Structural overlay
A thin layer of builder gel over your own nail, shaped to carry the strain where nails usually bend and break — so they can grow, and stay grown.
Book an overlayThe appointment
What happens at the chair
An overlay is built, not painted. This is the order it happens in.
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A look at your nails
How thin or flexible they are, where they tend to break, and how long you want them. That decides how much structure each nail needs.
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Shaping and cuticle care
The free edge is filed to shape and the cuticle area cleared, exactly as for any manicure.
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Preparation
The nail surface is cleaned and dehydrated so the gel bonds properly. With a harder product on top, careful preparation matters even more.
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Building the apex
Builder gel is laid on and allowed to level, forming a gentle arch over the stress point, then cured. Thin at the edges, strongest where it needs to be.
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Refining and finish
The shape is refined, then left sheer, finished in gel colour, or given a finishing touch.
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Refills, not restarts
At your next visit the new growth is filled in and the balance restored, rather than taking everything off and starting again.
Finishes
How to wear it
The structure is the same underneath; what goes on top is up to you. Pricing for each is on Mindbody.
Sheer and natural
A clear or softly tinted overlay that looks like your own nails at their healthiest. The easiest to grow out between visits.
With gel colour
Any gel colour over the top, with the strength of the overlay underneath. Good for nails that chip through gel polish alone.
With finishing touches
French, chrome or hand-painted details over the overlay — the same finishing touches as on any manicure.
Questions
Structural overlay questions, answered
Is a structural overlay the same as BIAB?
The same idea. BIAB is the name of the product that popularised builder gel over natural nails, and the name stuck. Different brands, one technique.
Will it make my nails grow?
Nothing makes nails grow faster. What an overlay does is stop them breaking, so the growth you already have stays — which, for nails that snap at the fingertip, looks like a lot more growth.
How often does it need refilling?
Every three to four weeks for most people. Past that the growth shifts the arch forward, and the nail is more likely to catch.
Can I take it off at home?
Builder gel is harder than gel polish and some formulas are made to be filed rather than soaked, so it is best removed at the chair. Never peel it off.
Is it bad for my nails?
Not when it is applied and removed properly. Damage comes from peeling or over-filing, not from the overlay itself.
Also at the studio
Manicure
Shaping, cuticle care and a finish chosen for how you use your hands — classic polish, gel, or a structural overlay that strengthens a thin or bendy nail.