural nails and the tips, but once you do this you can apply all of the gel layers from your cuticle to the free edge of the fake nail tip. Cure the gel under a UV or LED nail lamp and dont forget to fix up the edges with a nail file before finishing off your manicure.
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All The Products And Equipment You Need For An At
Below is the full list of products you need for your in-home gel experience. And please note that these are salon-quality products. These are not dumbed-down amateur products that are going to lead to nails that chip off in two days. These are the exact products and tools used by salons so the result is a manicure thats just as amazing.
1. Nail Clippers 11. Cuticle Oil12. LED lamp 13. Disposable Changing Pad to protect your surface 14. Gel Polish Remover Clips
Many of the above products you likely already own, but even if you were to buy everything brand new , were talking less than $150 in startup costs to give yourself a near-infinite number of gel manicures and pedicures. Not bad when you consider this is basically the cost of ONE trip to a salon for both a gel manicure and pedicure .
Mia Secret Mia Secret Liquid Monomer 8 Oz
Create a ball by dipping a brush into liquid monomer then placing the wet brush in powder polymer. Apply the ball to your nail bed, then pat the ball into place using a liquid monomer. In the future, to swap out the design on top of this clear layer, you can buff down to just the clear layer and apply the new design on top again.
What Reviewers Are Saying: I started doing my own nails. Although it took a lot of practice and I’m still learning, Mia Secret is the brand I’ve decided to stick with. This is my second time buying a refill of this monomer, which is now my go-to.
5 of 15 Image Credits: Amazon
Acrylic Mani: Step 4 – Apply a Clear Acrylic Layer
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Can You Save Money By Doing A Gel Manicure At Home
Heres the shocker: The cost of all the professional-quality supplies for a gel manicure at home is actually less than the price of one gel manicure in a salonand youll get far more use out of these products than just one manicure. Even just a bottle of polish can last years depending on frequency of use. The other products you need will last even longer.
Prices for gel manicures vary depending on where you live and the salons you go to, but a quick review of local salons in NYC shows gel or shellac manis priced between $50 and $70. Gel pedicures go for between $50 and $80. Therefore, at least in NYC, youre dropping at least $100 every time you get your nails and toes tended to. Its a lovely treat. But maybe not so realistic for regular maintenance.
Gel Nails: 12 Points You Need To Understand About Gel Manicures
Theres a reason that what do i need to do my own gel nails have ended up being a modern charm mainstay: Theyre virtually indestructible, impossibly glossy, as well as provided at the majority of nail beauty salons. The most enticing facet of a gel mani? Zero danger in cracking your polish the minute you dig with your bag to inspect your phone in addition to, for numerous weeks to come.
Gel gloss are included stronger components that realize the nail tighter than traditional lacquers and also are solid sufficient to withstand day-to-day wear and tear without damaging, discusses Essie Global Lead Instructor Rita Comment. A few distinctions in between the formula and also your normal lacquer? Gel polishes are much more adaptable, so they withstand chips Gels are treated under a UV or LED light and brightens treatment in oxygen. Gels have to be eliminated by soaking in acetone for at the very least 10 minutes, while polishes can be quickly wiped away with nail gloss cleaner.
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Cut And File Your Nails
Before you apply any polish, you need to make sure your nails are prepped and ready to go. Start by cutting your nailsyoull want them all equal lengthsand then file to smooth out any rough edges. Pro tip: Glass nail files are great for getting a smooth finish, since they’re a bit more gentle than traditional emery boards .
Youre Leaving Gel Polish On Too Long
Since gel nail polish can be worn for weeks on end without even the tiniest chip, stretching the life of your manicure is tempting. However, Hadley suggests removing a gel manicure after two to three weeks maximum to avoid damaging nail beds and cuticles. Harpring agrees, adding that overextending gel manicures can not only lead to weakened nails, but also introduce potentially harmful bacteria. It is important to remember that once the gel begins to lift, it does allow for moisture to get under the gel and possibly lead to bacterial growth, explains Harpring.
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One: Filing Down The Polish
Once we were ready to get started, the nail expert instructed me to take the file from the kit and swipe it across the nail bed where the polish was still present excluding the grow out areas making sure to only go in one direction, rather than back and forth. The goal here is only to break down the top layer of polish, without hitting the natural nail.
Provide Your Skin Some Tlc After The Gel Manicure Is Removed
Its extremely crucial that the surrounding skin and also cuticle, along with the nail plate itself, be rehydrated with a thick emollient such as Aquaphor or an overnight mask-like Nails Inc.s Overnight Detox Nail Mask post-removal in order to rehydrate and also fix the surrounding skin, cuticle, and also nails, Dr. Adigun states.
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