The danger with keeping your nail polish on too long is that the pigment in the nail polish can soak into the top few layers of the nail and dry it out, Dr. Rowland says. When that happens, fungus, yeast, bacteria, mold and mildew can develop underneath the nail plate, which can lead to long-term problems.
Gel polish lasts between 2-3 weeks at the minimum, while regular polish is lucky to go a week without chipping. With light wear, your gel nails last at least twice as long as a normal polish, but realistically they get you four to six times a standard manicure mileage.
While this may seem harmless, over time your nails will become thinner, weaker, and more brittle. Once this damage is done it can take months for your nails to recover. And if that isn't reason enough for you, it also impacts how good your next gel mani is going to look.
Over time, the bond between your nail and the polish starts to break down, causing the gel to lift away. And while we really do get how annoying it is, we urge you not to start picking or peeling.
"The biggest risk to leaving a gel manicure service on for longer than three weeks is that the extra weight can start pulling on the edge of your nail, causing tears in the base of your nails," says Reynosa. "They can then lift, which peels back keratin layers and causes more mechanical damage.
"Gel manicures could last up to two weeks with proper nail prep and at-home care, such as cuticle oil and hand lotion," says Duguay-Gordon. And if you're careful, they can last up to four weeks.
On hands your gel manicure should last 2-3 weeks (See aftercare advice for best results). Toes will naturally last longer than fingers and will usually depend on how quickly your nails grow! We would recommend returning for a gel pedi every 5-6 weeks.
For gel nails, take a break for a week at least once every eight weeks to allow the nails to rehydrate and to allow repair of the underlying structures. “An emollient applied directly to the nail and cuticle oil will also aid recovery,” said Batra.
How Salons Take Off Gel Polish. In addition to applying acetone-soaked cotton balls directly to the nail and wrapping them in aluminum foil for upwards of 10 minutes, your local nail salon may also opt to use professional tools, like a nail drill, to remove residual gel polish.
If you just allow your gel nails to grow out, they can become weak and brittle as a result of being exposed to water and air, which could potentially damage your natural nails.
To keep your nails healthy, it's safest to have your gels removed at the salon. Removal fees can cost anywhere between $10-$20.
While applying acetone to your nails may sound harsh, picking or filing off gel nail polish can significantly damage your nails.
Gel Manicure
Soleymani. "The curing process [which is what happens when you put your nails under UV light after the polish is applied] seems to cause a lot of bleeding under the nails, and that's painful." Patients don't often realize there is bleeding underneath the nails until the gall polish is removed.
Nails don't need surface access to air because they get oxygen and nutrients from your blood. Keeping nails hydrated is important if yours are prone to breakage, and a pause in polishing to moisturize would help.
How often is it safe to get them? Gel nails usually last 2–3 weeks. While people can safely have gel nails every few weeks, dermatologists recommend keeping the nails bare for at least 1–2 weeks in between manicures. This helps to strengthen, repair, and rehydrate the nails.
Shellac is simply gel polish mixed with regular polish. In short, shellac has taken the best of gel (no-chips and colour) and added the benefits of traditional polish (shine and ease).
"By peeling off a gel manicure, you are not only removing the gel, but also the top layers of these delicate cells. This can result in white patches and textural irregularities throughout the nails." But it can be so hard to resist!
Since gel nail polish can be worn for weeks on end without even the tiniest chip, stretching the life of your manicure is tempting. However, Hadley suggests removing a gel manicure after two to three weeks maximum to avoid damaging nail beds and cuticles.
The gel topcoat is a tough, nearly impermeable layer that seals the color in place—that's why gel manis are able to last for weeks instead of days. Scratching the surface with a coarse nail file will help the acetone to penetrate without a hitch.
"Prolonged use of gel manis and acrylics dehydrates your nails, making them dry, brittle, and fragile," says manicurist Jin Soon Choi, founder of JINsoon nail polish and salons. Cuticle oil is your BFF for imparting deep hydration.
Just like your cuticles, if the nail bed isn't prepped correctly, it can lead to the premature peeling of gel polish. The key factor here is moisture - too much water will cause your nails to expand, and when you apply polish on such moist nails, they may begin chipping or peeling sooner than they should.
To repair your nails after a gel manicure, apply a nail moisturizer to your nails and the skin around them every day, since a gel manicure removes a lot of their natural moisture. Soak your nails in warm milk once a week for 5 minutes, which will remove residue and strengthen them.
No, it is not normal for gel nails to come off in such a short amount of time. A set of gels should last you around 2-3 weeks. They may have lifted prematurely as the nail plate may not have been prepared correctly before the gel application, or they may not have been capped/sealed at the free edge.
The removal process for gel polish is more complex as well, requiring the nail to be soaked in acetone to properly dissolve the formula off of the nail." So not only will they last longer, but they'll look harder and shinier while you've got 'em, too.
When builder gel is applied directly to the natural nail, it can 'flex' more than the natural nail and this separation of the two layers causes lifting. So in order to prevent your builder gel from lifting, you need to create a layer between your natural nail and the builder gel.