Chrome nails come down to one sequence: base, colour, cure, a no-wipe layer, then chrome powder, rubbed in while that...
Hard gel and builder gel are not the same thing, though they both cure under UV or LED light and...
Clear builder gel keeps the natural nail visible while coloured builder gel finishes the job with pigment already built in....
A base coat protects the natural nail, helps polish grip properly, and stops colour staining the nail plate underneath. That still doesn't explain why so many manicures chip within days even when the client swears they used one. Nine times out of ten it's not a skipped step. It's the wrong base coat for the job.
The single thing that makes gel nails last is prep. Not the brand, not the lamp, not the colour. Everything that determines whether your manicure holds for three weeks or lifts by day eight happens in the ten minutes before you open the bottle, in steps most people skip.
The two services generating the most consistent client demand in Ireland right now are gel polish and BIAB. If you build your starter kit around those two and nothing else, you have a full working service menu.
To remove gel nail paint, you need to file off the top coat, soak your nails in acetone, and gently push the softened gel away with a cuticle pusher. What most guides skip is why so many people end up with thin, weak, or peeling nails afterwards, and it almost never comes down to the gel itself.
BIAB lasts three to four weeks with professional application and consistent aftercare. That is the answer you came here for. But that range tells you almost nothing about why your last set lifted at ten days or why your client's holds perfectly for a month, and the difference between those two outcomes comes down to specific things that most nail technicians know and most clients are never told.
