Rewinding ever so slightly, so i've had acrylic nails since around July/August time of which I get redone at least once a month by a close friend of mine/my family, who just knows exactly how I like my nails. Generally I always have gel nails on my acrylics as gels last so much better than your normal nail polish, as gels never chip and the colour stays vibrant and shiny so much longer in comparison to normal nail polish. Being a lover of gel nails, i've been trying out a couple of brands in the past few months that have not only just impressed me, but also the lovely lady that does my nails (so much so, she has since purchased products for her own clients) and if you too love your gel nails, then these brands may be well worth checking out!

The first brand of gel polishes that I was introduced to, through my nail lady was Bluesky who do an absolutely amazing array of gel colours and she absolutely swears by them for her clients, as they are really easy to work with, last really well on the nails and are really affordable! One of my favourite shades is Pink Champagne (£6.50), which is a beautiful glittery pink that I often have as an accent nail on the ring finger nails, and is probably my most worn shade from Bluesky. Another favourite of mine is Suede Seduction (£6.50), which is a gorgeous nude pink that works hand in hand with the glittery pink, and I often love having a nude colour on my nails instead of a loud/bright shade as it suits my very minimal/monochrome dressing style. Not only do Bluesky stock a large range of polishes, they also have a massive selection of kits and tools, meaning you can easily do your own gel nails at home, and even though I usually have my nails done for me, it's so handy to have your own lamp if you decide you want to change the colour!

Moving onto a brand that i've recently been introduced to, that my nail lady now also loves is Semilac who I recently worked with on my Christmas gift guides, and they ever so kindly sent me one of their  Starter Kit Semilac 3* (£70) which essentially has everything you need in order to do your own gel nails at home with a mini uv lamp, nail files, removers etc. Semilac have a lovely range of shades to choose from, as well art gels specifically designed for nail art and also a wide selection of kits and accessories. One of my favourite shades from Semilac is their UV Hybrid Gold Disco* (£8.75) which as the name would suggest is beautiful glittery gold shade, which i'm wearing on my nails above and I absolutely love it as i'm huge fan of glittery nails! With that i've paired it with the UV Hybrid Pink Rock* (£8.75) which is a lovely nude pink that has a bit more of a pop to my usual nudes, but these two shades again work hand in hand. I find that Semilac gels, although a little more pricey to last really well on the nails and the consistency of the gels are really nice to work with.

Lastly for my current gel nail loves is a more budget brand, that is major throwback for me as I used to use 2True makeup back when I was in high school a good eight or so years ago, and they've since expanded their range to include a selection of UV Gel Nails! Now, their colour range isn't as wide as your typical gel nail brand but they have your staple shades that you can't go wrong with from time to time, and i've been loving trying out some of their shades! As i've mentioned far too many times in this post, I can't beat a nude pink and i've been loving their UV Gel 'Blush' Polish* (£4) which is a lovely baby pink nude that i've been wearing as a more subtle colour for when i'm not feeling a glittery nail. I've also been loving switching up two bolder shades UV Gel 'Poppy' Polish* (£4) and UV Gel 'Berry' Polish* (£4) on my toes, and gel nails on your toes is a godsend as i'm sure i'm not the only one who hates painting their toe nails, but with gels the colour lasts so well and never gives the impression that you haven't painted your toe nails in months! For a more budget option, I would really recommend trying out 2True, especially if you're new to gel nails and don't want to break that bank.