The wonderful world of Shellac
In my time as an esthetician I have had the chance to work a lot with Shellac. It truly is an amazing product and it really does work. Like with everything though, there are catches. Many hear of shellac and go "Yeah right! 14 days without chipping? How good is that for your nails?". Honestly, I don't think it's any more harmful than regular polish. Okay so what's the deal then?
Get your shellac done with legit shellac brands. Do your research before giving your hands over to anyone.
I say this because I have had one too many clients come to me saying that they went to a nail salon (as a pose to a spa) to have their shellac done. When it came time to remove it so that way we could re-do it, the stuff didn't budge. That's because what was on their nails...wasn't shellac. What was on their nails was gel colour.
What Exactly Is Shellac Anyways?
Okay cue record scratch right? I can hear it now. "What's the difference between a gel colour and a shellac?"
a) A gel colour is the colouring that goes over top of your fake nails. You know when they glue on the tip and build a thick layer of clear gel on top of that? Right so, that stuff needs to be buffed off. Usually during your gel fill. They use a drummel to do this. They can do it because there is lot of thick gel beneath the colour without risk of touching your actual nail bed.
b) Okay with me so far? Okay so a shellac is a hybrid between a gel and a regular polish. To remove it you soak it off in 100% acetone. The stuff literally curls and flakes off in about 10 minutes tops. No drummel necessary. It is far more gentle on the fingers by far. And don't be put off by the dehydration that occurs from it. At the end of your manicure a good oil and moisturizing treatment is given. At least there should be.
Okay so then, why do these nail places tell you that it's shellac when really it's not? Simple. They want your money. Like wise, if you got a shellac done and go to a nail shop and they try to remove your shellac with a drummel...DO NOT LET THEM DO THIS. A drummel shouldn't touch your natural nails. IT WILL RUIN YOUR NAILS. So, like I said. Do your research. At the bottom I will list the more common brands of Shellac.
How To Get The Most Out Of Your Shellac
I am going to list the various ways that you can ensure that your shellac manicure last the 2 weeks advertised or longer. When I do my shellacs for clients, 98% of them have their shellac last for about the 3 week mark.
1. It is in my Pro opinion that no manicure regular or shellac should include soaking of the nails. It allows the nails to absorb moisture. Therefore the polish to chip. So don't let them soak your nails.
2. Make sure that your manicurist gets all the excess skin off of your nail plate. Not properly cleaning the nail of debris can cause not only unsightly bumps in the polish, but pockets with which the polish can chip. Like wise they should be taking a fine white buffer block to your nails to rough the texture up. Too smooth of a nail plate and the shellac polish will have a harder time adhering.
3. Make sure they are wiping your nails with the blue scrub fresh or rubbing alcohol. Dehydrating the nails helps the polish to adhere much better. Plus it'll get rid of any nail dust and debris before polishing. Also make sure that they are holding off the oil and moisture treatment until the very end.
4. Make sure your application is thin! This is true with all polishes and not just shellac. It will make a significant difference in preventing early chipping.
5. It is a must that they 'cap' the free edge of your nail with both the second coat of colour as well as the top coat. It's huge in ensuring that your shellac polish lasts.
6. DO NOT pick at your polish. If your a picker, shellac isn't for you.
Picking shellac, whether it's because it's starting to chip or because you've got a bad habit, WILL aid in ruining your nails. When you pick you take fine surface layers of your nail with it. This leads to your nails becoming thin and weak. You will notice splitting, breaking, and peeling of your natural nails. At this point it's not the shellac. It's you.
Having said that there are some people who simply cannot hold a shellac manicure. I believe this is due to a person having naturally more oily nail beds or naturally more moist hands. Those people that tend to have sweaty palms nearly constantly is a good example. Try it out though because dehydration is a process for shellac. If your manicurist does it right, there's hope for you yet.
7. Be mindful of the things you do on a daily basis. If you have a job that is physically demanding on your hands, if your touching a lot of chemicals, scrubbing with sos pads, constantly in water, your shellac may make the 2 week mark.
Salon quality Gel Brands
Essie, Orly, NYC, and Gelish are also some other brands but whether you will find them in professional salons, I can't be certain. Remember that "shellac" is a brand by CND. When CND says: shellac - they mean Gel. That is why other brands don't use the term 'shellac'. They should in my opinion because if you go up to a manicurist and ask for a 'gel manicure' they most likely will give you the fake nails version. Which, isn't what you want. So to be safe just refer to this type of manicure as a shellac manicure.
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