Simply could not remove this gel polish?

[umvemve]

Hi All, had a new client today. She had asked for gel polish removal and Gelish application. Usual story: she didn't know what brand was on her nails but had been told to soak in acetone to remove.

I explained that it might take longer. LONGER is not the word for it. It simply would not budge!! I was using. Harmony remover and know this works for Shellac. Surely it is as strong as acetone? After 1.5 hours of cotton balls in foil and then (in desperation) soaking much of it had not budged.

I refuse to buff it off or force it off and I called it quits telling her to go back to the person who applied it (she was not happy with job done and so had come to me instead). At a total loss to understand what this product could be. Wondering whether I am expecting too much of the Harmony remover (although it is marked as an artificial nail remover in addition to Gelish)

I think she was a bit flabbergasted that it hadn't come off.

 

[Annemarie]

Sounds like a hard gel top coat could have been applied over the uv coating. In which case you would have to buff it off I'm afraid. It won't cause damage to the natural nail if correctly.

 

[noreenoconnor]

I've had this before as well. I don't know what brand was on the nails but it just wouldn't budge after an hour soaking in CND nourishing remover :O the client was very understanding about it and furious with her last tech as she had be sold a shellac service. She said the bottles looked the same so i can only imagine it was a knock off brand ... god know whats in them !!

 

[EmJ]

I've had this before, lady said she had bio and everything was in bio pots. Took me 2.5 hours to soak off even with buffing the top as I thought it must be uv top coat. Anyway I phoned bio and reported the lady that did them!!

 

[umvemve]

I was quizzing her the whole time: was it a bottle or a pot (I was worried that if it was more of a gel like bio or calgel then the remover might not work) did she remember the colour of the bottles etc.

She didn't remember a clear top coat being applied but said it was painted on like normal polish (it was quite dull). Also she said she thought the bottles were clear (!?) which I don't think would work for gel so maybe they were coloured like Shellac knock offs as it was definitely not CND Shellac.

I wondered if maybe I shouldn't have buffed to remove and should have used pure acetone (not that I have anyas the Harmony remover is better for real Gelish)

 

[EmJ]

Sometimes pure acetone isn't much good either as some of the products have specific removers. God only knows what some of these knock off products are.