Depend: GelLack In-Home Gel Nail System [Sponsored Review]

Hey ladies!

Say goodbye to smudged polishes, poorly dried nails and dainty fingers with Depend GelLack In-Home Gel Nail System!

A month ago, I received a series of this new gel nails innovation to put to test and they are:

Depend GelLack Obligatory Start Kit
Sweden’s No. 1 best-selling cosmetic brand Depend has been launched in Singapore with its very own in-home GelLack system!

New generation nail polish that cures under an LED lamp, to give you a polish that lasts for 2-3 weeks. The LED lamp is easy to use and comes equipped with a timer– It both strengthens and dries the nails within minutes, leaving an extremely durable surface.With GelLack, nails are protected and the natural nail quality is improved as there is no need to file the nail surface before applying the product – ensuring minimal or no risks in damaging the natural nails and promoting the growth of strong and thick nails

From Left to Right: Nail File, Orange stick, GelLack BASE (5ml), GelLack TOP (5ml),Before/After Cleanser (35ml) and LED lamp with adapter 

Depend GelLack Colour
The GelLack Colour range provides 30 beautiful shades for nail polish addicts to choose from, which evens out on its own upon curing under the LED lamp to achieve a smooth, ridgeless look.

Depend GelLack Remover Oil
Traditional removal method of gelish polish requires a nail wrap and a soak-off with pure acetone, which is drying to nails and skin. After which, the gel will need to be buffed off and this causes damaged and thinning nails.

With the GelLack system, removal begins with a simple massage of the moisturising GelLack Removal Oil onto the nails. Thereafter, nails are soaked in warm water (40°C) for a few minutes. The gel nail can then be easily removed with an orange stick, with no damage done to the nail surface.

What caught my interest about this Nail System Kit:

1. It's Gel, which means that once it's cured~ It's dry. No polish smudges, no hair/ fabric imprint, no dainty fingers in the air!
2. Oh! And its lamp is LED, not UV. So no worries about the side effects of UV Rays!
3. It doesn't require any buffing for the application. Enuff Said.
4. The removal process requires just warm water and Depend GelLack Remover Oil, which is something very different from other Gel polish brands that I know of and used.

STEPS OF APPLICATION

1. It's always good to start with groomed nails, so trim your nails and push those cuticles back. Here, I used this cuticle removal pen that sloughs away the dead skin around the nails.
2. Apply Depend GelLack Before/After Cleanser on a cotton wool ball and clean your nails carefully. Allow the nails to dry for about 30 seconds. 
3. Apply a thin layer of Depend GelLack BASE. Harden under the LED lamp for 30 seconds.
4. Apply a thin coat of Depend GelLack colour. Harden under the LED lamp for 30 seconds. Repeat the previous step until you achieve the outcome you want, I did 3 layers with the polish shade of Romantic Pink.
5. To finish the whole look, apply a thin layer of Depend GelLack TOP and harden under the LED lamp for 30 seconds.
6. Now the surface of the nail will be slightly sticky, so apply Depend GelLack Before/After Cleanser on a cotton wool ball and clean the top finish to bring out the gorgeous sheen of the GelLack.

STEPS OF REMOVAL

1. Massage GelLack Removal Oil onto the nails.
2. Dip your nails into warm water that is about 40°C for a duration of 3-5 mins.
3. Then, take an orange stick or simply use your nails to peel off the nail polish.

VERDICT ON APPLICATION

Texture Of Polish: Like normal gel polish, goes on easily and smoothly

Scent: Plastic-like scent

Ingredients:

Polishes- Di-Hema Trimethylhexyl Dicarbamate, Phosphine Oxide, Urethane Acrylates, HEMA, Hydroxycyclonexyl Phenyl ketone.

Cleanser- Alcohol Denat, Aqua, Isopropyl Alcohol

Removal Oil- Ricinus Communis Seed Oil, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil, Brassica Napus Seed Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii Seed Oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract, Tocopherol

Benefits:

• Easy and inexpensive way to achieve salon-perfect nails right at home
• Easier to apply and longer lasting than regular nail polish
• Unique removal process ensures a fuss-free and healthier nail experience

Cost: Depend GelLack Obligatory Start Kit, S$ 99.00

GelLack Colour, S$ 13.50 each

GelLack Removal Oil, S$ 6.90

Product Rating: 7.5/10

I love the ease of application, it was really easy and I could have manicured nails in 30mins. And I am talking about nails that are completely "dried" and ready for a world of zips, sharp objects and knocks. After my first experience with the polish, I really felt like it was the best!

I love the shade of Romantic Pink, it made me feel very posh and lady-like. The only downside of it is that it's a pretty sheer shade so I needed to apply more layers of it to achieve the kind of results I wanted.

However, when it comes to the removal process... this is where lots of the points got deducted.

The removal process itself is very interesting, GelLack Removal Oil is made up of really moisturizing ingredients. Full of varies sort of oils like sunflower and shea butter, it really is just using oil to remove the polish. And it is recommended to remove the polish after at least 3 weeks for the removal process to be easier. 

The steps are easy to follow, and I removed my polishes at 2 different intervals to test the removal process out. I removed the polish on 1 hand, 1 week after application and the other 3 weeks later. The major drawback I have with the removal process is when dip your nails into the warm water.

For some reason, with the oil rubbed into the nails, the temperature of the water feels way~ hotter than what it really is. I think it's the chemical reaction. The sensation feels like I am boiling the tips of my finger. It's almost impossible to soak the nails for 3-5mins with ease.

A trick I use here is to submerge just the surface of the nails in the water as supposed to dipping the whole finger.

Removal After 1 week:

Left: 1 week, more damage to nail surface.
Right: 3 weeks, less damage.

• Duration of removal- 50mins
• Felt like my nails were being boiled
• Had to repeat process 3 times for most nails, to remove the polish
• Peeled off quite a bit of my nail surface in the process
• Cuticle stick got blunt after 1 nail, resorted to using metal scraper and nails to peel polish off.

Removal After 3 weeks:

• Duration of removal- 45mins
• Felt like my nails were being boiled
• Had to repeat process 3 times for most nails to remove the polish too
• Peeled off lesser nail surface in the process compared to 1 week removal
• Used cuticle stick and nails to peel polish off.

The duration of the removal process and the fact that my nails felt like it was being boiled during the dipping process were major put-off for me. Secondly, while the cuticle stick does do lesser damage compared to the metal scraper, it doesn't last long. So I end up using my nails to scrap and peel the polish off, but by the end of it, I got a chipped nail from trying to remove the polish.

I also found that my nails looked very ugly with the uneven surface after removal, so I had to buff them even.

Overall, I think this product is great if you hardly do much to your nails and you like the quick fast salon-like results. However, do take note that you will have to leave it on for 3 weeks to have a easier, less damaging removal process.

I would also recommend leaving your nails alone for a minimum of 1 week after removal to let your nails "breathe" and to apply something nourishing like Locycare Nail Gel daily.

That's all for my review!

If you have tried this product before, do let me know how's your removal process!