Review on 💅 Gel Nail Polish Conversion Kit - Transform Regular Nail Polish into Gel Color, Ultimate Gel Nail Polish Set, Chip-Free Formula for Long-lasting Gel Nails, Basecoat & Topcoat Soak Off, UV Light LED Lamp by Scott Adaymiln

(UPDATE 12/8/17: The glass dropper has detached from the bulb handle! At this point I can still fish it out and put it back on top to keep it working, but I'm very annoyed that with such an expensive product the bottle just falls apart like that so I'm downgrading from 4 stars to 3 stars because I have at least half a bottle left and I don't know if I'll even be able to use it much longer, if I don't buy an eyedropper. Please make better packaging Hydracol.) Bought so I don't waste all my regular polishes now that I'm doing gel nails at home. I mixed equal drops of transformer with equal drops of varnish (in my case a rich berry color this time) in an old plastic lid for a product. You really need a small area to fit it in, like a cap or a cheap Walmart paint palette, or it will spill all over the place and you'll waste time scraping off enough to apply it to your nail. I applied Gelish Base Coat to both hands. and cured them first before mixing the hydracol and polish as I heard it dries and gets sticky pretty quickly. These reviewers weren't kidding. I can't say it was ever very difficult to work with because I'm an artist used to variable color, but I found it a little odd that the mix could be streaky and too thick at the same time (and I mixed it up pretty well with my buffing brush!) and all of a sudden it gets really sticky. This reduces the saturation of the color a bit, but that's to be expected since you're mixing clear glass with tempered glass. I've gone from a dark berry purple to a classic dark red and I'm not sure how it will work with a lighter polish, but it still did a good job of self-leveling like the best polishes. On a positive note I was able to apply fairly thin coats so I didn't have a very thick coat on my nail so I think this polish would be something you could create for a nice opaque coat. I think mine could be perfect with one more layer. I was too impatient so like most gel polishes I only applied two coats. I have an LED flashlight and wasn't entirely sure if it would cure like a gel, so I spent too much time (about three minutes per hand) and it cured well with a top coat of Gelish. A plus is that it's not as smooth as regular gel polish so you don't have to rush to cure before the polish slides onto the side skin and cuticles, which I experience sometimes. You can see in the photos it looks a little striped and uneven at some angles but looks fine at others. I may have to experiment with the mix ratio or just settle for three coats. Overall I'm very happy with it. A bit pricey but doesn't seem like much (did two coats of about 5 drops) and it's nice to have color options without wasting what I have. The packaging could be better as it's too easy to spoil the dropper by pulling it in and out. Also, don't forget to rinse your paint brush in a small amount of acetone when you're done, otherwise I think this stuff will ruin your brush. Mine got pretty harsh towards the end but washed off well. Also, I wasn't sure about the color once it was all applied and cured, so I applied my regular glitter top coat on top, but hated when I applied it. I removed the shiny layer with non-acetone varnish and my cured gel didn't affect it, it's still shiny and strong. The nails look amazing, no chips, nice and shiny. I can update in a week. UPDATE: I've been using this for a few weeks now with some success. - Pros: It's obviously nice to be able to use all the regular polishes I already had. this will surely extend their lifespan. than if I paint them without gel. I made a "gel sandwich" but it's really annoying to wait for regular nail polish to dry before putting a gel top coat on top. Also, it cures in about the same time as any other gel polish so I don't have to spend extra time under a lamp like I tried the first time. ratio, coat thickness, lamp time, layers, brands) I can still only go about a week with this mix before I start seeing chipping around the edges of my nails or big chipping on the ends. Admittedly, I have VERY strict hands, but using my Gelish colors (and the same base and top coats as the Hydracol mix) I can go almost two weeks without chipping. So, I guess the bottom line is if you don't mind changing your nail polish weekly (and I do, I love fun colors) this product will do the job of making your regular nail polish last longer and have a nice shine to have. If you're looking for durability, even at home it doesn't hold up as well as a gel manicure. I'm not really surprised since you're mixing a product (regular polish) that weakens the gel's adhesion, so that's to be expected. I'm sticking with 4 stars because they haven't really improved it enough to put it on par with real gel polishes yet. As for the photos, my first try with red was Sinful Colors, my last was OPI in nude and Sally Hansen in light pink.