I Was Made for Lovin’ You Kiss Nails!

It’s so exciting when I get new products to play with.  I’m such a big kid- it’s like Christmas morning, ripping the boxes open to have a peek inside.  I wasn’t disappointed when I was recently sent some new products from Kiss Nails.

Kiss is an American cosmetics company that provide a wide range of products from make-up & false lashes to top of the range hair dryers.  All of their products are generally of professional quality and great value for money.  To get an idea of all their fabulous products have a look on their website www.kissusa.com.  You can also purchase their products in Boots and Superdrug stores!

I love to keep on top of the latest products and technologies to hit the market so I was super excited to test out the new Kiss Everlasting Gel Polish French Manicure Kit and Kiss Everlasting Pro LED Gel Lamp.  The instructions provided in this kit are so simple – I reckon even my boyfriend could do it if he followed the step by step process.  Let me guide you through it…

1. I recommend you go back to my very first blog post on nail preparation before applying any nail products – the Kiss kit provides you with all of the tools to carry out this prep. Once I had completed this step I cleansed my nails using the Kiss cleanser & wipes provided.

2. Once the nails are cleansed & ready to go start sizing the magic little white tips to make sure you find the perfect fit – this is the trickiest and most important part because if the tips don’t fit the nails will lift. Take your time and be patient, trust me it is worth it!

Kiss have created these little curved pieces of plastic, similar to a false nail, but when you stick them down on to your own nail using the supplied glue and carefully remove them using the instructions provided the little white tip is left imprinted on your own natural nail… absolutely ingenious!

Why have we ladies spent years trying to paint a perfectly straight line for a French manicure when we could have been using these nifty little tools?!  These white tips are what I love most about this system; they ensure that every white tip is exactly the same size, no wobbly lines or irregular shapes – it satisfies my OCD greatly!

3. When the little tips have been applied to all of the nails on both hands, it is time to apply the base layer gel to one hand and cure under the LED lamp – always being careful not to touch any skin or cuticle area.

As with a lot of gel systems you need to do your four fingers first then your thumb separately on each of your hands to ensure the LED light reaches all areas of your nails and they are hardened correctly.

4. Now you have a good base down on your nails you apply the colour gel in exactly the same way as the base to that same hand. It is down to your personal preference whether you apply one or two layers of this colour.  I personally prefer a slightly more natural French manicure so I always opt for the one layer unless a client requests otherwise.

5. To seal all of your hard work in apply a thin layer of the top coat to the hand that you have been working on, cure the gel as before and then cleanse the nail with the wipes & cleanser provided.

6. Finally finish by cleansing the nails. I would recommend that once you have cleansed your nails you apply a layer of clear nail polish to make sure they are super shiny and as always use a heap of cuticle oil to keep your cuticles hydrated!

If you have followed all of the steps carefully and used the products correctly you should be left with a beautiful French manicure.

This is a really simple and straightforward product to apply and you don’t need any experience to give it a go.  If you find yourself struggling with applying this product to the hand you don’t normally work with, don’t be afraid to ask a friend to help you out.

I am usually quite dubious about home gel kits, but the gels provided in this Kiss kit were of a great quality and I was really impressed with the final outcome.

The Kiss LED lamp was fab, dinky little size; perfect for storing and it even had a timer button just like the one I use for my clients in the salon.

The kit is ideal if you have a keen interest in doing nails or simply just enjoy doing your own nails at home.  Kiss also supply solid coloured gels that you can apply in between the base layer and top coat gels using the same process as explained above. I’ll be reviewing one of these Everlasting Gel polishes in one of my next blog posts along with a special little tub that Kiss sells to safely remove your gel manicure… so watch this space!

I would love to hear if any of you chose to regularly use gel nail kits at home instead of paying salon prices or if you have tried this one before and could give me a few tips.  I’d especially like to hear about your home disasters as we can all learn from each other’s beauty mistakes!

Article by Louise Henry

Louise joined The Beauty Cloud team in May 2014 as our Nail expert.  She is a fully trained & qualified Nail Technician running her own little nail bar in Bangor, The Nail Room at Salon75. 

Any questions, email louise@thebeautycloud.co.uk or find her on Facebook