What’s the difference between shellac and UV gel?

You may know the tough, hard-wearing, glossy finish you love as simply “shellac”. But the name, shellac, is actually one of many brand names of nail polish and it’s applied in much the same way as other UV gels including GlazeMe gels.

UV gels (what you might have thought of as shellac) start with a base coat, then a colour coat and top coat, and each coat is cured with a UV lamp for that super tough finish. When it’s time for a refresher, you need pure acetone to remove all UV gels. In fact pure acetone will remove all kinds of nail polish too.

One of the myths you might have heard about UV gels is that you need to file your nails before you apply polish and after you remove it. File the surface, that is, not the tip. There’s absolutely no need to 'rough up' your nails with the equivalent of a wire brush to get the polish to stick. GlazeMe UV gels adhere perfectly well to your natural nail. And they clean up beautifully with pure acetone too.

Now if you’re looking for an authentic finish to restore that antique French sideboard you’ve just inherited, a UV gel mightn’t help much. You’d be after a different kind of shellac.