Review Product: Apres Nail Gel X New Set

***Check the video to know how it looks like***

***Video Available below***

This system is basically a set of full cover tips (like press on nails) which are not made of plastic but of gel. This makes them strong but flexible, and most importantly, fully soak off, so they dissolve in 100% acetone. The tips are adhered to the nails with “gel extend”, a soak off gel that you brush on, like regular base gel, and it cures with UV/LED light. The kit also comes complete with a small lamp for flash curing (you will still need a regular size lamp), primer, bonder, a gel brush, and a nail file. They were even nice enough to send me two packs of fancy crystals which are gorgeous!

The kit is super user friendly, and while I have no formal nail-ed yet, I wouldn’t exactly recommend that people who are completely new to nails try it at first. The tricky parts about application are the thickness of the gel layer (too thin is not good for adhesion, but too think will give you heat spikes and might make it harder for the tip to adhere and also to soak off.

The rough step by step is the following:

1. After prepping the nail like you would for any extension, wipe with alcohol to remove any oils, creams, dust, etc. Size your natural nail against the tips to decide which sizes fit your nails.
2. Use an e-file to remove the shine off about half of the inside of the tip. Basically the area that will touch your nail during application.
3. Apply a layer of bonder to all nails.
4. Apply a layer of primer to all nails.
5. Apply a layer of gel extend to one hand and cure for 30 seconds. Repeat with other hand.
6. Apply a layer of gel extend to about 1/3 of the tip, place on the nail starting at the cuticle, press so there aren’t any air bubbles and use the mini lamp to flash cure (about 15 seconds). This just holds the tip in place so you can finish the whole hand.
7. Cure the whole hand in a regular size UV/LED lamp.
8. Shape, shorten, etc, if necessary.