Gel Polish

Happy Last Monday of the School Year!

 Today I'm doing a happy dance that the last week is here. 

As much as I'm excited, it's definitely bittersweet.

Some GREAT students will leave me and transition into a new environment in the high school next year. 

As much as I love some of them, they need to spread their wings and fly. 

Over the weekend I started prepping even more for SUMMER!

One thing about me is I love to have my nails done.

I've always enjoyed polishing my nails, but it's SO expensive to have them done regularly. 

A couple of years ago I got my own little light to do gel manicures myself!

This was the perfect little gift that my aunt had planned to get me, but my mom loved it too much for me, so she stole the idea and gave it to me instead. 

The best part is it is SO tiny. 

Have you seen these lamps before?

via

They work great but are just so big and bulky.

My aunt and I shared this one for a long time until I got my new one. 

This is all the bigger that my new lamp is. 

The top opens up, and there's just enough room to slide your fingers in. 

Now my aunt is a beautician and she bought it, so I'm guessing it's something you can only buy at salon based stores because I couldn't find it online. 

I love that it's so little that I can throw it in my purse or luggage and not be missing space. 

I really have been wanting some new colors. 

Just over a week ago my mom and I went and got Mani's and Pedi's before her cruise and to celebrate Mother's Day. 

Usually when I go to a salon I will try a facial or massage because I know I can do my nails myself, but I wanted to do something that we could both do at the same time and to get her beach ready, so I opted for the nail route

Well I was a bit hesitant of the polish they used. 

Gellish is one brand of gel polish that some salons use. 

I've used it before and wouldn't say I'm a fan. 

Gellish polish is much thinner than other polishes. 

When I used it before I had to do 3-4 coats of my color polish.

I asked the nail tech that last week and she agreed that it does take more coats, but she said she liked it better. 

At the time, in the salon, with just two coats my polish seemed to have taken full coverage. 

It was a cloudy, dreary day on that day. 

Unfortunately, when the sun came out you can see through my polish. 

Now most people probably wouldn't notice this, but I do. 

In addition, I showed my aunt my polish later on and asked if she could tell and she COULD!

So, I'm not a fan of Gellish, but I tend to love CND Shellac. 

My aunt will typically let me go with her to the supply store and pick out my colors, but she is just so busy that I hate bothering her. 

I put it on my to-do list to find someplace reasonable online to buy polishes. 

These three places made my list

The Nail Superstore

Beyond Polish

Sleek Nail

At the end of my investigation I found that Beyond Polish was the cheapest, and they offered a 20% off code. 

So, if you do your own gel manicures or if you want to start, go to Beyond Polish. 

I've tried some of the gel polishes at other stores like Sally's, but they just don't wear as long as Shellac.

Here's a little peak at some of my new colors.

Yes I love pinks, corals and oranges this time of year. 

Just a slight variation of each is great for me. 

Doing your own gel manicures is so simple. 

While I do get my nails done from time to time, I really love doing them myself!

If only I had the whole color variety at home that they have at the salon!