Throughout the pandemic, Korea’s influence on the beauty scene exploded into the mainstream, with K-beauty skincare and cosmetics popping up everywhere from Boots to Net-A-Porter. Now K-nails are here to change your life. If your For You Page is suddenly filled with Korean gel manicures, it's no surprise.
Korean nails can be simply categorised as cute, whether it's syrup nails that replicate a semi-sheer jelly look, aurora nails that change colour depending on the light, or blush nails that create soft colour gradients. 'Korean beauty standards are so high that every gel nail polish has to be perfect - the levelling, the colour, how long it lasts,' says Jiwon Choi the overseas marketing team leader of mayour (a Korean gel nail brand). For her, 'It's a fine art.'
Not only are Korean gel nails pushing for perfection when it comes to the actual manicure, each brand is aiming to be the best in the K-beauty industry. And, in Korea's crowded beauty market, the competition is fierce. Each time one company makes a nail polish, another immediately improves upon it, constantly raising the quality. Striving to keep one step ahead of the rest means creating nail products that don't even exist. For mayour, that focus on innovation is what inspired their syrup gel Wave collection.
The authority of Korean gel nails has also found its way to the UK says Emily Jin, a nail artist in Brighton. Jin's salon, Milly & Jin, uses both UK and Korean gel nail polish, but recently the majority of the nails she paints are deeply Korean-inspired. 'K-pop is getting bigger. K-dramas are getting bigger. People are recognising more Korean nail designs, so even British customers are leaning into the bling.'
Gel Nails But Healthier
Make no mistake, gel nail polish is going to damage your nails - it’s inevitable. But some Korean gel nail polishes can help lessen the stress on your nails and it starts with formulation. Animal testing in Korea is illegal guaranteeing any Korean gel product is cruelty-free, which is not the case in the UK. Many Korean gel nail brands like DVOK, Sweet Candy, and Bevlah are at least ten free; formulated without the ten most common controversial ingredients in nail polish. One of which is formaldehyde, a preservative that has been recognised by the National Cancer Institute as a potential cancer-causing chemical. Formaldehyde, along with ibutyl phthalate, and toluene can also cause contact dermatitis according to dermatologist Janelle Nassim, MD.
During the five years Jin has overseen a nail salon with her mother, she's found that Korean gel nail polishes seldom cause heat spikes - a sometimes painful increase of heat on the nails due to improper application and/or the incorrect UV light setting. The more gel that is applied to the nail, the more heat that is generated by the lamp which can cause heat spikes according to chemist Jim McConnell. A more pigmented product means fewer layers of gel are needed and heat spikes aren't an issue. 'I go to Korea every [year] and I found that Korean gel brands have the colour [with] a much higher pigment than UK brands or even just European brands,' Jin says, 'Even the base coat lasts longer and the top coat is shinier.' Her commitment to a pain-free customer experience means she's finished over 50 pots of JIN.B Crazy Top Gel.
It’s Not Just What’s On the Inside That Counts
On top of advanced formulations, Korean nail brands have established an aesthetic entirely their own. Gone are the white, identical bottles of gel nail polish, and into the light comes delightfully bowed, whimsically colourful, and positively adorable packaging. For Korean gel nail companies, equal attention is paid to making not only their users' hands beautiful, but also their bottles.
It might sound obvious to design gel polish packaging to show the colour of the product inside, but bafflingly it's rarely the case. For Korean gel polish company mayour, user experience is so highly considered that the brand chose to replicate the experience of shopping for a lipstick, with each display stand offering a rainbow of square-end bottles showing the exact colour of each gel polish. Shopping for your next syrup gel just got a lot easier.
How To Get In On The K-Nail Action
If you’re thinking of trying Korean gel polishes, nail artist Jin suggests THINK OF NAIL, mostive, and VERY GOOD NAIL for colours, DGELl for painting (especially for characters), Jin.B and Show Me for cateye, and of course, JIN.B Crazy Top Gel.
Some of my personal favourites are Yogurt Nail Kr.’s Blossom Ending and In The Mood For Love Collection, Nailbayo’s Doi Nudie Syrup Gel, and anything from DVOK, especially their Once in a Summer collection.
Canadian-based nail supply store Sweetie Nail Supplies ships select nail polishes to the UK and individual nail companies can ship polishes internationally for personal use. For those looking for a distributor, Nailbayo has recently launched in the European Union, United States, and Canada.
