Raise your hand if you are looking for an at home quarantine project that isn’t stuffing your pie hole? ME. Jk, but not really. {I have sooooo many things that I still want to accomplish}. So far I’ve cleaned out and organized the following: the junk drawers in the kitchen, the pantry, the master closet, the butler pantry drawers, the toy closet and my daughter’s room. I’ve also been making a list of things that I want to do when I’m allowed to. Some of these include going to the gym, going to get my hair cut, getting a massage and getting my nails done.
Getting my nails done is the ultimate treat to me. To sit there and relax while getting massage and painted, is bougie and basic, yes, but one of my splurges in life. I don’t get my eyelashes or eyebrows done, I don’t get spray tans so this is my little treat to myself about one a month that the kids are in school or I get a nanny.
So, while on quarantine, I wanted to find a way to get my nails looking nice. For the first two weeks, I let them rest since I had gotten a gel manicure about a week before quarantine. I managed to make time one night when the kids were in bed to watch a movie and paint my nails. It was beyond frustrating in the morning to see them smudged, but I wouldn’t have the time to fix them and to let them dry until that evening. Plus, with all the hand washing and dishes I’m doing, once I did have them perfect, they started to peel.
I finally decided to look into getting an at home gel manicure set and found this one. I’ve read that there are better lights out there. But I thought I would try this set out first to see if I would even accomplish what I look forward to so much in the nail salon before getting a high performance light.
Welp, I’m OBSESSED! Not only can I do it in less than 10 minutes and dry hands to help the kids immediacy with school work or crafts, but with some tips and tricks that I’ve learned below, it does look like I snuck out to the nail salon!
Tips
- Do one hand at a time. : I started with my left hand {I’m right handed}, knowing that it wouldn’t be prefect, especially my first time. But I figured that my right hand will probably never look as awesome as my left. I do recommend doing one hand completely all the way through to decrease changes of smudges. Also, by the time you do the other hand, the painting hand will be dry and gorgeous.
- Do the thumb separate. : My first hand, the polish kind of “melted” into the cuticles on the left side of the thumb {I did my right hand first} just from the way it lays when my hand is flat on the counter. When I did my left hand, I did the base coat for every finger. Then I did the other four fingers first, complete with color and top coat. Then I did the thumb by itself so that I could just put my thumb on the counter so it was laying flat.
- Don’t get too close to the cuticles, especially on the sides. : My nails are small. I’ve been told that I have a bunch of skin on the side of each nail, making the actual nail surface area small. When I give myself a normally manicure with regular polish, I just paint with abandon, not worrying about getting it on the skin. One of my tricks for a regular at home manicure, is to do this. Then you are focused on the polish, as it will easily come off in the shower or when you are washing your hands. {it might need a little picking.I use my ring finger, since it is the weakest and then you won’t smudge the edge of the polish doing the picking.} You can’t really do that with gel polish. Not only does it not look good, there is a thicker line by the edge of your nail, but it feels weird. Use the little silver tools that is double sided and used to push your cuticles back. Before putting your finger under the light, use the other end to clean out any polish that is touching the side cuticles.
- Set Top Coat for 120 seconds. : For the first hand, I did 120 secs for each layer. On my second hand, I realized this wasn’t necessary. I did read the reviews and tips form that the polish will bubble if it doesn’t set with encouragement to go longer under the lights than shorter. 60 secs is plenty for each layer, with the top coat setting for 120. Have a glass of wine or a latte close by ready for you to sip with the free hand!
Pros of Doing It Yourself
- You will get the shape/length you like :I really like my nails short. Like problem short. So much so that all the times I’ve asked for them short, they aren’t short enough. So, before I go in for a manicure, I clip or bite them down to the shortest I can get them. With at home manicures, I don’t have to worry about this as I’m in the driver seat.
- Money : Duh! This entire kit, with tools and 6 nail polishes cost less than a gel manicure and a half.
- Time : I was able to have this completely done in 10 minutes, with dry nails! Not only do I have to get a nanny to come when I go to the salon, but it is about a 45 minute appointment! When I give myself a manicure at home with regular polish, it takes about an hour, without top coat, to even just let them completely dry. To say I’m excited about this is an under statement.
- No Stress! : I always freak that my nails will chip or not look good before I can get back to the salon. {hashtag first world problems} But if you have all the equipment to do it yourself, there is no stress! You can fix your nails, or change the color, whenever you want!
Cons of the Home Gel Manicure
- Not Perfect : Your dominant hand will not look as good as your non dominant hand. As you get technique down, there will be flaws. And because you are doing it yourself, you might be the only one that notices them.
- Long Nails : If you like your nails long, with profesh shaping, extensions or anything advanced, I have a feeling that will be hard to accomplish at home.
General Review
Honestly, I cannot recommend this enough! This set comes with all the tools you need, including one I’ve been meaning to get myself for a while, 6 colors and is cheaper than the cost of two gel manicures. I’m not sure about you, but despite my ‘wish list’ of things to do after quarantine, I probably won’t do any of those. The idea of someone touching me that I don’t live with still freaks me out.
I digress. Every. Single. Time.
When I have gotten professional gel manicures in the past, I normally get this brand of polish or OPI {which gel colors you can’t buy online without a beauty license}. So I wasn’t sure about the brand that this set came with, but now, after one manicure attempt, I’m buying all the colors. The quality, thickness and colors are amazing and I like the prices. Other brands are about $15 for one, where you get 4-6 colors with this brand for about the same cost. Yes, not all the colors in the set are aweomse {no, I won’t be giving myself a purple glitter gel mani anytime soon}, but their softer colors that I’ve purchased have all been great.
Overall, yes two very enthusiastic thumbs up. Fine holiday fun. {name the movie!} I really think this is a quarantine life changing thing I’ve discovered and am so excited to share it with you! Tag me in your home manicure and Dm or email me with any questions! navy and orange blog {at} gmail {dot} com.
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