Here we go, my first experiment with gel manicures 🙂 I have been putting off trying them out until I received a system to review. This is Red Carpet Manicure Must Haves kit, $44.29 at Lawtons.

The kit has all the essentials for a LED gel polish application, minus the LED lamp:
– Prep Max adhesion sanitizer (9ml/ 0.3oz)
– Structure base coat gel (9ml/ 0.3oz)
– Brilliance seal & shine top coat gel (9ml/ 0.3oz)
– Revitalize nourishing cuticle oil (9ml/ 0.3oz)
– Purify pre & post application cleanser (60ml/ 2oz), and
– Erase gel nail polish remover (60ml/ 2oz).

At this point, I realize that there are more products/ steps involved in doing a LED gel manicure to exchange for a longer lasting power, and patience is a must lol. I have to go to the lamp so many times to get all my 10 fingers done, so don’t start doing your mani at 10pm like I did the first time.

Application steps: use thin coats, curing each layer for 45 seconds with a LED light
– brush on Prep to clean nails. It dries lightning fast
– apply Structure to 4 nails (leave the thumb for last), cure. It is a lot thicker than a regular base coat, so cuticle flooding risk is high
– apply a LED gel polish (not part of the kit), cure, repeat for second coat
– apply Brilliance, cure. It is thinner than Structure, but still, use less than what you think you need
– remove tacky residue with Purify using a cotton pad.

Then that’s it, the nails are dry and ready. No wait time, other than the wait during curing process. And no chipping in at least a week.

For removal:
– buff the nail surface to break the top coat seal
– saturate a cotton ball with Erase, wrap in aluminium foil on nails for 10-15 minutes
– unwrap, slide off cotton, gently scrape off remaining colour
– massage Revitalize into cuticles and nails.

This is another reason for me to do a gel mani, it takes a lot more to remove. I don’t normally opt for the foil method, even with glitters. It all comes down to your preference – long lasting mani vs. time 🙂 Stay tuned for the NOTDs I did with this kit.

I also received Red Carpet Manicure Crystal Gems in French Riviera with 600 Designer Austrian nail crystals and a picker, retails $9.99.

Gel polishes start out with just plain colours, so having these gems to bling up the mani is fun. I do prefer the glitters already mixed in with the polish, but I haven’t seen glittery gel polishes just yet, so these will do 🙂 Red Carpet Manicure does come out with shades with fine glitters, as you will see below.

Here are Red Carpet Manicure LED gel polish (on the left), from L-R: Black Stretch Limo, Midnight Affair and Best Dressed. Glitter gel nail polishes (on the right): I Can’t Believe It, Make Up Time and Perfect High Heels. Each bottle is $12.99.

Stay tuned to see these colours on the nails soon.