Magnetic Cat Eye Gel Polish

Cat eye gel polish carries fine magnetic particles. Hold a magnet over the wet gel and the particles draw into a bright, moving line that shifts as the nail catches the light. It is one of the most requested finishes on a salon menu and one of the quickest to do, because the magnet does the work that a brush would otherwise have to.

The cat eye gels

• Cat Eye Gel Polish 15ml - six shades in the larger bottle, for a desk that does the effect often.
• Cat Eye Gel Polish 7.5ml - the same effect in a compact bottle, six shades, to try more colours for less.
• Laser Cat Eye 7.5ml - six light-shifting shades with a laser-like reflection that changes with the angle.
• Universal Mirror Cat Eye Gel - an ultra-reflective, mirror-like magnetic effect, applied over a cured colour of your choice.

How the effect is made

1. Prep the nail, then apply base coat and cure it.
2. Apply a thin coat of cat eye gel. Do not cure it yet.
3. Hold a cat eye magnet close to the surface for a few seconds, at the angle where you want the line.
4. Keep the magnet in place and cure under your lamp, so the line cannot drift.
5. Add a second coat for depth if needed, repeat the magnet step, then seal with a top coat.

You need a cat eye magnet, which is sold separately from the gel. The strength of the magnet and the angle you hold it at decide the shape of the line, so one bottle gives a different look depending on your hand. A dark base shows the effect most strongly; the mirror gel is built to go over any cured colour.

The effect sits on top of the base, so a base that lifts takes the finish with it. Our guide to why gel polish lifts covers the prep that prevents it. For how cat eye compares with glitter, platinum and blooming gels, read nail art gels compared.

Pairing cat eye with a reflective finish? See chrome powder and mirror top coats, the sparkle in glitter gel polish, and the full nail art range. A top coat seals the set; the top coat category has the options.