Hard gel on weak bendy nails, what?
Yes you can, and in this video I’m going to show you why putting a hard gel builder on a weak bendy nail will not cause lifting, and instead help that natural nail heal and strengthen itself over time.
Let’s begin.
Let’s start with a little bit of context.
Nail retention goes beyond just focusing on chemical adhesion. What do I mean by this?
Meaning that if you are struggling with retention of your gel nails, I am telling you right now, your first cause for concern is not more dehydrator, more bonder, more primer.
Fun fact: I have not used a nail dehydrator, like a pH balancer, to increase retention on natural nails in like 10 years. And I have only used bonder as a supportive adhesion agent when needed, in the last ten years.
Now granted, the systems that I have specialized in do not require a bonder or a dehydrator, but I’ll have you know that some students and a lot of people who use these same systems that I use (like Bio Sculpture and Japanese gel brands), do indeed continue to use at least a bonder before their base gel.
Now a few things.
If your nail system requires a bonder and dehydrator, use it, do what your nail brand says.
Likewise, in the same manner, when brands say their products don’t require those additional prep ingredients. I believe them and don’t use them. And in fact those brands don’t even retail those additional prep agents.
So because of these no-dehydrator and no-bonder brands I have been forced to focus on more important lifting culprits other than just finding the best bonder for prep.
These culprits involve:
#1 Having an amazing prep without any cuticle on the nail plate or scragglies hovering over the nail plate
#2 Diligently applying my product especially my base coat layer
#3 Making sure the gel nail application is properly cured in a pro-grade curing unit
And something that a lot of artists may not be taking into consideration when it comes to nail lifting is…
#4 Natural nail flexibility
This last one here is our focus for today in explaining why we can use a harder product on weak bendy nails.
So let’s talk about it.
It’s this simple when there is great incompatibility between nail product and the natural nails. There will be lifting.
Not just a little tiny area that lifted, I’m talking a good lift at the cuticle area or at the free edge on several nails, on multiple clients.
This is often the case when nails are very bendy, either because they just are naturally or because they have damage. Removal damage in particular causes these horizontal perforations on the nails, that just like perforated paper, create weakness that leads to easier bending.
While soft gel wears beautifully on all natural nails- flexing and bending with the nail throughout the day, issues arise when there is too much flexing and not enough support.
Let’s visualize this.
If the nails are too weak and bendy, a soft gel base or a bottled builder may not be enough, especially if you are also trying to protect length. That’s a case of flexible on top of too flexible.
But you still need flexibility from a soft gel base on the natural nail. Otherwise, you will have another extreme– too bendy and too hard.
As a soft gel specialist, you can neutralize that flexibility with a full coverage tip. As I’ve shown and explained in this video: How To Fix A Nail That Keeps Lifting. The hardness of the plastic tip works like a brace to stabilize the nail, while the soft gel base still gives the natural nail some flexibility.
But say you don’t use full coverage tips.
Well then you will have to consider potted semi-hard builder or true hard gel builder to stabilize the excessive bending.
The answer as to what you use, semi-hard builder or true hard gel builder is depending on two factors:
- What you’re already using, and
- How long the nails are
#1 If you’re niched into soft gel brands, your options are a potted semi-hard builder or full coverage tip over a flexible base gel. The plastic full cover tip being the harder option.
My particular all-time favorite combination with semi-hard gel is, Nail Thoughts Base followed by Kokoist Excel Builder.
#2 If you’re finding that many of your clients are delving into longer nail lengths, or perhaps they are being too hard with their nails then you may want to look into a hard gel builder.
The two brands of hard builder gel I particularly have experience with are PRESTO and RÉDI. (You can save 10% on PRESTO Japanese gel with code PPN10)
These two brands’ concepts fit easily into my niche and what I already use, but they also offer a hard gel builder option so that I won’t be veering off and exploring too much, trialing and erroring or losing my focus as a specialized nail artist.
My recommendations will be linked below for you, so that you can try out and see what you like, but I cannot stress enough taking the brand’s certification if available to you, as they just take your understanding of products to the next level, and really save you time in the long run trialing and erroring.
Adding a harder product, whether that’s semi-hard builder, hard gel builder, or a full cover tip, on top of a soft gel base will neutralize the excessive bending and allow the natural nail and the gel enhancement to move in harmony together… Ultimately, minimizing bending which leads to lifting, and supporting the natural nail adequately for long wear.
Hope today’s video cleared up a bunch for you.
If you would like a bit more direction in your nail journey as a specialized gel artist, consider watching my free masterclass. In it I will take you through my journey as a specialized gel tech including how I eventually got to booked-solid success earning $90k per year.
🔺Upcoming Certifications
-RÉDI Certification (August)
-KOKOIST Waitlist (October)
🔺Products in this video:
Kokoist (Save 10% using code PPN10)
-Excel Builder Gel https://paolaponcenails.com/kokoist-agel
-NT Clear Builder Gel https://paolaponcenails.com/nt-base
-Thin Round Brush https://paolaponcenails.com/kokoist-brush
-Full coverage tips https://paolaponcenails.com/kokoist-gelip
-PRESTO Japanese Gel (save 10% with code PPN10) https://paolaponcenails.com/naillabo
REDI
-Twin Seal https://paolaponcenails.com/redi
-Crystal Clear Builder https://paolaponcenails.com/redi
See you in the next one.
Paola Ponce is a licensed nail tech of 10+ years and a certified Japanese gel educator. Her specialty is structure gel.
Learn more about her journey as a specialized gel nail artist and her gel nail application course inside her free masterclass here.
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