Ruby Cateye Florals ❤️ | Polygel Nail Tutorial | Beginner Friendly | Step-By-Step

Hey everyone! Welcome back to my channel. Today I'm back with another nail design. This is the inspiration picture I'll be recreating. I'll have the original creator credited on the screen. I found this design on Instagram. Before we jump into the new set, I'm going to remove my previous nail set using the One Kill Remover Serum. This is part of the Jello Jello Peel Off Base Set which comes with both the Peel Off Base Coat and the Remover Serum. I'm just applying the Remover Serum around the cuticle area and letting it sit for about a minute. After that, I'll gently start lifting the extensions, just enough to create a small opening and expose more of my natural nail. Sometimes the extensions are ready to pop off right there and you'll know because they'll just come off with no effort. Just make sure to never force them off. For any nails that are still holding on, I'll apply another round of the Remover Serum so it can penetrate further underneath the extension. Then I'll let that sit for about 10 minutes or longer if needed before gently peeling away the rest of the nails. I really love this product because there's no soaking required. You can wear your nails for up to three weeks. I've personally worn a set for that long using the Jello Jello Peel Off Base and when you're ready for a new design, you can just remove your extensions whenever you want. Whether that's after a few days or a week or like the full three weeks, it's completely up to you. So this is a great option if you don't enjoy soaking off your nails, if you like changing your nail designs frequently, or if you're practicing nail art on yourself and only want to wear a set temporarily. It's definitely a product I think worth investing in. As always, I'll link it in the description box down below if you're interested. Without further ado, let's get started on today's polygel nail set. First, I'm going to soften my cuticles using the Sally Hansen Instant Cuticle Remover. This step is also known as wet nail prep. I'm just applying it around the cuticle area, letting it sit for about 10 seconds. Then I'll take a metal cuticle pusher and gently push back the cuticles to remove any dead skin that's stuck on the nail plate. I like to do this entire process within about a minute before washing everything off with soap and water. Once my hands are clean, I like to trim away any excess cuticle. This step is completely optional, but I find it gives a cleaner, more polished finish. Just be sure to only clip loose dead skin that's necessary and avoid over trimming. Next, I'm going to shorten my nails so that they don't peek out from underneath the extensions. After clipping them, I'll smooth out any rough or jagged edges using a glass nail file. I personally prefer a glass file over a traditional hand file because it's a little bit more gentle on my natural nails. For this set, I'll be using these half cover nail tips. I'm just going to size each one from sidewall to sidewall, making sure they fit comfortably without pinching or being too wide. You want them to sit nicely against the natural nail. Unfortunately, I'm not sure where I bought these tips from, so I won't be able to link them in the description like I normally do. I think I may have picked them up from Amazon or Shein a while ago. If you're looking for something similar, try searching up for long almond half cover nail tips or long stiletto half cover nail tips, and you should find plenty of comparable options. Once all my tips are sized out, I'll just set them aside and lightly buff the surface of my natural nails with a buffing block to remove the shine. You can also use an e- file with a sanding band at a low speed of around 5,000 rpm to speed up the process, but I prefer using a buffing block because it's a little bit more gentle on my natural nails, especially since I'm constantly doing them. After that, I'll dehydrate my nails using the Protein Prep Vitamin Dehydrator from Sweetie Nail Supply. I just apply a thin layer and let it air dry for a few seconds until it fully evaporates. Then, I'll follow up with Young Nails Protein Bond, which is one of my favorite nail primers. I'll apply a thin coat to each nail and let it air dry for about two minutes. There's no need to cure it, and once it's dry, we're ready for the next step. Next, I'm going to apply my peel-off base coat. This is the Jello Jello peel-off base coat that I mentioned earlier in the beginning of the video. If you don't want to use a peel-off base coat, you can absolutely skip this step and simply adhere the nail tips using air dry nail glue after you've finished sizing them out, but since I'd like to be able to remove my sets easily without soaking them off, I'm going to use a peel-off base coat instead. I'll also have a step-by-step down below in the description box for those who are going to do their nails without a peel-off base. I like to apply two thin coats, curing in between each coat for 60 seconds. Now, it's time to attach the extensions. I pulled out my Since I'm using a peel-off base gel, I need to adhere the tips with a gel product instead of air dry nail glue. You can use either the same peel-off base coat you used initially or a regular gel base coat. Both work well for this step. I'm just applying a small amount of the gel inside the tip of the nail, placing it onto my natural nail, making sure that there are no air bubbles, and then flash curing it underneath my lamp for about 15 seconds. I'll repeat that process for each nail, and once all the tips are secured, I'll do a full cure for around 60 seconds. Again, if you're not using a peel-off base coat, you can simply attach your nail tips with an air dry nail glue either before or after applying your primer. Once the tips are on, I'm going to shorten them a little bit with my nail clippers because I don't want them to be quite this long, and I'll just reshape them into this long almond shape until they look something like this, and I'll just repeat that same process on all of my nails. Next, I'm using my e-file at around 8,000 rpm with a 240 grit small sanding band. I'm lightly blending where the extension meets my natural nail while also roughening up the surface of the extension. This gives the polygel a better surface to adhere and also helps improve overall retention, and I'll continue to repeat this process on each nail. At this point, simply dusting off the nails doesn't work really well because the peel-off base gel leaves a sticky inhibition layer, so instead I like to take a lint-free wipe saturated with rubbing alcohol to remove all the dust before moving on. Now, I'm taking the McCartt base gel and applying a thin layer over both my natural nail and the extension, and I'll just cure that for 60 seconds. For this set, I'll be using Wispy Peach Polygel from Doper Than Your Nails. I absolutely love this shade and this formula, and I'll also be using their polygel brush as well. It's a large hybrid gel brush, and I really enjoy working with it. I'll have both of these linked in the description box down below if you want to check them out. They're a small business, and I love supporting them. I'm also pouring 70% isopropyl alcohol into my dampen dish. This is what I'll be using to keep my brush saturated throughout the entire process. I like to fully saturate my brush in the alcohol first and then wipe off the excess by dragging it along the side of the dish, and after that, I'll lightly dab it onto a lint-free wipe to remove just a little bit more liquid, and this gives me the perfect amount of moisture in my brush each time. Not too wet and not too dry. Now it's time to apply the polygel. I'm placing my first bead around the free edge of my natural nail and squeezing the product all the way down to the very tip of my extension, but as I move towards the tip, I'm gradually releasing pressure on the tube so that less product comes out. Since these are almond-shaped nails and they taper towards the end, they naturally need less product at the tip than they do throughout the center of the nail, so I like to keep the bulk of my bead right around the free edge of my natural nail. This gives you the thickness where you need it most and also helps minimize product waste. I'm going to gently pat down the polygel into place using the body of my brush. I'm not dragging the product around, I'm just lightly tapping it until it's evenly distributed from sidewall to sidewall while keeping my brush well saturated the entire time. Once everything is nice and even, I'll begin blending the product towards the cuticle area, still leaving a small gap for the cuticle bead. I'm simply flattening out that section before dragging any excess product down towards the tip. If I have more product than I need, I'll pull it to the free edge and trim away any excess, and once I'm happy with the shape, I'll cure that first bead for around 90 seconds before moving on to the cuticle bead. For the cuticle bead, I'm using a pea-sized amount of polygel. I'll place it near the cuticle with my spatula, rehydrate my brush, and then begin patting it in place. Just like before, I'm distributing the product from sidewall to sidewall, but this time I'm also angling my brush so that I carefully tuck the polygel close to the cuticle and the sidewalls without disrupting the apex I've already created. I'll put a graphic on the screen here to kind of show you guys the shape I'm going for. The apex is one of the most important parts of the nail structure because it's what gives the enhancement strength and also helps prevent breakage over time. If you're creating shorter nails, you don't need much of an apex, but for longer nails like these, having proper structure is essential. I'll be repeating this same process on each nail. Just remember to keep your brush hydrated throughout the application. If you notice the polygel starting to stick to your brush, simply dip it back into the alcohol, remove the excess, and continue working. Now I'll let the music play while you guys watch the rest of the application. Now that everything is fully cured, I'm going to remove the sticky inhibition layer using some acetone, and this is what my nails look like before any filing or shaping. Now it's time for the shaping. I'm setting my e-file to around 22,000 rpm. Personally, I find anywhere between 20,000 and 25,000 rpm works really well for debulking. I don't usually go much higher than that. If I were filing using my non-dominant hand, I'd probably lower the speed a little bit since it's naturally less stable, but for now, I'm just going to go at 22,000. Using a 180 grit sanding band, I'm going to remove the excess bulk from my nails. I like to work in smooth back and forth motions, moving up and down the nail until I'm happy with the overall thickness and shape, and once I'm finished debulking, I'll lower my e-file speed to around 8,000 rpm or even a little slower and use the same sanding band to refine the cuticle area. The goal is to seal the product nicely around the cuticle by thinning that edge until it blends flush with the natural nail, creating a smooth transition. One tip I always recommend is keeping your e-file parallel to your natural nail. It just gives you more control and it'll prevent creating rings of fire. After repeating that on all of my nails, I'll switch to an 80 grit hand file to further refine the shape. Next, I'll grab my buffing block. I like to start with the coarser side to smooth out any remaining unevenness and refine the structure just a little bit more. Then, I'll flip it over to the finer grit side to remove any of the filing marks, leaving the surface nice and smooth for gel application. Once I'm done filing, I'll wash my hands with soap and water, then come back in with some rubbing alcohol to cleanse the nails and remove any remaining dust, oils, or debris. Now we can finally move on to the fun part, which is the design. I pulled out two cat eye gels that I thought would work really well for this set. The first one is this gorgeous red cat eye gel from Yogurt Nail Korea's Magic Beads Collection. It's super sparkly and closely matches the The second option is this beautiful mauve pink cat eye gel from their Sunshine Collection, with the prettiest gold shimmer running through it. As tempting as the mauve shade was, I decided to stick with the red today, so I'm gonna pick up a 25 millimeter liner brush to paint my french tips. First, I'll just put some of that cat eye gel polish onto my glass palette and fully saturate the bristles of my liner brush with the gel. To create the french tip, I start by painting the smile line where I want it to begin, then I create a small V going down the center of my nail and connecting those lines on each side. This is my favorite way to paint a french because it gives me a nice symmetrical smile line every single time. I believe it's called the V method and it's never let me down. Once I'm happy with my outline, I'll fill in the rest of my french tip using the brush from the gel polish bottle, then I'll go back in with my liner brush to lightly perfect the edges before magnetizing the cat eye gel. For this set, I decided to magnetize all of the cat eye shimmer towards the center of the nail. I slowly work the magnet from side to side on both sides of my nail until I like how the effect looked. Of course, you can magnetize this however you'd like. I think pulling the shimmer to one side would also look really pretty too, and I'll just repeat the same process on each nail. Create the smile line, paint the V down the center, connect the lines, fill everything in, refine the edges, and then magnetize the gel. I always apply two coats of cat eye gel because it really enhances the overall look. So for the second coat, I focus the polish on the french tip again and lightly blend it slightly higher along the sides without bringing it all the way up to the sidewalls. Then I'll just magnetize it one more time. The second coat not only makes the shimmer stand out even more, but it also deepens the color and gives the design a lot more dimension. Just make sure that you're curing each coat separately and always cure immediately after magnetizing. Otherwise, the magnetic particles can shift before the gel sets. Before applying my matte top coat, I like to wipe away any leftover cat eye gel around my nails. This just helps prevent transfer of any pigment into my matte top coat. But for my matte top coat, I'm using the matte gel from Doi. It's one of my absolute favorites. I'll apply an even layer over every nail, making sure to completely cover the entire surface. Then cure for around 60 seconds. After curing, I'll lightly buff the surface with a buffing block. Using both a matte top coat and doing a gentle buff creates the perfect base for chrome because it helps prevent the chrome powder from sticking anywhere you don't want it to. Just don't forget to wipe away any of the dust with some rubbing alcohol before moving on to the next step. Now it's time for the chrome details. For my 3D line work, I'm using the GinBee Crazy Thick Top Gel. I'll disperse some onto my glass palette along with a small amount of black gel polish from Madame Glam. I just like to tint my gel slightly so it enhances the gold effect. And also you guys will be able to see exactly where I'm placing my lines. For the application, I'm using a 12 millimeter liner brush that I've trimmed down mostly by cutting off some of the bristles. This gives me an ultra fine tip which is also perfect for creating thin raised lines. One thing I really like about this design is that the 3D lines don't have to be perfectly precise. If you're a beginner watching this, this is probably a great design for you to try because those wavy 3D lines aren't too hard to recreate. Even if your lines aren't perfectly symmetrical, they'll still look intentional once everything comes together. So as I'm working, I'm creating slightly different wavy patterns on each nail. I still keep the overall design similar to the inspiration picture because that's just what I do on my channel. But if you're recreating this set for yourself, feel free to get creative and make your own patterns as well. After finishing each nail, I flash cure it for about five seconds to lock the design in place before moving on to the next. And once all of my line work is finished, I'll cure everything for about 10 seconds before moving on to the chrome. For the chrome, I'm using this gold chrome powder from McCart. Using a sponge applicator, I'll generously rub the chrome all over my cured 3D lines, making sure every raised detail is completely coated. Then I'll use the clean side of my sponge to gently remove any excess chrome powder. And it's time to create the 3D flowers. So for these, I'm using the McCart 4-in-1 Glux Gel in white. I like to scoop out a generous amount onto my palette, roll it out into a log, and then cut it up into small pieces. I made a few different sizes here, but looking back, I actually preferred making them into the smaller size. Smaller pieces are much easier to shape and tend to create more cleaner and delicate flowers, so that's what I'd recommend doing. To make each flower, I placed three small pieces onto my thumb and I gently press each one into a petal using my silicone tool, keeping most of the pressure in the center of the petal. If you notice that the gel is starting to stick to your silicone tool, all you need to do is put a little bit of rubbing alcohol on your tool and it'll stop sticking completely. Once the petals are flattened, I like to use the pointed tip of my silicone tool to gently drag and thin out each petal to give it more of that pointed shape. Then I'll use the angled edge of my tool to sharpen and clean up the sides. And as a final touch, I lightly press into the center where the petals meet and this just helps the flower sit a little bit flatter and gives it a more realistic shape instead of looking completely dented in the center. Once I'm happy with the flower, I'll flash cure it for about 10 seconds before moving on to the next one. And once all your flowers are complete, do a full cure for 90 seconds. Now I'm going to add a little bit of color to the center of my flowers. I have some caviar beads ready to go in my little heart-shaped tray, but before those I'm just gonna take this pink eyeshadow and gently press it into the center of each flower with a firm eyeshadow brush. You could also use gel polish if you prefer. There's no need to apply anything before applying the eyeshadow because the flowers still have that tacky surface, so the pigment sticks really well on its own. I'm going to take a small amount of the GinBead Crazy Thick Top Gel and placing a dot in the center of each flower. Then I'm going to pick up my caviar beads and place them into the gel. For the larger flowers, I used about five to six caviar beads and for the smaller flowers, I used around three. And once they were all in place, I cured them right away so that they don't have a chance to shift. After that, I'll do one final 60-second cure before sealing everything in with top coat. For my final top coat, I'm using this newer one from McCart. It's such a great budget-friendly option. It gives the nails a beautiful glass-like shine. It's non-yellowing and I found that the shine really lasts a long time. If you haven't tried this one already, I definitely recommend giving it a try and I'll have it linked down below along with everything else I used in this video. Lastly, I'm going to rehydrate my nails using some Lemon Cookie Cuticle Oil just to rehydrate the surrounding skin and finish off the set. And here are the finished nails! I absolutely love how this design turned out. The red cat eye French tips, the gold chrome, and the 3D flowers all come together to create such a beautiful, unique look. I love how it has so much dimension while also feeling soft and elegant. Let me know what you guys think of this set and as always, don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe if you enjoyed today's video and I'll see you guys in my next one. Bye!