Need to Save Some Money? Try a DIY Gel Manicure

I love having my nails done but here’s the thing, I don’t like the ongoing cost of keeping them well manicured and two, I don’t like the time it takes to schedule an appointment at a nail salon, drive there, and then have them done.  That’s time I could be with my family…or blogging!  Last week at the Consumer Electronics Show last week, I learned about Panasonic’s new beauty line of products after having my hair done with their new nano Hair Dryer.

They have  a Gel Nail Remover wand that not only removes gel polish, but has a built-in nail buffer and cuticle care attachment to help prepare for your next gel polish. I was intrigued, but it made it clear to me that I was behind the times.  What is gel polish I asked?

What is a Gel Manicure?

A gel manicure uses a special type of gel nail polish that is odorless and is known to last a long time…up to 2 weeks on nails and does not chip. Similar to a regular manicure, it starts with a base coat, two coats of polish, and a top coat.  However, the gel needs to be cured during the process to ensure it adheres to the nail (or synthetic nail) as well as to each of the layers.  To cure your gel polish, you must buy a small LED Ultra Violet lamp and place your freshly painted nails in there after each coat…from anywhere to 30 seconds to 1 minute.

What to Buy

Hmmm, sounds interesting.  I could do my nails at home, have them look professionally done, and save a bunch of money in the long run?  Sounds good to me.  A week after leaving CES, I went to my local Walmart to buy the materials I needed to get started.

I bought a KISS LED Gel Lamp for $27.97, Sensational gel base coat, Sally Hansen red gel nail polish, and a KISS top gel.  Each of the gel bottles were priced from $8 to $10.  How did I know what materials I needed to buy, you ask?

Simple, I just looked at the LED Lamp box!

The DIY Gel Manicure Process

With all of my materials gathered, I started the process of my DIY gel manicure.

I unboxed the KISS LED lamp and was pleased to see it had an AC Adapter rather than a battery.

Peering inside the LED lamp, I saw a bunch of LED lightbulbs and like a thin mirror all around the inside.   Time to get started….

STEP 1:  Remove any previous nail polish you have and buff your nails to ensure any residue is off.

STEP 2:  Push back your cuticles and shape your nails with a nail file.

STEP 3:  Apply the gel base coat to your nails so the polish has something to stick onto.   After you are done with the first hand, cure 4 fingers in the LED lamp for 30 seconds.  Repeat with the second hand.        

Then put both your thumbs in together.  I recommend you do your thumbs last.  I did with each hand but since they rest on their side, the get started running onto the side of my finger as I did the rest of the nails.  So paint four fingers, cure, then paint the other four fingers, cure, then paint both thumbs and cure at the same time.

STEP 4:  Paint four fingers on each hand, cure under the lamp for a minute, and paint the other four under the Lamp.  Next paint your two thumbs and cure under the lamp.  Repeat for a second coat.

Step 5:  Almost done!  Now use the top coat and paint the clear coat on each of your nails, using the process mentioned before, only you cure them in the lamp for only 30 seconds this time.  Your nails will be sticky and you will need to let them dry a bit.

After awhile, you can rinse them in water and they should be good to go.  I was worried when I touched a nail with my finger and left a fingerprint.  But after I washed the stickiness away, the fingerprint mark was gone.  Phew!

Lessons Learned

• With normal nail polish, it is easy for me to scrape away nail polish under water that had landed in my cuticles.  With gel manicures, it is not so easy because of the numerous tacky levels of gel you use.  I found that by cutting away some of the gel that went over the side of my nail, I loosened up the whole polish job and later the entire polish on my nail came off.  Oops!   So next time I will be more careful in painting my nails and will not try to get so close to the edges on the sides of my nails to prevent this from happening again.
• It does take some extra time with the LED lamp, so plan accordingly.  Next time I’ll turn on some music and have a magazine handy…or better yet…I’ll do the gel manicure with a friend!
• It’s a little costly to get started with DIY gel manicure, but you don’t really use a lot of it at one time…a little really goes far.  I will probably be able to do at least 10 manicures with my gels, which is still a great bargain versus going into a salon.
• If you’re not a perfectionist, your nails will not look perfect.  They won’t look salon perfect, but they still look great and I love the fact that I do not need to worry about chips anymore.

A Mom’s Perspective