Beautiful hands and nails are the dreams of every woman. Women are found spending a lot of bucks on manicures. We all want our hand’s and nails to look best amongst everyone. And this is true that we love watching our manicured hands every time while chatting with our BFF or typing on the desktop. It’s such a great pick-me-up. But, our ego takes a hit when the polish is chipped away as soon as we do the first load of dishes. But now here’s hope: Gels. If you are looking for the mani, that lasts longer, you should go for a gel manicure. But, before heading up to the salon and spending money on it, here is everything you should about gel manicur.
1. What is Gel Nails?
Gel manicure involves the coating of colored gels which, looks deceptively similar to nail polishes. They’re virtually indestructible and glossy. Gel polishes are comprised of stronger ingredients that grasp the nail tighter than traditional lacquers and are strong enough to stand up to daily wear and tear without chipping. They are cured under a UV or LED lamp to make it more durable.
2. How are Gel Nails Applied?
Well, the professionals may know the correct technique of applying gel nails, and it is considered a tough procedure. Here is an overlay of applying gel nails.
- Just like acrylic nails, it also requires an overlay to lengthen your nails. Most of the time, a form is applied underneath the natural nail to lengthen the nail. Once that adheres, hard or structure gel is applied all over the nail from the tip to the cuticle and then cured under a lamp. Then, the color is applied with standard soft gel polish and cured layer-by-layer. And the rest procedure flows like a regular mani.
3. How Long it Lasts?
Gel Nails are known for their durability. They last for around two to four weeks, longer than any other type of manicure. There is even no worry about its chipping. You can do your dishes and any other chores without any fear. But according to one nail professional, “But like with all lacquer, breaks between manicures are a great way to ensure your nails stay strong and healthy.”
4. How Many Bucks are you going to Spend?
Regardless of your preference, gel nails seem like the Holy Grail of salon services lately. Because of their durability, they are the most preferred ones. But having a gel mani can put a big hole in your pocket. Its cost hovers around 35$ in the US. It is the average cost price in almost every country. If you want to have a celeb style manicure, you have to pay around 100$. Now, that is much!
5. Choosing A healthy Polish
Once you have decided to get gel nails, you should be very selective towards the polishes. A quality polish leads to a youthful look of your nails as well as your nails’ health. It is always advisable to check the ingredients of the polish and make sure that it is Toxic-Trio Free. Dibutyl phthalate, Toluene, Formaldehyde are the toxic trio compounds, which are usually added to the polish, but they have carcinogenic properties and can cause damage to your health, which even may lead to a dreadful disease like cancer.
6. Causes Dryness to a Death Valley Level
Gel nails do not allow your nail beds to breathe correctly, impacting on the flow of blood, and therefore, the oxygenation and natural growth of the nail; causing nails to get dehydrated and dry to an extreme level. Drinking plenty of water is as beneficial to our nails as it is to our body. Also, it is advised to apply cuticle oil and moisturizer on the nails to keep them healthy and hydrated.
7. May Weak Our Nails
Gel manicure, as well as all the other types of manicure, cause thinning and weakening of the nails. They even cause discoloration to our natural nails.
8. A Big No to UV Rays
Those pink to purple color light lamps, which are used to dry up the nails have been a part of salon services forever. But, with increasing technology, UV rays curing are now displaced with LED curing. All the top brand salons are now using LED curing; because UV rays cause harmful effects to the skin, cuticle as well as nails. But, if you again want to cure your nails under UV rays, you must apply sunscreen with higher SPF before putting your nails under rays.
9. No More Hot Water Please!
Hot water is the worst enemy of a gel manicure. So, it is advisable to not to spend much time in a hot shower, jacuzzi and to wear latex or rubber gloves while doing dishes. Soaking them into hot water can make the gel to chip faster.
10. Scraping is NOT Allowed
Just like you need an appointment for applying the gel on your nails, similarly, an appointment is required to remove them. Isn’t it time-consuming? Anyways, if you ever think to remove it on your own, dont ever think so. If you rip it off on your own without following the specific technique, you may take out some layers of your nails with you, and it can take almost a year to cure. So, its better to book an appointment in a salon for its removal. An expert says, “to remove them you need to completely break through the top seal which requires a professional nail drill. Almost 90% of the gel needs to be drilled off; then you remove the remaining product by soaking your nails in acetone and dusting it off with a nail file.”
11. Avoid Back-to-Back Manicure
Nail professionals say that our nails need to breathe too. So, back-to-back manicure should be avoided. Nails should be given some rest and break between two manicures so that they regain their hydration and natural look again. So, before planning for the next manicure, give them proper rest and a complete break!
12. REHAB- Post Gel Nails
After getting gel nails removed, its a rehabilitation time for the nails. Give them a massage with some oil and make sure to keep them moisturized with penetrating creams and balms. Let them recover under natural air and let them breathe oxygen.
