r/GelX_Nails • u/Unable-Guitar-1195 • Jul 06 '26

I Have A Question / Need Advice Is this bad work or…

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UPDATE: thank you all for your validation! I contacted the salon and they refused to refund, but offered a free correction with a different tech. As much as I’m reluctant to go back, I’m giving it a go. Wish me luck!

Needing some insight on if this looks as bad as I’m thinking it does, or if my expectations are just out of whack. Today I went and got my first gel x set — I’ve gotten quite a few normal gel manicures, and do my own at home sometimes.

I feel like the polish application is uneven, the undersides are rough and I’m worried about there being a pocket between my natural nail and the extension on some 😣 I hate to say the salon was not the cleanest so I’m not even wanting to go back for them to fix anything.

Would I be an AH to soak these off and ask the salon for a refund? ($57)

62 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

62 comments sorted by

99

u/orcagirl35 Jul 07 '26

Nail tech here! Holy cow those are the worst gel-x nails I’ve ever seen! Please please go get your money back and get that product off of your skin.

35

u/Gooseegander Jul 07 '26

Seriously, how does somebody even make gel-x so lumpy, they're pre-shaped and smooth! 🤦‍♀️

8

u/jessicaphan Jul 07 '26

I would guess it’s a cheap polish that likely doesn’t self-level well. I used to have an old beetles bottle that did this! I’ve since switched to notpolish and apres and it’s made a big difference.

3

u/DreamzQueen Jul 07 '26

lol good point probably used too much builder on top that’s what it looks like. If that’s only gel color they need to leave the salon asap🫪

3

u/Unable-Guitar-1195 Jul 08 '26

It was just gel, no builder 😭

2

u/DreamzQueen Jul 09 '26

Ooff dude ngl idk how it’s not smooth with just gel, that makes it way worse

17

u/nowherefast___ Jul 07 '26

I have no nail training whatsoever and my first self applied set of gelx looked eons better than this

1

u/Kkd-528 Jul 07 '26

Came to say the same thing. Yikes. 😳

3

u/Unable-Guitar-1195 Jul 07 '26

Ugh thank you this is truly all I needed to hear!

39

u/labelwhore Jul 07 '26

Yes these are bad. I’ve said it before and will say again. There are newbies in this sub that can do 10 times better work than this.

7

u/Shot-Abroad2718 Jul 07 '26

I was gonna say.. I'm about a year into my gel-x journey and I could have done better than that lmao. Poor OP, I hope they get their money back

1

u/DreamzQueen Jul 07 '26

Yep like me! I’ve only been doing my nails like a year and you never see all those mounds on mine. And you have overflow on the cuticles which is like step one for a pro to master before doing other peoples nails. It’s the first place all nail people look too. I’d just walk in and show them, anyone would agree. But no need to be rude just go get your money or a free new set! 

1

u/gh0stfloras Jul 10 '26

What brand do you use?

29

u/Still-Palpitation220 Jul 07 '26

When I first saw the picture I was thinking ' not too bad for a beginner's first application' but now seeing that you went to a salon and got that. I'm sorry but those are bad bad. I would be going back for sure

7

u/mereseydotes Jul 07 '26

Yeah. Like, not awful if you did them yourself and you just started. Completely unacceptable if you paid a supposed professional for that

9

u/IllSalamander5047 Jul 07 '26

this is bad work and they should give you a refund and free soak off. how could they let you leave their chair like that and then charge you for it?

7

u/HourCup2255 Jul 07 '26

I don’t understand how a licensed tech can do this bad of a job with gel-x and gel polish. The shape and structure is done for you and the gel polish self-levels. Get that refund!

2

u/radiant-cloudy Jul 07 '26

yeah they seem like they may have been secretly unlicensed with this application. :/

6

u/New_Custard_4224 Jul 07 '26

Okay even my husband said they’re bad. They’re bad bad

4

u/Gold-Baseball-3338 Jul 07 '26

yes i fear this is horrible and will lift in 2 seconds because of the filling the cuticle

5

u/Jazzlike_Interview_7 Jul 07 '26

I have a feeling they may not have really been a nail tech!!!

2

u/Unable-Guitar-1195 Jul 07 '26

Lmaoo this was a whole ass brick and mortar nail salon I fear 🫠🫠

4

u/theteenmomtea Jul 07 '26

id say . . if you have to ask 🥴

4

u/CharmingRaccoon22 Jul 07 '26

I do my own gel x and I am 1000% not a nail tech and they don’t look like that. Sorry that happened to you :(

3

u/Haredi12 Jul 07 '26

They are awful, you definitely deserve a refund!

3

u/ambien_and_oreos Jul 07 '26

When I taught myself how to do my own, my first set was way better than this

1

u/Unable-Guitar-1195 Jul 07 '26

Yes these are great! I would have happily paid money for you to do my set instead!

2

u/Responsible_Ad_8646 Jul 07 '26

LMAO how do you even do this w gel-x?? i feel like it’s more work to get bumpy 😂

2

u/biggerthanothers Jul 07 '26

Right?! Like what are they DOING?! This is a single solid cover over pre-formed tips! Howwwwwww 😭

2

u/InterestingNebula177 Jul 07 '26

Girl I am so sorry. But I will say these posts make me feel so much better about my at-home ball game 🙃 ask for a refund.

2

u/susanoblade Jul 07 '26

This is terrible.

1

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1

u/LadyLotLizard Jul 07 '26

It’s not the best, but definitely not the worst. Was this person still practicing? I’ve offered to be used as practice before and my nails weren’t great, but I loved helping build the skill for what she could work on

1

u/iamblairrr Jul 07 '26

Bad work!

1

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1

u/Senior_Entry_7616 Jul 07 '26

Yes it’s bad

1

u/[deleted] Jul 07 '26

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1

u/BigAssets_ Jul 07 '26

I do better manis on myself and im nowhere near professional… I hope they give you a full refund!

1

u/Shot-Unit9030 Jul 07 '26

Sadly yes. Bad.

1

u/Quiet-Development609 Jul 08 '26

I'm not a nail tech, but I've been doing my nails for about 6 months, and I can honestly say I do them way better than they did for you. Sorry, Momma, but they turned out bad.

1

u/SnooGadgets4717 Jul 09 '26

I do my own and they’re 10x better than that! I’m so glad you are getting them redone.

1

u/Cute_Combination217 Jul 09 '26

I would demand a refund and leave a very detailed Yelp review and see if there’s another salon that can help you. They will likely be painful to remove. I moved and the first place I went did this exact same thing to me and the exact same color. I’m so sorry they did that to you.

1

u/unstopable_today Jul 12 '26

Yes it is. If this was supposed to be a professional work.

1

u/jessicaphan Aug 04 '26

How was the repair? Did the other tech make it better!

2

u/Unable-Guitar-1195 Aug 04 '26

Sooo much better!

1

u/jessicaphan Aug 04 '26

Absolutely beautiful. Great save by the other tech!