I am pretty new to nails but have been really enjoying all of the indie polishes and learning from all of you. Understanding the chemistry of base coats was a game changer for me—-I used to think all polish was bad for my nails.
I have been working on my polish application and was finally pretty pleased with it. And now the shrinkage is making me crazy! I did swipe the ends. I never understood the complaints before, but now I get it. Sigh.
Essie strong start base,
Mooncat getting even primer,
2 coats BKL I put the omen in women,
Essie gel couture top coat
by anonintx123
9 Comments
I switched from the Gel Couture to Cuticula’s Limitless qdtc and i can’t recommend it enough!! Never gives me shrinkage and is dry within minutes. Its magical and life changing
Essie Gel Couture was the culprit for my shrinkage as well. I was so disappointed because the shine and the hardness were beautiful and kept my manicure nice for days. I switched to Sally Hanson instant dry, and I no longer have shrinkage. If I’m careful with my nails (gloves for cooking, gloves for washing dishes, not using nails to open cans or peel off stickers, etc), I can still get 5-7 days out of a regular (not gel or dip) mani
I’m not using the Gel Couture top coat with magnetic polish anymore! Anything slightly thicker than the thinnest coat possible has been causing me shrinkage! You can use it up on regular polish, if you make the thinnest coats possible there usually isnt any shrinkage
I use Gel Couture BUT it has to be thinned down a little bit to avoid shrinkage for me. I will also usually only use it over a thinner QDTC like the Sally Hansen Insta Dri red bottle.
Strangely i’ve never had any issues with gel couture. Strange. Hopefully you find a rec for a new one ❤️
I agree with the Cuticula comment. Essie gel couture worked well for me for the first couple manicures, but it gets thick and gloopy soooo fast and starts shrinking. I know thinner would help but I don’t want to have to thin for every painting session plus it isn’t exactly cheap. Cuticula hasn’t shrunk on me after many manicures and I haven’t had to thin it yet. It has also helped with keeping my polish lasting for a while. Also if it is your thing it comes in scented.
Omg same mine went away from my cuticle so much it looked like 3 week wear
https://preview.redd.it/hs6rc3tjj12g1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=65e033d2f9d31bff886907082482202a3d6279ca
I tried to topper it to not be as notice
The only time I get shrinkage is if I put my TC on polish that’s dry. I usually do TC immediately after finishing my last coat of polish. That and for toluene TCs I go *thick*.
I just spent two hours last night battling with Gel Couture because I refused to wear my polish with the level of shrinkage I was getting… ended up just grabbing Holo Taco and finally getting a good result. I have gotten decent manis with GC before but it’s very hit-or-miss.