You visited a nail salon, but were unsatisfied with the result. When you applied light tones of gel polish, this did not happen. But now, near the cuticle, the coating for some reason did not want to stick and “moved out” to the center of the nail. The master assured that this is normal - this is how dark gel varnishes behave. Is she right? And how to apply gel polish under the cuticle?
Why does gel polish “move out”?
If the coating does not reach the cuticle, this does not mean that the master did not paint the nail in this place. There is such a phenomenon - during polymerization, the pigment leaves the edges of the plate. If you look at the end of the nail, then there will be the same picture.
I must say that not all coverings behave this way. There are brands of varnishes in which the likelihood of such a result is minimized. Very often, Chinese-made varnishes do this.
The following happens: when applying the base, the nail is covered as close to the cuticle as possible. After polymerization, its upper dispersion layer is already a smaller surface.
A similar phenomenon we can observe when placing a drop of water on the table. At first it will be with steep edges, and as it evaporates it will become flatter, losing its original shape, and in the end will become a small wet spot.
The color layer lies on the dispersion of the base. As we recall, its area decreased in comparison with the first, base layer. Therefore, the first color layer has a smaller area than the base. It is from all edges as if shifted to the center of the nail.
This is enhanced by applying a second color layer. And when it comes to the top (top transparent coating), he has a very small dispersion area.
The effect of excessive dispersion on the coating
If you do not pay attention to the thickness of each layer, the following problems are possible:
- shrinkage of the coating;
- thickened ends of the nails;
- open end.
The photo shows how much the colored layer has left the cuticle and how the “knobs” formed on the free edges of the nails. Apparently, the master painted the end of the nail very diligently, so excess coating formed. Having polymerized, they created an ugly volume. And if you look carefully, even from this angle you can see that the end of the nail remained light. The pigment "moved out" of him.
Such a coating will be poorly worn. It will quickly crack off the ends and have to redo everything. Already, the nails look as if the coating is two weeks old. Is it worth it to pay money for a well-worn look?
The method of "gel polish under the cuticle"
How to deal with an excessively abundant dispersion layer? After all, he is the culprit of the fact that shellac "moves out". Some advise you to carefully remove the dispersion with a dry, lint-free cloth. Not all, so as not to disrupt the technology, but only part (pull off the excess from the nail). But there is a better way.
There is a method of coating so close to the cuticle that it is called "gel polish for the cuticle." It includes three points:
- Thorough preparation of the nail plate and proximal cushion.
- Compliance with coating technology.
- Work in thin layers.
If you carefully follow this technology, you should get the perfect result. Approximately, as in the photo below.
Unedged manicure and the finer points of gel polish
Applying gel polish under the cuticle with unedged manicure has a number of points that can become a problem:
- not cleaned up eponychium;
- uncut cuticle;
- not open proximal fold.
But if you overcome these obstacles, you can apply gel polish under the cuticle. To do this, a manicure is very carefully done, be sure to use an anti-cuticle (a tool that destroys the bonds between keratin fibers). The eponychium is then easily removed.
After application, degrease the surface well, since the product contains oil, and this may interfere with good adhesion of the coating to the keratin of the nail. The proximal fold must be lifted! We clean all the excess from there. If the cuticle turned out ugly, ragged edges - you can walk on them with a milling cutter.
The coating is carried out by raising the proximal roller. Sometimes you can just move it with a pusher - he will hold out for some time. Just enough to polymerize the base. If the roller in this position does not hold well on its own, hold it with your fingers.
When working in thin layers, it will turn out well to perform a manicure with gel polish under the cuticle. The proximal fold will hide the border of the coating. Over time, the nail will move forward, a new eponych will grow, and the border will become visible. But the nail will remain covered by a thin skin, as if descending from the cuticle.
The impression that the gel polish is applied flush with the cuticle will remain. Of course, in two to three weeks you will need to update the coverage. But gel polish is designed for this.
Cut manicure and its effect on gel polish under the cuticle
By doing a cropped manicure, you can be completely sure that the proximal roller will not interfere with applying layers of gel polish. The advantage of such a manicure is that it can be done without anti-cuticle. Simple maceration (bath) with hot water softens the skin well.
Since gel polish does not like wet nails, we dry our nails well after a manicure. Sequential processing of fingers with further isolation from water will not take much time. By the time you need to apply the base, the first hand will be completely ready. It takes five to ten minutes to dry the second.
Since the cuticle is removed, it will grow along with the extension of the nail. This will maintain the effect of "gel polish under the cuticle" for two to three weeks.
Varnishing Technique
The usual technique for applying varnish is as follows:
- The brush is placed on the nail at an angle of 45 °, not reaching the cuticle of 1 mm, and straightens out with a fan.
- The brush in this position moves to the cuticle and stops, not reaching her hair.
- The brush extends to the free edge.
- The brush is placed on the nail in the cuticle area and makes a pivotal movement, painting the angle of the nail, then stretches to the free edge.
- The movement of the brush on the other hand is repeated.
- The end face of the nail is sealed.
So all the coating layers are applied, there are at least four of them: base, two layers of color, top. This is a general outline of how to paint gel polish under the cuticle.
Gel Application Technique
The gel is thicker than varnish by consistency. To use it you need other brushes. To thinly apply gel polish, you can use the palette and gel technique.
A little gel polish is applied to the palette with a bottle brush. For applying in the cuticle area, it is better to choose an art brush with a beveled corner for Chinese painting.
Having collected a little shellac on the brush, put it on the nail, not reaching one millimeter to the cuticle. With the pointed corner of the brush we make a movement that describes a semicircle, and so we cover the nail in the cuticle area.
Further application is similar to varnish technique. The layers are very thin. To lay out the material thicker, the brush is kept almost lying. To remove the excess material, raise the brush, increasing the angle.
The value of thin layers
The thinner the layer, the less dispersion. Keeping this in mind when applying a dark color, it is important not to make the layers translucent. To prevent this from happening, you should carefully raise the pigment from the bottom of the bottle.
Poor gel varnishes will present a surprise: at the bottom along with pigment there will be crumbs of dissolved plastic from the lid. We remove the crumbs not on the nail, but on the palette. Here is another plus in the direction of applying gel polish with an art brush from the palette.
It is especially important to seal the end of the nail in thin layers when the jacket is made. The free edge can then have up to six layers. If you do not follow the thin even distribution of the material, you may get “beauty” from the first photo at the beginning of the article.
Not much wisdom is needed to apply gel polish under the cuticle. The main thing here, as in general in nail art, is accuracy and concentration. And everything will work out.