11 Ways to avoid gel nail polish chipping

Bad preparation of the nail plate and incorrect application of the products might be a reason of not lasting manicure. This problem affects not only beginners but also professionals. If you suffer with gel nail polish chipping our tips might be helpful for you. We all know that chipped varnish looks worse than not done nails and it frustrates us that we spend lots of time and mani doesn't last long.

Let's find out the reasons why your gel polish manicure is chipping and doesn’t last

Good hybrid manicure should last up to 14-21 days and there shouldn’t be any peelings or gel polish chippings. We would like to focus on the most common mistakes and give you some advises for long lasting and perfect manicure.

Incorrectly prepared nail plate

Good preparation of the nail plate is a key and base for long lasting manicure. Always put a lot of attention to this step. 1. Use buffer to mat your nails (product will stick stronger) 2. degrease your nails plate using nail cleaner or acetone. 3. If your nail plate is oily or problematic or simply in the past you suffered from nail polish chipping but everything else was done on point - Use primer or primer acid free (in some cases both products can be used together).

This is how the nail plate should looks like before gel polish application.

Flooding the cuticles

This problem is quite common. You need to be careful when you are applying products. You have to know that if you will flood your cuticles then air will get in between the product and nail. You can push back your cuticles before applying the product. If you will flood your cuticles simply use wooden stick and remove the excess of varnish. Always remember about this before curing nails in the lamp.

Too much gel polish product

Base, color and top should be applied in thin layers. Too much of the gel polish might cause incorrectly cured product (it is simply too much product to be cured and the varnish will start to wrinkle and become gooey. It’s always better to apply 3 thin layers of the color instead of 1-2 thick.

Saving the time by putting one thick layer will case nail polish chipping and you will have to spend your time doing new set again – it is not worth it!

And the second thing is that more gel polish can cause cuticles flooding.

Cuticles are not pushed back

If you keep the dead skin on your nail plate. It may cause getting air under the base coat and you will have manicure with bubbles inside. Your gel nail polish will start quickly peeling off.

For easy cuticle removal we recommend Semilac cuticle remover. It won’t irritate your skin and help you in good preparation of the nail plate. Next step is to push back cuticles.

Using products of different brands

We always recommend using all products from the same brand. Our products are created to work together and we don’t know how they will last with products from other brands.

Not secured free edge of the nail

Each layer should have secured free edge . The main thing is to protect your manicure against the air coming between nail and product. This step is often forgotten as it wasn’t necessary in classic manicure.

Cutting or filing gel polish manicure

We shouldn’t cut or file our nails after finished hybrid manicure. Again this will cause that air will get between the nail and product.

Product expiration date

Always check your products. They should be high quality, tested and safe. One of the very important aspects is expiration day. Never use expired products. Product storage also matters. Bottle should be closed properly and when open it shouldn’t be exposed to UV Light. (keep some distance between the lamp and gel polish when making manicure)

Wrong curing time

Some lamps are stronger and they cure the product just in seconds. But some doesn’t. Please remember to check what type of lamp you have and how long you should cure all product. Some of the colors needs double curing time because of their high pigmentation.

(when product is not cured properly, the varnish will look wrinkled and gooey like the image above)

Brittle nails

If you suffer with damaged and weak nails it more than likely that your manicure will not last. It’s time to use stronger base coat, designed to this type of nails - Semilac Care Base or Fiber Base  It will make your nails strong again. (In this case we recommend to do manicure by a professional nail technician)

Bad habits that are ruining your nails

We might think that if we have strong gel polish product used (for example Semilac Extend base coat ), we can do anything. But we still must care about our nails and protect them from any damages. We cannot treat them as ‘tools’ in daily life for example like a can opener.

Multifunctional tools and products that will help your gel polish manicure last

The knowledge of essential tools and products is a key. You don’t need to spend a fortune to prepare long lasting and beautiful gel polish manicure. Precision and high quality product selection will guarantee perfect effect.

Pusher & wooden stick

These tools are necessary not only in nail preparation (pushing back cuticles from the nail plate) but also can be used to take off product from flooded cuticles or to remove the product.

Acetone & Nail cleaner

Your nails must be properly degreased using acetone or nail cleaner. Acetone will be helpful to soak off the product while removing manicure.

UV Nail Lamp

If you have a chance to get high quality nail UV LED lamp it’s really worth it. You will definitely save the time while curing products and they will be cured properly.

Try to follow our tips and you shouldn’t have any problem with perfect nails. There is a lot of few little details that you need to put attention, but after few times it will become a habit. Remember that the devil is in the detail.

This is how the final gel polish manicure should looks like :) Remember practice makes perfect!