Glam Slam: Test Drive Tuesday — Gel Manicures

Have you tried a soak-off gel manicure yet? I’ve done it three times now and there are things I love about it… and things I don’t like about it too. Here is my take:

THE PROS
I think I have, possibly, the worst nails on the planet. They don’t grow, they are very weak and brittle, and they peel. Polish chips on the first day of a manicure are pretty much standard for me, so I didn’t believe for one second the hype that these gel manicures are chip proof.

I was pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong. Despite my nails being a disaster, no matter what I did, they did not chip! At all! All three places I went used Axxium Soak-Off Gel Lacquer by OPI for the manicure. I picked Big Apple Red, a bright classic red each time, because the whole point is to go for something that usually chips immediately, right? The color looked great and one nail technician told me if the color dulled, just to rub the nails with a soft cloth, which worked well. One benefit is that you don’t have to wait for your color to dry, when the manicure is done, so are you!

Another plus, the gel manicures are supposed to last about two weeks, but I stretched mine out to a month each time! No chips, but the one thing to be aware of is that as your nails grow you start to see regrowth of the nail bed without any polish! I don’t think anyone was looking that closely at my hands though.

I will say that the manicures at the more expensive salons looked better than the $20 one I did at my local place. They were glossier and more professional looking in general, but I think that’s due to the fact that specialty places had more experience with the gel manicures than where I usually go.

THE CONS
Getting a gel manicure is more time-consuming that a regular manicure. It takes about an hour. A base coat is applied and then you put your hands under a UV light to harden the gel. At least two coats of gel with the color you pick are then used. (One manicurist used really thin coats of color and did it in four coats instead of two.) The process is finished with a clear top coat. After each coat… more time under the UV light.

Price is also something to consider… gel manicures are more expensive. In general, I don’t pay a lot for manicures… usually about $11, so the $60 I paid at the nice salons was quite a sticker shock for me. I guess if you consider how long the manicures last, the time and money become less of an issue.

The biggest con for me was the removal process. Getting the gel off was brutal on my already bad nails. The top coat is filed down. You then soak your nails in a solution for about 30 minutes and the gel comes off… but so did layers of my weak nails, which were peeling like crazy. They were thrashed and in really bad shape after taking the gel off. It also takes about 30 minutes to get the gel off and you have to pay to have it taken off too. (As much as $35, which seems excessive to me!)

THE BOTTOM LINE
I love how my nails look and how the manicure lasts. But because of the cost and how much it damages my nails, it’s not something I will do frequently. One technician suggested doing it for two months, then give you nails a break for one month. He told me that a lot of brides and people going on vacation get gel manicures and that is what I think it’s best for- special occasions.