Shellac Manicure

According to their website Shellac™, is a UV cured ‘hybrid’ nail color that brushes on like polish but holds up like a gel—so its natural, glossy ‘wet look’ finish can last up to 2 weeks without smudging or chipping (and doesn’t require power tools for removal). It’s perfect pre-vacation, pre-honeymoon, or pre-anything. Your dazzling, durable digits will leave you ‘shellac’-shocked!

I heard about shellac the first time from the amazing blogger @RobynsWorld and I got interested about the concept of a manicure that was going to last for 2 weeks without chipping.

I love having manicures and pedicures done. It is the treat I give myself every two weeks, however the color on my manicure always gets chipped two days after and I have to apply a clear polish at home until it is time to go again, or stop just for a color change which increases the cost quite a bit.

I found some local places that offered the service and I decided to try it out. I had a normal pedicure, which felt great as usual, however the process for the manicure was different to what I am used to.

The initial process was the same, soaking hands on warm water, excess of cuticle removal, hand massage, oil warm towel and nail buffering. What happened next was different.

The manicurist paid close and crucial attention to my cuticles for this manicure removing any excess with cuticle eraser, and she gently removed my cuticles and got each finger as clean and neat as could be.  Apparently prepping the nails is essential in the process. Then she applied a Shellac base coat and asked me to put the hands under a UV light to cure the polish. Each hand goes under the lamp for45 seconds. Then she applied the Shellac UV color. I choose the French manicure. She applied the pink shade, hands under the lamp, then white tips, hands under the lamp, and then another coat of pink and hands under the lamp. The final step is application of top coat and hands under the lamp. Then what happens is unbelievable:  the manicurist gets a cotton ball with alcohol to remove the top film and polish the nails to a mirror shine. I could not believe she was going to touch my just painted nails with cotton ball, but the polish stayed and my hands were completely DRY!!

Yes, dry! You can take money out of your wallet to pay, and get in your car and drive away... No chips, no dings, nada.

I usually chip my manicure while getting in the car, and I never get a French manicure because I know that when I do dishes that night the polish is going to get peeled, but I am really happy. I have been shopping, playing, cleaning, doing dishes and my nails are perfect.

The Shellac manicure looks and feels just like regular nail polish, not thick and heavy like gels or acrylics

The procedure costs about $30 to 45 in my area (Ventura, CA) -not so much more than a nice manicure!

There are still a limited number of colors Shellac; however the shellac color doesn’t stop at just the color you see on the bottle. Layering makes ALL the difference and you can create more colors.

For removal they recommend the Shellac nail polish remover wraps that help you remove the color yourself with their special nail wraps and 99% acetone – but according to the manicurist Shellac SHOULD be removed by a nail professional in a salon for the best results.

I will write a blog update in two weeks to let you know how long it lasted and about the removal process.