to do or not do gel

[nailfairy]

I am currently only offering L&P enhancements, just my personal choice its what prefer to do , have also been trained in fibre glass and gel.
Just lately i seem to be having quite alot of call for Gel nails though, think many people think they are kinder to your nails.
Im not sure though wether its worth going to the expense of a full kit! I already have a lamp that i purchased a few years back it is a fairly small one that fits 4 fingers in comfortably then thumbs separate, sure most of you know the type.
Now for my questions... pick your brains..
1.. when we trained in gel it was with one that you placed on, cured,wiped,job done. (however this may not be the best way) with so many about i am looking for one that is similar, i know alot of them you place the builder, then cure ,then place the next cure etc..What is you personal choices and why??
2.. Initially people have seemed to ask alot for LCN, (that may be because someone else locally uses it) however i currently use CND products. Dont know anything about LCN at all any info?? what are theyre start up costs like?
3.. Is the lamp I have ok intially just while i build up my clientelle with gel?
4.. Do you think its worth offering gel as well as L&P or trying to convert the gel lovers?
5.. When specifically would you advise gel over L&P

Think thats it!!! .. sorry ive gone on, but been thinking about it for a while now....

Many thanks
Donna

 

[RedAdmiral]

I think you should defo branch out into gels it will bring new clients in, allow you to be a full service tech and will give you a change from l&p.

As you trained in a polish style application I'd stick to this and if you find you are happy with gel then do your proper conversion. I like a one-step gel where I can build my stress areas in, I like a thin gel with excellent clarity and colour (good bright white & soft pink) I'm currently testing a new one step gel and so far so good - used to use Balance NSI very good but too many pots on desk!

No idea about LCN I think Sassy uses it tho'

The lamp you have should be fine be it 6 watts or 9watts as its new right? You must ask the company you deceide to go for if its ok but alo of companies use the daylight comp and just rebrand.

Tell your existing clients that you now offer gel but its doubtful that they'll switch over - if its not broken............
Gel is for clients requesting gel. I do mainly gel enhancements and unless I am asked for l&p a client will receive gel. You can now offer a super shiny top coat to your l&p clients for an extra €5!

And lastly I dont think gel will ever be able to match l&p! once mastered you can do anything! I became a 'gel tech' as there were none in my area but I will always prefer l&p. Its just habit that stops me from being a l&p tech and also the nail bar is set up for gel.

Go for it! HTH

 

[geeg]

Give the clients what they want. They are wrong intheir belief that L&P is 'worse' than gel for the nails but if your market is demanding it then that is what I would give them.

You need to use a lamp that goes with your chosen system. this has been said so many times. You are risking undercuring if you use any lamp other thantheone that is produced for your system if the gel you areusing is not just a run of the mill generic gel.

If youcurrently use cnd and trust their products and your supplier then you need to look at Brisa. The system has so many pluses over other systems that it begs a serious look. Price wise it is very competitive too, plus a free class.

 

[naturalnails]

What happened to the clients who called and wanted gel? Did you say you didn't do gel and did they go somewhere else or did they come and have L&P? If the latter then you have not lost out. However, if the former then you have lost a few potential clients which would have probably paid for the cost of the gels and some!

Whatever gel system you use, I don't think there is any that can be done in one single coat that will be strong enough. You need to make sure you build the shape and I don't think you can do this with one coat unless you make it very thick and then you run the risk of not getting a full cure and or/ burning your client.

As Gigi says, if you use CND and are happy with everything then it will be worth trying Brisa and see how you get on.

On the otherhand if you really do not want to go with all of the different gels - not too much of a problem though - then there are one component gels out there where you use one gel for your 3 coats and finishing. Akzentz do Trilite which is a one component gel. Have a look at www.nailsplusbeauty.com

 

[Sassy Hassy]

Before I start apologies if I ramble but just had a very busy week and my head is spinning!

Nailfairy in answer to your questions ...

1. I prefer a 3 phase gel where every phase has been specifically designed to do its job, rather than a one phase where you sacrifice bonding and shine ability.

2. I have been an LCN user for nearly 3 years now. But I am shall we say "keeping my options open" at the moment!! The consistency of their gel has been very erratic lately, to the point that my latest pot was so runny it flooded everywhere and I struggled to build an apex. Their conversion courses seem to have come down in price lately, but they never do offers and are expensive, but on the whole they have been very good with customer service etc. However I will be having a good test of Gel IT and Brisa at Olympia as these are very new products, whereas LCN haven't updated their main gels since I have been with them.(sorry prob confused you further) - so see you there Gigi and Anthony!

3.. The lamp you have now is 6 watts at a guess, and will not cure LCN gel or Brisa or Gel It! It may seem like an unnecessary expense, but you will suffer serious product breakdown if you try and use the wrong lamp.

4. I only offer gel, put it this way I can 99% of the time convert l&p people to gel. I never denegrade the other systems, it's just that I enter into a conversation with enquirers and they gain confidence in me rather than the product. It's only when they have had a bad experience with gel that they won't come, and I let them go because otherwise they will be trying to find fault all the time.

5. Well obviously for me I advise it every time. But normally it would be for people who have their hands in water a lot such as hairdressers, swimmers, mums with young children who need the benefit of a non porous product.

Red Admiral, a lot of people who have had l&p and then try gel prefer gel because they say it feels more comfortable as it has a certain amount of flex in it. Although I do think this also down to the fact that on the whole I work very thin as opposed to some of the house bricks that people apply!!

You are right that you must check with your supplier about the lamp, but you cannot use a 6 watt lamp on a gel that requires a 9 watt lamp - ever!! It will never cure properly, never mind that the uv output will probably be wrong too.

Don't be fooled into thinking that the client knows what is best for her, she'll probably have been told all sorts of piffle by her friends. It is up to you to educate then and evaluate which system will suit them best.

HTH - let me know if you need any more info.

 

[nik]

hi


just a thought, but ez-flow are doing an offer of free lamp with the new gel it kit! the system has has good reviews on this site.

 

[Lellipop]

I would definitely add Gel Nails into your service, Nowadays there is so many choices to go for.
I have always done lots of gel, And have just changed my brand to Gel It.
This is a thick builder type gel and so easy to work with and get fab results, Its also a very strong gel and comes in some fab french shades.

Gel is ideal for clients that have their hands in water alot because unlike L&P its not porous. Its also feels lighter than L&P.
Give it a go I am sure you'll like it.

 

[MINKUS]

i use

1/ BIOSCULPTURE... which is nice and easy to apply...one phase..comes in over 50 colours....flexible....soak off

Bad points...it can yellow...not very strong over tips better for sculpting..hard to build a c curve( imao ) quite pricey.

2/Brisa....lovely pink ...easy application...easily create a nice c curve...very very strong....like the polish style white and uv finish.....good price

Bad points (only my opinions guys!!) No colour choice........file off......erm...thats it
hth

3/ Nsi cheap and cheerful ! Good price nice colours - file off again. They do very good promotions too AND AT THE MOMENT U CAN HAVE A IN SALON DEMO DAY FANTASTIC IDEA !!!!

good luck amB X

 

[claire2003]

Hi


I have been trained in Gel and find it excellent, i have been using Alida THE EDGE products which are excellent. You prime, then just add the Gel, Cure and add a second coat, cure then wipe. All done - they are very shiney and the gel is self leveling so no filing needed once it is cured. I personally wear Gel Tips myself, and have recently been trying out a new Gel which you can remove in Acetone when you decide to take them off. It is excellent. If you want details of this one drop me a message i will hunt the web address out for you. ( cant remember off hand)

I also have a small lamp like yours and customers are happy with it!

Hope this helps

Claire xx

 

[chrisbow]

Hi


I converted to Pronails all in one gel which I find lovely to use. It is easy to create the C curve. It's a file off gel but it is very strong, most of my clients have gel and they think its brilliant. There is a high gloss finishing gel which gives the nails a high shine and they have about 47 coloured gels as well.

 

[Naughtynails]

Hi
I would have to say I also prefer my L&P, but I do offer gel in salon as there is a demand.

If you do not offer both services you run the risk of losing potential clients.

My advice would be to go to a show like olympia and have a look at all the gel systems on offer and have some demo's of the gel before you make a decision.

 

[nailfairy]

oohh yes that was the other thing, i dont mind using 3 different gels for the 3 stages,
1..but will it take me longer to do a set than L&P 1 1/2 hours?
2..Also is Brisa and Ez flow soakoff or file off gels?
, because a file off gel might be a prob if there is any repair involved, i.e if its soak off you can work on other fingers
3.. would a soak off gel be more prone to service breakdown than a file off one as it is more prous like L&P?#

Sorry for all the questions

 

[nik]

once you get the hang of gel i don't think it will take much longer to do a set.

both brisa and ez flow are buff off - buff off easily so doing repairs is not a problem.

i have only used buff off gels - currently i have been using brisa for 5 months now and have just purchased the gel it kit - after reading about the colours.

by the way i seem to be following you around here nailfairy - i,m not stalking honestly!!

 

[geeg]

oohh yes that was the other thing, i dont mind using 3 different gels for the 3 stages,
1..but will it take me longer to do a set than L&P 1 1/2 hours?
Until you get used to working with any new system it is going to take a tad longer but you will soon do gels at the same speed as L&P.

2..Also is Brisa and Ez flow soakoff or file off gels?
Brisa is a file off gel but realisticaly, how often does anyone really have to do it?? Not often and gel files down mega quickly and you seldom need to remove it all anyway, you only need to thin it ... people make far too much out of this soak off or file off thing! , because a file off gel might be a prob if there is any repair involved, i.e if its soak off you can work on other fingers
3.. would a soak off gel be more prone to service breakdown than a file off one as it is more prous like L&P?# Soak off gels do NOT have the strength of gels that do not soak off. Fact. I would use a soak off any day over a soak off gel. Much more durable and less prone to breakdown of any sort.

Sorry for all the questions

Hope these answers help.

 

[RedAdmiral]

Right I would just like to clarify that whatever system you go for to ask the supplier what lamp to use. I did say that I thought you would be fine with the lamp you have as I didnt think you were looking to do a full convert. If you decided to go for say The Edge or NSI you can use the same lamp and they will advise you on curing times.

IF you decide to go for LCN, BRISA, GEL it or BIO you will need to do the conversion and buy the whole kit inc. new lamp- which I doubted Nailfairy wanted to do as she wanted to Try gels! and I think this because if I was CND trained and wanted to convert to another system I'd just use CND.

For Nailfairy it time to decide if you want to try gel or go the hole hog and convert. Check out whats on offer at Olympia.

 

[nailfairy]

Brisa gel, there are two kits by the look of it an overlay one and a sculptured one, whats the differnce between the 2?? is the sculpture one thicker consistancy? if so can it still be used over tips? would i get on better with the thicker one as i havent used gel in ages.

 

[Nailsinlondon1]

This is what is in the Brisa Overlay Kit :
1/2oz Clear Sculpting Gel, 1/2oz White Gel Paint, 1/2oz U.V. Finishing Gloss, 1/4oz Liqiud Bond, 20 Clear Formation Tips,2oz Scrubfresh, 2 HandsDown Pads, 1 Crystal Touch Petite Edge Brush and Step By Step Guide

Kit for the Brisa Sculpting includes:
1/2oz Pink Sculpting Gel, 1/2oz White Sculpting Gel, 1/2oz U.V. Finishing Gloss, 1/4oz Liqiud Bond, 25 Clear Performance Forms, 2oz Scrubfresh, 1 Crystal Touch Petite Edge Brush, 2 HandsDown Pads and Step By Step Guide.

The only difference is.......That the sculpting kit gives you the white, clear and pink sculpting gel.....this is used on either a clear glass tip or a sculpting form....but does not include the white paint on gel

The overlay kit gives you a paint on white gel instead of the white sculpting gel, this is of a thinner viscosity, to be used on natural nails or natural coloured tips.....but does not include the pink sculpting gel....

HTH

 

[jnail]

Just as another tail note to this .
When I offer the Gel [Brisa] the pricing is different to the L&P services.
Say L&P Forever French are $60.00-I would add $10,00 for a Brisa gel set.
To account for the different prices of the 2 different systems.
U can create up to 40 sets of enhancements with the Professional Brisa Kit from CND.
hTh xx kind regards xxjnail OZxx

 

[jussy]

Give the clients what they want. They are wrong intheir belief that L&P is 'worse' than gel for the nails but if your market is demanding it then that is what I would give them.

You need to use a lamp that goes with your chosen system. this has been said so many times. You are risking undercuring if you use any lamp other thantheone that is produced for your system if the gel you areusing is not just a run of the mill generic gel.

If youcurrently use cnd and trust their products and your supplier then you need to look at Brisa. The system has so many pluses over other systems that it begs a serious look. Price wise it is very competitive too, plus a free class.

I use Creative Brisa gel. It never lifts and always looks absolutley beautiful. my clients love it. I wear it too. although I sometimes return to L&P when I get bored or the new custom powders came in!!! get yourself on the Brisa course, you'll find its well worth it. I checked the LCN gels out a while ago, they couldn't even tell me what the main ingredients in their product was!!!