How to make matte shellac? Features and technique of each method

For artificial turf to last for several weeks, one gel polish is not enough! For lasting results, we also need a base and top. We have already discussed what a base is and how to choose it in the article “Base for gel polish - which is better?” Now it's time to find out what a top coat is? What are its functions, types and what to look for when purchasing it?

pros

The enormous popularity is due to a number of advantages:

• Compatible with any image and wardrobe (suitable for everyone without exception). • Easy to apply designs (monograms, stripes, dots do not spread). • Long lasting (2-3 weeks). • Possibility of combining glossy and matte motifs in the design. • Marigolds are pleasant to the touch. • The technique is applicable for any colors. • Owners of matte manicure are always in trend.

Interesting fact : you can paint on a matte finish not only with professional gel paints or do stamping. It is permissible to use the means at hand, for example, a gel pen or marker.

Benefits of matte manicure

• The obvious advantage of using a matte finish is that it dries super quickly . This feature becomes a real salvation in a busy life, when it is not always possible to spend 2-3 hours on getting your own nails in order.
• Considering that no matte manicure color scheme seems vulgar , it can be safely preferred by older women and those who spend most of their working time on business trips or in the office. Even black, blue and green colors will look calm and elegant, without irritating or drawing undue attention to themselves.
• A high-quality matte coating contains a thick coloring substance , thanks to which it is perfectly distributed over the entire surface of the nail, thereby eliminating the formation of unwanted stripes and stains .
• Due to their ability to stay on nails for a long time, matte products have become a real godsend for high-quality pedicures. Moreover, in addition to aesthetic, they can perform a protective function. This is achieved by applying a base coat underneath the matte varnish. This combination completely seals the nail. Thus, once you find yourself in a bathhouse, swimming pool or sauna, you no longer have to worry about possible fungal infection of your nails.

Required materials and tools

To create an attractive and fashionable matte manicure, you must have the following tools:

1. Ultraviolet or LED lamp for UV polymerization of gel polish (minimum power 36 W).
2. Base coat, colored gel polish.
3. Matte top.
4. Manicure accessories (nippers, scissors, pusher, nail files, orange stick).
5. Liquids for dehydration, degreasing and dispersion removal.
6. Lint-free wipes.
7. Cuticle oil.

Matte nail design with gel polish

I’ll show you several design options that I made using a matte topcoat (click on the pictures to watch the tutorial):

How to choose a quality one?

Purchasing a top finish for a matte manicure should be taken very seriously. The final result will depend on its properties. Unfortunately, not all brands represent quality products.

When choosing a top, you need to pay attention to how it fits on the nail. If the product does not stretch well over the surface of the nail plate or lies with bald spots, this finish is not worth buying.

It is important to know! The texture should be thick and flexible, the color should be slightly opaque. The brush must pick up and hold a large drop, the consistency cannot be very liquid.

What are the disadvantages?

• It is believed that a matte finish is too unpredictable and capricious. It should not be attempted without the appropriate level of skill and patience. So, the amount of material used should be moderate. Otherwise, the nail plate will remain covered with unsightly grooves and gaps . In addition, you need to take care of the speed of application. Matte varnish tends to dry quickly.
• It is unlikely that it will be possible to smooth out the unevenness formed during the improper application of the matte product. In this case, it becomes necessary to take extreme measures - remove the coating and start the process all over again.
• If you want to give your nails a matte manicure with a gouache effect, you should take into account that the latter makes your nails wider and shorter. Therefore, it is advisable to resort to it for those whom nature has awarded with long narrow plates.
• A similar effect is demonstrated by light and bright shades. Those who want to visually narrow and lengthen their nails should pay attention to matte cosmetics in deep dark colors with a vinyl or silky finish. Professionals agree that matte nail designs are best worn in fall and winter . This is due to the fact that it goes perfectly with pale skin tones, as well as fur, wool and leather items.
• Matte manicure cannot boast of high durability . Often, just a day after it is completed, the coating begins to chip or, even worse, acquire an unpleasant “greasy” sheen. This feature is most often observed among varnishes with a velvety effect. Meanwhile, the most durable ones include vinyl, sand and products with a silky structure.

Application stages

To achieve the desired result, when creating a manicure, you must strictly adhere to the following steps:

1. Hygienic preparation of the nail plate.

Before the main painting procedure, it is necessary to first shape and clean the nails. Be sure to remove the cuticle and polish the edges of the plate near the matrix well. Most often, fatty impregnation remains in this area, which will prevent the gel polish from adhering well to the nail. Next, the plate must be carefully polished with a fine-grained buff so as not to damage or disrupt the structure of the nail.

2. Applying gel polish.

Dry prepared nails must be wiped with a lint-free cloth soaked in a degreasing liquid.

This will dry the plate and give the future coating good adhesion. In the absence of lint-free wipes, you can use regular cotton wool, but in this case you need to wipe the nail in only one direction - from the base to the tip, so that the lint bristles as little as possible.

The base is applied in one thin layer. You should evenly distribute the product with a brush, first from the middle of the nail to the tip, then from beginning to end. This way the coating will be easily leveled and there will be no hump at the base.

The base does not have to be painted very close to the cuticle - this does not affect the quality of wear. The first layer is dried in a UV lamp for 2 minutes, in an ICE lamp for 30 seconds.

The color coating is applied in 2 layers, each dried in a lamp. The first layer should be thin; it also does not have to be very close to the cuticle. The second can be done thicker and as close to the skin as possible, but you need to make sure that the varnish does not flow under the cuticle. Otherwise, the manicure will turn out sloppy.

On a note. If the color of the gel polish turns out to be unsaturated in 2 layers, triple coating is allowed. This does not affect the functional features of the manicure, but brightness and contrast will be added.

3. Coating stage.

The final layer is applied with a matte finish in one layer and cured in an ultraviolet lamp. It is better to shake the bottle before using the product. After drying, the dispersed layer is removed with a de-sticking liquid. If the top has satin properties, the coating will be pleasant and velvety to the touch. The final touch of the manicure is moisturizing the cuticles with oil.

What is a nail topper for?

Main functions of the topcoat:

• protection of color from scratches and various mechanical damages;
• color protection from environmental influences, hard water, chemicals;
• allows you to create the perfect highlight;
• allows for additional leveling;
• if it contains ultraviolet filters, it protects the manicure from fading in the sun;
• helps to secure designs in a quality manner;
• Some types of tops give the manicure additional effects, such as matte.

In the article “How to choose gel polish?” We have already said that all gel polishes can be divided into coating systems. There are single-phase, two-phase and three-phase gel polish systems.

• The single-phase system involves the use of just one bottle - “3 in 1” gel polish. It combines base, color and top coat.
• The two-phase system requires a top coat to be applied to the gel polish. The gel polish itself combines the properties of color and base coat, so the use of a base is not required.
• A three-phase system means that three products must be used to apply the coating: a base coat, a color coat, and a top coat (with or without a tack layer).

Base for gel polish Base Marshmallow LiNTO 15 ml

Gel polish Opal GTOP03 Grattol 9 ml

Sticky Top by Mystique 15 ml

Top without sticky layer Brilliant Beautix 15 ml

Single-phase and two-phase systems save time and budget, but are much inferior in durability to a three-phase system.

When using two-phase gel polishes, special attention must be paid to the choice of top coat in order to give greater durability to the manicure.

The three-phase system is the most durable type of system, as it involves the use of 3 products at once: base, color coating and top !

As you can see, it is IMPOSSIBLE to achieve lasting results without a top coat! Because the top is a special coating to protect the gel polish and fix it.

Other ways to achieve a similar effect

What to do if there is no matte finish available, but you want to get just such a nail surface? Salon professionals use several options to achieve a similar result. For this purpose you can:

• Cover your nails with a glossy topcoat and go over the plates with a polishing file in different directions. It is better to use a buffer with a spray abrasiveness of 400*400 grit.

• Use transparent acrylic powder. To do this, powder is sprinkled onto a glossy, undried top coat and the excess is shaken off. With this option, you need to dry the nails in the lamp for 4 minutes rather than 2. The coating will not be as smooth as with a matte topcoat, but a little rough.

Matte nail art: what you need to know?

Regardless of the shape and length of the nails, a non-glossy finish always looks flawless . Due to its uncomplicated execution, to a certain extent, reminiscent of the classical technique, many well-known brands strive to offer a top-end matte product applied over standard varnish. A more lasting result is achieved using gel polish with a faded finish.

The most common types of “faded” nail art include plain , matte-glossy , matte gradient , with sparkles and complex designs .

The main criteria for an impeccable matte manicure are an even shape and short length . During its implementation, the cuticle and surface of the nail are carefully processed, which eliminates any roughness and depressions.

Almost every beauty salon is ready to offer this technique . If it is not possible to visit a nail specialist, this type of manicure can be easily performed at home. To do this, you need to decide on the shade and stock up on a special matte varnish or a professional finishing top. Both products can be purchased at any specialty store.

Design Features

The velvety coating of nails allows you to show your imagination and bring your wildest whims to life. Here you can use sparkles, rhinestones and all kinds of glitter.

The combination of a matte effect with gloss is very contrasting.

Sometimes special tape, strips or a brush are used for this. The necessary elements are drawn on top of the matte coating.

The “invisible jacket” turns out especially beautiful. To do this, apply a glossy top coat to the tips of the nails.

Fashion trends

The world's nail studios develop thousands of designs, but avid lovers of new products still predetermine some rules and canons of manicure fashion.

Shades of ripe cherry or burgundy in combination with gold and silver are considered consistently sophisticated and modern. For the New Year holidays, shimmer glitter and Christmas motifs are popular on nails.

Black color on nails remains invariably trendy. The symbiosis of white and black is a sign of adherence to the classics, which always remains in demand among clients.

The “nude” style in manicure has confidently reserved its place in the popularity rankings for several years. It emphasizes the femininity and tenderness of its owner.

Conical metal elements on nails are now used not only by designers and their models on the catwalks. With the advent of matte manicure technologies, any girl can express such a decisive challenge to fashion.

Matte manicure appeared relatively recently; it allows you to implement your wildest desires to give your hands an even more well-groomed look. This coating is a great way to express your individuality, and it’s not difficult to make.

About the manufacturers

The beauty market offers a huge range of coatings, both domestic and imported. There are really a lot of good top coats for gel polish, but we don’t set out to find them all. We will list just a few brands that consistently show excellent quality and have earned the trust of professionals and amateurs in the nail industry. These are American and European-made finishes Kodi, CND, Gelish, Grattol, Nano Professional, etc. Asian tops have not yet become the best, but among the worthy ones we can highlight the UNO (Hong Kong) brand.

Russian brands please with high quality at an adequate price, but not all of them. The top brands of domestic brands Vogue Nails, BHM, Lianail, Klio, etc. received the largest number of positive reviews.

There are no very cheap products in our ranking of the best gel polish toppers. Alas, budget top coats for gel polish are not of decent quality. Even with positive reviews online, they cannot stand comparison in terms of basic parameters with their more expensive counterparts. And of course, you should not buy products from unknown brands, even at a very attractive price, because no one guarantees their safety and quality.

In our rating, we have collected the most outstanding finishing coatings that have earned the maximum positive ratings from both manicurists and ordinary women.