Gel Nails at Home - Lifestyle/DIY

Hello lovelies!


Just like many of you out there I'm on a budget...pretty much all year round. I'm the kind of person that won't go out and pay for something if I can do it myself.

It's incredibly rare to find me getting my eyebrows done in an eyebrow parlour, mainly for the reason that I can do it myself. Same goes for dyeing my hair or doing my nails. If I can do it myself why go out and spend money on it?

I am a little lucky, I completed my gel nail qualification at college but honestly, it is no different to painting your nails with normal varnish plus a few simple steps.

I decided to share my gel nail routine with you guys. I try to do them regularly but I do slip up sometimes. All the things I use in this tutorial can be found on ebay or amazon and are incredibly cheap. Once you buy everything you can do your nails by yourself every 2-3 weeks for free instead of paying out £30 every time.
I will link all the times that I use. Might not be the same seller but it is the same brand.

You will need:
- UV/LED Lamp 
- Gel remover and Prep/Wipe
- Lint-free cotton pads
- Gel Varnishes

Once you have all of that you're ready. Additional things include a nail-file to shape your nails into the desired shape and a nail set to cut your cuticles etc,

Lets get started!

This is what my nails looked like before:



I started by removing old nail varnish, filing my nails into a cleaner shape and cutting my cuticles.



You can see that by this point I have some dry skin and cuticle residue on and around my nails. You want to avoid putting cream or oil at this point! To get rid of this skin you want to wash your hand with normal hand wash and then dry your hands using a towel. Make sure you keep your nails away from oils at all times. Oiliness will prevent the gel from sticking and won't allow for a long-lasting manicure.

Next thing you want to do is gently rough up your nail plate. That doesn't mean you completely file off a layer or two! You want to gently run the file across your nail a couple times just to give the base some extra grip.


Then you want to take one of the lint-free pads, apply the prep/wipe onto it and give each nail a good wipe. This will remove any oiliness off of your nails. Once you do this you want to try and avoid touching your face or hair as this could transfer body oils back onto your nail plate.

Once that's all done you're ready to apply the base. Grab your base nail varnish and apply a very thin but even layer like you would with normal nail varnish. You want to do one hand at a time. Apply the base onto your left hand and then put your hand under the lamp. If using a UV lamp you want to keep your hand there for 2 mins, if you're using a LED lamp then 30 seconds should be enough. You then want to repeat the same thing on your right hand.


At this point your nails will have a sticky residue on them. This is perfect. Don't worry, the nails are dry and hard, the sticky layer is there to help the layers bond together. You do not need to wipe anything and try prevent touching as hairs will easily stick to your nails.

At this point all you have to do is apply 2 coats of your chosen colour, remember to cure it under the lamp after every coat. Don't wait too long after applying the gel as it can move and then cure uneven. You want to make sure the layers you're applying are thin as thicker layers will be harder to cure and could then start peeling up.

Once you apply 2 coats of your colour of choice you want to apply the top coat. Once this is cured you will need another lint-free pad and the prep/wipe liquid. You want to give each nail a good wipe with the soaked pad to remove the sticky layer. You only do this after the top coat.

And you're done!


It is literally that simple :)

So similar to painting your nails with normal varnish isn't it? Why spend £30 every 2-3 weeks if you can spend £30 once and have enough product to give yourself up to 20 manicures if not more. Plus, it is so much more satisfying when you can show off your beautiful nails and say ''Oh these? I done these myself on the weekend!''

Please let me know what you think and if this post was helpful.

Also, leave a sub to never miss out on my future posts. I have many fun posts coming very soon including reviews, diys and hauls!

Don't forget to leave a comment too! I love replying to you guys!

Lots of Love!

Tyna - x

Personal -Instagram-

Blog -Instagram- 

Comments