A more natural gloss with no damage to your nails
A more natural gloss with no damage to your nails
For beautiful nails, you have the choice of Acrylics, Gels, and Shellac®. Acrylics and Gels are ‘artificial nails’ – a strong hard layer is added on top of your natural nail, either matching the shape of your nail or extending it. Although artificial nails are popular, they can damage your natural nails. For this reason, we prefer CND Shellac® – a blend of gel and nail polish. Because Shellac® is like a polish, it can’t be used to extend your nails, but because it is like a gel, it adds durability without damaging your nails. Key features include:
Want to try us?
Skilful application of CND Shellac® requires a lot of practise. Our nail technicians have over 10 years of experience working in 5* resorts, luxurious spas, and high-end salons. Our pricing is as follows:
Shellac® Manicure - £35
Shellac® Pedicure - £35
Shellac® Hands or Toes - £35
Shellac® Hands and Toes - £52
Shellac® Hands Removal - £12
Shellac® Hands Removal and Reapply - £42
Shellac® Toes Removal - £12
Shellac® Toes Removal and Reapply - £42
Shellac® French - £40
Luxury Shellac® Pedicure - £49
Luxury Shellac® Manicure - £49
Feel free to come and have a look around our state of the art facilities before you book. Please contact us to arrange a visit.
Shellac® is the brand name for a patented nail product developed by Creative Nail Design (CND®). Although Shellac® cannot be used to extend your nails, Shellac® nails are durable, chip resistant, and have a natural looking gloss.
Contrary to popular belief, Shellac® does not come from the female lac beetle - The resin secreted by the lac beetle is also called ‘Shellac’ and is used in some nail polishes, but it has nothing to do with CND Shellac®.
In actual fact, Shellac® is a mixture of monomers and photoinitiators, and can be described as a blend of gel and nail polish - It is applied to your natural nails like a polish, but hardened through UV lighting like a gel
Other popular ‘gel-polish’ brands include Gelish, Elite 99, Aimeli, and Gel Len. We only use Shellac® however because we find it gives superior results.
Starting as a fad in the early 1950s, Acrylic nails are ‘artificial nails’ that are very durable, resistant to chips and breaks, and easy to remove at home. They can be made to match the shape of your nail or to extend it.
Acrylic nails are created from a mixture of a liquid monomer and a powdered polymer. The mixture is applied to the surface of your nails where it hardens and forms a strong protective layer. This layer is transparent, so a nail polish is applied for colour.
Gel nails are ‘artificial nails’ that are durable, flexible, chip resistant, and more natural looking than Acrylics. They can be made to match the shape of your nail or to extend it.
Gel nails are similar to Acrylic nails in that a liquid substance (composed of various Oligomers) is spread across the nail. However, just like with Shellac®, this liquid substance requires the use of a UV light to harden.
Gels are brushed onto your nails in three stages: A base coat, a polish colour, and a top coat. Each coat has to be hardened by a UV light for about three minutes.
Acrylics and Gels are a type of ‘artificial nail’. Although they tend to be more robust and last longer than Shellac® (a gel-polish), they have many disadvantages:
Located just outside of the town centre on Kingmoor Road, we are very easy to get to and have lots of free parking space – We’re on the left past Austin Friars School heading towards Rockliffe, or if you’re coming of the bypass on Kingmoor Road (East) roundabout follow the sign for Etterby under the low bridge and we’re ¼ of a mile on the right.
For over 10 years we’ve been providing exceptional beauty treatments for people in Cumbria. Here’s why 1000s of people have chosen VL Aesthetics: