How to Make a Gel Manicure Last Longer: 5 Tips From a Nail Pro to Extend the Life of Your Nails
Learn how to properly apply gel polish and how to care for it so your manicure lasts up to four weeks
When you first step out of the salon, or even when you’ve just finished curing your gel mani at home — you adore how lovely your nails look. You’re also excited at the prospect of your gel nails staying in place for weeks. Yet inevitably, unsightly nail woes like chipping, rippling, peeling and more can pop up and mess up your perfect mani. Don’t we all long to know the secret to how to make a gel manicure last longer? Luckily, social media nail influencers have the answers! Keep scrolling to learn insider ways to sidestep pesky problems that ruin your nails and secrets to how to make a gel manicure last longer.
How to make a gel manicure last longer
Fom proper filing to careful buffing and cuticle care, there are many things that help extend the life of a gel manicure. “Doing these things establishes a perfect canvas,” says Juanita Huber-Millet, founder and creative director at Townhouse, a chain of nail salons that focus on gel manicures in London. “Which, in turn, results in a smooth and flawless finish.” Sounds easy, but as it turns out, there are quite a few ways problems can arise to ruin your gel mani, even if you think you’re doing everything right. Here, 5 common gel manicure problems and how to fix them.
To prevent color from lifting
When it comes to preventing any lifting or peeling of gel polish, buffing before swiping on the first layer is key, says Huber-Millet. As a first step, gently buffing will rough up nails just enough to give the gel something to grab onto. Nail pro @NailCareer.Education on TikTok agrees, and demonstrates how to buff nails in her video, below. “Gentle buffing smooths the nail surface, removing ridges that can cause lifting,” explains Huber-Millet. “It also creates an even base for flawless gel application.” However, she warns that it is important not to over-buff, as this can thin your nails and cause them to weaken over time.
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Sidestep polish chips
If there are any oils or too many other products on the nail plate before applying the base coat, chipping is sure to occur. The reason: These oils end up inhibiting the base coat from adhering to the nail plate. That means once nails are cured water can get under the polish, leading to cracks and chipping etc. Applying cuticle oil can help. Though it may seem counter intuitive, think of it this way: The nail acts like a sponge and absorbs water, but adding a moisturizing oil will ‘fill’ in dehydrated nails and prevent water from absorbing. So when you are doing things like washing the dishes, be sure to add a dab of cuticle oil to each nail bed, and thoroughly rub it in to moisturize.
“To keep your gel manicure looking flawless, the most important thing is to keep your hands and cuticles hydrated,” explains Huber-Millet. “Daily moisturizing with high quality nourishing products will also promote hand and nail health — and ensuring your nails and cuticles are nourished can make a real difference to the longevity of a manicure.” What’s more, if you have weaker nails, using cuticle oil is essential—healthy cuticles mean stronger nails as they grow. One cuticle oil we like (and that beauty influencer @laraseverinoo raves about below): Sally Hansen Vitamin E Nail and Cuticle Oil.
@laraseverinoo nail cuticle oil is my latest obsession!! helps my gel nail sets last so much longer 💅🏻 #cuticleoil #cuticleprep #chemistwarehousefinds #sallyhansen
Avoid ripples, wrinkles or bubbles
When wrinkles, tiny bubbles or ripples pop up on your gel manicure, these blemishes indicate nails weren’t properly cured all the way. To prevent these pesky problems, be sure to paint nails with as thin an application as you can. As the pros at DNDgel explain on their TikTok channel, most gel polish is highly pigmented, so a little goes a long way. “With the color layers, make sure each layer is both as thin as you can stand it, and baked in the light long enough to cure well,” says Huber-Millet. “Chipping can happen if your light is weak or your layers aren’t cured well enough.”
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Halt polish from going onto cuticles
The initial layer of a base coat, or even of the gel polish is designed to be tacky. This is to ensure that the next layer ‘sticks’ better, but this layer can also cause the gel polish to flood or bleed into cuticles, making a mani look messy. The fix, as beauty influencer Ange Traughber explains in her video, below, is to use a lint free wipe with alcohol to remove the inhibition layer. As Traughger explains, some base coats have a really thick inhibition layer, and if you don’t wipe it off, it can cause your gel polish to migrate into cuticles before curing. So removing this layer helps keep cured gel polish in place.
@angetraughber Why is gel polish tacky after curing? This is called the inhibition layer and it doesn’t mean your gel isn’t cured, it’s how gel polish is designed to work! (P.S. Sorry for any background noise, my daughter wanted to be held while I was filming part of this. 🤪) #gelmanicure #howdotogelnails #gelpolish #getnailsathome #inhibitionlayer #athomegelnails
Help matte polish stay shine-free
When you notice your matte gel manicure seems to be getting a bit shiny, the problem could be that your usual routines are adding excessive oils to your nails. Nails are porous, which means they easily absorb oils, so as you go about your daily beauty routine, such as using moisturizers and other products, or doing daily chores like cooking, nails will absorb any oils they come into contact with. That’s why you need to clean your nails in between touching things like lotions or even applying cuticle oil, says nail expert Liz Morris in a video on her YouTube channel. She suggests simply using a little dawn dish soap and water to clean nails — and as Morris explains about 17 minutes into her video, below, doing so will bring back that matte effect and help a gel manicure to last longer.
More tricks to prolong the life of a gel manicure
Now that we’ve covered the top 5 pesky issues that can shorten the life of your lovely gel manicure, there are also a few other key things to keep in mind when it comes to how to make a gel manicure last longer, says Huber-Millet. For one, never pick or peel off old gel polish, this can damage your natural nails. Also, avoid using harsh chemicals when doing household chores, since this can weaken your nails — always wear gloves to avoid contact with the chemicals and be sure to never use your nails as tools. Lastly, refrain from cutting your nails too short; gel polish adheres better to nails with some length, and cutting too close to the nail bed can affect the longevity of your manicure and cause discomfort.
Our gel manicure expert also had one more parting piece of advice when it comes to how to make a gel manicure last longer; “And while it looks ready to go when you’re done with the top coat, I find gel polish still benefits from at least a few hours of pampering,” she says. “Keep in mind that the edges continue to harden for a while, and the whole manicure holds up better if you avoid fussing with the paint in any way.” There, now you’re all set to ensure your longest lasting gel manicure yet!
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