A while back, inspired by a post in ALL the Polishes group on Facebook, I started using a gel overlay on my nails. Note this is sometimes done with Builder Gel, I just use a plain base, the Milky White by Kokoist.

It’s fairly straightforward, and has been a total game-changer for my nails. They’re stronger, my manis last longer, and I get no chipping or breaking as I had been having in the past.

Here’s what you need:

– A good UV/LED lamp to cure the gel
– Either a plain or colored gel base, or builder gel
– A gel topcoat (I use a non-staining one from Kokoist)
– Files in various grits (I use an efile with a couple of different bits)
– Rubbing alcohol
– Lint-free wipes (you don’t want to get cotton whispies cured into your gel)
– Acetone-free polish remover (I use Mineral Fusion)
– Some good quality nail brushes in thin widths
– I use a silicone tool from Madam Glam to remove gel that slips into the cuticle area, but a orange stick will work as well
– And I recommend Protein Bond from Young Nails

Here’s how I do it:

The first time I prepped my nails as I would before any polish; file to shape, clean up cuticles, gently buff any irregularities in the nail bed, wipe with alcohol.

Apply two coats of Young Nails Protein Bond, waiting about two minutes between each coat to let it dry.

Slowly brush a coat of your base/builder gel onto the nail, trying not to get it into the cuticle if you can help it. I tend to use a thin nail brush to spread it to the edges to avoid spillage.

Before curing, turn your finger upside down to allow the gel to flow towards the center, which helps to build a nice apex.

I spot cure each finger for 5 seconds and then when I have one hand done I cure for 60 seconds (note different products and lamps may need different times than these, consult with the instructions to be sure.)

I then apply a gel non-staining top coat to ensure any lacquer I use doesn’t stain the milky white base, cured as above.

Wipe with alcohol, and you’re done! You can apply lacquer base and polish and top coat right over that.

Over the space of a week I find I need to do a fill-in, at this point I do one hand per week (I have a puppy and can’t spend several hours at a time on my nails.)

Before I fill in the growth area, I use an e-file to bring down the depth of the previous coats of gel. I don’t ever take it all off if I can help it, I just make it thin enough so that the new coat doesn’t make my nails too thick.

When starting out with an efile, be very careful and go slowly. It’s a skill that takes time to learn, a light touch at first will take longer but also prevent injury and nail breakage. You can also file by hand of course.

Once I have my nails filed down and prepped again (see the above steps), I use a thin brush to put the gel into the area that has grown out, and then top that with a very thin layer of gel on my whole nail. Non-staining top coat over the whole thing, cure as above, wipe, and done.

As with most things, practice makes perfect with this process, and you can refer to the Builder Gel thread in ALL the Polishes for more tips and tricks, but this is how I do it and it works very well for me.

Note I have received no compensation from any company for any products mentioned, I buy all my own supplies.