Why Gel Nails at Home
Covid lockdown meant that we left the house less often, and got used to doing many things for ourselves at home. Having our nails done many not have been a priority during the lockdown, but there was no reason not to do our nails. And if anything, we tended to have more time the usual because we rarely went out. So doing your own nails was something of an obvious task during the pandemic.
Doing Traditional Gel Nails at Home
There are a few options for DIY nails. One is to do the whole process yourself.
- Completely remove all the natural oil from your nail. Unfortunately, natural oils will prevent the gel polish from lasting. So we must clean the nails in acetone, leaving them completely dry.
- Shape the nails to a slightly rounded square shape. A 180 grit emery board is good for this.
- Roughen the top of each nail slightly with the emery board. Cover the entire surface, because any smooth surface tends to cause the polish to flake off.
- Use cuticle softener to remove any dead skin off the nail plate. Leave this on for 1-2 minutes.
- Now push the cuticle back with the appropriately named cuticle pusher. And scrape any remaining edges of the cuticle off the nail.
- Any dead skin on the cuticle should now be trimmed. There are various tools for this. Just make sure not to remove any living skin tissue.
- Apply two coats of non-acid nail primer. When dry, this can be cured with an LED light.
- Choose the final colour of the nail, and apply two coats. Cure this under the LED lamp.
- One the nails are well and truly cured, apply cuticle oil. Continue to apply this oil several times per day. This prevents brittle nails.
Stick On Gel Nails at Home
The traditional gel nails are rather tedious to apply. We can understand why so many people preferred to have them done at a professional clinic. But there is a very satisfying alternative, which offers some advantages.
Stick-on gel nails can be applied to our natural nails in a minute or two. As long as the nails are clean there should be no problems. And not only is this quick (not requiring drying time), it is also healthier for the natural nail. This is because it avoids the use of chemicals in the application, though we do need acetone to remove the nails when we are finished with them.
We should wear stick-on gel nails for about a week, and then remove them by soaking them in acetone. Leave the natural nails bare for at least a day, so they can breathe.
Gel Nails at Home
Stick-on gel nails give great results with minimal effort. No drying time or waiting, fit them in a few minutes. Have a new set every week.
