How to Do Your Own Gel Nails at Home and Everything You Need (2025)

Knowing how to do your own gel nails at home is such a blessing, both in time savings and money savings.

Don’t get me wrong, I love a relaxing trip to the nail salon. But let’s face it, sometimes it seems more like a hassle and chore to fit it into my busy schedule. And on top of that, it can really get expensive if you want to maintain them properly.

Doing your own gel nails at home allows you flexibility in scheduling as well as the ability to save a considerable amount of money.

Just read the reviews of the Beetles Gel Nails Kits. They are amazing.

This Post is all about how to do your own gel nails at home and everything you need.

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Steps for how to do your own gel nails at home

Step 1 Trim and File your Nails

Trim your nails so that they are all at the same length. Next file them to the shape you prefer. Be sure you don’t leave any rough areas.

Step 2 Cuticle Removal

I like to use a cuticle cream or oil and let it sit for a few minutes and then use an orange stick to push the cuticles back.

This is one of the most important steps in achieving a salon-quality gel manicure. It’s so incredibly simple that it can be tempting to skip it. But DON’T. Skipping this step can cause your polish to lift from the back of your nail as it grows out.

You can also trim your cuticles to completely remove them. I don’t typically do this because pushing them back works fine for me. But if you want to clip them then you will also need a cuticle trimmer.

Step 3 Buff Your Nails

Use the 4 Way Nail Buffer to buff your nails until they are very smooth.

Step 4 Clean Your Nails

Depending on how dirty your nails are, you are going to want to make sure they are very clean. If they are just dusty from the buffing and filing, you can just brush them off with a brush. If they are dirtier then you can use water to clean them. Just make sure that your nails are completely dry before you begin painting, otherwise the polish will peel off.

Step 5 Apply Gel Base Coat

Beetles Gel Base and Top coat How to Do Your Own Gel Nails at Home — Beetles Gel Base and Topcoat

Step 6 Cure with UV Light

Cure under a UV Light for 90 Seconds.

UV Lamp for Gel Nails How to Do Your Own Gel Nails at Home — UV Lamp for Gel Nails

7 Add Color Gel and Cure

Choose your favorite Beetles gel polish color and paint one coat, then cure for 120 seconds. You can add a second coat if you want more coverage or a darker color. Just be sure to cure under the UV light after each additional coat. Beetles has so many colorful kits. It’s difficult to choose just one.

Beetles Pink Confetti Gel Polish Kit How to Do Your Own Gel Nails at Home — Beetles Pink Confetti Gel Polish Kit

Beetles Mermaid Gel Colors How to Do Your Own Gel Nails at Home — Mermaid Gel Colors

Beetles fall Nail Colors How to Do Your Own Gel Nails at Home — fall Nail Colors

Step 8 Apply Top Coat How to Do Your Own Gel Nails at Home

Apply Beetles Top Coat and cure under the UV light for 120 seconds.

Beetles Gel Base and Top coat — Beetles Gel Base and Topcoat

Trouble Shooting

If you read the reviews of the Beetles Gel Nail Polish, you will see that they are glowing. The main complaint is that the polish peels off. I have encountered this issue as well and I can tell you that happens because your nails were not COMPLETELY DRY when you added the base coat. So please make sure that they are COMPLETELY DRY and you should not have any issues. I have had my nails last beyond 3 weeks using Beetles Gel Polish and I know you can too.

Nail Art

Even if you aren’t an artist, you can still add a few embellishments to your nails. This nail art tool kit makes it super easy to add simple dots and lines. Even the smallest embellishments make your at-home manicure look salon-quality.

Knowing how to do your own Gel Nails at home is such an asset. Whether you do your own nails at home consistently or just during the busy times when you can’t make it to the nail salon, having the ability to do them yourself at home alleviates so much stress. And not to mention saves you money

Even if you just alternated between the salon and doing them yourself at home, think of the money you could save. I’m sure you can think of plenty of other things you could spend that money on. Or maybe put it in a savings account and save up for something special.

Again, I encourage you to read the reviews of the Beetles Gel Polish. They are glowing.