#polygels

[bloo-jelly]

I’m still learning but I’m proud of myself :)

This is only like my third set I’ve done

[hcwritter]

Hey yall been a while but im doing good but been busy with life and school so sorry for thw random ghosting but LOOK AT MY NAILSASSA

[prettyb888]

Still perfecting my craft but I’m obsessed 💅🏾

[little-jey]

final look at my jey uso nails i wore to the live show i went to for my bday ^^ putting them away now.. can’t believe i managed to get them all off (almost!) perfectly! i’m so proud of them especially the ones i had to do with my left hand 😙

gonna give my poor nails a break now…

[ritzy-biscuit]

I finally got to do my nails after months of feeling awful and having no motivation.

One afternoon I decided, "I need something pretty in my life", then sat down to do my nails.

It was difficult to finish because towards the end I started feeling more of that awful helplessness.

But I did finish and I'm happy, because even when I feel/ look like shit, I look to my nails and how the glitter and gems shimmer and it brings me solace.

It's the little things 💅

[frankieglam]

Today was new nail day! I'm in love with this set done by my wifey!!!

[m4ndysk4nkovich]

i stayed up doinf my nails just for them to look like shit ffs

[prince-rosalium]

I gave Hawthorne fake nails today. With no tutorial to help me, I expected to crash and burn.

I did not. They are lovely.

Here are some notes on what I did, in case you want to attempt this yourself:

Before attempting this, I highly reccommend watching a few youtube tutorials on how to sculpt polygel over a nail form. It helps if you have knowledge of how to form gel nails.

I purchased a polygel nail kit for $20 off Amazon. It came with a curing light, a nail file, a brush, a spatula, slip solution, and tubes of polygel. I highly recommend this. I used everything in the kit, and it is much more expensive to buy everything separately. The only complaints in the reviews were that you get too small of an amount of polygel and slip solution, but if you are using this for dolls, this shouldn't be a problem.

You may want to replace the slip solution with 72% alcohol. It works the same way, is probably better for your doll than slip solution that is made for humans, but I did use the slip solution in the kit.

The first thing I tried was making nail forms out of Scotch tape, but instead of cutting a hole for the nail like a traditional nail form (the hole would be too small) I chose to cover the nail and sculpt with the polygel on top of them, then try glueing them onto the nail afterward. This would probably work with more practice, but it was much more effective just to sculpt right on top of the nail without a form. With this method, you will not be able to make them very long, but they will be sturdy, stick well, and look pretty clean and smooth.

The only issue one might have is the way it looks from some angles, but I personally don't mind. I'll try and explain what I'm saying:

I sculpted these without a form, and as a result, from some angles, the nails can look heavy and round. I chalk this up to it being simply unrealistic to expect paper-thin sculpting on a pair of tiny hands.

Personally, I don't think this shape is a downside at all. I've seen a lot of long-nailed BJD hands that have the nails sort of... "molded" into the finger, probably for ease of casting?? But probably also because they won't snag on clothes and break. If I hadn't made the nails this shape, it'd be a lot easier to break them.

However, the reason I am embarking on this journey of doll manicuring is because I have a gyaru boy on the way, who I want to give long, ridiculous, sparkly pink nails, covered in gems. This formless method will not work for him. For this, I am going to make long tips out of plastic from straws, glue them on, and build the polygel on top. In order to reinforce it, however, I will be adding more polygel underneath, because I do *not* want these to break. This is definitely going to be "hands-off when taking off his shirt" situation.

Polygel... is sticky. I had to cure these nails multiple times. It's hard to get a small enough bead on the tip of the nail because polygel is meant to be applied in one large bead on a human nail. It takes a lot of slip solution to sculpt it, and using too much slip solution can make the curing go too sticky. It takes a little practice, but the nails look great regardless. Didn't even have to redo any.

My work process was as follows:

1. Sculpt the nails

2. Cure 30 seconds

3. Add another layer of gel to get them a bit longer and stronger

4. Cure 1 minute

5. Clean off the stickiness on top of the nails with alcohol or acetone

6. File the tops of the nails AND the bottoms (with respiratory protection PLEASE) and shape them how you like

7. Gel topcoat. Very important.

8. Cure 30 seconds.

After that, I just cleaned off whatever stickiness the polygel left behind with acetone.

This was my first attempt at this, but I always have trouble finding tutorials about this that I understand. I don't think I can fully be an authority on how to make these after one set, but I hope these notes help anyone looking to attempt this! All it took was a kit and about an hour, not even.

[itachistastychildren]

[daniclawz]

i'm probably gonna post a bunch about my nails and like my journey to becoming a nail/cannabis influencer!

[polycatyl]

claws are applied

[gales-boyfriend]

cute nail charm 😇

[prettyinpinnk]

IG: polygel_vic

[lesbian-s0nia]

Lip$tick Femmeinistx

=$.$= mmeowwwwwww

Dia dos Namorados Unhas XxL

[elyssiian]

cute nails

[gabrielle-marie-2000]

Finally reading the books I've put off reading for years... never too late I guess. Also the first set of nails I've done in two months, pretty proud of my work. 🙌🏻