Which type of Gel for DIY??!!

[pinkhill004]

Hi there! Wow I'm new to this so I hope this message posts ok!!

I was wondering if any one can help me please with the following matter:

I have had Bio Sculpture Gel overlays done a couple of times and these were AMAZING for keeping my nails long and strong. My nails are my life!!

It is however obviously quite an expensive treatment to have done every few weeks and also I like to change my nail colour at least once a week. So I was thinking of investing in a lamp and just clear gel to apply to them myself to keep them strong, and then just paint over the top with the different colours I like.

My questions if anyone can help please are therefore:

Is Biosculpture the best make of gel to buy?
I notice they do a Clear Gel (which I've read is a base coat), and then an S-Gel (which says strengthens them). So would I need to get both of these?
Or are there any other make of gels that I would just need one type of????

Ahhh, too many gels, confusing!!!

Thanks soooooo much in advance if any one can help!! xxxxxxxxxxx

 

[Cathie!]

Hi and welcome to the site :hug:
BioSculpture won't sell you their products unless you have done their training.

Being a nail technician isn't as easy as it looks when you're having your nails done and it's even harder to do your own nails, so if I were you I'd carry on having my nails done by a pro or do the BioSculpture course so you know exactly how to use the products. xxx :hug:

 

[Bracky]

I agree, you can't buy professional products unless you are that, a professional. If you are considering forking out for a UV lamp and products anyway then for a little bit more you could pay for training if you are interested in going down that road :hug:

 

[Mrs Geek]

Hi there! Wow I'm new to this so I hope this message posts ok!!

I was wondering if any one can help me please with the following matter:

I have had Bio Sculpture Gel overlays done a couple of times and these were AMAZING for keeping my nails long and strong. My nails are my life!!

It is however obviously quite an expensive treatment to have done every few weeks and also I like to change my nail colour at least once a week. So I was thinking of investing in a lamp and just clear gel to apply to them myself to keep them strong, and then just paint over the top with the different colours I like.

My questions if anyone can help please are therefore:

Is Biosculpture the best make of gel to buy?
I notice they do a Clear Gel (which I've read is a base coat), and then an S-Gel (which says strengthens them). So would I need to get both of these?
Or are there any other make of gels that I would just need one type of????

Ahhh, too many gels, confusing!!!

Thanks soooooo much in advance if any one can help!! xxxxxxxxxxx

Hey Pinkhill - we appreciate you posting and your questions! Our answer will be (as we are a professional site only)... that if you want to do your own nails you will need to train or the only other alternative is the cheap horrible 'stuff' you can get in chemists which none of us would recommend! Everyone here is trainedand I beleive there is an area for consmers such as yourself on the site!

There are many EXCELLENT gels out there and you are more than welcome to do searches on education if this is a direction you want to follow. Otheriwse, you will need to do what all consumers do.... have your nails done and keep the brilliant professionals in busines!

Best of Luck!:idea:

 

[pinkhill004]

Hi, thanks so much for your replies.xx

I WILL look into doing a course... I was actually due to start college to do a beauty therapy course a couple of years ago. I was gonna start there and then add on extra nail courses once I had qualified. But unfortunately I had a car crash (not my fault, can I add!) a few weeks before the college course started and ended up with two fractures in my neck! So this obviously put a stop to me attending that course at the time (heartbroken) and I am still suffering with problems with my neck now. So bending over doing other peoples nails isn't really an option at the moment I am sad to say. And doing a course just for myself seems a bit extreme!! Maybe I'll look into it if and when my neck recovers fully...

I unfortunately cannot afford to keep having my nails done professionally so I guess I'll just have to live with broken nails for the forseeable future..:cry:

Thanks again for the replies... xxx

 

[Annebet]

Hello pinkhill004
I really hope you think twice about doing your own nails DIY as you say, the amount of damage you can do if you don't know what you are doing is a lot, there is a lot to learn about nails and how to look after nails and I mean a lot it is not just about putting the nails on and applying acrylic gel ect ect there is a lot more to it than that, the tech make it look easy but it isn't, what would you do if you over filled or got greenies or over exposure ect ect please either get some training or carry on going to a trained nail tech.
The amount of people who think it is easy havent a clue, I had a friend who before I trained used to say only people who didnt do well at school went into beauty and nails boy did I shock her when she saw all I had to learn and am still learning, do you understand the chemicals involved the diseases the anatomy of the nail anything all about nails if you did you wouldn't want to DIY your nails.
Look on google and see some nail problems which can be caused by people who don't know what they are doing.
It's your choice what you do with your nails but hopefully we won't be seeing you back on here crying help I have ruined my nails.
Good luck with whatever you decide to do

 

[pinkhill004]

Thanks loads for that...

Which area is there on the site for consumers such as myself please???

xxx

 

[Cathie!]

Hi, thanks so much for your replies.xx

I WILL look into doing a course... I was actually due to start college to do a beauty therapy course a couple of years ago. I was gonna start there and then add on extra nail courses once I had qualified. But unfortunately I had a car crash (not my fault, can I add!) a few weeks before the college course started and ended up with two fractures in my neck! So this obviously put a stop to me attending that course at the time (heartbroken) and I am still suffering with problems with my neck now. So bending over doing other peoples nails isn't really an option at the moment I am sad to say. And doing a course just for myself seems a bit extreme!! Maybe I'll look into it if and when my neck recovers fully...

I unfortunately cannot afford to keep having my nails done professionally so I guess I'll just have to live with broken nails for the forseeable future..:cry:

Thanks again for the replies... xxx

Aw that's a shame but really and truly if you buy the Argos rubbish and go DIY, you will never ever get the beautiful finish you get from a well trained pro and wonder why you ever bought it in the first place.

Hope your injury sorts itself soon, my hubby fractured 2 vertabrae in his lumbar spine about 8 weeks ago, he's still in pain, I won't tell him yours was 2 years ago and still suffering! :hug:

 

[pinkhill004]

Wow, I didn't realise my questions would spark so many reactions telling me to train!! Apologies for being so naive ladies!! :lol:

I guess I thought that doing my own french manicure for the last 15 years gave me enough expereince to take it a step further and try Gel! But please be assured I consider myself told now and I will absolutely train before I take it any further than a bottle of varnish.

Thanks to those of you who took the time to write and tell me off!! LOL!

xxxxxxxxx

 

[marioned]

Here you go
Consumer Queries - Salon Geek

 

[pinkhill004]

God no don't tell him that!! Really sorry to hear that.. x How did he do it? Hope he's ok.

I had Cortisone injections in my neck on Friday. Not a pleasant experience! I think I'd rather give birth again than have those beauties stabbed into my neck!!

xxxxxxxxxxxx

 

[pinkhill004]

Superstar....thank you. xxx

 

[Cathie!]

God no don't tell him that!! Really sorry to hear that.. x How did he do it? Hope he's ok.

I had Cortisone injections in my neck on Friday. Not a pleasant experience! I think I'd rather give birth again than have those beauties stabbed into my neck!!

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Fell out of a tree trying to fix a rope swing

 

[pinkhill004]

OH!!!! Fingers crossed he is ok...xxx Let's hope he doesn't milk it once he's better, like man flu!! x

 

[Annebet]

Hi pinkhill004
I am having injections in my neck to god am dreading it now is it really painfull I hate needles I have asked if they can put me to sleep the doc just laughed at me lol

 

[Annebet]

Hi Cathie so sorry for your hubby hope he gets well soon.

 

[Bracky]

I unfortunately cannot afford to keep having my nails done professionally so I guess I'll just have to live with broken nails for the forseeable future..:cry:

Thanks again for the replies... xxx

Have you considered calling your local college to get your nails done? Most colleges run salons where you can get treatments done at a fraction of the price, the students are still practising but with professional knowledge and under close supervision of their tutors. When I started doing nails I advertised 'models required, full set £15' as my time was still too long to be charging full rates. Maybe even post again on here offering your nails to a newly trained tech if you are willing, I'm sure there will be someone in your area willing to take you up on it xx

 

[naturalnails]

I have moved this thread into the Consumer section. Please also be mindful of the Geek Commandments - if your message is for one person then PM it. The thread did go a bit off track for a while so it almost became a chit chat thread.

 

[pinkhill004]

Ahh, I'm so sorry! You'll be fine!! It's really not that bad, I was only joking! Just relax and it'll be over with before you know it.
I was actually sedated for it, it was great, it was just like I was drunk! Ask if they can do that... But it did involve a whole morning in hospital.
Good luck!! Think of me, I've lived to tell the tale!!

xxxxxxxxxx

 

['chelle]

Hiya Pinkhill

I'v just skimmed over the replies so sorry if I repeat something thats already been said.

Firstly, dont worry too much about people being a bit defensive about the fact that only trained techs should do nails. From time to time we get people on here who, believe it or not, ask the same question as you but with a view to self-teaching as working nail techs! It's purely this that makes us trained techs a bit defensive when people suggest buying the kit and doing it themselves.

Personally I can understand why you would want to do your own nails, and I can understand why you might think it possible, because a good tech makes it look really easy. In reality even a good accomplished tech struggles to do her own nails and if you spent money on your own products, lamp etc, I can confidently say it would be a false economy. Firstly, you will not be able to buy any quality products because the reputable firms will only sell to qualified techs, and secondly, you would no doubt be disappointed with the results as you woud struggle to do them properly.

If you are having your nails done at the moment with biosculpture can I assume that you are having a rebalance or soak off/new overlay about once every 3 weeks? And is it in the region of about £30 each time? And how long have you been having your nails done? If you were to add up how much money you have spent so far, do you reckon it would come to the cost of doing a training course with a company such as Biosculpture or Creative? Personally I would really recommend that you look into doing a course like this, there's no rule that you have to be planning on becoming a working tech to do the course, but you never know you might just get the nails bug like a lot of us!! Ultimately there is so much damage that you could do to your nails and skin if you dont know what to do and its not worth risking your health for the sake of a few quid. The best advice I could offer you is to save up, do a course (I would recommend a private course such as a Creative one rather than a college course), then you will have the skills to do your own nails AND as a trained tech you will be able to buy decent products at trade price.

Best of luck in whatever you decide to do