Gel products play well together, because gel sticks to gel. It is possible to layer soft and hard gel, and this can be done by adding hard gel somewhere in your soft gel (gel polish) application. This means that you may feel heat on the surface of your nails that can be uncomfortable, but if you remove your hand it will go away and you can return your hand to the lamp. The one potential drawback we’ve found with hard gel is that a “heat spike” can be generated as the product is curing in the lamp. It can also be used to extend the length of your nails (nail extensions). Other terms people use to describe hard gel include: builder gel, structure gel, sculpting gel and resin. These are all hard gel, just by different names. The main difference between soft and hard gel is that hard gel is stronger and harder, so it better protects your nails from bending and breaking, and it stays on longer than soft gel (gel polish). If gel polish is soft gel, then what is hard gel? Remember how we said that soft gel (gel polish) won’t protect your nails from bending and breaking? Hard gel will. Hard gel is a nail enhancement that is applied to your natural nails to give them strength and structure. It is often painted on with a brush, but your nail tech may apply it differently depending on the length, style, and shape of your nails. It can be clear or colored. At Luster the brands of gel polish we currently like using are OPI, Madam Glam, Ugly Duckling™, and Orly®. Much like Kleenex has become a universal word for tissue, CND™ Shellac™ brand of gel polish is so popular it has come to mean gel polish. If you’ve been asking for “Shellac” you’ve simply been asking for one of many brands of gel polish. Now the nails are ready for gel polish. If you want a wet manicure - maybe you prefer it or your cuticles need extra TLC - it's best to do it on a different day than your gel polish application. This consists of trimming and shaping the nails, pushing back the cuticle, buffing the shine off the nail, and nipping away any dead or loose hanging skin. But when you’re getting gel polish the last thing you should do is soak or apply any oil-based product (like cuticle softener) to your nails before the polish goes on. This is because it will not adhere properly to the nail, which means it could come off prematurely, and the whole point of getting gel polish is that is stays on longer! Gel polish application has its own prescribed nail preparation. Each brand and manufacturer will have a recommended preparation procedure for the product to work as intended, and this is what should be followed. Typically, a “dry manicure” is recommended before applying gel polish. The term manicure can be misleading, because manicures traditionally involve soaking and cuticle softener. And you can go to many salons that will perform the traditional manicure service including soaking and cuticle softener with your gel polish application. When we hear people talk about getting a gel manicure, what’s really happening is that they are getting a gel polish application. Just think of it as nail polish that stays on longer. But it’s important to note that gel polish does not protect our nails from bending and breaking. Some find it chips within a day or two (although proper nail prep and application should allow nail polish to remain on for 7-10 days). So, the major innovation with gel polish was that it stays on 10 days to 2 weeks. This is great news for those of us who want lasting color, especially when compared to regular nail polish. The biggest problem with nail polish is that it doesn’t stay on very long. Until then we only had nail lacquer (regular nail polish), the kind we often paint our nails with at home. The most common product people are looking for when they ask for gel is gel polish, which is considered a “soft gel.” The advent of gel polish was quite the revelation for its time. Let us help you decipher the terms. To start, they can at least be broken down into two main categories: soft gel and hard gel. Confusing, right? How can so many products, which are all slightly different, fall under the term “gel?” In general, they all have a similar gel-like consistency, and they’re all cured under LED or UV light, but they are not all created equal.
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