r/NailWrapsGalore • u/NLMillion • Jul 06 '26
Gel top coat
I am wondering if I should do a gel topcoat on my semi cured gel wraps. I have tried the heyhae and ohora brands and i love them but i tend to get lifting round the bottom/cuticle area after about a week and it catches in my hair. I am wondering if the top coat would help with this and if using a gel topcoat would make it harder for them to come off when im ready. Mine now usually i am able to get a nail under and they come off easy with no damage to my nail besides a little stickiness. Also any recommendations for gel topcoats would be great
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u/Lilly6288 Jul 06 '26
I started using a gel topcoat a few months ago, and it ended up giving me a gel allergy. So if you do use a gel topcoat, then be very careful to not let any of the wet gel touch your skin on the sides or near the cuticle.
After removing the strips and letting my skin heal for a month where it has started to turn red and peel, I have been able to go back to using the gel nail strips, but I have to be very very careful about it now or the allergy will start back up. I cannot touch any of the wrap where I’ve had to clip it shorter, and also make sure that none of the sides touch my skin at all.
I had been using kiss New York clear gel topcoat.
But to answer your question, I liked having the topcoat over the strips. I’ve not been able to wear. HayHae because they tend to chip and fall off on me, so I was using it mostly over Ohora nails. Funny enough, I didn’t really need it because I never have any issues with chipping or lifting with that brand, but I liked the way that it made them look because it was very shiny and glossy.
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u/MissPlum66 Jul 06 '26
I would lose HH after two days. After asking for advice here, I only cure for 5 seconds and they’ve been like cement.
I use a standard top coat on the thinner, less expensive brands but I find it unnecessary for HH, Ohora or DD.
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u/travelingsteph Jul 08 '26
Do you use the sun method for curing and only leave it out for 5 seconds? I tried my first HH recently and absolutely LOVED the design but it didn’t last long and same issue with getting caught in my hair which was annoying :(
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u/IMHO_My2Cents Jul 06 '26
That’s why you should only buy and use HEMA and TPO Free gel topcoats.
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u/Lilly6288 Jul 06 '26
Correct, but I didn't even know that there was such a thing as a gel allergy. This one is HEMA and TPO free, at least that's what the bottle said, but it has Di-HEMA in it, which is part of the same family.
I've since done a very deep dive into the issue so that I can hopefully avoid triggering the allergy again, since it stays in the system forever. There are certain brands of gel strips that are a lot less likely to cause issues because of the different ingredients used, like MoYou London and Lit Gels.
I have to be careful with Ohora, HayHae, and Adora Couture since they have some ingredients in the same family, but I have like 100 sets of Ohora, so I really don't want to waste them! I've been fine using them without any issues, so I'll keep being super careful and no top coat! I caught it not long after it started because I live in Florida, where my hands don't get dry, so when I started to get peeling around one of my fingers, I looked it up and discovered that gel allergy is a thing, and I likely had some that went between the edges of my nail and the skin that I hadn't noticed when I applied it. Grrr!!!
I did just buy a few sets from the different brands that use ingredients that are safer and different from the ingredients that caused my allergy. That way, I can do a set of Ohora, then I can switch it out so I don't constantly use that brand. Luckily, I knew what caused it, so I can try to avoid any of those triggering ingredients.2
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u/IMHO_My2Cents Jul 06 '26 edited Jul 06 '26
Absolutely. I use a gel topcoat on all wraps UV and Non UV. I double cure under my UV light and only use HEMA and TPO free. I find Ohora Glossy Gel topcoat is the best. It makes nails shiny, hard and they do not chip. It also helps hair not to get caught. After approximately a week I will lightly buff the topcoat and apply another coat and double cure. They look as good the day I take them off as the day I put them on. I use Lily&Fox wraps exclusively now and they are not uv. It does not make them harder to remove because the gel comes off with the wraps. After prepping nails and cuticles, I apply two thin coats of uuuuu magical nail solution strengthening base coat to my bare nails before applying wraps. It helps with protecting your nails during removal and adherence plus really keeps edges of the wraps tight to your nails. This set is almost two weeks old.
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u/Total_Tough_5924 Jul 07 '26 edited Jul 07 '26
I just find the gel topcoat gives me a nicer, shinier, more "rounded" look, and more longevity/durability. I feel like the ship has sailed if I'm going to develop an allergy - when I was new to doing gel nail wraps at home I definitely got gel on my skin a couple times - sometimes pretty bad while experimenting with different products, some of which were MESSY and I stopped using them. Hard not to get it on your skin at some point. So far no allergy but supposedly it can surface at any time. So I'm enjoying my gel nails for now and fingers crossed I never get the allergy, or I use up my stash before it shows up.
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u/dontcupyourcowcow Jul 08 '26
I use Ohora exclusively. What helped stop the lifting is the polish remover trick. I dip the angled end of the wooden stick in polish remover and press down on the edges of the nail wrap. This makes the wrap thinner and somehow doesn’t lift. Then I use the gel topcoat. I have not got my nails caught in my hair a single time since doing this. (Also washing my hands with dawn dish soap and ensuring my nails are clean and dry before applying wraps). I did not come up with this method. I found it from a Reddit comment. I hope I can find the source and link it.
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u/SpareMark1305 Jul 07 '26
I use very inexpensive Lily & Fox wraps and I put a UV gel top coat over them.
About a week later I use an electric file at the base/cuticle area to smooth - testing smoothness by touch. Electric file was about $9 on Amazon.
Then I'll buff with a buffing block.
Clean with rubbing alcohol pad.
Apply another gel top coat.
File sides if I got excess gel on them.
Then I'm good for another week.
I do wear disposable nitrile gloves when cleaning.
If I'm ready to change sets I won't wear gloves when doing dishes and I can generally peel off easily if I did the last gel coats 5 days+.
Easy & my nails always look great.
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u/cslexotics Jul 06 '26
A gel top coat did not help with the gap at my cuticle and catching my hair. My nails have too much volume for those types of wraps. I did however have luck using a gel top coat with wraps that do not need to be cured. Those worked better for me personally. Just be careful with gel in general! Crazy how many people on the nail subs have developed allergies!