The Le Mini Macaron Gel Manicure Kit - Milkshake is a cute and fun product that lives up to its promises. While it can only do one nail at a time, it's not a major inconvenience as you can paint another nail while one is drying. The LED device is lightweight, but it may not stay still on a table or floor. However, it works well and can cure even a thick layer of gel in just 30 seconds, matching its light timer. Overall, this kit is effective, adorable, and a great option for at-home gel manicures.

Gel Manicure Kit - Milkshake

Esthetician

Beauty Educator

Expert

Since becoming an esthetician, the only nail care I've done is keeping my nails short and my ever-growing cuticles at bay. I rarely wear nail polish when performing facials and treatments. And sometimes, I do miss having glamorous nails. I had acrylics back in the day. I don't miss the financial cost and it's become more expensive. And my nails were trashed when I removed the acrylic. Gels are now the norm. The polish is “set” by curing under a UV lamp. Hello?!&nbsp; UV rays are dangerous even for a limited time and that adds up with the number of gel manicures you get. Le Mini Macaron Gel Manicure Kit creator Christina Kao has done us all a great favor. She's created an at-home gel kit without the dangers of UV rays. Her kit contains a “Macaron” LED light to set the gel polish. This is genius nail care and self-care. Avoid the cost, the UV threat, and the crowded nail shops and give yourself a professional treatment. I would have preferred any other color than “milkshake”, a stark white color reminiscent of liquid paper to review, but this is a fantastic kit. Easy-to-follow instructions, your own LED light. The mini macaron light even adjusts to do your toenails!&nbsp; I'll be ordering more colors.&nbsp; This gel manicure looked amazing for two-plus weeks.

Brand Ambassador

Other Specialized Beauty Professional

Let’s Talk Shop on Le Mini Macaron Gel Manicure Kit - Milkshake…I have been a nail technician for over two decades, so I tested out this adorable kit with a keen understanding of the process. There is a lot I love about it, and some that I don’t and we’re going to dive into both.Let’s start with what I love: -It’s adorable, obviously! What a wonderful kit for brightening your day with a little at home spa time!-The wraps for gel removal are genius! As I mentioned, I am a nail tech but my husband spent years as a packaging engineer. I had to show these wraps off to him and he found the design so very satisfying! -It’s lovely that a cutlice pusher &amp; file is included.-Love the base, color, and top coat all-in-one design.-With time, this could save most users a ton of money! This doesn’t apply to me because I do my own nails in salon but for those who are paying to have gel manicures, this could put a ton of money back in your pocket! Now let’s dive into what I do not love:-Curing one finger at a time. Yikes…that takes some patience. But hey, still faster than driving to the nail salon, waiting on your appointment, and then driving home! So if you can think about it that way you can get through it. It just feels soooo inefficient but it is due to the base, color, and top coat being combined. They separate quickly if they sit on the nail too long.-I had a very hard time achieving a smooth coat without any brush lines. I tried 3 coats on one of my hands in the hopes that one more coat could achieve better coverage but it did not. -After 2 days I began to experience chipping. I took a photo for this review on Day 4 since my most recent application so your an see. I am admittedly hard on my nails, so someone who treats them a little more like jewels than tools will be just fine. The pointer finger of both hands experienced chipping toward the ends. In fairness, I do experience some chipping even with salon quality gel nails, although not usually as much or as fast. All in all, this is an adorable and extremely user friendly setup so if you can remember there is a good reason for curing each nail immediately &amp; individually, and treat them gently (or be prepared to make repairs as needed) then you can get a great value out of this kit!

Cosmetologist- Hair Focus

When it comes to cute gadgets, I’m quick to snap them up. The LED light in the le mini macaron kit is adorable, but that’s where my love affair ended. I decided to see how this set would work for an at-home pedicure, and it reminded me of all the reasons I don’t paint my own toe nails. To be clear upfront, the kit works just fine. I’m just too impatient to do this kind of process myself.Biggest Positive: The LED works like a champ. I was stunned that it could really activate and set the polish so quickly, even on the second coat.Biggest Drawback: The LED comes with a very short USB cord, so if you want to do your toenails, you’ll need to find a creative place to plug it in. I ended up plugging the LED cord into the built-in USB port on our living room lamp, but I had to hold the macaron unit down by placing a rock on it to keep it stable. I also had to use a small step stool to get my foot close enough to the LED. The process frustrated me, but once I got everything rigged up, it wasn’t difficult to paint/cure each individual nail. You just need patience, which I clearly lack.Closing Thoughts: The LED component definitely works better for fingernails than toenails, but I just don’t have enough patience or the inclination to rig everything up properly to do this again. &nbsp;