How to do a gel pedicure. Simple secrets of pedicure with gel polish and photos of summer nail design. What does gel polish pedicure go with?

Gel polishes are becoming increasingly popular among the fair sex, primarily because shellac stays on the nails for quite a long time (2-3 weeks) without chipping or fading, preparation for its application does not injure the nails, and the gel polish itself strengthens the nail plate.

You can do both manicures and pedicures with shellac.

If you do a pedicure with gel polish in a beauty salon, then it is better to immediately prepare a “good” amount, especially if you are a fan of interesting designs, or learn how to do a pedicure with gel polish at home.

The minimum required for applying gel polishes at home

The first and most important thing you can’t do without is: UV lamp. It is needed to dry the gel polish. It is better to immediately buy a powerful 36 W lamp, in which the coating hardens in 2 minutes. Of course, shellac will harden in a 9 W lamp, but it will take much longer and cause some inconvenience. For example, when performing a manicure or pedicure with gel polish in a low-power lamp, your thumbs will have to be dried separately. You can use an LED lamp. It's expensive, but it dries your nails in 10 seconds.
Also for work you will need nail file or buff. It is better to choose an abrasiveness of 220-240. You can save money and buy a regular soft polishing file.
After polishing, you need to treat your nails with a degreaser.. Its cheaper analogues for home pedicure are regular nail polish remover or alcohol. They will cope well with the task. Make sure that there is no lint left on the nail. It is better not to use cotton wool or cotton pads, but to take a soft synthetic napkin.
For better nail adhesion to shellac professionals usually pre-coat their nails with Bondex. At home, you can do without it and start coating right away from the base.
It is necessary to apply a base under gel polish., the range of which is very large today. There are bases containing vitamins, base and top in one bottle. There are also a lot of companies.
Of course, for a pedicure you will need gel polish the gel polish itself. They are often sold in sets, which include the most popular colors. This option for purchasing shellacs is the most budget-friendly. If you can save money on a color coating, then the base and finish should be of good quality. The durability and attractiveness of manicure and pedicure depend on them.
Completes the stage of applying gel polish top coating. It is better to take without a sticky layer.

These are the main components that should be included in a professional shellac pedicure kit. Removing gel polish will also require special knowledge, since it cannot be removed like regular polish. To remove you will need:

foil (regular kitchen);
orange stick (can be replaced with a toothpick);
cotton pads (cloth napkins);
manicure spatula.

Pedicure with shellac: step-by-step instructions

The technology for applying gel polish is the same for manicure and pedicure. Make sure the cuticle is removed.

If it has grown a little, then simply move it away with a manicure spatula. The pedicure process itself is divided into the following steps:

Polishing the nail. It is done for better adhesion of materials to the surface.
Surface degreasing. If dust particles remain under the gel polish, then there is a chance that it will begin to peel off. A degreaser solves this problem.
Bondex application. This step will make the adhesion even better and the coating will adhere perfectly. Bondex has a sticky texture and must be applied with a separate brush. A pedicure with shellac coating can be done without Bondex, but it will last less.
Applying the base. The base should not come into contact with the surface of the skin. In case of contact, carefully remove the coating from the skin with an orange stick. The base is dried in a lamp.
Applying colored gel polish. If you plan to make acrylic designs on your nails or apply glitter, then this is done at this stage. Colored gel polish can be applied in several layers, each layer must be dried.
Applying top. This layer is also dried in a lamp.
Degreaser treatment. If the finish has a sticky layer, simply treat it with a degreaser or nail polish remover.

As you can see, a shellac pedicure at home is quite feasible. It is enough to follow all the rules for application. It’s better not to experiment with the order of application, but you can get creative with designs. It is much easier to make a design with gel polish; it is more viscous and does not harden without a lamp, so it can be easily adjusted.

Drawings need to be applied to a base colored or transparent layer, depending on the idea. In addition to acrylic drawings, you can make a temping design or use ready-made stickers. The design is covered with a top coat and dried in a lamp. It is better to plant pebbles and rhinestones on the top layer before drying. When the layer hardens, the pebbles will “tightly” attach to the nail.

An important point is not only how to do a shellac pedicure, but also how to remove it. Gel polish does not come off like regular polish, but it is also quite easy. To remove it you need:

Cut a napkin or cotton pad into squares slightly larger than your fingernail.
Blot them in nail polish remover (shellac).
Place on your nails and wrap each finger with foil, thus securing the cotton pad with the product. Leave for 15 minutes.
Remove the foil and discs and remove any remaining shellac with a spatula.

No other methods of removing gel polish have yet been invented. Now you can buy special envelopes for removing shellac, in which you just need to stick your finger and hold for 15 minutes.

Representatives of the female half of the population make considerable efforts, spend a lot of free time and material resources to create an ideal image. At the same time, pedicure plays no less important role than a stylish hairstyle, delicate makeup and fashionable manicure. The need for pedicure especially increases with the arrival of warm days, when you can present your neat and well-groomed feet in a favorable light, which like a magnet attract the admiring glances of others. However, in order to look stunning, you should not neglect pedicure even in the cold season - a real woman strives to look impeccable at any time of the year.

Specialized salon procedures will help restore a well-groomed appearance and give grace to your legs, but this is associated with considerable financial costs, which not every woman can afford. In search of saving money, I found out that there is absolutely nothing difficult in learning how to do a pedicure yourself at home, and with the advent of such a unique product as gel polish, nail care has become much easier and more economical. In my opinion, there is no alternative to a more effective and durable nail product than gel polish.

Features of pedicure with gel polish

Advantages

Frequently asked question: how long does a pedicure with gel polish last on nails? The answer is very pleasing: the unique strength of gel polish allows you to maintain the original appearance of the pedicure for up to three to five weeks. In addition, if all the rules are followed, the pedicure acquires a unique, charming shine that lasts up to fifteen to twenty days.

Fashionable pedicure ideas with gel polish

cat's eye

The harmonious combination of unusual shimmer and muted shade creates a feeling of something magical. is based on the principle of working with magnetic gel polishes, which contain metal particles. To achieve a clear and beautiful cat-eye effect, you need to apply magnetic gel polish on a black base. How fewer layers of magnetic gel polish, the softer and blurrier it is the effect will be obtained.

Photo of pedicure with “Cat's eye” gel polish

Pedicure with a pattern

One of the ways to give a pedicure both light tenderness and provocative audacity is drawings. Their can be placed either exclusively on the big toe or on the surface of all nails– it all depends on your desire and mood. Today, performing even the simplest pedicure has become a creative process - it is done using intricate patterns, curls, abstractions, geometric shapes and various images that can diversify any boring design.

Ombre

A soft and smooth transition will look harmonious on the legs only if no more than two to four shades are used when creating the ombre. When choosing shades, be very careful about their selection - they must be in the same color scheme and applied in increasing order: from dark to lightest or from light to darkest. The essence of this design is a smooth transition of one color to a darker another.

French

If you have difficulty choosing a design for a pedicure, pay attention to the stylish classics -. Similar pedicure design unique in that it looks great on the fingers of both young girls and respectable ladies. In addition, it’s easy to do a French coat yourself at home, and believe me, it will be no worse than a salon one.

Single-color pedicure with gel polish at home

A plain classic pedicure always looks juicy and elegant, and also gives your legs not only a well-groomed, but also a chic look. Due to its brevity and restraint, it will be appropriate for any outfit or event in your life. I bring to your attention a simple and very stylish pedicure made with blue gel polish. Blue is the most “calm” color, and its positive and calming effects on others have been known for a long time.

We will need:

Nail preparation process

Another advantage of gel polish is that various decorations stick to it very firmly and for a long time. If you want to decorate your pedicure with rhinestones, beads, stones, etc., attach them to the nail after applying the last layer of top polish and before drying.

Gel polish application process

Apply degreaser to the nail surface and wait until the product is absorbed.
For that so that the main color goes on easily and evenly, cover the nail with a thin layer of base coat and dry under the lamp for two minutes.
After drying cover the nails with gentle and smooth movements apply a thin layer of top coat and dry the layer under a lamp. The thinner the applied layer, the more natural your pedicure will look.
For a more saturated and rich color Apply the second layer of blue gel polish in the same way. You can safely apply several layers of gel polish, but remember that after application each layer must be dried under a lamp.
To consolidate our result, apply clear gel polish and dry under a lamp.

Video of pedicure with gel polish

Gel polish has a multifaceted palette of color shades, which allows you to create absolutely any fashionable design on your nails, and given modern trends, it has become possible for even inexperienced fashionistas to perform a pedicure at home. However, remember an important axiom: you need to make the same design on your fingernails and toenails; it looks very aesthetically pleasing. Otherwise, if the design on the hands and feet is different, it indicates a lack of taste in the person wearing it.

For those who do not like to spend time reading, I offer several educational videos, after watching which you will you can see how easy it is to create a unique pedicure, and in the future it will not be difficult for you to spend some of your free time on such a pleasant and necessary procedure as a pedicure.

Videos for beginners

Video tutorial No. 1: Single-color pedicure from start to finish

Video lesson No. 2: French to yourself

Video tutorial No. 3: Do-it-yourself pedicure with rhinestones

Master class video

Master class No. 1: French gel polish inside and out

Master class No. 2: Trim pedicure + cat eye

Master class No. 3: Combined pedicure

What does gel polish pedicure go with?

I will end here. It seems that I told about everything and forgot nothing. Use the information for your health! If you have any questions while reading the article, feel free to ask them, I will definitely answer. Share your successes with me and show the result in photographs, if possible - I will be glad to see that you succeeded. Good luck with your experiments!

Regular varnish is a colored coating that is not very durable. It can last only 3-5 days. Then the procedure has to be repeated again. Every modern girl has used such a varnish at least once in her life, so the demand for it does not decrease, even despite the release of various new products, such as gel polishes, gels, biogels and gel paints. Moreover, the variety of shades and different effects is enormous: for example, you can find matte, sand, magnetic and even healing varnishes. In this material we will tell you what is special about gel polish and how to do a pedicure with gel and polish.

What is special about gel polish?

Gel polish is a cross between nail extension gel and regular polish. This product was developed to combine the advantages of both coatings: bright colors and durability. And this was achieved! In essence, gel polish is a plastic varnish coating that is applied in the usual way, using a brush. However, in order for the gel polish to harden, it must be dried in an ultraviolet lamp. Thanks to the properties obtained from the gel, this coating is worn for 3-4 weeks.

But this new product cannot be called ideal, since it also has several disadvantages, for example, a longer and more difficult application process, the cost of one bottle of gel polish is higher than that of regular polish. In order to remove the old coating, ordinary nail polish remover will not work. You will have to purchase a special product or cut it off with files.

How to do a pedicure with nail polish

The process of applying these coatings is very similar, but it is worth considering both options in detail, since each of them has its own nuances. To make a neat pedicure with regular varnish you need:

Pre-sand the nail with a special buff. This will smooth out the nail plate a little and also degrease it.
Next, the first layer of colored varnish is applied. Starting in the middle of the nail and slightly backing from the cuticle, brush the brush all the way to the tip of the nail in one quick motion. Then the nail is completely painted over with two strokes on the sides.
When the first layer of varnish is completely dry, you need to apply a second one. This will add brightness to the color, make it denser, and also hide the imperfections of the first coating.
In principle, you can finish the pedicure with varnish, but for those who want to extend the life of the coating and get a glossy shine, you can apply a top colorless coating.

Making gel polish will require much more time and equipment. But the result is worth it, it’s not for nothing that this development is becoming more popular every year. Pedicure with gel polish is done in the following sequence:

First you need to process the cuticle, give the nails the desired shape and polish the nail plate with a buff. Then remove any remaining nail filing and degrease it with a special product or regular alcohol.
Cover your nails with a thin layer of primer.
Next, a layer of base coat is applied and dried in a lamp. The time depends on the gel polish itself and on the type of lamp: for an ultraviolet lamp - 1-2 minutes, for LED and hybrids - 30 seconds.
The next two layers are a color coating. Apply using the same technology as regular varnish, avoiding contact with the cuticle and side ridges. We dry each one in a lamp.
We fix the color with a top coat, painting the end of the nail as well. In the case of gel polish, this item is required.
If a top with a sticky layer was used for the pedicure, it must be removed using a cotton pad or a special lint-free cloth and degreaser. If the coating was without a sticky layer, then the pedicure with gel polish can be considered complete.
After the procedure, be sure to lubricate the cuticle with a special caring oil. Ideally, it will contain vitamins A and E. If the gel polish does get on the skin, it can be removed with a nail file or an orange stick.

Conclusion

We can conclude that gel pedicure is a more complex procedure to perform compared to painting nails with regular varnish. For a gel pedicure you need a special lamp and it will cost more, but the result will be more stable and the coloring will be of better quality.

In the summer, girls want to look perfect. This applies not only to correctly and appropriately selected wardrobe, but also to manicure and pedicure. That is why shellac on the legs looks especially harmonious in the summer.

Advantages

There are a huge variety of them. Firstly, shellac on your feet lasts longer than a similar coating on your hands. This is primarily due to the fact that most household work is done with pens, which inevitably leads to contact with water and chemicals. Feet don’t have this problem, which means the coating lasts many times longer. Secondly, applying gel polish is very easy. Just like regular nail polish, only it dries not in the air, but in the rays. Thirdly, you can do shellac coating on your legs yourself, saving money on a trip to a specialist or a salon. But it’s better to have your hands in order by professionals, since they are always visible, and any flaw will be obvious. There is no such problem with your feet, because you can always wear closed shoes.

Flaws

It couldn't have happened without them either. The biggest disadvantage is that you need to purchase either a ready-made Shellac kit or assemble it yourself. If we talk about real original shellac from the American brand CND, it will cost an average of three thousand rubles. But gel polishes from other companies are several times cheaper, however, the result does not always live up to expectations. In addition, there is another drawback - the ultraviolet lamp. It is necessary to purchase it, because without it, gel polish or shellac simply will not be able to polymerize.

Which lamp to choose

For your home, there is no need to choose a device with many functions and options. The simplest 9-watt ultraviolet lamp is sufficient, which is most often used by craftsmen as a backup or travel option. To apply shellac on your legs at home, this is enough. In addition, such a lamp costs between 300-1000 rubles, which is not too expensive.

Preparing the legs

There is no way to do without it. Before performing shellac on your feet, you need to carefully treat the skin of your feet and nails. To do this, it is recommended to take a relaxing or, conversely, tonic bath with sea salt and herbs. You should refrain from using any oil, as it will interfere with the good adhesion of the gel polish and the natural nail. Therefore, only sea salt and herbs are enough. Using a grater or foot file, the stratum corneum is removed, several times if necessary. The cuticle on the legs is pushed back with a pusher or then removed. This can be done using wire cutters or a special tool. However, it is worth remembering that you need to be careful when working with metal cutting tools. The cuticle is trimmed or “bitten off” only in the area that can easily be cut off. Using a file, nails are given a neat shape. It is recommended to first remove the length “under the root” with scissors, since the nail plate on the feet grows very quickly.

Necessary materials

To apply shellac to toenails, you will need:

colored gel polish (one or more, depending on the intended design and composition);
base for shellac (it's called Base);
fixative, or top (Top Soak;
degreaser or nail polish remover.

The ultraviolet lamp is an integral part of the kit, so you cannot do without it.

Application procedure

Since applying shellac to your feet is as easy as applying regular nail polish, it shouldn’t cause any difficulties at home. However, there are some features that need to be taken into account.

First, remove the fat layer from the nails using a degreaser or nail polish remover. This is necessary so that the material adheres better to the nail bed, without detachments and chips after one or two days.

Some salon technicians apply a special primer to their nails, which is also responsible for reliable adhesion of the gel polish and the nail surface. However, when using real branded Shellac, this is not necessary. Simply degreasing is enough.

The base, or "base", is applied in a very thin layer. It is transparent, has no odor, and is slightly thicker in consistency than regular varnish. You can use a special separator to prevent the material from staining the skin of adjacent fingers. The base layer is dried in an ultraviolet lamp for about 60-90 seconds, depending on the power of the device.

Colored “Shellac” on the legs (the design in this case means the simplest - monochrome) is then done quite simply. A thin layer of gel polish is applied to the dried base and dried in a lamp. If necessary, the action is repeated to obtain a more saturated shade.

When the colored gel polish is applied and dried, it needs to be fixed. This is exactly what the top coat is designed for. It is applied in a thin layer so that the ends of the nails are sealed, otherwise the material will “slip”, chip and burst. The top coat dries in an ultraviolet lamp on average 40-90 seconds. It is usually not necessary to remove the sticky layer, since modern Top Coat is made on a special base, which is completely polymerized in a UV lamp.

Designs

Many girls quickly get bored with monotonous nail polish. That is why the masters spent a lot of effort to develop a technique for applying the design to the legs, and this was no exception. By the way, this was one of the very first versions of nail art for pedicure, which masters began to implement.

How to perform French on legs? Much easier than doing it by hand. Firstly, there is no need to draw a straight and perfect smile line. Secondly, you don’t need to resort to special stencils. It is enough to have white gel polish and a thin brush on hand.

First, the legs and nails are prepared, then the latter are covered with a base layer, if necessary and desired, in pink. When it dries under the rays of an ultraviolet lamp, use a thin brush to paint a white, even stripe on the edge of each nail. It should not be too wide or thick, but as natural and natural as possible. The gel polish is dried and then covered with a top coat.

You can do absolutely any shellac on your feet this way. The design is selected strictly individually. So, for example, manicures and pedicures done in a single composition and color are in great demand. At home, you can safely experiment with drawings, stickers, patterns, choosing the design that you like best.

No one will argue that well-groomed legs are a must for every girl who loves herself. And this applies not only to soft heels and trimmed nails. Gel polish will help you create the perfect pedicure without any problems. After spending an hour or two of your time on the weekend, you can forget about caring for your nails for the next month.

Why is this necessary?

Today, unpainted toenails are considered bad taste and instantly ruin an attractive image. But not everyone can afford to apply varnish every day, which will instantly lose its appearance. Isn't it much easier to give yourself a gel pedicure? It looks neater than regular varnish, allows you to easily create a design of any complexity, and retains its appearance for several weeks.

Of course, this coating also has its drawbacks.

You need special compounds, tools and a UV lamp, which is quite expensive.
If you do a gel design on your legs in a salon, the cost will start from 1000 rubles, depending on the complexity of the design.
Such a pedicure, in fact, like a manicure, is not suitable for ladies whose nails grow quickly, since the nail near the cuticle will soon be visible, and this instantly kills all attractiveness.
If you decide to get rid of the coating, you are unlikely to be able to do it yourself; you will have to go to the salon again.
After long-term use of gel polish, natural nails require long-term recovery.

And yet, even with all these shortcomings, the convenience, time savings and attractiveness that such coverage provides are worth choosing.

Required materials and tools

In order to get your toenails in order, you should go to a good salon and see a trusted nail technician. The procedure for creating a gel coating is quite complex and requires some experience. If you want to try to make a nail design yourself, then you need to carefully study the technology, be patient, be prepared for the fact that not everything will work out the first time, and buy the following things:

a set of tools with which you will do a pedicure;
degreasing liquid;
base gel;
basic gel coating;
finishing coating;
a special lamp for drying the coating;
brushes for drawing;
rhinestones, sparkles, foil - optional;
cuticle oil.

These are the basic materials and tools that will be needed in the work. For shopping, it is better to go to a specialized store where professional craftsmen purchase. This way you can be sure that you are buying good materials. And the choice in such places is really good. As soon as you buy everything you need and can allocate a couple of hours for creativity, you can start.

Step by step gel pedicure process

So, you're ready to get creative, but you don't really know where to start. It is worth carefully studying how gel extensions are done correctly in order to avoid many mistakes later. As an option, you can watch a video master class on applying gel polish to nails.

First you need to get a pedicure. This process is familiar to everyone and should not cause confusion. Naturally, in addition to trimming your nails, you also need to tidy up your heels and remove excess hairs, if any. With beautiful nails, but cracked heels, you are unlikely to look decent. Therefore, we arm ourselves with files and nippers and begin to create beauty.
Now that your feet look attractive, you can start creating designs on your nails. The first thing to do is to remove the top keratin layer, which will avoid possible peeling. For this procedure, there is a special file, which must be used to process each nail, without missing a single millimeter of the surface.
Degreasing. Everything here is extremely simple - just wipe your nails with a cotton swab soaked in a special composition.
Now you can apply the base coat. You don’t need a lot of it, it’s just a connecting link between the nail plate and the main coating. Gently cover each nail, avoiding contact with the skin and cuticles. If you cannot avoid it, you need to remove the composition immediately. And only after that you can dry your nails in a lamp. Typically, drying each layer takes three minutes. But it all depends on the specific model. Therefore, be sure to read the instructions. Only after one leg has been treated can you proceed to the other.
The most creative and at the same time the most difficult stage is applying the colored gel. Here everything depends on the wildness of your imagination and on which drawing is chosen. But first, you should choose a design that is simple to implement. For example, French. It looks decent, but all you need to do is carefully draw a white stripe. Later, when you gain some experience in pedicure, you can transfer complex designs to your nails and decorate them with rhinestones and sparkles.
Once the design is applied and you are happy with everything, you can apply the topcoat to your toenails. Apply the composition carefully, leaving no gaps. It is advisable to dry the nails in stages, and not the entire foot. That is, they applied the coating to 2-3 nails, dried them, and then did the same with the rest. And at the end, you can briefly dry all your nails at once.
Degrease your nails again.
Don't forget about caring for the skin on your feet. To do this, we take a special oil and treat the cuticle. Fortunately, many of them are sold in special dispensers with balls or with a brush. So just drip a drop onto the cuticle and spread it with your fingertips

This completes the work. If you did everything correctly and took your time, then you will have a stylish and, most importantly, long-lasting pedicure. Now this procedure will have to be resorted to only in a month and a half.

Caring for decorative coating

If you want your toenails to look attractive, it's not enough to spend time on a beautiful design. Despite the fact that gel polish is quite durable, it requires compliance with some rules along the way. Otherwise, it will quickly lose all its attractiveness and integrity.

During the day before the procedure, do not use greasy foot creams.
In the first two days after application, prolonged contact with hot water should be avoided. The hardening process of gel polish is still ongoing, and exposure to moisture and high temperatures can affect it. The same applies to visiting baths and saunas. For the sake of beauty on your feet, you can live a couple of days without these delights, just like without a hot bath.
Try to avoid contact with household chemicals. Rinse the bath thoroughly after washing and take a good shower after using the pool. In any case, this will not be superfluous, since “chemistry” dries out the skin and leads to premature aging.
Do not try to change the shape of your nails with a regular nail file. Such a procedure will instantly lead to delamination of the gel coating. If you are so tired of your nail shape or design, it is better to remove all the polish completely and do the whole procedure again.

Advice
Do not try to remove gel polish using usual methods. This can damage your nail plate. Here you will need the help of salon specialists. Or, if you know a master, you can ask him for advice

In principle, a gel pedicure does not require any special approach. A little attention and care, and your legs will remain attractive for a long time.