Gel Colored Polish Tutorial

Products Used:

Acetone (to soak off old color)
Orangewood Stick
Block Buffer
Nail Prep
Sure Bond
Base'n'Gloss
Gel Polish Color - Mystic Mauve
Nail Wipes
Gel Cleanser

 

Gel polish will last until you remove it! This set of gel polish on toes has been on about 6 weeks. Notice that its still super shiny and free of chips.

 

 
To remove gel polish, quickly buff the top of the nail and place cotton balls dipped in acetone over the toes, cover with tin foil. Let sit for 15 minutes under a towel and heating pad. The gel polish will become flaky and brittle and extremely easy to remove!
Use an orangewood stick to remove the gel polish off the nails. If there is any that's stuck on, you will be able to buff it off with a block buffer when you prep the nails for the new gel.  
     
Use a block buffer or file to remove any shine from the surface of the nail. This is the same prepping you would do for any gels.

Cleanse your nail with Nail Prep and allow to dry. You can spray nail prep with a pump, or wipe using a gel wipe.

Do not use other blue "prep" products from other companies. They may contain oils or residue which may cause problems with gel gel adhering properly to the nail.

 

Brush on Sure Bond and let dry. Sure Bond is a dehydrator and cleanser for the nails.

Optional Primers - Apply an acid/MAP primer and let dry. Apply Affixit, the protein bonder from Akzentz. Let air dry for 60 seconds. It will leave the surface shiny and sticky. Use these primers only if your client will not want to soak off in the future or if you will just be filing the gel off. These primers will make the gel adhere too well to soak off effectively.

 
Apply a thin coat of Base'n'Gloss onto the nails with a square gel brush. Cure 2 minutes.  
Choose the color you want to use. Stir with an orangewood stick before each use. Many of the colors have a pearl or soft shimmer to the gel and stirring will allow the color to true each time you use it.  

Brush on a thin, even layer of color. Once you have brushed carefully on all 5 nails, wipe any extra off the skin or cuticle with an orangewood stick. If your color shrinks slightly, just quickly brush again before you put it into the light. Cure 2 minutes.

 
Repeat this step so that your color is even on all 5 fingers/toes. Cure 2 minutes.  
Apply a coat of Base'n'Gloss. Wipe any excess off the cuticle or skin. Cure 2 minutes  
Wipe surface of nails with a wipe and Gel Cleanser. Use ONLY Gel Cleanser from Akzentz. If you use Acetone, Alcohol or cleansers from other companies, you may lose some of your shine.

Other Tips & Tricks: If your clients wear regular gel nails and you do a fill but do not need to finish file, you can skip the first step and apply your color right onto the tacky layer of the gel (the first layer of color may shrink, so do two nails at a time and you won't have to go back and touch anything up).

If your clients are natural nail clients and come in after 3 weeks for "fills", you can either soak off the old set, or simply thin out the first layer. I suggest removing all the gel from the tips of the nails so you keep them thin and as natural looking as possible. If you go from a dark color to a light color gel polish, you'll want to remove all the of the old color so you dont see any dark spots through the new color.
Such a beautiful picture I had to include it here! Thanks to Gaylene , the Nail Chic, a Just Nailz Akzentz sub-distributor and educator in Canada! Cashmere Red Gel polish on hands after 6 weeks! Picture is slightly blury, nails are still perfectly shiny! Applied over standard gel nails.
 
Any questions or comments, please email Jess at luvnailz@gmail.com