My name is Theresa Bloor and I am a Freelance Beauty Therapist and Nail Technician based in Cheadle, Stoke on Trent.
Beauty is my passion and my profession and my love is to share it with you all.
It has been over 18 months since I did the post on What are Shellac and Gelish Nails? and in that time over 30,000 of you have viewed that post! Wow, Wow, Wow!!!!
During that time an abundance of other professional brand gel polishes have come on the market some of which are listed here: (but there are too many for me to list).
I only discuss the professional use products on this post here and not the use at home stuff as I dont believe that this type of products should be used by the untrained:
Gelish from Nail Harmony
Shellac from CND
Colour Gloss from Artistic
Polish Pro by NSI
Axxium by OPI
Mani-q by Young Nails
GelColour by OPI
GeleSSe by NCO London
Colour Lock by Kirsty Meakin
etc, etc, etc ....................
My fingers got tired of finding the most popular ones as I could go on and on and on...............
A few points to mention (in my opinion) on some of the above:- Shellac is easiest to remove and very well known. Gelish and Artistic are popular due to celebrity endorsements and marketing. GeleSSe is unique as the colours can also be used with regular polish base and top coats to enable at home removal easier, plus I have found it is the easiest to do nail art with and has great colour pigment coverage. Colour Lock by Kirsty Meakin can be used with no base coat or top coat, just the colour to give the speediest application.
So, although some are said to be the same product (Gelish and Artistic Colour Gloss as an example) and others said to be unique (Shellac from CND is the nearest to polish, where as many of the others are more Gel like) they all pretty much do a similar job in that they act as a semi permanent polish that can last 2 or 3 weeks.
All gel polishes are light cured (so are dry when the treatment is finished) and can be soaked off for removal.
Some will suit other clients better than others as with my clients, one brand suits some people better than others and visa versa. So in essence I am saying that there is no one brand that suits all - lots of people will tell you that 'this brand' or 'that brand' is better, but my experience has shown that in using many of these I still cannot stay which is best as each client is different as each of these products are.
What I will say is each brand will use clever marketing methods to convince you that theirs is the best. Do your own research when deciding which one (or more) is for you, your salon and your clients.
I always recommend that which ever you decide that you at least attend a workshop (or as a minimum have a very thorough conversation with the supplier) on how to get the most out of that product as each one has little differences that can make the treatment work for your clients or not. The number of forum or facebook discussions I have seen where people have had problems and eventually worked out it was because the method they used was what they were taught as best for another brand. A 'few tweaks' later on how they should be applied or used and hey presto they were getting success!
Many of these now appear for sale to the public via ebay or similar 'non authorised' web sites. All I can say is only buy your products from the authorised distributor! It has been proven many times that the products you end up with are fake copies and not what they say on the tin! Just not worth the grief and you will get no support from the suppliers if you go through that route! I have learned many times the suppliers support is worth its weight in gold!!!!!
Talk to your clients to find out what they want from a treatment as this can help you decide which products to look at in more detail. The amount of clients that have contacted me saying they want a shellac manicure but when questioned they want a semi permanent polish treatment and are open to discussion as to which is best for them!
Please feel free to contact me if you want more of my opinions on each brand (as I could go on for ever about each one) : - theresa.bloor@gmail.com
Happy reading and I look forward to your questions. x x x
November 2012- a new post had been published to further update my advice on Gel Polishes which also discusses the difference in the different brands including, gelish, shellac, artistic, GeleSSe, Colour lock etc: -
I am getting lots of messages from people asking what exactly are Shellac Hybrid UV Polish and Gelish Gel Polish? Or what is Semi-Permanent Polish Manicure? So hopefully the below will answer any questions you have. Oh - and yes, all of these are available as treatments here at Beauty by Theresa - available in the Cheadle, Staffordshire Moorlands and Stoke on Trent areas.
Well firstly - none of these systems extend the nails so for those of you that have been put off having your nails done because you dont want them extending - then Shellac and Gelish dont come into the same category so is a great option for you!
Shellac is probably more polish like in the look and feel, but dries in a different way than polish. A special CND Shellac UV lamp is required to properly cure the colour, so therefore can only be applied by a trained professional.
CND's (Creative Nail Design - the maker of Shellac) have a well promoted tag line:
On Like Polish
Wears Like Gel
Off in Minutes (really!!)
On Like Polish - So the first one is self explanatory as I said above. Wears Like Gel - what this refers to is the fact that with the right care and attention the polish can last up to 14 days without chipping, peeling and smudging. The no smudge element is fab - especially as soon as the manicure is finished everything is completely dry - NOT like a traditional polish so you dont have to walk around for hours on end waiving your hands about like a raiving lunatic! :) Off in Minutes (really!!) - because of the nature of the ingredients in the Shellac, trying to remove like normal polish wont get you very far - but it only takes 10 minutes to do! Really!! It is recommended that a professional removes the product and if done correctly (it is a fairly easy process) then your own nails underneath will be in great condition! with NO DAMAGE!
Why would you have this type of manicure?
Well - due to the fact that it doesnt chip or smudge makes it more low maintenance during the 2 weeks of wear. No removing and re-applying every few days like regular polish cause it looks worn! This factor alone makes it very attractive to many people - just one salon appointment every 2 weeks - and perfect looking nails every time! Another great thing about Shellac is that it is fab for holidays and special occasions too as they last for up to 2 weeks, easily.
See the attached video for details of how shellac is applied and how it is removed!
Who is Shellac not ideal for?
Like I said before if you are looking to have your nails extended or lengthened then it is not for you. If you have pretty poor nail condition with peeling etc then Gelish may be a better option for you.
Gelish (by Nail Harmony) is very similar to Shellac in that it is applyed in the same way - and wears in the same way - like a polish that doesnt chip. What I have found however, that it can last a little longer - 3 weeks in many cases. I think this is due to the fact that there seems a little more strength in each of the layers. And, the top coat is more resistant to Acetone - so for people like us nail techs that use acetone based solutions to remove clients nails etc it is an added bonus for our own nails. You can also use a special LED lamp to sure Gelish which is quicker (it wont cure Shellac though).
What Gelish does have extra - is an additional product in its range called Structure. What this allows you to do is to add additional support to the nail to add extra strength - and also lets you add the correct structure to the nail (those of with Ski jump nails or damaged nails) to make it look more "normal".
Therefore, I do find that if you want to grow your nails longer then Gelish gives you more support to be able to do this. It is possible to extend the nail very slightly with the use of this structure gel too by using a plastic tip, but I wouldnt recommend a full set of nail extensions with this because they wont be as strong as say the traditional harder Gel or Acrylic nails.
Gelish does remove in a similar way to Shellac - but I think takes a minute or two longer - perhaps due to the slight additional strength in the product. As the top coat is acetone resistant you need to buff the top coat off first (which isnt needed with Shellac) - so if the quickest and easiest soak off is important for you then Shellac may be better.
Shellac is currently available in 24 colours, but does have an additional 6 shades coming out in September 2011. Gelish is available in an incredible 72 shades? (I have actually lost count) and does have occasional special additional colours (like the Japan Appeal duo). What you can do with both systems is layer the colours to make an even bigger colour range. You can have french style, colours (shear or opaque) or clear.
I have also found it is easier to do different nail art effects with these systems too - perhaps because the colours them self dont start try dry until they go into the UV lamp giving more time to play about with it. You can get colour fade where one colour blends into another too - one of my favorite looks. These two pictures are examples of really simple nail art and colour fades. they have both had different colours layered too!
With this type of manicure you need to remember that what needs to happen when the manicure is grown out in say 2 or 3 weeks time. I dont recommend you do this yourself so you really need to go back to the salon to have it removed - and probably like most of my clients have it reapplied as you found it so easy to wear! So, even though they are really maintenance free during the time you wear them you do need to keep up with a regular salon appointment to make the most of the system. If you start to peel away the system yourself then you potentially risk peeling layers of your own nail away (not as much as if you pick at say acrylic nails though) - so please dont do this!
I myself have worn either Shellac or Gelish for the last 12 months or so and I have to say my natural nails have never been in such good condition. Most nail techs use themselves as models for trying different nail stuff so we do tend to abuse our nails! So for me to have my nails in such good condition it is a really big thing! The two pictures above are of my own natural nail length.
If you have never tried this type of manicure then all I can say is - give it a go, then you will understand all that I rave about.
I hope this answers all your questions about Shellac and Gelish but if not then please feel free and ask away here. If you are not near me and want to have this treatment done let me know and I will contact the relevant people to find a tech in your area.
For you CND professionals out there here is a great video by Jan Arnold from CND on a few Nail Art Techniques that can be achieved using the Shellac Semi Permanent Polish:
There is no you tube link available as of yet as it is a professional only product, for which authorisation is needed from CND to access their Video Library.
There is also written step by step info available on the same page which helps too.
image courtesy of cnd.com
Some great effect on there from Flowers, circles and stripes to Leopard and Tortoise Shell!
Thought I would let you start to see some of the nail art designs I have either done or have played with.
Thought I would start with a simple design using the fab Shellac by CND semi permanent polish in Tutti fruiti and cream puff. I think I also used a CND effect polish over the top too.
A few points to mention (in my opinion) on some of the above:- Shellac is easiest to remove and very well known. Gelish and Artistic are popular due to celebrity endorsements and marketing. GeleSSe is unique as the colours can also be used with regular polish base and top coats to enable at home removal easier, plus I have found it is the easiest to do nail art with and has great colour pigment coverage. Colour Lock by Kirsty Meakin can be used with no base coat or top coat, just the colour to give the speediest application.
So, although some are said to be the same product (Gelish and Artistic Colour Gloss as an example) and others said to be unique (Shellac from CND is the nearest to polish, where as many of the others are more Gel like) they all pretty much do a similar job in that they act as a semi permanent polish that can last 2 or 3 weeks. 
Some will suit other clients better than others as with my clients, one brand suits some people better than others and visa versa. So in essence I am saying that there is no one brand that suits all - lots of people will tell you that 'this brand' or 'that brand' is better, but my experience has shown that in using many of these I still cannot stay which is best as each client is different as each of these products are.
I always recommend that which ever you decide that you at least attend a workshop (or as a minimum have a very thorough conversation with the supplier) on how to get the most out of that product as each one has little differences that can make the treatment work for your clients or not. The number of forum or facebook discussions I have seen where people have had problems and eventually worked out it was because the method they used was what they were taught as best for another brand. A 'few tweaks' later on how they should be applied or used and hey presto they were getting success!
