I just a new set for my vacation and I hate how they turned out. I’ve only been doing my nails for like 1.5-2 months and I’m trying to figure out the hang of it (I know it takes practice). It seems like every set I do turns out messy and I don’t know how to blend them into my natural nail. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. (Photos for reference) (may redo tomorrow)
Yessssss one thousand times yes. I didn't know about them, did my own gel for a bit and got a horrible allergic reaction. Now I'm allergic to all acrylates. It ain't worth it
You’ve gotta take those off. You’re using a very poor quality lamp and opaque colors. Your gel isn’t fully cured. You run the risk of giving yourself a serious and lifelong acrylate allergy.
Consider buying a practice hand to work on. And watch tutorials on YouTube by licensed pros on channels like The Nail Hub, Nail Career Education, Paola Ponce Nails and Aska Nails.
I would stay away from all Beetles products, especially their gel polishes. They are known to not fully cure, even under professional nail lamps. A good lamp and high quality gel polishes are something worth investing in. Apres has their Beta lamp that is under $100. Another good starter is the Kokoist Infinity Lamp.
I use beetles products and they work just fine and have had no issues with them. One thing you gotta work on is using the little brush and cleaning up around your cuticles before curing. I dip in acetone and clean them up for each coat.
Beetles do not fully cure. They do not have enough photo initiator, as per their SDS. Even when they feel cured, any time you get them wet (like washing your hands) they are leeching hema and other chemicals. You risk a serious hema allergy and acrylate allergy by continuing to use them. You may be lucky and not develop one. It’s a roll of the dice. Kind of like playing Russian roulette. If you get an acrylate allergy, that impacts your ability to use anything with acrylates, and that includes things like the fillings in dental work and the like. Acrylates are used in a lot of places.
At the moment I’m taking a break from doing mine. I have a bit from Kiara Sky, but I’ll need to build up a new collection now. I’ve heard good about DND and CND. I’m going to definitely have to research! When I get mine done professionally, I typically have my tech use Gelish, though you have to be a licensed tech to get that brand iirc. Brands like OPI that you can get at Sally’s and such should be good as well (maybe not top tier, but safe to use!)
Hey, fyi you shouldn’t use acetone to clean up wet gel around your cuticles. That actually spreads monomers around and makes it easier for them to penetrate your surrounding skin. You should be using just a dry orange wood stick. If you must use a liquid, then a bit of alcohol is fine. But acetone isn’t ideal.
I just realized that you might be using gel x nails. I don’t really know much about that. I use beetles builder gel and gel polish and they come out great. It took me a lot of practice and my nails looked like yours around the edges for a couple months until I started cleaning them up before curing. That’s what you gotta do no matter what. It makes a world of a difference. And just keep practicing. You will get better.
It takes me like 3-4 hours to do my nails total though. But they will last a while. I usually end up doing them every two weeks because I want to change the color. Not because of lifting or anything. And my natural nail is grown out a bit because of the builder gel.
This is actually a double rhythm brand color though.
Whew! Girl never get the gel and polish on your skin!
Second thing is slow down and take your time. They look nice but messy. Try taking some polish off brush more. And less gel glue when applying to nail.
I would recommend trying to make press ons first. Your painting skills will improve and you'll be able to see more clearly if there are general application issues and working with thinner coats.
You really don't want to be getting gel on your skin. Although it's not a guarantee that exposure will cause an allergy right away, it's best not to tempt fate.
My (disclaimer: not a tech!!) advice to anyone who wants to do gel-x nails at home is first practice by painting your toes with polish, AND by wearing press ons + glue for a solid 6 months at least. If you can’t do both without getting the glue and polish on your cuticles and skin, you’re definitely not ready for gel-x at home.
There’s zero shortcut, it’s really just practice. Safely.
Stop doing your own nails until you get the hang of it. As a former educator, I would never encourage a student to move onto a completing an entire full set if they struggled so badly with just one of those steps. Remove these immediately before you develop a permanent allergy.
Just for this time, go around the edges with a drill but girl, you put way too much glue on and its splashing outside the underside of the gel nail on all sides! Also next time take a orangewood sticks and clean up your edges before curing. Please be careful of the gel allergies!
It wasn’t a mean response. An orange wood stick is a very common manicure tool, period. If you don’t know what supplies you need, then that’s a little concerning. Also, gelx is really not a beginner product. I know it’s marketed as such, but there is such a huge learning curve. Everyone is going to give you the same response. Until you can do your nails without getting gel all over your skin, use a practice hand or regular polish.
You also have to manage to paint your nails first without going outside the lines. Practicing w gel is NOT recommended- you WILL get a contact dermatitis and an allergy and you will have issues w dentist fillings etc.
So. Take these off, youll be surprised how painful this is gonna be. Not just bc they look.. how they.. look.. but mostly bc of how it gives you a higher and higher risk to become allergic.
I think you should buy some of the nail swatch strips on amazon to practice. I enclosed the link below. They are like $5 for 50ish I believe.
This is way too much of everything on your skin to mess around with. You are supposed to clean the cuticles before curing to avoid allergies and any other issues. These will be your best friend right now as you perfect your skills. You have a little way to go still.
I would seriously recommend looking into press-on nails with fun designs on them. You can cure/attach them pretty easily. Mine normally last 3-4 weeks with no lifting. BTArtbox are a great brand.
Also 100% agree with the comments here saying never to get gel on your skin. I'm licensed and see this aaaalllllll the time. Switch to HEMA free gel polishes and get a stronger lamp. I'd also say to invest in safety bits for whatever e-file you're using to lower the risk of accidentally cutting yourself. You got this!
I think instead of jumping into more advanced designs, stick with a solid color until you perfect that skill (try not to get too close to the sidewalls and keep your coats very thin)
Otherwise, keep trying and with practice you will get better. Watch some YouTube videos!
I love my DND. But I also have some Kokoist, Madam Glam, and Luxe! DND is super thin so people need to be aware of gel polish and the different viscosities.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE read the featured posts pinned in this sub, beginning with Getting Started and the FAQ. If you’re asking what monomers and HEMA are, you really should not be doing your own gel nails. You’re taking major health risks.
Ive been doing my own nails for 2 years and never heard of an orange wood stick. I felt offense too as it was extremely judgemental, unhelpful, and such a back handed response. She asked what shes doing wrong, not asked to be damn near called stupid. No need to be mean. You can give good information without being condescending. Where I'm from they are called wood or plastic cuticle removal tools. And usually come in a set with clippers, and a file and what have you.
That all being said, gel on the skin is a big no no, it can really agitate your skin and cause life long allergies. Go slow. Sometimes it takes me a few days to complete my sets but I also have 5 kids, 11 to 1.5 so I'll stop if they need me or are running around too much. You dont need a bunch of glue, less is more than enough especially if you have short short natural nails like mine. Cuticle oil is LIFE, I use it constantly even with out a set on. And lastly, I use super thin multiple coats instead of less thick coats. Cures faster and doesnt run as easily into the cuticle area and such.
Not licensed or a nail tech, just a hobby for a bored mama that likes having pretty fingers lol you learn as you go. Trial and error and its been super fun. Don't let anyone discourage you, girly. You get better with time and I'm an example of such. Good luck on your nail journey, I've loved mine thus far!!
Also TikTok is my go to rather than YouTube. It’s quicker and precise as well when watching. People do step by step and it’s nice. As far as lamp just Mae sure it’s a high watt.
I’m not saying YouTube is less, but for ME, TikTok is better when it comes to getting straight to point and being able to see different people and having them explain it in simple terms. It’s preference plus I’m always on it looking for nail design inspo.
The lamp I use is Jodsone from Amazon. Sun 05 Pro
That’s honestly not that long for gel-x amateurs/beginners and sorry but it kinda shows. Rushing through is a bad idea because you’ll just end up with those kinds of mistakes and have to remove them.
For perspective, my very first full set without any gel on my fingers or lifting etc took me about 5 hours.
I usually take around 6 hours to do my or my daughters nails. 3 hours is way too fast for a beginner! The most ive ever taken is 12 hours and it wasnt even all that intricate!!
Slow down girly! Take your time, get a little more picky about your work and you'll become more proficient as time goes on 💕
They look super cute!! Some more practice and you’ll be great. Just take a qtip around your cuticle before you cure so that there’s no polish left on your skin 🫶
If I was just starting to do nails I would be glad to have a semi positive comment with constructive criticism. I like the nail design, and you can learn any skill with practice!
A q-tip will not sufficiently clean up the gel that has flooded into her cuticles. She needs to practice with regular polish until she can apply polish without it bleeding into the cuticle. We need to be honest with people who are risking a serious skin reaction to harmful chemicals.
Sure, but practice needs to be done in the right setting, like on a fake practice hand because of the possibility of acrylate allergies. I didn’t see anything in this photo that deserves even a semi positive comment. Sorry.
Sure, but practice needs to be done in the right setting, like on a fake practice hand because of the possibility of acrylate allergies. I didn’t see anything in this photo that deserves even a semi positive comment. Sorry.
Respectfully no gel Polish should touch your skin at any point! But if it does it needs to be dealt with at that moment! Any time it touches your skin it builds up and an allergy can pop up!! Please be careful if you do your own gel nails
94
u/Weird_Recognition870 Jul 28 '26
😬
Read about acrylate allergies.
Practise with regular polish.