People get confused with all the different brands of two week polishes, what they do and what the difference is?

The Invention of Shellac
The nail industry is huge and very competitive. The moment CND (formerly known as Creative Nail Design) launched the first ever two week polish way back in 2010, all the other nail companies fell over themselves to come up with their own version.

CND are the leaders in the nail industry, FACT! They are always working behind the scenes to come up with new products and services to enhance the lives of clients, manicurists and nail technicians. They spend fortunes on scientific research and in order to achieve this.

I can remember having a conversation with Ketan Patel, he has retired from CND now but, he was at CND London. Ketan is the best nail technician, educator and mentor I have ever known! He won best Nail Technician Awards year after year, here in the UK and in some states in the USA. (I had the privilege to have been taught by him ?) He said “wouldn’t it be good if we could invent a polish that lasts”, maybe he knew something that I didn’t, Shellac was in the making.. I got very excited at the thought but nothing else was said about it, as it wasn’t possible then.. until the invention of Shellac ?.

Someone, somewhere at CND discovered that Shellac, a natural resin, secreted by beetles onto trees in India and Thailand, could hold colour!

They used Shellac way back in the day to make records. It’s wasn’t a new invention but it was new to the nail industry. Shellac is also sold to other industries such as food and plastic. If you check the ingredients on some of your cereal boxes you will find shellac (it is perfectly edible in this form, so don’t worry!).

Anyway, Shellac was perfected at the CND laboratory in California and the polish was launched. What the other nail companies soon discovered was that they couldn’t use Shellac because it was patented and registered by CND who owns it, clever! So, they had to come up with a product that could hold colour but be applied as thinly as Shellac and that could be dried instantly. The only product that was capable of this was gel.

What’s the difference between Gel and Shellac Nail Polish?
Gel is made of monomer and polymer, commonly known as plastic. Monomer and polymer is used by the plastic industry but was modified for use on human anatomy for the beauty industry. Monomer and polymer are the basic ingredients of both acrylic and gel. I’ll talk about the differences in the two overlays in a future blog.. Gel was the best option because we already know it holds colour, the problem came with the thickness. It had to be made into a polish like consistency that was thin but didn’t crack. They achieved it and fast! as they didn’t want to get left behind.

Shellac and gel polish are both UV light curable (hardened). It comes down to preference in the end. Both have an amazing array of colours, both lasts for two weeks (most of our clients go three weeks before renewing) and a dream has literally come true! We have polishes that last.

I am pleased that other companies came up with their version as it makes our industry really exciting and innovative. I am completely in love with CND, as you may have gathered, but I love the others too.

Warning! Don’t use Electric Files!

Please don’t allow anyone, anywhere, to remove your shellac or gel colours with electric files! This is dangerous and completely unnecessary. Any two week polish system should always be soaked off. All companies that manufacture these polishes advise that they be removed using this method. Electric files damage nails, sometimes permanently!! Treat nails with love ?

Contact Mon Amie in Reigate, Surrey on 01737 221872 for both Shellac and Gel Polish Treatments.

Written by Donna (proud CND Nail Technician since 1997 serving London & Surrey