Fuse Gelnamel by Sensationail

Hello everyone! I've got a nail review for you today.

This past week I purchased the new Fuse Gelnamel starter kit by Sensationail after watching a YouTuber talk about it in a video. This new 'fusion' of regular nail enamel and gel enamel really intrigued me, as it claims to not be as damaging to your natural nails. I've never worn fake nails or gel nails due to the damage it can cause, so I thought this would be a good product in this realm to try.

This product claims to last longer than regular nail enamel, although it doesn't give an exact time range, and doesn't chip or crack or require a base or top coat. It cures each nail in 30 seconds when using the LED light that is included in the kit, and each kit contains everything you need for a gelnamel manicure.

This is the exact kit I purchased, and it contains the LED lamp, a gelnamel polish (I got the color sonic blue-m), cleanser, a double sided buffing stick, a cuticle stick, and cotton sheets for applying the cleanser to your nails. I purchased this kit at Wal-Mart for about $25, which is about $5 cheaper than buying directly from the Sensationail site. I also purchased a second nail color, because I wanted a more wearable color, even though I like the blue. I got watt's your color, which was about $7 compared to $10 at the Sensationail site.

Watt's Your Color

The LED lamp works off of a USB, so it can be charged at your computer (or at a wall, it comes with an adapter) and once it's charged it can be used wirelessly, which I find very convenient. The instruction sheet says to push back your cuticle, buff your nail (it was very clear that each nail be entirely completed before moving on to the next), wipe it with the cleanser, apply one thin coat of the gelnamel, remove any excess that might have gotten onto your finger (I used the cuticle stick), place your finger into the lamp resting on the groove, and press the button. The lamp turns off automatically after 30 seconds. After the light turns off, wipe your polished nail with the cleanser and boom, you're done. Sounds really simple right? Well, kind of.

After reading the instructions and following them to a T, I found that the polish didn't seem to be completely set after 30 seconds, and when you wiped it with the cleanser some of the polish came off onto the cloth, causing the color to be faded at the tips and making the overall color very dull. I was not happy AT ALL. After doing a couple nails and being disappointed in the results, I went back to the instructions and saw there was a 'troubleshooting' (if you will) type of guide in the little booklet. It said that it was okay to do one more coat of polish just as long as each coat was cured separately, and that after wiping the finished nail with the cleanser the shine would be diminished, but would return over time.

After applying two coats and cleansing each nail, the color was more vibrant and the shine did return (it became almost wet looking when I woke up the next morning). I was fairly satisfied with the results, although it was much more time consuming than the product claims. If you do the math, it was 30 seconds per coat, per nail. With two coats and ten nails, that was one minute per finger, so ten minutes just sitting with my finger in the lamp, not to mention carefully cleaning the excess from each nail and buffing. I think the whole process took me about 30 minutes. It was worth it, I suppose, because I was able to go right to sleep afterwards since they were dry, and YES, they passed the sheet test. No annoying wrinkles in my enamel after sleeping that night.

I did this on Wednesday night, and today being Friday, they still look really fresh. I've done lots of dishes, cleaning, and banging my nails off of stuff (accidentally, of course) these past couple of days and they still look good. I'll be curious to see how well they fair throughout the next week, because I usually get a shattering effect in my nail polish after the first few days (not cute). I'll be sure to post an update later next week.

Here they are today.

The instructions for removal say to use 100% acetone or the Sensationail Gel Remover Kit. I'm not sure which I'll end up using, but I'll be sure to update you on that as well. They only offer 12 colors in this formula, which is kind of a bummer, but hopefully they'll release more if it gains enough popularity (hint hint, go buy some).

The colors they have currently.

Overall I'm fairly happy with this purchase. It didn't break the bank and it seems to be holding up fairly well. If it keeps up this way I'll definitely be purchasing some more colors (I'm eyeballing the silver glitter one in lights, camera, re-action!). I think this will be a good product for my toes, which I don't paint very often, since it lasts so long. Did I mention the light swivels around so you can use it for your toes? Awesome, right?

xoxo,
Caitlin.

UPDATE

It is now Monday, and I've had this enamel on for almost a week. At this point, with typical nail polish, I'd have multiple chips and 'shattering' (cracking without actually breaking off). I have had one nail that has chipped, my index finger on my left hand. I smacked it off of my desk on Friday, and as a result a portion came off. Luckily, my nail didn't break, just a part of the polish. I was able to reapply the enamel to that portion of the nail and cure it under the LED lamp and boom, fixed. There doesn't seem to be any wear to the edges, and overall it looks about the same as the first day I applied it. I am very pleased, and will most likely use this gelnamel when I want a longer lasting manicure, which is pretty much all the time.

xoxo,

Caitlin