Another great gift from Santa Husband left underneath the Christmas tree. I won’t lie, only moments after we ripped through all our gifts, I was at my vanity table testing this sucker out!
For the first time in my life, I was nervous while painting my nails. Knowing that the mani would be on my hands for at least 10 days, I felt immense pressure for it to be perfect. I also wasn’t sure if I could clean up with acetone like a normal mani. The good news is, you can (before you cure). The bad news is, I was so worried about it, I didn’t push the polish as close to my cuticles as I would have liked.
Freshly Applied
Let me say this, I was completely blown away by
- how easy it was to do
- the fact that they really did set/cure with the lamp (no dry time!)
- how gorgeous they looked.
The polish cured so beautifully; they really looked like I’d gotten them done at the salon. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I was really just so pleased.
Before we get into how they wore, I need to make a few things clear:
- I didn’t cap the edges like the instructions said to do. Remember I said how nervous I was that I couldn’t clean up with acetone? Well, I was just sure that I’d end up painting all over my skin (my nails are short) and wouldn’t be able to get it off. Now that I know that I CAN clean up with acetone, I will definitely cap the edge next time.
- I didn’t push the paint as close to my cuticle as I would normally have liked. I know I said that earlier, but I just felt like that needed to be reiterated.
- I was unfairly hard on my nails through the course of this experiment. With the holiday comes a lot of un-decorating, box packing, tape ripping, label peeling, dish washing and house cleaning. You get the picture. I didn’t have great expectations.
DAY SEVEN
As you can see, there is some wear on the tips. I feel like I probably could have avoided that if I’d capped the edges like the instructions said. You can also see that my nails grew out quite a bit. My nails grow insanely fast, so I expected that.
DAY TWELVE
I took the mani off on day 12. And the only reason I did was because I am super picky about the length of my nails (I blame the fact that I’m constantly typing) so they were driving me crazy! They still looked really good, though, besides the crazy growth & the ragged cuticles.
I didn’t feel like these were going anywhere. And I definitely didn’t feel like they were going to break or snap. I feel like it’s also worth mentioning that I didn’t have that annoying hair-caught-in-cuticle experience that you can sometimes get from gel manis. (Please tell me you know what I’m talking about–you know, as the polish grows out sometimes it can lift a bit at the cuticle and when you run your fingers through your hair, it can snag). That didn’t happen with this mani.
I was hugely impressed with this system.
And because I know you’ll ask…
How did you remove them? I did the cotton ball soaked in acetone wrapped around the nail with aluminum foil method. I left it on for 15 minutes.
Was it hard to remove? Not any harder than any other gel manicure I’ve ever had. In the prep instructions, it said to only use the gel primer on the edges of the nail (opposed to painting it on like a regular polish) to make sure removal was a little easier. I didn’t have the removal tool they sell, but I will probably buy it while I’m out next. I was able to push the gel off with a cuticle pusher and then I buffed off any remaining pieces with a file.
Did it ruin your nails? Again, not any more than any other gel manicure. It definitely didn’t ruin my nails, but it didn’t leave them in awesome shape. They were a little damaged. I was able to buff them out, and they’re not crazy thin or brittle. For reference, here is the regular polish manicure I did just after removing the gel.
(essie: smokin’ hot)
Definitely not ruined.
Over all, I am absolutely positively IN LOVE with this system. Thank you Santa Husband for such an awesome present!
If you’re on the fence, and you think you’d use the system at least TWICE in your life, I say go for it. A shellac manicure is at least $25 at the salon. This system is $49 at Target!
I didn’t think I’d like having gels on my nails for 12+ days. I thought I’d get restless and want to change the polish (which honestly, I could always just paint over the gel if I really wanted to). But I discovered that the main reason I change my polish so much is because I’m picky about it looking perfect. Having the gels on was nice because I didn’t have to even think about my nails!
And if you made it to the end of this post? CONGRATULATIONS! Pat yourself on the back because phew! This was a long one!
You can purchase the kit HERE if you’re interested!
**This is NOT a sponsored post. I genuinely asked for this kit for Christmas, and J spent his own money on it. I happen to be a Target Affiliate, therefore the link you’ll find at the end of this post is an affiliate link!**
Linked with Jennie
Wow, gorgeous color and they definitely held up incredibly! I have never had a gel manicure (only one salon manicure in my life and wasn't impressed) so I don't know much about them, but it does seem impressive. 🙂
Oh wow!! That manicure looks awesome even after a week! I've been on a polish kick lately..
I'm insanely impressed with how long they held up!! Usually when I do my own gel it lasts like 6 days and starts to get bad LOL!! But you're a professional even if you're not I think you are! xo, Biana – BlovedBoston
I can't get over how gorgeous your nails look- they always look amazing, but the finish and color is so pretty! Loving that Essie color too 🙂
Great detailed review, I've seen this and wondered! I stopped doing gel manicures because my nails became so brittle and tore up, BUT I would love something like this for trips! I enjoy a good gel mani when we are headed somewhere. Sounds like it performs awesome and just like a trip to the salon, but much cheaper! Good job Santa husband 😉
And your nails always look so good!!!
I'm blown away by how long this lasted…awesome!! I also love the essie colour you used afterwards. And santa husbands are the best 🙂
Wow, I'm super impressed that it lasted so long!! Definitely worth the price tag which isn't that bad to begin with. I'll definitely keep this in mind…I love having painted nails I just get so tired of how ruined they get!
I can never get over your gorgeous nails. That's awesome that the gel lasted so long! Sounds like a fab product!
That color is gorgeous and I am so impressed at how well they looked at 7 and 12 days!!!! Maybe I need to look in at this!
Pretty color and it looked great after 12 days! I got a no-chip for our last trip and it started to come off after 2 weeks, even after I had been putting cuticle oil on them every day. I was told that you need to do that in order to prevent the polish from lifting?? Love Santa Husband too haha. Oh and I have Smokin Hot on my nails right now! It is one of my favorite colors. 🙂 Have a great weekend!!
Looks like you got them professionally done, great review 🙂
http://www.beautyandcolour.com
Wowza, I am super impressed with how long those stayed put! I swear that my nails are always already chipping by the end of Day 1 (even with Seche Vite), so one mani lasting 12 days would just blow my mind!
Your nails always look so perfect and this is no exception. Love that is lasted so long and the new Essie color you used. I'm dying to go dark again.
I am so exited to see this post! And I totally get the whole grown out shellac getting caught in the hair thing. Hate it. Do they have a good amount of colors to choose from? I can't wait to try it myself 🙂
I totally know what your talking about with the hair snag. I had a gel mani right before Christmas and had to get it off the other day because it was driving me crazy! I just want to know how you paint your nails so perfectly???
Yowza!! That looked like great wear to me after 12 days! I wonder if you'd be able to do nail art with this kit. Can you cure them more than once? Sometimes I add after I think I'm done. Haha! I always thought I wouldn't want the same nails for that long, but since you thought the same thing and then loved it, I'm definitely considering it! And I love both of the colours you picked! That Essie one really is smokin' hot. 😉