#ManiMonday: How To Prolong a Gel Manicure

Happy Monday Everyone! I love sharing manicure related content on Monday’s – I hope these posts are helpful and interesting for the #manifam …and not too boring for those who aren’t as into their nails as the rest of us! 😉

We all know gel manicures are a bit of a blessing and a curse. While they usually hold up chip free for a couple of weeks, once they begin to make their decline, it can get a little ugly. Luckily, if you don’t have time to remove and reapply your gel, I have a little trick for prolonging the life of your grown out/lifting gel manicure. It’s easy peasy and I do it all of the time…take a peek. 🙂

 1. Here we have 3 week old gel manicure. It’s pretty grown out, it’s not lifting too much, but it’s not looking great. Within the next day or so I know this polish is going to give out, SO… 2. I start by identifying any areas that are starting to lift (it’s pretty easy to find them, just run your fingers through your hair and any nail that snags a strand is lifting!) I apply a dab of nail glue to the lifting area and let it dry. 3. Once the glue has dried, take a nail file and buff around the perimeter of the polish to create a smooth transition. Repeat on all nails!  4. Using a medium and fine grit buffing cube, buff the surface of the gel manicure so that it’s soft and even…then rinse your nails with water! You should be able to close your eyes, run your finger over a nail and not feel any polish. 5. Now paint your nails with a darker shade of regular polish! Two coats of color & a top coat will give you that fresh-mani feel without going through the entire gel removal process. Don’t forget to cap your edges!  (This color is Essie’s “Pool Side Service”)

And that’s it! I’ll usually wear my gel polish for 2-3 weeks and once it starts getting a bit questionable, I’ll do this! It prolongs the life of my manicure for at least another week.

I do have a great gel removal technique (you may have caught it on Insta-stories last night) and I will do a full post on it soon, but I don’t like having to remove gel too often. So, this trick allows my nails to essentially sustain the same manicure for about a month and helps them grow long and stay strong.

 I hope you guys enjoyed this trick and found it helpful! Give it a try if you’re up for it, it’s pretty simple!

Wishing you all a wonderful week!

XOXO