Video #615: If you want to try the Madam Glam UV Gel for yourself, there is a 30% discount coupon posted just under the video below.
Topics Covered In This Video:
- I have used UV Resin in the past, and you probably have seen my pink UV Lamp sitting in the background of many of the previous videos.
- Many of you have requested that I test out some UV Nail Gel on polymer clay.
- So when Madam Glam contacted me and offered to send some of their UV Nail Gel Polish, I said, “Sure!” since I had been dying to try it on my own nails and on polymer clay as well.
- I am terrible with regular nail polish! It chips all the time since I am so rough with my hands. And I am so fidgety that I can’t even get it set in time before I have already smudged it.
- My hope was for this Madam Glam UV Gel to be compatible with polymer clay so that I could do some nailart with it… but I also wanted to see if there was a nail polish that would finally work for me… and it does!
- Applying this nail polish product is accomplished in three steps.
- First you lay on the base coat. Then add color. And finally brush on a top coat.
- All of UV Nail Gels set with a UV Lamp (which I have) or with an LED Light meant for curing nail gel (which I currently have not tried).
- You apply each layer separately, using the UV Lamp to cure each step for 2 minutes (or 30 seconds under an LED light).
- In the video, I show one of my hands with freshly done nails using one coat of clear base and two layers of top coat. They look very shiny and pretty.
- I also show my other hand where the polish has been on for 4 weeks. After this lengthy period of time, there is on slight chipping on the tips… and a gap between the polish and the cuticle where the nail has grown out.
- My reason for wearing clear nail polish (no color), is so that my nails won’t be distracting to viewers watching my videos.
- The Madam Glam polish is called a soak-off gel, which means that the polish needs to be soaked with acetone or a commercial nail polish remover, then scraped off the nail. I have found that I really didn’t need to soak the nail first and that scraping did a good enough job in removing the gel polish.
- If the polish has been put on properly, it will take some scraping to get it off. But if you have put it on in a thick gloppy coating, it may peel off all in one step.
- To prep your nails for the Madam Glam UV Nail Polish, you will need to make sure your cuticles are pushed back, and that your nail is clean and filed.
- Rough up the surface of your finger nails with a nail file, and clean with rubbing alcohol to remove dust.
- Don’t shake the bottles because that will introduce bubbles.
- Put a thin coat of the base coat on your nails, making sure to avoid getting any on your cuticles or skin. It is not harmful, but if you do, the product tends to peel off too easily, and it looks sloppy.
- Cure under UV Lamp for 2 minutes (or LED Nail Lamp for 30 seconds). When base coat is cured, wipe with rubbing alcohol to remove sticky residue. Repeat with 2-3 coats of color (if desired), and then 1-2 top coat layers… curing in lamp between each layer and wiping with rubbing alcohol to remove residue.
- The polish should last a week or two before requiring any touch ups.
- Really excited about the potential for this UV Nail Gel to be used with polymer clay, and am planning to do learn (and teach) more about some polymer clay nail art techniques.
- I did some testing to see if the UV Nail Gel would be compatible with polymer clay. Most nail polishes aren’t compatible with polymer. It eats at the surface and becomes sticky, so I wanted to test this one to be sure it would work.
- Happy to say that this Madam Glam UV Polish is in fact compatible with baked and raw polymer clay.
- I coated a baked donut of polymer clay with a base coat and top coat of of UV Gel, and cured it. Then this sample piece was left to sit for more than 4 weeks to see if any adverse reactions would happen.
- By the end of the 4 week test period, the Madam Glam product and the polymer clay looks good and seems tough.
- The only issue I found is that if there are any exposed edges on your piece, the cured gel can be peeled away from the surface quite easily.
- So although the finish appears to be compatible, it won’t be the most durable, unless the entire bead is surrounded in the coating and there aren’t any places where coatings can get peeled off.
- Therefore, it is not well suited for pieces the might get easily scratched. It might be OK as a coating on a pendant or a project that won’t get any wear and tear, but I would not recommend it for a rings or bracelets which tend to see more abuse.
- Using the product on nails is a different situation though, since this is more of a temporary use type thing.
- In the video, I show an example of some of the nail gel that peeled off in one section because I put it on too thick.
- I show an example of a clear plastic false nail where I added a raw polymer clay cane design to it. Started with a layer of the base coat and cured it. Then added a thin raw cane slice to the surface, rolled it out and trimmed around the nail. Then added two coats of top coat, making sure to wrap the gel around the edges of the cane to seal it in. It has been on that nail sample for over 4 weeks with no reactions or peeling.
- The only issue is with the soft clay unearth which makes the surface slightly vulnerable to denting.
- I then showed a more durable sample of a nail blank. It had a layer of base coat… that was then sponged with some colored nail gel… followed by a top coat layer with some thin nail art cane slices… curing with my UV light between each step of course. Finally, a couple more layers of top coat were added to seal in the cane slices. Although I am not crazy about the design of this one, I do like how it worked.
- Lastly, I show an example of a nail done with a raw rainbow cane that was sealed in between layers of UV gel… and then I added a baked cane slice over top of that. This design also needs work, but I am encouraged by the potential of these test results.
- If this product is something that you would like to try yourself, Madam Glam has generously offered a 30% discount coupon that you can use while shopping over at their web site. See below video for the link and the Coupon Code.
- Related Resource: Madam Glam Website… [ 30% Disc Code: YGEL30OFF ]
- Related Article: Fimo Nail Art Using Polymer Cane Slices
- Related Article: Making Polymer Clay Canes For Fingernail Art
- Related Video: Polyslicer Combo Tool For Slicing Nailart Canes
- Related Video: Using a UV Lamp To Cure Resin On Polymer Clay
Do you have any suggestions for videos on tips, techniques or products you would like to learn more about? Let me know in the comments section below!
My goal is to help you to learn quicker and easier ways to bring up the professionalism in your polymer clay art.
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Looking forward to hearing from you!
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Hey There,
This is not remotely urgent I just wanted to share some positive feedback with you. I am very new to this, so new that Santa brought me just this Christmas five packs of Fimo, a range of silicone moulds, some resin, a toaster machine and a pasta machine.
It began around the beginning of last year when on a whim in my late thirties I decided to have my ears pierced because I had recently had my hair cut short, and now you could actually see my ears. I went to the supermarket here in the UK and decided to look at their earrings…thinking, Hell it’s Tesco…they will be cheap as chips. Imagine my surprise when they wanted to charge me £7.00 for what amounted to four plastic beads and some wire.
Take me home Husband! I declared, I am going on EBay…there must be cheaper ways to make earrings. Boy was I right, would I have thought twice if I realised that now I would have several bead boxes and be whining at my husband for a “hobby room”. What for he demanded. No woman needs that MANY beads. Awww bless him and his ignorance.
I have quietly beaded for several months now, I don’t make to sell it’s strictly for my own amusement, and to make unique thoughtful gifts for those I love. After researching I began to want to experiment with polymer clay and resin so that’s why Santa was so nice to me this year. My husband and I are both creatively minded. He’s an architect, I was a commercial artist till the birth of our son. Jack is autistic and finding that the education and medical system treats them with scant regard. I went back to college to study to become an Early Years Teacher specialising in children with special educational and physical needs.
However we both are practical and wanted good tutorials. For several days now we have been combing the internet till we came across yours. There are a lot of others out there, but as my Husband commented some of the things they make…well they are ugly. We both held firm the opinion that not only were the items you made beautiful, they were items we would expect to see in high class boutiques, and if you are going to be taught, well better by someone with skill and taste right. Also we liked how warm and expressive you are on your tutorials. I have to say we both became very angry at some comments on you tube from people who didn’t seem to have any manners at all.
I have since purchased your beginners course. Before we buy anything we feel we would benefit from your expert advice and experience before hand. I just needed to say… thank you. I hope that you don’t become discouraged by the comments and rudeness you get on your you tube videos at times. If you had not of displayed them I wouldn’t have found you, and I dare say there are many others like me.
You are appreciated.
Sarah
Oh Sarah… you made my day! Thanks so much for your kind words of encouragement. You are a wonderful writer and story teller!
It’s feedback like this that makes it so much easier to rise above those Negative-Nelly comments over at YouTube… that, unfortunately, are part of life on the internet.
You are appreciated too Sarah :-)
Cindy…enjoy your vids so much. I have a question and an inquiry. Concerning the UV lite I have one that has a 9 watt bulb in it do I have to cure a longer time in it? Also, I received a Kitchen aid convection oven for Christmas…are you using yours and do you have any tips.
Juanita
Hi Juanita, yes your smaller UV light should work, but I would leave it in for way longer, since there will be way less light getting to the resin to cure it. And with the oven, I absolutely love it! Should have got one years ago!
Being as I live in Tucson, Az, and we have over 300 days of sunshine, I wonder if you can cure your nails in the sun. If so, if will probably cure in 20 min………just a thought………..I would love some feedback. Like Cindy, my nails take a beating. It would be nice to have “pretty hands” ( at age 80, I wonder if that is possible……….teehee)
LOL Patt, I doubt I could ever sit long enough to get my nails cured in sunlight, but perhaps it is possible. I have heard of people being able to cure their UV resin in the sun, but being in rainy British Columbia, I have never even attempted that one!
Greetings!
I am new to polymer clay, but have been doing UV gel nails for a while. I was also never able to keep nail polish on, or grow my nails out at all before gel polish! It is now a little fun thing I can do that is also another creative outlet. I also don’t have horrible low splitting on my nails anymore.
I did see several items that really concerned me if someone reads this post and does no further investigation about gel polish before diving in.
Also I’m wondering how well your nails are doing now, if you are still following the exact same process?
My BFF is terrible about picking her gel polish off, and it really damages her nails…????
There are numerous sources to get full, complete instructions or videos, Chickettes.com or ManicTalons.com are both good.
My instructions:
•Nail prep: push cuticles back, file and shape nails. Wash hands thoroughly, use a nail brush too.
{Do NOT file surface of nail (rough it up), is rarely necessary, makes removal more difficult and thins/damages your nail.}
•Use 90% alcohol or alcohol/acetone blend on a low lint wipe to remove all traces of oil on your nails. (Alcohol/acetone blend is 9 parts alcohol to 1 part acetone. You can cut up Bounty paper towels to make your own low lint wipes) Let nails dry thoroughly.
•Application: unless product instructs otherwise, put very very thin coats of base coat on nails and cure under UV or LED lamp per manufacturer’s instructions for time.
{Keep all gel products off skin as much as possible! Many people develop allergies to gel products after too much exposure! Remove any excess before curing gel.}
•Color: apply in thin coats. Typically 2-3 layers are needed, cure between each layer. Make sure to cap the tips of your nails for longer wear.
With darker colors it is especially important to keep coats thin, or sometimes it won’t fully cure and once again expose you to the chemicals that can cause allergies.
•Top coat: 1-2 coats, thin, capping tips. Most top coats need to have the sticky inhibition layer wiped off after the final cure. You can do this with the low lint wipes and the 90% alcohol only, or the alcohol/acetone blend.
•Finish: wash hands thoroughly to remove traces of chemicals, then apply cuticle oil and lotion.
Enjoy your nails!????
To REMOVE:
•lightly scuff the top surface of the nail with a 120 grit file. Put a drop of cuticle oil on your cuticles, then wrap your nails with 1/2 a cotton ball soaked in 100% pure acetone on the nail, with tinfoil wrapped over that to hold it in place. At the 10 minute mark, check the nail. The gel polish should be lifting/flaking off. If not, continue soaking another 5.
{Avoid scrapping polish off nails as much as possible! This can severely damage the nail plate, because layers of the nail comes off with it! Soak and GENTLY help remaining polish off with orange wood stick. The healthier your nails are, the easier the removals will be, and of course it will be easier to grow them out long & strong.}
•After, wash hands (and moisturize) OR start with new base coat again.
There are several gel polish removal methods on the market. They are all basically the same thing, but some are easier to use than others. Nail Mates are quite popular. I like to use little packets (from China/Ebay)that are pre-soaked in remover. Just open & place over each finger, folding to fit, and wait.
Have fun, it can become very addicting!????
THANK YOU Amy for your fantastic detailed instructions!! They make so much sense. Anything I knew was what I could figure out from the internet, so hearing your expert opinion is excellent. You were right about the process I was doing being hard on my nails. In fact Mine were breaking so I stopped doing them. I will try your methods and see if they are better for my nails. I really like how they work and how long they last, so if I can use it without damaging my nails I am all in! Merry Christmas! Have a wonderful holiday and thanks again for taking the time to share your knowledge with everyone here. I really appreciate it!
Hi Cindy, Haven’t talked to you in a while. I’m not sure if you know or remember that I’m a cosmetology and nail tech instructor but I use and love Madam Glam UV Polishes. One thing I noticed that you did that may have contributed to your UV polish chipping a little even after a long time is your application process. When you put the base coat on and cure it leave it tacky then apply your next coat and cure, leaving it tacky between coats. The only coat you will wipe with alcohol after curing is the final top coat. The tackiness helps each layer adhere to the next. Wiping in between can cause layers to peel off, lift or chip. So if you have some peeling going on with the polymer clay pieces that could be the reason. Jayne Shankle
Thank you Jayne, perhaps I should do more testing on this? Your tips totally make sense. I’ll put it on my list of stuff to run through my PcT Test Lab and see if I end up with different results. Thanks! :)
Hello!
After reading the article and reading about the peeling issue, would you recommend that it could be used to coat the edges of a pendent that had been previously coated in resin top and bottom. The only reason I would do this is to continue the hi-gloss look on the sides. Perhaps, the gloss varnish would be better in the end, but geesh would think that the gel would hold up better. (sigh)
Wendy
I saw a tutorial on making beautiful polymer clay beads using Modelones brand, and being an impressionable person, immediately ordered the product. Now, I can’t find the video — and I gather from your tutorial that you don’t really recommend using the nail gel for wearable clay art. Does that still hold true since you did the Madam Glam tutorial some time ago?
As a newcomer to polymer clay, I’m trying to do a little bit of everything to find my niche, and REALLY appreciate you succinct tutorials. Thanks so much!!!! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Thank you Mary and Merry Christmas to you too! In regards to the UV Nail finishes, there are many kinds out there so it is always best to test, to know whether it will work on polymer clay or not. I haven’t tested Modelones yet, so I don’t have any advice for you on that. But I do know that the Madame Glam, was compatible, but it may peel off in high wear situations. I’d rather use the Ultradome UV Resin instead, because it won’t peel off. But I would test the products you have and see how it goes. Who knows… it may work just fine.