Any nail technicians here?

[Nogodsnomasters]

I have recently started dabbling in DIY gel nails (just on my own nails no extensions) but no matter what I do they don't last longer than 3 days!!

I do have a job where my hands/nails take a battering sometimes but previously salon jobs usually last me 7 days before the first sign of chipping.

I have purchased a good uv lamp, I have tried 3 different brands of gel polish, I use base coat and top coat, I have the alcohol wipes, I even bought a dehydrator to make sure there is absolutely no oils on my nails before starting but yet still only 3 days maximum sometimes only 2!

Please, where must I be going wrong? Thanks.

Ps) once it does chip, its only a matter of hours before the whole polish peels off that nail almost in one solid!

Do you buff your nails with a white block before you apply your base coat? I’m no expert and hopefully someone more knowledgable will be along in a minute!

I'm not a tech but I've been doing my own gel nails for 2 years, and had mine done by a professional every 5 weeks for 8 years before that!

Are your nails quite soft and bendy, especially when wet?

Do you know what products your previous tech was using that lasted 7 days?

Are you capping the free edge to seal it?

Oh one more thing - what wattage is your nail lamp and how long are you curing each coat for?

I'm a nail tech.
What prep are you doing before application?

Hi, thank for all replies so I'm buffing my nails with a white block, then I'm adding the dehydrator, then starting with base coat (lamp is 48w) curing for 60 seconds, then one thin coat of polish and another 60 secs, 2nd layer of gel 60 secs, top coat, 60 secs, alcohol wipe at the end. My salon used the gel bottle Inc brand but tbh I can't afford £15 per bottle so the ones I have been using are a little cheaper but as I've said I've got 3 different brands and all seem to end up the same.

Just placemarking for some tips too.

Like pp said are you capping the polish? If you don’t water gets under the polish and it starts lifting off.
When I started doing my own nails tbh they did only last a few days but they did eventually last longer and I used all sorts of brands of polish. I think I just got better at it. My friend is a nail tech so I did get loads of help and tips from her and the capping the end of my nail was the tiniest looking thing but made the biggest difference m.

What does capping the end of the nail mean sorry?

When you cure the polish it shrinks away from the end of the nail. You have to sort of paint around the end of the nail (if you imagine the nail is a wall, you have to paint the roof) to prevent lifting.

The problem is you aren't doing any prep on the nail you're just buffing it away. White blocks are really harsh, if you're using that regularly, you'll have no nails left soon!

You need to do proper cuticle work (search YouTube for videos by Natasha Lee, I'm sure she has tips on this). Then forget the buffing and just dehydrate and apply in even, thin coats making sure you cap each layer.

Also it's really important that you only ever use the lamp recommended by the brand you're using. Incorrect curing can't be seen by the naked eye but can cause horrendous reactions.

The tip of my nail is always covered with polish with no gaps showing so am I already doing it without knowing?

So the white block and the dehydrator are doing the same thing and unnecessary to use both? To the pp who mentioned cuticles etc I already keep my cuticles pushed back and use cutical oil on them after I'm finished which is what the salon did too.

Capping is when u paint the edge you see if looking at your nails from the front lots of videos on u tube that will explain (better than me lol) . But you really really need to be careful that the lamp is curing the gel properly, look up gel polish allergies very nasty. Don't mix brands ever the different coats are made to work together it's not like normal polish.

Not a nail technician, but when I have fine done, the base coat is cured for a lot less time than the polish, could it be they are not bonding together.

There's no such thing as a universal curing lamp so if you're using a generic brand of lamp and gel, you need to be extremely careful not to get uncured product on your skin.

Also, just because it's hard enough to file doesn't mean it's fully cured. It can be filed and only 55% cured.

I developed a lifetime allergy to gel and acrylic nails from the uncured methacrylate in the gel getting onto my skin. It started off as slightly itchy fingertips but then after about my fourth nails session, it started to affect my breathing. My consultant dermatologist at the hospital said that these products are causing a huge increase in referrals.