Let me start off this post by saying that my plan to show you my 14 days of Shellac was an epic fail. Mostly because I had absolutely no time with the move to even begin to take pictures but also because this Shellac mani did not hold up. I've had good luck with Shellac in the past, and honestly I think it has to do with the poor shape of my nails. I've got so many peelies and the tips past the nail bed are so weak, that the nail was breaking underneath the Shellac. So then the Shellac would chip because there was no nail under it....
Shellac is a gel hybrid by CND that goes on like regular nail lacquer but then cures completely dry and hard under a UV light in a few minutes. The process is quick and painless and gives you a full proof (normally) mani for 2 weeks without the damaging effects of acrylics. My only gripe in the past with Shellac (I've done it twice before) is the lack of colors. Luckily they put out a set of brand new colors recently, so I was able to get something much more my style. This is Rock Royalty topped with Iced Coral. Rock Royalty is a great royal purple, where Iced coral is essentially nude with a green iridescence to it. Layer the two together and you get a rocking teal that flashes purple. LOVE!
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| Shellac Manicure - Iced Coral over Rock Royalty |
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| Shellac Manicure - Iced Coral over Rock Royalty |
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| Shellac Manicure - Iced Coral over Rock Royalty |
Shellac mani's are usually about $20-$25 more expensive than a regular mani, which is why I usually do them for vacations only. In the past they have lasted for me for 14 days, no chips, no breaks, shiny as the day they were painted.
Holy crap. O.O
ReplyDeletehahaha - is that a holy crap on my Shellac Fail or in the good way on the color?
ReplyDeletehey jessie - i'm a friend of courtney's...i love the blog!! i have the same problem with peely/weak nails since i paint mine a lot. do you guys have any tips for what to do for that?
ReplyDeleteHey Dana!
ReplyDeleteI had really good results by using Seche Rebuild. It's a strengthener geared toward peely nails, and it really worked wonders for me. I used it underneath my regular base coat (Instant Artificials from Sally's - another product I highly recommend). After about a month, I noticed my peelies were significantly better. The only bad part is that it kind of worked too well and made my nails a little brittle. I switched to Seche Recondition under Instant Artificials to solve that problem. I still get the occasional peely nail, but it's not nearly as bad as it was before. :-)
Best to listen to Courtney on this one. I've been working with Nail Envy, Deborah Lippmann Rock Hard and NailTek to no avail. At this point I'm trying to keep them from getting worse while growing out the peelies. I've been using Gelous too, to give me some strength while I treat them.
ReplyDeleteJessie, Gelous is a miracle worker for some people but it's been known to make some people's peelies worse, myself included. I used it before with NailTek II underneath and my nails turned to complete garbage. That's when I switched to Seche Rebuild and Instant Artificials. I'd drop Gelous like a hot potato. Instant Artificials will give you the same strength and thickness without the peely problem. I've also been using that Growing Nails with Garlic stuff from Sally's with pretty good luck as well! :-)
ReplyDeletepretty :) take vitamins! LOL jk
ReplyDelete@Missy - I am going to start taking them!!! @Courtney - I've been wearing Gelous either over base coat or over polish and haven't had any issues to far. Actually the last 2 times I swapped polishes, I didn't have any new peelies, just damage from old ones growing out. I did get some Growing Nails with Garlic, but I'm trying to use up my DL Hard Rock first.
ReplyDelete