Gel nails were introduced to the beauty market back in the 1980s as traditional gels which were hard gels. As time went on, new variations were introduced that were weakened formulas of hard gels known as soft gels and gel polishes.

Hard gels are for those who are looking to extend the length of their nails or keep their long, natural nails. They cannot be soaked off and are cured to a non-porous finish (this means that acetone and other solvents won’t get into them which in turn makes them last longer than regular nail polish). 

During application, hard gels use a bonder that has to be put down (e.g, a protein bond) and a base coat that is applied before the hard gel. Next, a builder which builds the artificial nail and lastly a clear top coat is applied to give a glossy finish to end on.  The curing process consists of placing the polished nails underneath a UV lamp for a few minutes. The removal process requires the hard gel being filed off as it cannot be soaked off.