IBD Nails Day 1, 2, & 3

Day 3 IBD Gel Nails Pic

My nails looked great after I finished them I was very pleased. Unfortunately I don't have a picture of my nails first done but I do have pics for Day 3.

The process was EXTREMELY simple. I'm actually quite surprised how simple it was to do my nails with the right tools.

First thing was buffing the tops of my nails with a buffer block (which gets rid of shine and dehydrates the nail) and then cleaning my nails with rubbing alcohol.

I made the mistake of first using drugstore nail glue (KISS) for my nail tips. Before you do any of this make sure you have good glue! I lost a tip the second day and that made the gel crack and created air spaces.

Anyways, after applying all of the nail tips to my nails I cut them using a nail cutter specifically for tips. Then you file down the corners a little bit until your nails are shaped the way you want them to be.

Then wipe I wiped my nails off again with rubbing alcohol to clean away the dust and get rid of any oil that might have gotten on my nails in the process.

I applied a thin coat of IBD bonder/primer all over each nail and cured in an LED lamp for 1 min.

I should mention, although it says to use a UV lamp in the instructions I was curious to try out my Sensationail LED Lamp because my UV lamp had not arrived yet. As far as I can tell it works perfectly.

I will try using the LED and the UV (one on each hand) next time and see if it makes a difference with how long the gel lasts.

From what I've read, LED lights are stronger and therefore faster at curing. I did a lot of research on UV vs LED and I really couldn't find a lot on the topic so I will experiment with both and maybe save some of you the hassle of having two lights for different products.

Anyway after curing the bonder/primer, I applied a thin layer of clear gel and cured that for 1 min. I then applied another coat of gel and cured that for 3 mins.

The last part of this was applying the Intense Seal to add shine and smooth out the top. I cured that for 2 mins.

That whole process is surprisingly quick I was very impressed. Especially since I'm use to having to take 4 hrs out of my day to get the perfect salon nails at home from lightless UV kits from the drugstore (that look good for about 3 days)...never again!!

Day 2

Lost 2 tips because the glue didn't hold well....so I went to Sally's and bought better glue.

Day 3

Tips were fine, noticed some lifting in the corners which I think is due to my own fault of getting a bit of the gel on my skin. Very minor though. Also noticed some cracks in either the top coat or gel itself...other people wouldn't notice it because they are hair pin cracks but I could see them and it bugs me....

See the lifting in the corner??

Day 4

Lost a tip that had the old glue on it... I did put the new glue underneath all of my other nails but that can only do so much....so now I need to redo that nail with the new glue.

That's as far as my journey has gone so far....

I really want to try the 'builder' gel which I've already ordered. The soak-off clear gel has a thinner consistency than the builder gel from what I've seen on tutorials.

If you have naturally uneven nail surfaces, such as I do, with little dips and whatnot, I would recommend trying the builder gel. It's suppose to be self-leveling and be a little thicker.

Once I get that in I will post the results.

Hope this was helpful and if you have any questions just post them up!

~Gwen S~