Got a collection of hundreds of polishes? Interested in an occasional gel manicure, but don't want to shell out the money for a full gel color library? Love the variety of regular nail polish and wish you had the same options in gel? Could I sound any more like a TV infomercial?
Gelibility is a new LED/UV cured gel nail polish product that mixes with any regular nail polish to turn it into a gel. Honestly, I was pretty skeptical about how well it would work, but I was very pleasantly surprised. This stuff is really cool. Read on for the details, some swatches & manicures, and my full thoughts. It's quite a long review, but there's a lot to cover!
What is the Gelibility system?
The Gelibility system comes with Stick It!, which is a gel base, and Fix It!, a clear gel that you mix with regular nail polish to create your custom gel. Fix It! also acts as the topcoat to the manicure when you are finished adding your color coats. Both products are cured like a standard gel in an LED or UV lamp, and are dry to the touch immediately.
Does it wear like a normal gel polish manicure?
Though I haven't done a full wear test myself, the gel felt very secure while I had it on. My sister and her friend, who tried it out, reported wear equal to that of any other gel manicure. When you're done, Gelibility removes like any other gel nail polish manicure (no, not picking!). I used a nail file to break through the top layer of gel, and then used the foil method to soak it off.
What is the process for mixing and applying it?
- Apply and cure one coat of Stick It!. Clean off the tacky layer using a lint free wipe and alcohol.
- Choose the regular nail polish that you want to turn into a gel. Using a paint palette or mixing surface, mix Fix It! with your regular polish (see note below). Avoid using the Gelibility brush for mixing, to keep your bottle of Fix It! perfectly clear. You can use either the nail polish brush or a dedicated gel brush for this. TIP: Go slowly to avoid getting bubbles in your mixture!
- Apply one thin coat of the color mixture to your nails and cure in an LED lamp (60 sec) or UV lamp (120 sec).
- Repeat step 3 until the color looks the way you want it to look.
- Apply one coat of clear Fix It! and cure.
- Cleanse the tacky layer using a lint free wipe and alcohol.
Obivously, mixing any amount of clear polish with a regular polish will change the way it looks. I've done some tests below to show what mixing Gelibility does to a few common types of nail polish. These mixes all show one drop Gelibility to two drops regular nail polish.
» Enchanted Polish Vampires Suck (deep burgundy holo): 3 coats of Gelibility mix vs. 2 coats of regular nail polish. Obviously the holo is getting dulled a bit, but it was definitely still visible!
» RickyColor Off Off Broadway (silvery blue glitter): 3 coats of Gelibility mix vs. 3 coats of regular nail polish. The regular nail polish has a higher glitter density, but the gel mix has the benefit of a smooth, non-gritty finish.
» Girly Bits Ho-Ho-Hope (pinky purple holographic) - 3 coats of Gelibility mix vs. 2 coats of regular nail polish. The faint holographic in this one all but disappears, but it retain its gorgeous color and speckled finish.
» Cirque Colors NYFW (cobalt blue creme) - 3 coats of Gelibility mix vs. 2 coats of regular nail polish. This one was basically unaffected, other than number of coats required. Just lovely!
I also used it for the accent nails in these gel manicures I did for my sister and her bestie. In the pink manicure, I mixed it with Lacquistry Amazeballs, and in the purple manicure I mixed it with Sally Hansen Liquid Gold. As you can see, it did affect the flat chrome finish on the latter, but I was also using the drop-to-drop ratio at this time.
The Final Word
I was totally thrilled with my experience with Gelibility. It worked brilliantly, cured immediately, and wore well. Yes, adding clear to your regular nail polish will affect the way it looks and applies. However, I think the versatility of this product more than makes up for that. I don't know how it does its magic, but this stuff is cool.
What now?
The Gelibility system is sold on Amazon.com and via Gelibility.com for $37.95.
Visit Gelibility.com for further information and instructions for use.
Check out the Gelibility reviews on Chickettes (part one and two) for more tests and Andrea's thoughts. Being a gel blogger, she's an expert!
Gelibility: Turn Any Nail Polish Into Gel Polish
4/
5
Oleh
Bella Suci
