Saw a cool gel nail trick at a salon in Austin last weekend

I was waiting for my appointment at this little spot called Blush Nail Bar on South Congress, and I watched the tech next to me do something I'd never seen before. Instead of wiping the sticky layer off the gel color before the top coat, she just applied the top coat right over it and cured it. Then she used a lint-free wipe with alcohol to clean the whole nail after curing. She told me it helps prevent the color from lifting at the edges, especially on clients with oily nail beds. I tried it yesterday on three of my regulars, and two of them already texted me saying their polish is holding up better than usual. Has anyone else tried skipping the wipe between color and top coat?

2 comments

2 Comments

veramiller6d ago

Made me think of my grandmother's old trick of putting clear polish over the whole nail after everything dried to seal the edges. Did you notice any extra tackiness under the top coat when you tried it?

seanjohnson6d ago

Grandma was onto something with that trick. I've found that cheaper top coats tend to get that tacky feel way more than the mid-range ones. Have you tried any specific clear polishes that seemed to avoid the sticky layer altogether?